Board of Directors and Governance

Dr. Paul is currently the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board for Karuna Pharmaceuticals and the Venture Partner at Third Rock Ventures. He was formerly the Chief Executive Officer of Voyager Therapeutics, the Founding Director of the Helen and Robert Appel Alzheimer’s Disease Research Institute and the Burton P. and Judith B. Resnick Distinguished Professor in Neurodegenerative Diseases, as well as a DeWitt Senior Scholar and Professor of Neuroscience (Brain and Mind Research Institute), Psychiatry and Pharmacology at Weill Cornell Medical College. Dr. Paul was also formerly the Executive Vice President of Science and Technology and President of the Lilly Research Laboratories (LRL) of Eli Lilly and Company, overseeing the development of several of Lilly’s largest products including Zyprexa® and Cymbalta®. Prior to assuming his position at Lilly and Weill Cornell Medical College, Dr. Paul served as Scientific Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH/NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland.

Dr. Paul is a member of various professional and honorary societies, including Phi Eta Sigma; Alpha Epsilon Delta; Sigma Xi; Phi Beta Kappa; and the Alpha Omega Alpha Honorary Medical Society. He is the recipient of many honors and scientific recognitions, including: The Distinguished Service Medal of the United States Public Health Service (USPHS) and the Chief Scientific Officer of the Year Award. In 1997, Dr. Paul was elected to membership in the National Academy of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. In 2004, Dr. Paul was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

Dr. Paul has authored or co-authored over 500 papers and invited book chapters and was listed as one of the most highly cited scientists in the world (top 50 in Neuroscience) (1980-2000) by the Institute for Scientific Information (I.S.I.), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He holds 9 patents on inventions made at both NIH and Lilly. His current work has focused on the role of apoE in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease. He is also a co-inventor of solanezumab, a humanized anti-Aβ monoclonal antibody currently in late-stage clinical testing by Lilly as a potential disease-modifying treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Paul is on the boards of several publicly traded and private biopharmaceutical companies, including Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Sage Therapeutics, and the Sigma Aldrich Company, and is also a founder of Sage Therapeutics, Voyager Therapeutics, and Tal Medical, dedicated to discovering and developing novel therapeutics for neurological and psychiatric disorder.

Dr. Gerberding joined the FNIH as CEO on May 16, 2022. She served before that as Chief Patient Officer and Executive Vice President, Population Health & Sustainability, at Merck & Co., Inc., where she was responsible for patient engagement, corporate social responsibility, Environmental/Social/Governance issues, and other functions. Formerly, Dr. Gerberding oversaw Global Public Policy and Strategic Communications for the company. She joined Merck in 2010 as President of Merck Vaccines and was instrumental in increasing access to the company’s vaccines to people around the world.

Previously, Dr. Gerberding was Director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), where she led the agency through 40 emergency responses to public health crises, including the SARS-CoV-1 outbreak. She serves on the boards of the Mayo Clinic, National Health Council, Cerner Corporation, Case Western Reserve University, AfterNext HealthTech, and HilleVax. She also co-chairs the Center for Strategic and International Studies Commission on Strengthening America’s Health Security.

Dr. Gerberding received her undergraduate and M.D. degrees from Case Western Reserve University and a Master of Public Health at the University of California, Berkeley. She completed her internship and residency in Internal Medicine and fellowship in Clinical Pharmacology and Infectious Diseases at the University of California, San Francisco, where she is currently an Adjunct Associate Professor of Medicine.

Phone: (301) 443-1811

Dr. Solomon H. Snyder is a distinguished service professor of Neuroscience, Pharmacology, and Psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He is the founder of the Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience and served as its director from 1980 to 2006. He is world-renowned for his pioneering research in the identification of receptors for neurotransmitters and drugs and the elucidation of the actions of psychotropic agents.

Dr. Snyder completed his undergraduate work at Georgetown College and received his M.D. from the Georgetown Medical School. After further studies at the National Institutes of Health, he completed a residency in psychiatry at Johns Hopkins.

Among dozens of professional and academic honors, Dr. Snyder has received the U.S. National Academy of Science Award in Neuroscience, the Albany Prize in Medicine, the National Medal of Science, the Wolf Foundation Prize in Medicine, and the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Biomedical Research. He holds Honorary Doctor of Science degrees from Northwestern University, Georgetown University, Ben Gurion University, and the University of Maryland, among others.

