Board of Directors

Ira Akselrad joined The Johnson Company, Inc. (the private investment company of the Johnson family), in 2006 as Executive Vice President and General Counsel. In 2008 he became President of the company.

Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Akselrad was an attorney for 22 years at the New York law firm, Proskauer Rose LLP. He became Partner in 1990, and in 1999, was elected to serve on the firm’s Management Committee. As Partner, his practice was principally devoted to federal income tax law, and he was involved with the firm’s sports and real estate practices. In this role, Mr. Akselrad advised many major real estate companies and sports leagues on structuring acquisitions and dispositions. His sports clients included the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League, as well as a number of other National Football League and Major League Baseball clubs.

In 1999 Robert Wood Johnson IV retained Ira to represent him in acquiring the New York Jets. Following this successful acquisition, Mr. Akselrad was instrumental in securing a new stadium as well as advising on the family’s other investment holdings.

Mr. Akselrad and his wife Susan reside in New Jersey, and have two grown children; his daughter Cara lives in New York, and his son Mitchell resides in California.

Jim Andrew is Executive Vice President, Chief Sustainability Officer for PepsiCo. PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated $79 billion in net revenue in 2021, driven by a complementary beverage and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lays, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and SodaStream. PepsiCo’s product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

Mr. Andrew joined PepsiCo in 2016 and currently leads pep+, PepsiCo’s holistic transformation agenda with sustainability at the center, including the strategic framework, governance, and integrated plans and goals for all of PepsiCo. He also ensures that sustainability is woven into the operating plans of all Business Units. Prior to this role, he held a variety of operating and functional leadership roles in the company including global head of Strategy and leader of our Beyond the Bottle businesses.

Previously, Mr. Andrew served as EVP and chief strategy and innovation officer for Royal Philips N.V based in Amsterdam where he played a central role in the transformation of Philips from a conglomerate to a focused and high-performing health tech company. He had leadership accountability for all elements of strategy and innovation, as well as sustainability and the company’s digital transformation. Mr. Andrew also served as the chief administrative officer of Sears Holdings Corporation.

Mr. Andrew started his career at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), leaving as a senior partner after a distinguished 25-year career. At BCG, he established and led the firm’s Innovation practice for almost a decade, and was lead author of the highly-acclaimed book Payback: Reaping the Rewards of Innovation. He opened the firm’s offices in Mumbai India and Singapore.

Mr. Andrew earned his Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from the University of Illinois and his MBA from the Harvard Graduate School of Business.

Mr. Andrew is based in Purchase, N.Y.

Bishop Rudy V. Carlton, a gift to the body of Christ and a spirit-filled man who has been called and chosen of God to reach this generation as an awesome preacher, teacher, intercessor, and prophet.

Recognizing his calling at a young age, Bishop Carlton began preaching the Gospel, April 10, 1988 and has been pastoring since August 6, 1989. He is currently celebrating 31 years of uncompromised preaching, relevant teaching, and relentless worship. In 2002, while following the example of Jesus Christ and being led of the Holy Spirit, Bishop Carlton organized and is the founding visionary of the Jehovah-Jireh Praise & Worship Church Center located in the city of Newark, New Jersey. “JJPWCC” as it is affectionately called, is an emerging community of believers who like their leader are committed to serving the Lord Jesus Christ and following the commission in Mark 16:15, which is to go and preach the gospel to every creature and stand with all baptized believers declaring the Word of God, with high praise and worship to seek and save the lost.

In addition to his full-time Ministry responsibilities, Bishop Carlton was elevated to serve as the State Overseer of New Jersey May 2010 for the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship International, under the dynamic leadership of Bishop Paul S. Morton, Apostolic Father and Founder. In October 2011, Bishop was appointed to serve as First Assistant to Bishop Kenneth L. Robinson, the Regional Bishop of the Northeast Central Region. March 2012, Bishop Carlton was affirmed by Bishop Paul S. Morton and the Council of Bishops for Sacred Consecration to the Office of Bishop in the Lord’s Church on Tuesday, June 26, 2012. January 2015, Bishop Carlton was appointed to serves as Coordinator for the Newark West Ward Clergy Alliance under the auspicious of the Honorable Mayor Ras J. Baraka through the newly formed Clergy Affairs and Inter-Faith Alliance Division. January 2017, Senator Ronald Rice appointed Bishop Carlton to serve as the West Ward Community Liaison for the West Ward Community Coalition Steering Committee.

