CPDA Staff

Chemical Producers & Distributors Association Staff

President

Dr. Susan Ferenc

Susan A. Ferenc, DVM, Ph.D. joined the CPDA staff on March 23, 2006 as President-Elect and assumed the full responsibilities as President at the 32nd Annual Meeting on July 17, 2006 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Previously, as the Food Products Association’s Executive Vice President, she oversaw that organization’s technical, regulatory, and research functions and served as chief scientific spokesperson on a range of food science, food safety, security, and nutrition issues. She also served as chair of the Food and Agriculture Sector Coordinating Council, the public/private partnership coordinated by the federal government on national infrastructure security. Dr. Ferenc has served as Principal and Senior Consultant for SAFRISK, LC, where she coordinated and conducted risk assessments and economic analyses for the public and private sectors. She also has served as Vice President of Scientific and Regulatory Policy at the Grocery Manufacturers Association, where she coordinated the nutrition and international regulatory policy programs for the organization. She held a senior position with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Risk Assessment and Cost Benefit Analysis and served as Senior Scientist for the International Life Sciences Institute's Risk Science Institute. Dr. Ferenc received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Michigan State University and her Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from the University of Florida.

Director, Communications & Programs
Diane Schute
dschute@cpda.com

Diane Schute joined the Chemical Producers and Distributors Association in 1988. During her twenty-year tenure at CPDA, she has worked on a number of federal relations issues and she has been responsible for the association's communications activities aimed at advocating the interests of its membership before policy makers and industry stakeholders. Prior to joining CPDA, Ms. Schute was an assistant editor and reporter for McGraw-Hill Publications, Inc. in Washington, D.C. and staff writer for the National Treasury Employees Union. She graduated from Cornell University with a bachelor's degree in English.

Director, Legislative Affairs

John Boling

jboling@cpda.com

John Boling joined the staff as Director of Legislative Affairs in early June 2010. Most recently, John served as Director of Government Affairs at the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association where he built strong relationships with Members of Congress and their staff while effectively advocating for the interests of the construction aggregates industry. John's association experience also includes a stint at the Direct Marketing Association where he was Assistant Manager for Government Affairs. John is a seasoned veteran of Capitol Hill having worked as Legislative Director for Representative Bill Shuster from 2001 to 2003 where he was responsible for the overall management of the Congressman's legislative operations. In addition, John held various professional staff positions on the Hill beginning in the mid 1990's when he worked for then Congressman Tom Coburn (who now serves in the U.S. Senate) as well as former Representatives John Sweeney, Gil Gutknecht, and Dave Weldon. John holds a Bachelor of Science degree in International Relations, Public Administration and Political Analysis from the Minnesota State University at Mankato, Minnesota.

Director, Regulatory Affairs

Dr. Michael White

mwhite@cpda.com

Dr. White joined the CPDA staff on October 29, 2007 as the Director of Regulatory Affairs. Prior to joining CPDA, he practiced environmental law for 18 years as a Partner and Counsel at several law firms in Washington, DC, and was cited by Washingtonian magazine in 2004 as one of the top environmental lawyers in Washington. Before practicing law, Dr. White served as a Department Manager at an environmental consulting firm, where he managed multidisciplinary pesticide regulatory support contracts for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Pesticide Programs. As a research scientist for the State of Maryland and the USDA, he conducted environmental/agricultural research at the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center. Dr. White is also an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Maryland’s School of Engineering, where he teaches a course titled Environmental Law for Engineers & Scientists to graduate students. Dr. White received his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in agronomy from the University of Maryland and his J.D. degree from the Columbus School of Law at Catholic University.

Tara Ring

Administrative and Meeting Coordinator

tring@cpda.com

Tara Ring is Administrative and Meeting Coordinator at CPDA. Tara has over seven years of experience in office administration, meeting coordination and program support. Prior to joining the staff of CPDA, Tara worked at the Transportation Security Administration where she proved to be effective and adept in a fast-paced, demanding environment with a variety of responsibilities. Tara also held a long-term position with the Federal Communications Commission where she provided high-level administrative support for the Office of Media Relations.