Over the course of his distinguished career, he has authored or co-authored more than 1,000 peer-reviewed publications and seven books. He currently serves as Associate Editor of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the U.S., and is a member of the United States National Academy of Sciences and a Fellow of the American Philosophical Society and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

With more than two decades of experience in law and business, Ms. Julie Bell Lindsay serves as the Chief Executive Officer at the Center for Audit Quality (CAQ), a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization that advocates on behalf of the public company auditing profession.

Prior to her time at CAQ, Ms. Lindsay served as Managing Director & Deputy Head of Global Regulatory Affairs at Citigroup Inc. and as Counsel for Hogan Lovells. In addition, among other endeavors, she served as Counsel to Commissioner Cynthia Glassman at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Ms. Lindsay holds a B.A. in Political Science from The Ohio State University as well as a J.D. from Vanderbilt Law School.

Deeda Blair is a long-standing effective advocate for biomedical research. Mrs. Blair is Director Emeritus of the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation and has worked closely with Mrs. Lasker on the Citizens Committee for the Conquest of Cancer. Together they initiated one of the most successful public health outreach campaigns ever launched: The National Campaign Against High Blood Pressure, which sought to educate the public concerning the need for blood pressure screening and involved a collaboration of federal Health Agencies, pharmaceutical companies, and the Advertising Council. Mrs. Blair has had a long-time interest in cancer research and served for more than 12 years on the Board of the American Cancer Society’s Research Committee, and in the 1970s, served on the Breast Cancer Task Force of the National Cancer Institute and served on the Board of Trustees of the Scripps Research Institute.

Since 1982, Mrs. Blair has had a deep involvement in the Harvard School of Public Health, with a focus on Basic AIDS research. She is Co-Chairman of the Harvard AIDS Initiative International Advisory Council. She also serves as an Advisor to the Department of Immunology and Infectious Disease Through her time living in Asia and Europe as the wife of Ambassador William McCormick Blair, Jr., Mrs. Blair developed an abiding interest in the global approach to the prevention of infectious diseases and the development of vaccines. She worked as a longtime advisor to Sandoz/Novartis in developing academic collaborations and biotech alliances. She was a consultant to Health Care Ventures for a number of biotech companies.

Jay Bradner is the former President of the Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research (NIBR). There he led thousands of scientists at six research sites around the world in an effort to discover life-changing medicines for patients.

Prior to this, Dr. Bradner was a clinician at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and an associate professor at Harvard Medical School. As an entrepreneur, he has co-founded five biotechnology startups. He has long been a proponent of open science, and when his lab at Dana-Farber discovered the bromodomain inhibitor JQ1, they took the unorthodox step of making it available to other researchers with no restrictions. The results have been shared with hundreds of labs worldwide, generating extensive data and fueling further open-source research.

Dr. Bradner brought this same open approach when he joined Novartis in 2016. NIBR collaborates with an external network of academic and industry partners to facilitate cutting-edge science in areas of mutual interest. NIBR’s open science programs include the Global Scholars Program, which supports innovation through academic partnerships, and the annual Hackathon, which brings data scientists and NIBR researchers together to work on complex problems in the life sciences. 

For the past several years, Dr. Bradner has also helped support patients outside of the lab, riding in the annual Pan-Mass Challenge, a long-distance cycling event that raises funds for Dana-Farber and honors the many patients who are bravely battling cancer.

Mr. Donovan has worked in investment banking, investment management and corporate strategy for nearly three decades. He is Vice Chairman of Global Client Coverage at Goldman Sachs, a firm he joined in 1993 and has served in a variety of positions. Mr. Donovan is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of Virginia. Mr. Donovan served on the Board of Trustees of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, was a member of The Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology, and established the Jim Donovan Fund for Prostate Cancer Research at Dana-Farber in 2008, in honor of a friend who died of cancer. Mr. Donovan also serves on the Board of Trustees of the National Cathedral School.

Mr. Donovan earned his B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School in 1989. He earned his J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1993. Mr. Donovan lives with two daughters, two sons and his mother in Virginia. An avid runner, he participates in road races to raise money for cancer prevention and treatment.

In addition to serving as Chairman of the Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases, Dr. Herrling is also a professor of Drug Discovery at the University of Basel, Switzerland.

“Paul’s expertise with tropical infectious diseases will be vital to us as we continue our relationship with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and on other global health initiatives,” said Charles A. Sanders, M.D., former FNIH chairman. “Bettering global health is a priority for the FNIH.”