Bishop Carlton exemplifies Christ’s love for the church through his sacred marriage to the Elect Lady of God, Linda L. Carlton, which they are the parents of one daughter, two sons, a son-inlaw, two daughters-in-law, fourteen wonderful grandchildren, four great-granddaughters, two great-grandsons, three god-daughters and one god-son.

Dr. Andrew Chan is Senior Vice President of Research-Biology at Genentech, Inc where he has overseen biological research in oncology, immunology, regenerative medicine, neuroscience and infectious diseases for over the past decade. At Genentech, he has responsibilities spanning target discovery through Phase 2 clinical proof-of-concept studies.

Chan is an accomplished leader in target discovery, drug discovery and drug development.

He has authored key reviews for academic and biopharmaceutical communities integrating lessons learned about disease pathogenesis and mechanisms of therapy. He is also a leader in advocating and implementing precision medicine strategies through biomarker discovery and development. Chan’s laboratory focuses on how our immune systems protect us against foreign pathogens and yet cause autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. He has published over 100 research papers, review articles and books. Chan himself is a co-inventor of ocrelizumab (Ocrevus™), the first B-cell directed therapy approved by the FDA for treatment of both relapsing and progressive forms of multiple sclerosis. His translational work has revealed important mechanistic insights by which B-cell directed therapies impact human health and diseases.

Chan plays key roles to bridge academia, patient advocacy and industry. He presently serves as Chair of the Executive Advisory Board of the Chemistry Life Processes Institute (Northwestern University), member of the National Council at Washington University School of Medicine, and member of the Biopharma Advisory Board at Washington University. He is chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Lupus Research Alliance and a member of the National Medical and Scientific Advisory Board of the Arthritis Foundation He is also Chair of the Workforce Development Committee of the Arthritis Foundation addressing shortages in rheumatology workforce in the United States and improving our rheumatology healthcare provider pipeline.

Chan received his BA and MS degrees in Chemistry at Northwestern University, MD and PhD degrees from Washington University (WUSM) and completed his internal medicine residency at Barnes Hospital and rheumatology fellowship at UCSF. He joined the faculty at WUSM in the Departments of Medicine and Pathology and was a member of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. He is an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation (1999), Henry Kunkel Society (2005), American Association of Physicians (2009), and an honorary member of the Scandinavian Society of Immunology (2023). He is Distinguished Fellow of the American Association of Immunologists (2025) and recipient of the Washington University Founder Award (2023), UCSF Alumni Discovery Award (2023), Lee Howley Sr Prize in arthritis research (2021), Northwestern Alumni Medal (2020), Washington University School of Medicine Alumni Achievement Award (2019), American Federation for Aging Research Chairman’s Award of Distinction (2013), Guin Warnock Award from the Arthritis Foundation (2012), Washington University Special Recognition Award for Mentoring Graduate Students (2000) and a Pew Scholar (1995). He is also presently Adjunct Associate Professor of Medicine at UCSF.

Co-host of the Craig Carton Show, Fox Sport 1 

Willie Colon, born and raised in the Bronx, attended Hofstra University in Long Island, NY, where he was a decorated member of the Pride earning Atlantic Ten All-Conference, First Team All-Conference and First Team Walter Camp All-American honors while at the school. In 2006, the Pittsburgh Steelers selected Colon in the fourth round NFL Draft with the 131st overall pick. Over the course of his seven seasons in Pittsburgh, Colon made two Super Bowl appearances, winning in 2008, and was awarded the Ed Block Courage Award in 2012. In 2013, Colon returned home to New York to continue his professional football career with the New York Jets. He played his final three seasons with the team before officially retiring in 2017.

