Mayor and Township Council
Stephen Dalina, Mayor
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Mayor Stephen Dalina has served in that position since January 2021. Previously he served the community as Councilman At-Large since 2011. He moved to the third ward with his wife Susan and two children in 1998. Dalina is currently the Director for Rutgers University’s Institution Planning and Development - Business Services. He also serves as a part-time lecturer at the School of Communication at Rutgers. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Rider University and has a Master of Library and Information Science degree from Rutgers University.
Dalina formerly served as chairman of both the Monroe Township Zoning Board of Adjustment and the Recreation Advisory Board. He is a past member of the Monroe Township Baseball Association Executive Board, serving as League president in 2007 and 2008, the former president of the Rutgers Club from 2005 to 2010, and previously served as secretary, treasurer and president of the Northern New Jersey Chapter of the Association of Records Managers and Administrators. As a Council liaison, Dalina sat on: the Monroe Township Library Board, the Citizens Review Board as chairman, the Affordable Housing Commission as chairman and the Recreation Advisory Board.
Miriam Cohen, Council President - At Large
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The Monroe Township Council appointed Councilwoman Miriam Cohen to an open At-Large seat in March 2017. Cohen was elected into the seat eight months later and took her oath of office to serve out the unexpired two-year term in January 2018. She earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Adelphi University and went on to complete a master’s degree in community health nursing from Rutgers University. Her past titles include senior consultant for MIIX Healthcare Group, director of referrals at the Essex Valley Visiting Nurses Association, public health nursing supervisor at the Middlesex County Public Health Department and most recently, director of disaster planning for the New Jersey Primary Care Association.
Councilwoman Cohen is currently a registered nurse and an adjunct professor at The College of New Jersey. An avid tap dancer and grandmother to five, Cohen previously headed East Brunswick’s League of Women Voters, is a former member of the Monroe Township Affordable Housing Board and serves as president of the Whittingham Homeowner’s Association in Greenbriar at Whittingham. As a Council liaison, Cohen currently sits on: the Middlesex County Transportation Board and the Monroe Township Cultural Arts Commission and Youth Advisory Commission.
Terence Van Dzura, Council Vice President – At Large
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Terence “Terry” Van Dzura is a twenty-five year resident of Monroe Township. During this time, he was actively involved in coaching youth sports, including softball and basketball. His son and daughter graduated from Monroe Township High School and both recently graduated from college. Van Dzura has been a Monroe Township Committee Member for several years and is the current President of the Monroe Township Democratic Club.
Van Dzura has been a licensed New Jersey attorney since 1981. He is a former judicial law clerk and served as assistant Middlesex County prosecutor for three years.
Van Dzura has served as an arbitrator for the Middlesex County Superior Court and has also served as the municipal prosecutor for the Township of Edison and Carteret Borough. He is general counsel to a number of local homeowners associations.
Throughout his law career, Van Dzura has handled all aspects of personal injury claims and workers’ compensation matters. In addition to being a successful business and real estate attorney, he has vast experience with criminal jury trials and municipal court cases.
Following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Terry became a member of Trial Lawyers Care, which assisted 9/11 families on a pro bono basis.
Van Dzura presently serves as the Chairman of the Monroe Township Planning Board.
Van Dzura attended Woodbridge High School and is a 1978 graduate of Rutgers University. He earned his law degree from the New England Law in Boston and currently practices from his office in East Brunswick.
Michael A. Markel, Councilman Ward 1
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Councilman Markel was appointed by the Township Council on May 1, 2023, to fill the unexpired term left vacant by the passing of Councilwoman Elizabeth “Betty” Schneider. The councilman will serve until the November general election.
Markel received the unanimous support of the Township Council to serve in the seat.
Markel and his wife, Barbara, moved to the Rossmoor adult living community, after raising a family in Port Chester, NY. Despite being retired from 35 years as the owner of a retail business, Markel has no plans to sit still. He became president of the Rossmoor Democratic Club and then became chairman of the Monroe Democratic Organization. He also served on the Township’s planning board but stepped down because of his position on the Township Council.
As Council liaison, Markel will sit on the Commission on Aging, Human Relations Commission, Open Space Farmland Commission, and Americans with Disabilities Act Committee.
Rupa Siegel, Councilwoman Ward 2
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Councilwoman Rupa Siegel was born in Paterson and raised in Wayne, NJ. She graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in Economics and currently is working at a global pharmaceutical company.
Rupa and her husband moved to Monroe Township with their two sons in 2009 because of the vibrant community and excellent schools. Her older son is a 2020 graduate of Monroe Township High School and currently is attending college. Her younger son will be graduating from Monroe Township High School this year.
As a resident of Monroe, Rupa has been actively involved in the school community, holding officer positions in elementary and middle school PTAs/PTOs supporting the students and staff. For several years, she served as a member of the District Wellness Council, District Education Council, and hiring committees for Assistant Superintendent, supervisors, and principals. She has volunteered in recreational youth organizations such as Monroe Township Baseball Association and Monroe Travel Basketball. She is a member of the Monroe Township League of Women Voters and member of the India-US Forum of Monroe (IFM).
In November of 2018, Rupa was elected to the Monroe Township Board of Education. She participated on the Curriculum, Policy, Finance, Personnel, Negotiations committees, and served as Representative to the Delegate Assembly. In her years as a Board of Education member, Rupa was proud to work with school administration to bring focus back to the students and staff, hiring the first female Superintendent of Schools as our educational leader, and supporting curriculum enhancements to elevate the school experience for all students.
Charles Dipierro, Councilman Ward 3
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Councilman Charles Dipierro was sworn into office for his first term on the Monroe Township Council in January 2018. Dipierro is a lifelong and third-generation resident of Monroe and a product of the Township’s school system. After graduating from Monroe Township High School in 1979, Dipierro went on to attend Richard Stockton College in Galloway, earning a bachelor’s degree in business and accounting with a minor in computer science. He married his high school sweetheart, Beth, in 1984 and the pair settled in Monroe, where they raised their two children, Jonathan and Lauren.
Professionally, he has owned several local businesses that included landscaping, contracting and paving companies. Dipierro opened his own real estate company in Monroe in 1999. He previously served on Monroe’s Industrial Commission, which later would become the Economic Development Commission. In 2004, Dipierro was elected as a Commissioner for Fire District No. 1, where he’s served as Chairman for the past eight years. As a Council liaison, Dipierro currently sits on: the Middlesex County Housing and Community Development Board and the Monroe Township Shade Tree Commission, Citizen Review Board and the Americans with Disabilities Act Council.