Prior to his current position, Dr. Herrling was head of both Novartis Institutes for Developing World Medical Research, supervising four institutes. In addition to the FNIH, he serves on boards of The Scripps Research Institute, University Council of the University of Basel, Scientific Advisory Committee of the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative, and is Vice President of the Board of Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology. He is active as Secretary of the Board of DNDi, Drugs for Neglected Diseases in Geneva, Advisor to the Wellcome Trust. He serves on the SAB of H3D a drug discovery initiative at Cape Town University, on the Board of Neurobio in Oxford, and as Chair of the Selection Committee of the RIGHT Fund in Seoul, South Korea.

“Paul’s strong global network and deep understanding of neglected diseases will make him an invaluable board member,” according to Kathy Bloomgarden, FNIH board member. “He’s dedicated himself to advance biomedical research and provided innovative thinking to the access to medicines debate. He will be an asset in helping to overcome some of the most challenging and integral health issues of today.”

Dr. Kovler, a psychotherapist in private practice for more than 30 years, provides individual, family, and couples counseling to adults and adolescents. Dr. Kovler is a Director of the Kovler Foundation, which supports scientific and humanitarian programs. Additionally, she is a Board member at DC Prep, a group of charter elementary and middle schools that work to increase the number of students from underserved communities who succeed in competitive high schools and colleges. Dr. Kovler has worked as a consultant to various government agencies, including the State Department, Treasury Department, Secret Service, and the White House. In the Washington, D.C., area, she has served as a consultant to several schools and corporations. Dr. Kovler earned a B.A. from Stanford University, an MSW from the University of California, Berkley, and a Ph.D. from Catholic University.

Dr. Krall is Adjunct Professor of Neurology at the University of Rochester. He is a member of the Safety Board of Takeda Pharmaceuticals, is Chairman of the Board of Pierian Biosciences, and consults for a number of healthcare companies.

Former Chief Medical Officer for GlaxoSmithKline (Retired), Dr. Krall worked for four companies (Lorex Pharmaceuticals, Abbott Laboratories, Zeneca/AstraZeneca, and GlaxoSmithKline) over 25 years. His areas of expertise include the ethics of human subject experimentation, drug development, regulatory science, and the safety of medicines. Dr. Krall was a founding member of the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership, served on its Executive Committee, and led its research subcommittee.

Dr. Krall is a graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy, holds a B.A. in Mathematics from Swarthmore College, an M.D. from the University of Pittsburgh, was a Staff Associate in the Epilepsy Branch of the National Institutes of Health, and completed his training in Neurology and a fellowship in Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Rochester.

Dr. Krall currently makes his home in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, where he serves as Chair of the Board of the Yampa Valley Community Foundation, is President of the Timbers Water and Sanitation District, and serves as advisor and ranch manager for BookTrails, a 501(c)3 literacy organization for children. Dr. Krall and his wife own and operate Off the Beaten Path, an independent bookstore, coffeehouse, and bakery café (www.steamboatbooks.com) – one of the 28 “coolest” independent bookstores in America (https://matadornetwork.com/read/28-coolest-independent-book-stores-us/).

Throughout her career in medicine, Dr. Freda Lewis-Hall has been on the frontlines of health care as a clinician, educator, researcher, and leader in the biopharmaceuticals and life sciences industries. She served as Pfizer Inc.’s Chief Medical Officer and Executive Vice President until the end of 2018 and as Chief Patient Officer and Executive Vice President during 2019. In these roles, Dr. Lewis-Hall expanded outreach to patients, reshaped the focus on patient engagement and inclusion, improved health information and education, and amplified the voice of the patient within company culture and decision-making. She was responsible for the safe, effective, and appropriate use of Pfizer medicines and vaccines.

Before joining Pfizer, Dr. Lewis-Hall held senior leadership positions of Chief Medical Officer and Executive Vice President, Medicines Development at Vertex Pharmaceuticals; Senior Vice President, US Pharmaceuticals at Bristol Myers Squibb; Vice President, Research and Development, Product Development at Pharmacia Corporation; and Product Team Leader and Director at Eli Lilly and Company.

Dr. Lewis-Hall currently serves on the Board of Fellows of The Harvard Medical School, the Board of Advisors of the Dell Medical School, and the Board of Governors for the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute. She currently serves on the corporate boards of Milliken and Company, a global diversified industrial manufacturer; 1Life Healthcare, Inc., a health services company; Exact Sciences, Inc., a molecular diagnostics company; and SpringWorks Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company.