Over the last four years, Willie has Chaired the Willie Colon Golf Outing crafted by Tito’s Handmade Vodka, which benefits the Lupus Research Alliance. This incredible event is in honor of his mother (Jean Davis), who passed away due to complications from lupus. The event brings together the current and former NFL players (each foursome gets a current or former player for a round of golf), New York area media, as well as a variety financial and banking institutions. Since its inception, the Outing has raised over $500,000 for vital lupus research and has created incredible awareness—via the live on-site SiriusXM Radio broadcast from the throughout the day—for lupus and the Lupus Research Alliance.

Jennifer A. Dakin is a Managing Director in the Hospitality Finance Group for the Commercial Real Estate Group at Wells Fargo.  She is experienced in all assets classes but is actively involved in sourcing, originating, developing and negotiating debt solutions for hospitality focused clients. Wells Fargo is a leading capital provider in this industry and Jennifer was a founding member of the Hospitality Finance Group which was officially formed in 2008.

Jennifer has nearly 30 years of multifaceted commercial lending experience, of which the last 19 has been at Wells Fargo. She has vast knowledge of structuring and negotiating corporate credit facilities as well as complex project level financing and earned her B.A. from Trinity College (Hartford, CT) and M.B.A from Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland, OH).

Jennifer’s professional credentials are grounded in the finance community and she has worked with a wide range of private and public real estate companies located across the United States and Canada. She is well versed with the bank’s integrated platform which involves products and services such as institutional sales, investment banking, CMBS/Agency, loan sales and syndication, interest rate risk management, C-Pace financing, treasury management and wealth management.

Jennifer was born and raised in Cleveland, OH but has been a Washington, DC resident for over 20 years.  She is an active Board Member for the Lupus Research Alliance and participates in various philanthropic events. She frequents the Eastern Shore of MD and enjoys boating, cycling, cooking and entertaining.

Jennie DeScherer is an active Board member of the Lupus Research Alliance having helped lead the S.L.E. Lupus Foundation (S.L.E.) and the Lupus Research Institute (LRI) since the early years of both organizations. Ms. DeScherer remains very involved in developing virtually all fundraising events and program initiatives at the Lupus Research Alliance.

In addition to her work on behalf of the lupus community, Ms. DeScherer serves on the Board of the Spoleto Festival USA. She is also an active participant in and patron of the arts and other cultural institutions.

Ms. DeScherer and her husband Richard have two children, Christopher (Amanda Honeycutt) and Katie DeSantis and five grandchildren.

Katey Driscoll has served as a trustee of the Children’s Hospital Colorado Foundation since 2007. She is a member of the Health System Investment Committee and has also served on the Philanthropy Council and the Annual Gifts Council. More recently, she has advocated for the Pediatric Mental Health Institute at Children’s Hospital Colorado.

Before moving to Denver, Katey worked in institutional fixed income sales at Lehman Brothers and NatWest Markets in London. She moved to Denver from London in 1999.

Katey has an MA in Modern History from the University of Oxford and an MS in Finance from London Business School.

Moti is Founder, CEO and Design Director of Lugano Diamonds.  Moti is married to Idit who is the EVP and COO of Lugano Diamonds.  Idit has lupus.  The Ferders hold duo citizenship: Israel and U.S.  Moti served four years in the Israeli Army as Captain in a combat unit. He was educated as a gemologist and master diamond cutter.

The couple has two college-age children.

Moti has unparalleled insight into the diamond and jewelry industries. Lugano Diamonds was established in Israel as diamond cutters and opened its first retail location in Newport Beach, CA in 2005. The company has additional locations in Laguna Beach, CA, Aspen, CO and Wellington, FL.

Traveling extensively, Moti oversees Lugano Diamonds’ operations around the world, studying the global markets to pursue the finest resources and to develop effective branding campaigns. He is the primary liaison between Lugano Diamonds and international gemological laboratories, and is the company’s leading authority on evaluating inventory, grading stones, appraising jewelry and finding the correct marketing channel for each piece.

Moti is deeply involved in the philanthropic community. He serves as a board member for the American Film Festival, the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Orange County, the Beckstrand Cancer Foundation, and the Lupus Research Alliance.

Lugano Diamonds supports a variety of nonprofit causes, organizations and events including the Mission Hospital Foundation. CASA for Children, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, United Way, and The Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, among many others.