Prior to joining the biopharmaceutical industry, Dr. Lewis-Hall served as vice chairperson and associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Howard University College of Medicine and was an advisor to the National Institute of Mental Health. She earned a B.A. in Natural Sciences from The Johns Hopkins University and an M.D. from Howard University College of Medicine. She launched her medical career as a practicing physician and then focused her academic research on the effects of health care disparities and the impact of mental illness on families and communities.

Dr. Lewis-Hall is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine of the Royal College of Physicians of the United Kingdom. She is a frequent speaker on issues such as improving patient safety and health outcomes, reducing stigma and health care disparities, women’s health, public health, corporate leadership, and diversity. Dr. Lewis-Hall is an accomplished developer of consumer education and medical outreach programs, including national television and radio shows such as segments on Dr. Phil, The Doctors, THE REAL, TEDMed, The Urban Health Report, and multiple online sites.

Dr. Edison Liu is Professor, President Emeritus, and Honorary Fellow of The Jackson Laboratory (JAX), an independent, not-for-profit organization focusing on mammalian genetics research, in order to advance human health. Between 2012 and 2021, he led JAX through a growth phase that doubled revenues and staff, quintupled the endowment, and expanded JAX’s footprint throughout the US and in Asia. Previously, Dr. Liu was the founding Executive Director of the Genome Institute of Singapore that established Singapore as a key player in functional genomics. At that time, he was also Chairman of the Health Sciences Authority, which is Singapore’s equivalent of the FDA, and the President of the Human Genome Organization (HUGO). Prior to moving to Singapore in 2001, Dr. Liu was the scientific director of the National Cancer Institute’s then Division of Clinical Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Liu’s research is focused on the functional genomics of human cancers, particularly breast cancer, uncovering new oncogenes and deciphering the dynamics of gene regulation on a genomic scale. He has authored over 320 scientific papers and reviews and co-authored two books. In his spare time, he pursues jazz piano and composition and writes for the lay public on science, medicine, and society.

Dr. Gilbert Omenn is the Harold T. Shapiro Distinguished University Professor of Computational Medicine & Bioinformatics, Internal Medicine, Human Genetics and Public Health, and Founding Director of the Center for Computational Medicine & Bioinformatics at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. His research is focused on proteo-genomics and bioinformatics of cancers. He led the global Human Proteome Project (www.hupo.org) for the past decade. He previously worked on biochemical genetics of the brain, cancer prevention, health promotion and disease prevention for older adults, and science and health policy. He is an author of 657 publications with 43,621 citations/h-index 87 and editor/author of 18 books.

He was a Research Associate with Christian B. Anfinsen at the National Institute of Arthritis and Metabolic Diseases (NIAMD); a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator at the University of Washington (UW); and a member of the National Cancer Advisory Board; the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Council, the Society of Fellows of the National Center for Minority Health & Health Disparities, and the Scientific Management Review Committee for the National Institutes of Health. He was Dean of the School of Public Health & Community Medicine at the UW and Executive Vice-President for Medical Affairs and CEO of the Health System at the University of Michigan. He served as a White House Fellow at the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, Associate Director of the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy and the Office of Management & Budget, and President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In the 1990s, he chaired the Presidential/Congressional Commission on Risk Assessment & Risk Management. He served on the boards of Amgen, Inc. and Rohm & Haas Company. He currently serves on boards of the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, Hastings Center for Bioethics, the Center for Public Integrity, the Weizmann Institute of Science, and biotech firms.

Dr. Omenn is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine, the Association of American Physicians and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and is a fellow of the American College of Physicians, the National Academy for Social Insurance, and the AAAS. He received the Walsh McDermott Medal from the National Academy of Medicine and the David E. Rogers Award from the Association of American Medical Colleges. He holds a B.A. from Princeton, an M.D. from Harvard, and a Ph.D. in Genetics from the University of Washington. He has three children and eight grandchildren. He is a musician and tennis player.

Dame Jillian Sackler is Chairman Emerita and Trustee of the Foreign Policy Association. She is a Trustee of the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health and the Friends of the Mexican Development Foundation. She is the Honorary Director of the Arthur M. Sackler Museum of Art and Archaeology at Peking University in Beijing, China.