Anna Fisch has lived with lupus since she was 28 and has been a loyal supporter of the Lupus Research Alliance since 1993. She started with the Young Leaders group, co-chairing special events. Anna is particularly involved with making the annual Lupus Gala and Luminary Luncheon fundraising successes. She is also active in LRA’s advocacy initiatives for lupus research, serving as a consumer review for the Lupus Research Program at the U.S. Department of Defense.

Anna is a devoted philanthropist supporting many worthwhile causes. She currently serves as a Vice Chair of the UJA New York’s Manhattan Woman’s Leadership Department and sits on the organization’s Crisis to Stability funding allocations committee.

A Manhattan resident, Anna is also an entrepreneurial investor in several NYC enterprises including Broadway theatre productions and restaurants.

She received her bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Art History from Barnard College and a Master of Science degree in Nonprofit Management from the Milano School of Management and Urban Policy at The New School.

Joe Germanotta is a business person, philanthropist and restauranteur. The father of Natali, a noted fashion designer based in New York and Los Angeles, and Stefani Germanotta, the Golden Globe and six-time Grammy Award-winning global superstar Lady Gaga, Mr. Germanotta is actively involved in several entertainment companies and hospitality ventures.

Previously an Internet and telecommunications entrepreneur, Mr. Germanotta has consulted for several Internet startups and founded companies in emerging markets that provided such services as prepaid telephone calling and hotel WiFi systems.

Mr. Germanotta is currently an investor in restaurants, real estate, entertainment and technology companies. He is the managing member of Joanne Trattoria, the Germanotta family-owned restaurant located on Manhattan’s Upper West Side.

He is Board Member and Treasurer of Born This Way Foundation, a not-for-profit organization founded in 2011 by Lady Gaga and her mother Cynthia to promote kindness, tolerance and bravery among young people. A director of New York City’s Columbus Day Parade, Mr. Germanotta is a graduate of the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University. He is a passionate Spartan basketball fan.

Joe and Cynthia Germanotta reside in New York City.

Xavier V. Goss, CFA brings over two decades of leadership, business acumen, and experience in finance to the Lupus Research Alliance Board. Currently, Mr. Goss is a Portfolio Manager and Partner at one of the world’s largest and oldest financial services companies, Capital Group. There he oversees diversified portfolios of fixed income securities, conducts financial analysis alongside investment analysts, and collaborates on designing new investment vehicles.

Mr. Goss joined Capital Group after 17 years in positions of increasing responsibility at the investment company, Blackrock. Most recently, he served as the lead portfolio manager for the Federal Reserve Bank’s commercial mortgage purchase program.

Mr. Goss’ commitment to excellence and teamwork is evidenced by his exemplary academic and athletic achievements. He graduated from Harvard University with a degree in Economics while excelling as a player on the school’s varsity football and track teams.

His 10+ year dedication to the Lupus Research Alliance stems from his love for his mother who suffered from the disease throughout his childhood before her passing. He continues to be inspired by her positive spirit and relentless drive as a highly involved parent while powering through the many challenging physical limitations posed by lupus. As a Board member, Mr. Goss is honored to help further the cause to find a cure for lupus and help the many people suffering from the illness today.

David Kies is Senior Counsel to Sullivan & Cromwell LLP where he was a partner for more than 30 years. He specializes in general corporate law with a concentration in mergers and acquisitions and securities. David was head of the firm’s London Office in the early 1990s.

David graduated from Haverford College and received his law degree from the New York University School of Law where he was a Root-Tilden Scholar. Later he served on the Board of Haverford College.

Mr. Kies was also a director of Imclone Systems for seven years and became its Chairman for the last two years.

David’s oldest daughter, Laura, has had lupus for more than 30 years. He also has four other children and five grandchildren. David and his wife Kathryn live in Mamaroneck, New York where he is an active trustee of several not-for-profit organizations.

Gary Koretzky, MD, PhD obtained his M.D. and Ph.D. (Immunology) degrees at the University of Pennsylvania (’84). He then pursued clinical training in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology at the University of California at San Francisco.

He went on to re-enter the laboratory at UCSF as a post-doctoral fellow, examining the molecular events associated with immune cell activation. Dr. Koretzky later moved to the University of Iowa in 1991, continuing his research examining the biochemistry and molecular biology of signal transduction in hematopoietic cells. In 1999, Dr. Koretzky joined the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and as Director of the Signal Transduction Program of the Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute. At Penn, he was an Associate Director of the M.D./Ph.D. program, served as Chief of the Division of Rheumatology from 2006-2008, and as the Francis C. Wood Professor of Medicine and Vice Chair for Research and Chief Scientific Officer in the Penn Department 2008-2013. In 2013, Dr. Koretzky moved to Weill Cornell Medical College as the Vice Dean for Research and the Dean of Weill Cornell Graduate School.

In 2017, Dr. Koretzky moved to Ithaca as Vice Provost for Academic Integration to build research programs between the Ithaca and New York City campuses and as the inaugural Director of the Cornell Center for Immunology. He currently serves as Interim Vice Provost for Research Cornell University; Professor Emeritus, Departments of Medicine Weill Cornell Medicine; and Professor Emeritus of Microbiology and Immunology, Cornell University. 

Veronica Vargas Lupo is a Managing Director at Consello. She is renowned for spearheading business transformations, partnering with C-level executives, and digitally transforming business capabilities and operational processes based on smarter, data-driven decision making.

Prior to joining Consello, Veronica spent 12 years at IBM serving in various leadership roles throughout the organization, including Associate Partner in IBM Consulting, Strategy & Transformation and Operations leader. Before joining IBM, Veronica worked as a buyer and planner for Dillard’s department stores.

Veronica has lived with lupus for 18 years. She has been an active member of the Lupus Research Alliance Young Leadership Board since its inception in 2010 and was honored in 2018 at our annual Handbag Luncheon as our “Woman of Achievement’. Veronica is originally from Venezuela, where she grew up until moving to the U.S. as a teenager. Lupus is dear to her not only because she has lived with it but also because her mother has lupus.

Veronica is married to Michael Lupo and together they have two young boys and live in Manhattan.

Joseph Mauriello retired in 2006 as Deputy Chairman & COO of KPMG, after 40 years of serving in various leadership positions.

He serves on the boards of several institutions, including XL Capital Ltd, Fidelity Funds, Arcadia Resources, the School of Risk Management, Insurance and Actuarial Sciences (former College of Insurance) of Peter J. Tobin College of Business at St. John’s University, New York, and the Board of Trustees of the St. Barnabas Medical Center, Livingston, NJ.

A graduate of St. John’s University (BA, MBA), Mr. Mauriello is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and a Certified Public Accountant in New York. Joe lives in Naples, Florida, and Mendham, New Jersey, with his wife Mary.

Nadeem Meghji is a Senior Managing Director in the Real Estate Group and Head of Real Estate Americas, based in New York. Mr. Meghji has played a leadership role in Blackstone’s investment activity in the US, including the acquisition of Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village, Biomed Realty Trust, and Brixmor Property Group.

Before joining Blackstone in 2008, Mr. Meghji worked as an associate at the Lionstone Group.

Mr. Meghji received a BS in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University, where he graduated summa cum laude. He received a JD from Harvard Law School and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

William J. Mulvihill has spent more than 40 years advocating for the more than 53 million and 300,000 children affected by  arthritis and related diseases. As a past National Chair of the Arthritis Foundation, Mr. Mulvihill was responsible for leading nearly 600,000 volunteers and staff nationwide.

He retired from the University of Cincinnati in 2016 after over 44 years of service holding a number of leadership positions in Alumni Relations; Student Affairs; Intercollegiate Athletics and ultimately serving as   the Executive Vice President at the University of Cincinnati Foundation, where managed Proudly Cincinnati, the University’s $1 billion dollar campaign. Upon retirement he started the Mulvihill Advisory Group to provide counsel and guidance to non-profit organizations.

Mr. Mulvihill received a bachelor’s degree in business from the University of Cincinnati and a master’s degree in education from Ohio University.

Mr. Mulvihill is currently a member of the National Institute of Musculoskeletal and Skin Disease (NIAMS) Council and a Trustee Emeritus at the Arthritis Foundation. He is also a past member of the Board of Directors of the American Juvenile Arthritis Organization and St. Xavier High School.