Dame Sackler has served as a Trustee of Tufts University, American Film Institute, Metropolitan Opera, New York City Ballet, and Royal Academy of Arts. She is an alumni member of the Rockefeller University Council, the Trustee Council of the National Gallery of Art, and the Smithsonian National Board. She served as International Chairman for the Edinburgh Festival Committee and on the American Committee of UNICEF.
Dame Sackler received the China Institute Blue Cloud Award 2018; Foreign Policy Association Medal 2014; Royal Academy of Arts Benjamin West Award (Anglo-American Friendship) 2009; The National Academy of Sciences Einstein Award 2005; Smithsonian Institution Benefactor of the Year Award 1993; Hahnemann University President’s Award for Contributions to the Arts 1985. In 1994, she became Dame of Malta with Crown, and in 2005, was awarded a D.B.E. (Dame of the British Empire).

Dr. Charles A. Sanders is the former Chairman and CEO of Glaxo Inc., and a former member of the Board of Glaxo PLC. Before joining Glaxo, Dr. Sanders spent eight years with Squibb Corp., where he held several posts, including Vice Chairman, Chief Executive Officer of the Science and Technology Group, and Chairman of the Science and Technology Committee of the Board.

Previously, Dr. Sanders was General Director of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Sanders is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Chairman Emeritus and Board Member of Project HOPE, and a member of multiple corporate boards. He is past chairman of the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS), the Commonwealth Fund, and the Overseers Committee to Visit the Harvard Medical School. A native of Dallas, Dr. Sanders is a graduate of Southwestern Medical College of the University of Texas. Dr. Sanders and his wife, Ann, live in Durham, North Carolina.

Fred Seigel is President and Chief Operating Officer of Beacon Capital Partners and is based in Boston. He joined Beacon in 2001. Previously, Mr. Seigel was Managing Director of Latona Associates, Inc., a private merchant bank. Prior to that, Mr. Seigel spent six years as President and Director of Energy Capital Partners, a company he founded that specialized in financing energy projects throughout the U.S. Mr. Seigel is a member of The Real Estate Roundtable, and also serves on the Board of Directors of the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate and the Board of Directors of Camp Harbor View. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from New England College.

Dr. Ellen V. Sigal, Ph.D., is the founder and Chairperson of Friends of Cancer Research, a Washington, D.C.-based not-for-profit organization dedicated to accelerating the nation's progress toward cancer prevention and treatment. The organization mobilizes public support for cancer research funding and providing education on key public policy issues. Dr. Sigal also holds leadership positions within a broad range of cancer advocacy and public policy organizations, including Duke University's Comprehensive Cancer Center, the Johns Hopkins Cancer Center Advisory Council, the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), and the American Cancer Society. Dr. Sigal serves on the Board of Scientific Advisors for the National Cancer Institute and, most recently, was named to the National Institute of Health Director's Council of Public Representatives.

In her more than twenty years of commitment to advancing the war on cancer, Dr. Sigal has served in numerous critical public positions. Dr. Sigal was a Presidential Appointee to the National Cancer Advisory Board from 1992-1998, where she chaired the Budget and Planning Committee, which oversees the federal cancer budget. Additionally, Dr. Sigal also serves on the National Dialogue on Cancer's research advisory panel and previously held leadership positions with the Foundation for the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

In 1998, Dr. Sigal was named Vice Chairman of the Board of The March – a national grassroots advocacy group that brought thousands of volunteers to Washington to liaise with Congress and set a new advocacy agenda for cancer research and treatment. Dr. Sigal has also been instrumental in harnessing the energies of Hollywood on behalf of cancer research—serving as President of The Creative Community Task Force for Cancer Research.

Prior to her work in cancer research advocacy, Dr. Sigal enjoyed a highly successful and influential business career in commercial real estate. Her firm, Sigal Development, financed and developed major projects throughout the Washington and mid-Atlantic region—a portfolio in excess of one billion dollars. For her efforts on behalf of cancer research advocacy, Dr. Sigal received the 1998 American Association for Cancer Research National Leadership Award, the 1999 Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center National Leadership Award, and the 2002 American Society of Clinical Oncology Special Recognition Award.

Dr. Sigal received her Ph.D. from Rutgers University in Russian History.