Nidhi Patel originally got involved over 15 years ago through our Young Leaders Board (YLB). Nidhi was diagnosed with Lupus in 2007 and was heavily involved in fundraising and bringing people to the YLB’s annual event. She was also involved in the Lupus walk. She stepped away after she started her family and has since returned in 2020, after reconnecting through her colleague at work and participating in the Annual golf outing. Since then, Nidhi has co-chaired the golf event and has not only raised significant funds, but also brought many people to the cause.

Nidhi is a Director, and the lead Portfolio Manager for US CLO Investments team within BlackRock’s Fundamental Fixed Income team. She has been at BlackRock for 7 years. Prior to joining BlackRock, she was an Associate Portfolio Manager at MKP Capital primarily responsible for investments in securitized assets including ABS, RMBS, CLO. Ms. Patel earned her BS in Accounting from Binghamton University in 2001 and is a CPA in the State of New York.

Lisa Hertz Robinson has nearly three decades of experience in non-profit development and communications. She is strongly committed to the Lupus Research Alliance as a person living with lupus for nearly 30 years and a mother of an adult daughter who also has lupus.

Ms. Robinson began her professional nonprofit career at the main pediatric training and research hospital of Harvard Medical School, Boston Children’s Hospital, where she rose to serve as Development and Public Affairs Officer.  It was there that she was first diagnosed with lupus, and she deeply appreciates the excellent medical care she received.

With her family’s move to Denver, Ms. Robinson held the position of Public Relations Director at The Children’s Hospital Colorado before joining The Women’s Foundation of Colorado as Development Director.  She went on to join the Rose Community Foundation as Director of Community Relations and later Vice President of Philanthropic Services before retiring. However, she has maintained her active involvement with the Foundation as Chair and a member of the Board of Trustees completing a ten-year tenure at the end of 2025.

Ms. Robinson has brought her leadership in philanthropy to more than 15 organizations, as a board member and chair of many events and committees. She is proud to offer her personal perspective on lupus as a member of the Patient Engagement Working Group of Lupus Therapeutics, the clinical research affiliate of the LRA. In her additional role as a Board member of the LRA, Ms. Robinson has brought her expertise, passion, and belief in the power of research to transform lives.

Dr. Seder is the Chief of the Cellular Immunology Section in the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institute of Health (NIH). Formerly, Dr. Seder was Chief of the Clinical Immunology Section in the Laboratory of Clinical Investigation at the NIH. Dr. Seder’s work focuses on the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which vaccines mediate protective antibody or T cell immunity against HIV, Malaria, Tuberculosis and  personalized therapeutic cancer vaccines. Dr. Seder has advanced his scientific discoveries into clinical trials for several of these diseases. Dr. Seder received his BA from Johns Hopkins University, his MD from Tufts University, and his residency in internal medicine at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center.  He received postdoctoral training in the Laboratory of Immunology at the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) under Dr. William Paul . Dr. Seder has served on numerous scientific advisory boards as well as the Board of Trustees for Johns Hopkins University and the Hirshhorn Museum.

Dr. Seder is serving in a personal capacity; the government neither sanctions nor endorses his service.

Daniel J Wallace MD, FACP, MACR is a board-certified internist and rheumatologist. A Clinical Professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, he is the Associate Director of the Rheumatology Fellowship Program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center where he also serves on the Board of Governors.

Dr. Wallace has authored nearly 450 peer reviewed manuscripts, 30 book chapters, eight textbooks (on lupus, osteoarthritis, Sjogren’s syndrome and fibromyalgia), and his practice includes caring for 2,000 lupus patients, the largest lupus cohort in the United States. The Wallace Rheumatic Studies Center conducts numerous clinical trials, biomarker, genetic and observational studies, and have three current National Institutes of Health and two Department of Defense grants. Dr Wallace serves as member of the Board of Directors of the Lupus Research Alliance, was past chair of the Lupus Foundation of America, and has served on the Board of Directors of the United Scleroderma Foundation and the Medical Advisory Board of the Sjogren’s Syndrome Foundation. He has been Chief of Rheumatology at the City of Hope and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and Chairman of the Research and Education Foundation of the American College of Rheumatology. He is a current member of the Board of Directors of the Lupus Research Alliance.