Mr. Russell W. Steenberg, who has more than 32 years of experience in private equity investment, is the global head of BlackRock Private Equity Partners, having joined in July 1999 as founder and head of Private Equity Partners. Prior to joining BlackRock, Mr. Steenberg was a co-founder and Managing Director of Fenway Partners, a middle-market buyout group with $1.4 billion of capital. From 1983 until joining Fenway in 1995, Mr. Steenberg was employed by AT&T Investment Management Company, where he was co-head of the AT&T Pension Fund’s $3.6 billion private equity investment portfolio. In addition, Mr. Steenberg is on the Board of Advisors for the Tuck Center of Private Equity and Entrepreneurship, Tuck Board of Overseers, serves on the Board of Westfield Methodist Church, and is on the Board of Directors of the Lasker Foundation. Mr. Steenberg received his M.B.A. from the Amos Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College, an M.P.A. from American University, and a B.A. from St. Lawrence University.

As former Chief Scientific Officer of Johnson & Johnson, Paul Stoffels spearheaded its research and product pipeline by leading teams across all sectors to set the companywide innovation agenda, discovering and developing transformational healthcare solutions. He also was responsible for the safety of all products of the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies worldwide, and steered the company’s global public health strategy to make innovative medicines and technologies accessible in the world’s most vulnerable communities and resource-poor settings.

In 2002, he joined Johnson & Johnson with the acquisition of Virco and Tibotec, where he was Chief Executive Officer of Virco and Chairman of Tibotec, and led the development of several breakthrough products for the treatment of HIV, which helped to transform this devastating disease from a death sentence to a chronic and treatable condition. Dr. Stoffels retired from his post at Johnson & Johnson in 2021.

Dr. Stoffels studied Medicine at the University of Diepenbeek and the University of Antwerp in Belgium and Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine at the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium. He began his career as a physician in Africa, focusing on HIV and tropical diseases research.

Jim Weiss, Chairman and Founder of Real Chemistry, is a healthcare, biopharma, and medical tech visionary, entrepreneur, business leader, investor, citizen advocate, and digital health pioneer. Over the past 20 years, he evolved Real Chemistry from a one-person consultancy to a global health innovation company that uses real-world data, proprietary technologies and analytical insights to solve the healthcare industry’s most significant challenges. As Chairman, Jim actively serves as a mentor and strategic advisor to Real Chemistry’s people and clients, including opening up new pathways for growth through M&A, partnership and expanded capabilities. In addition, he serves as an Executive Advisor to New Mountain Capital, Real Chemistry’s investment partner. In this role, he focuses on identifying and integrating opportunities at the intersection of technology and life sciences.

Jim built Real Chemistry through a #MakeItHappen work ethic, deep values, and a relentless pursuit of innovation. He started his corporate career at biotechnology bellwether Genentech during its formative years where he learned to follow the data to get to the right outcome. Jim is a pioneer in the application of analytics, data and precision targeting to the biopharma and healthcare business. He is an action-oriented driver to advance diversity, inclusion, and health equity to make the world a healthier place for all.

Jim and his wife Audra founded the Weiss Center for Social Commerce at his alma mater, Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. Jim and Real Chemistry also sponsor the Real Chemistry Emerging Insights Lab, an innovative learning experience focused on data, technology and audience engagement.

He is often recognized as one of the most influential people in the healthcare industry. Recent accolades include being named Agency Entrepreneur of the Year (2021), a Top 50 Health Influencer (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020) and Innovator of the Year (2020). He was inducted into the Newhouse School’s 50 Forward as one of its most accomplished graduates of the last 50 years.

Jim is a Board member and investor in Indapta Therapeutics and a business advisor of IMIDomics. He is also a Board member and contributor to several nonprofits, including the LAGRANT Foundation, the Cancer Research Institute, the Commons Project, and the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association.

Dr. Elias Zerhouni was most recently the President, Global Research & Development, and a member of the Executive Committee for Sanofi from January 2011 to July 2018.

Dr. Zerhouni’s academic career was spent at the Johns Hopkins University and Hospital where he was professor of Radiology and Biomedical Engineering and senior adviser for Johns Hopkins Medicine. He served as Chair of the Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vice Dean for Research, and Executive Vice Dean of the School of Medicine from 1996 to 2002, before his appointment as Director of the National Institutes of Health from 2002 to 2008.

In 2009, President Obama appointed Dr. Zerhouni as one of the first presidential U.S. science envoys.

Dr. Zerhouni also served as senior fellow to the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation from 2009 to 2010. He authored more than 200 scientific publications and is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine and the U.S. National Academy of Engineering.