Dr. Wallace is the recipient of the Lupus Foundation of America Humanitarian Award, Achievement Award of the Lupus Research Institute, Spirit Award of the Scleroderma Foundation, the Jane Wyman Humanitarian Award from the Arthritis Foundation, and the Healthcare Professional Leadership Award from the Sjogren’s Syndrome Foundation.

Dr. Wallace is the author of eight medical textbooks, including the last six editions of Dubois’ Lupus Erythematosus, All About Fibromyalgia, The Lupus Book, All About Osteoarthritis, The New Sjogren’s Syndrome Handbook, and Fibromyalgia & Other Central Pain Syndromes. In addition, his work has appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine, Annals of Internal Medicine, the Lancet, Journal of Clinical Investigation, Journal of Immunology and Journal of the American Medical Association.

Dr. Wallace has been recognized as among the 200 best doctors in the nation by Town and Country Magazine, and among the best doctors in Los Angeles by Los Angeles Magazine, Best Doctors in America editions since 1994. His efforts have raised over $20 million for various rheumatic disease organizations, including an endowed Rheumatology Chair at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

Julius Williams is the Head of Municipal Trading & Senior Portfolio Manager at Invesco, an American independent investment management company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with branch offices in 20 countries.

Mr. Williams entered the industry in 2000. Prior to joining Invesco in 2010 when the firm combined with Van Kampen Investments, he was a portfolio manager and trader of municipal funds at Van Kampen Investments.  Mr. Williams had also served as vice president at Morgan Stanley from 2000-2010.

Julius co-chairs the Willie Colon Golf Outing for the Lupus Research Alliance.

Mr. Williams earned a BA degree in economics and sociology, and a master’s degree in educational psychology from the University of Virginia where he played college football.

Bill is the co-founder and Chairman of First Washington Realty, Inc., a privately held real estate investment and management firm which specializes in the ownership and operation of convenience and necessity retail real estate throughout the United States. He served as CEO of the company for 36 years until June of 2019. The company owns high-quality neighborhood and community shopping centers in 22 states and the District of Columbia comprised of over 20 million square feet and 4000 retailers. Prior to entering the real estate business, Bill served in the Executive Office of the President of the United States.

Bill currently serves on the Board of the Lupus Research Alliance as well as Lupus Therapeutics. He is on the Board of Headstrong Project, a nationwide organization that provides free mental health treatment for military members, veterans and their families, and Bill serves on the Board of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. He has served as a Board member of Washington Heart, the University of Maryland School of Public Affairs, the National Bank of Commerce, and the Corporate Advisory Board of the Johns Hopkins University Business School. Bill founded The Key Program, Inc, a New England based youth services agency that provides residential and non-residential services to at-risk youth and their families, and he served at Key’s Chairman for 25 years. Since inception, Key has provided services to over 250,000 young people and their families and William J. Wolfe Scholarships have been awarded to over 600 students attending over 40 colleges and universities. Bill has established the Wolfe Rheumatology Fund at UC San Diego to provide clinical care to people suffering with lupus. Bill has also established the Wolfe Family Presidential Endowed Chair in Life Sciences Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Rady Business School at UC San Diego, and the Wolfe Family Endowed Chair in Microbiome Research at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego. Bill received his bachelor’s degree from Clark University and his master’s degree from Harvard University.

Spencer Zwick is a Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Solamere Capital LLC. A resident of Wellesley, MA, he co-founded the firm in 2008. He has been involved with building the firms network in both the public and private sectors for over a decade.

Previously, Mr. Zwick served as the Finance Chairman of both the 2008 and 2012 “Romney for President” campaigns. He was the Deputy Chief of Staff and Chief Operating Officer to the Office of Governor Romney. In that position, he oversaw all operational and financial activity of the Office of the Massachusetts Governor. Zwick also served as the executive liaison to five of the twelve cabinet agencies. Previously, he worked in the Executive Office of the Salt Lake City Olympic Organizing Committee for the Winter Games of 2002, where Spencer helped to erase a $379 million deficit. He currently serves as the Finance Chairman of Speaker Paul Ryan’s political organization, as well as a board member of the Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases.