Board of Directors

George Thomas Beall, M.A.

Tom Beall is the managing director of the Social Marketing Practice of Ogilvy Public Relations, which is responsible for communications on health and social issues. Mr. Beall has been one of America’s leading social marketing practitioners since 1988, when he directed components of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s America Responds to AIDS Program.

Previously, Mr. Beall was vice president of constituency relations at Burson-Marsteller. While there, he developed and managed stakeholder, ally relationship and public education programs for clients.

For nearly 20 years, Mr. Beall worked in the field of aging, most recently as a senior manager for The National Council on the Aging and as director of National Voluntary Organizations for Independent Living for the Aging, coalition of more than 200 national organizations with interest in older adults.

His current community volunteer work includes serving on the Board of Directors of the Epilepsy Foundation, of OWL: The Voice of Midlife and Older Women, and the National Woman’s Party. He previously chaired the Board of Directors of the National Institute of Senior Housing.

Mr. Beall holds a master’s degree in health services administration and a bachelor’s degree in psychology, both from The George Washington University.

Ann Braun

Ann Braun is executive director of development and senior associate dean for resource development at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California.  Her goal at USC is to increase philanthropic support for priority programs benefiting medical students, patients, and young scientists.

Ms. Braun was previously associate dean of development and alumni affairs at the University of Florida College of Medicine, and prior to that served as the chief development officer for pediatircs and the children’s hospital at the Univesity of Michigan.

The skills Ms. Braun had developed over a 13 year career in the educational sales with a subsidiary of Berkshire-Hathaway transferred well to a  career in higher education development. Ann’s passion for education and academic medicine have fueled her mission to have a positive impact on the next generation of leaders in medicine and higher education. S

Ms. Braun earned a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s in Communications with a minor in journalism  from Eastern Michigan University. She lives in South Pasadena, California with her husband, Al, and two sons who are sponsored skateboarding enthusiasts.

Stephen E. Bozzo

Steve Bozzo is an attorney who represents trade groups, medical management service companies and related medical practices, and biotechnology companies.  He engages in pro bono work with Verizon and StreetLaw, Inc. aimed at encouraging high schoolers to pursue college and post graduate degrees and is an active volunteer for church-related organizations that assist communities in Virginia and metropolitan Washington areas with shelter, food and clothing.

He was previously vice president and deputy general counsel for Verizon, an adjunct professor of law at George Washington University Law School, at attorney with Pepper Hamilton LLP, and a law clerk for Michael J. Eagen, then Chief Justice of Pennsylvania.  At Verizon, where he worked for nearly 27 years, Steve focused on telecommunications law, regulation, and policy, antitrust, mergers and acquisitions, technology transactions, and commercial transactions.

Steve holds a juris doctor degree from Temple University (Beasley) School of Law and a bachelor of arts degree from Villanova University.  He has three adult children and resides with his wife in Virginia

Arthur L. Caplan, Ph.D.

Art Caplan is the Director of the Center for Bioethics, Chair of the Department of Medical Ethics, and Emmanuel and Robert Hart Professor of Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania Medical Center.
Dr. Caplan has served as Chair of the Advisory Committee to the United Nations on Human Cloning; Chair of the Advisory Committee to the Department of Health and Human Services on Blood Safety and Availability; and a member of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Gulf War Illnesses, the special advisory committee to the International Olympic Committee on genetics and gene therapy, and the special advisory panel to the National Institutes of Mental Health on human experimentation on vulnerable subjects

Dr. Caplan is the author or editor of more than twenty books and over 500 papers in refereed journals of medicine, science, philosophy, bioethics and health policy. He currently writes a regular column on bioethics for MSNBC.com. He has received many awards and honors including the McGovern Medal of the American Medical Writers Association, Person of the Year-2001 from USA Today, one of Fifty Most Influential People in American Health Care by Modern Health Care magazine and six honorary degrees from colleges and medical schools. He is a fellow of the Hastings Center, the NY Academy of Medicine, the College of Physicians of Philadelphia and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Benjamin Gitterman, M.D.

Benjamin Gitterman, MD is Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Public Health at George Washington University (GW) and Children’s National Medical Center in Washington D.C. He was previously the Chair of General and Community Pediatrics at Children’s National Medical Center, director of Ambulatory Pediatric Services for Denver Health and Hospitals, and on the faculty of the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

Dr. Gitterman is Co-Director of the federally funded Mid-Atlantic Center for Children’s Health and the Environment. He is a member of the Governor’s Council on Children’s Health and the Environment for the State of Maryland, the Scientific Advisory Board of the EPA for Children’s Environmental Health, and a liaison member to the Advisory Committee on Children’s Lead Poisoning and Prevention for the CDC. He also co-directs the Specialty Track in Environmental Health at George Washington University School of Medicine.

Dr. Gitterman is the Medical Director of the Health Access Program, which links Children’s National Medical Center and the Children’s Law Center of Washington, D.C. He is also a member of the Medical Advisory Board of the National Center for Medical Legal Partnership, and is the co-chair of the systemic advocacy committee. He is also the Medical Director of Project Health D.C., and has volunteered annually overseas with Operation Smile.

He was recently President of the D.C. Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and is currently a member of the Executive Committee of the AAP Council on Community Pediatrics and the AAP Chapter Forum Management Committee. He continues to practice clinical pediatrics, primarily with underserved children and their families.

Dr. Gitterman graduated from City College of New York and received his M.D. degree from SUNY at Buffalo. He completed his Pediatrics residency and chief residency at Montefiore Hospital and Medical Center in New York.

Mary G. Hager, M.A.

Mary Hager is a freelance writer who retired from Newsweek after serving as a Contributing Editor and correspondent for the Washington Bureau. Ms. Hager’s recent work includes commission reports to the President and Congress on arthritis and epilepsy, and articles for publications such as Self Magazine, Eco, Longevity, American Psychologist, Impact 21, Consumer’s Digest, America’s Agenda, National Wildlife, World Almanac, Collier’s Yearbook, and Grolier’s Medicine and Health Yearbook.

Ms. Hager received her M.A. in journalism and communications from Stanford University and was a Sloan-Rockefeller Advanced Science Writing Fellow at the Columbia University School of Journalism. She has received many awards for her work, including the Balance in Journalism Award of the National Environmental Development Association, the Page One Award of the New York Newspaper Guild, the Searle Award of the American Medical Writers Association, and national awards from the National Mental Health Association, the National Easter Seal Society, and Action on Smoking or Health. Ms. Hager was a member of the U.S. Delegation to the U.S./Japan Common Agenda Conference on Environmental Education in 1997, was named a Senator John Heinz Fellow in Environmental Reporting in 2000, and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Institute of Journalism and Natural Resources.

Nancy Hardt, M.D.

Dr. Nancy Hardt is professor of pathology, immunology, and laboratory medicine and of obstetrics and gynecology, as well as the recently appointed Senior Associate Dean for External Affairs at the University of Florida College of Medicine. As Dean, she is involved in legislative issues, women’s health initiatives, and expansion of the capabilities of the East Side clinic, and will develop a center of excellence in minority health care disparities.

In 2006-2007, Dr. Hardt was a Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellow, working as Health Policy Advisor with Senator Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico and as a key staffer on health issues in the office of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.

Dr. Hardt is boarded in both Pathology and Obstetrics and Gynecology. She served on the full-time faculty at the university for nearly 20 years, rising to the rank of Professor with tenure and Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs and Managed Care. She has held a number of key leadership positions, including serving as Co-Director, Center for Research on Women’s Health. In 2002, she moved to the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, where she served as the Director of the Institute for Women’s Health.

Dr. Hardt has been recognized for her outstanding contributions by many organizations, including the National Board of Medical Examiners Distinguished Service Award in 2006 and being named as one of “50 Women Who Make a Difference” in Memphis in 2005.

Judith L. Harris, J.D.

Judy Harris is partner at the law firm Reed, Smith, Shaw and McClay, where she is Head of the Communications Group and concentrates on telecommunications policy issues. Prior to her current position, Ms. Harris served as Director of the Office of Legislative and Inter-Governmental Affairs at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). She was in charge of the Commission’s work with Capitol Hill and the Clinton Administration during the debate on children’s television, digital T.V. and connecting classrooms to the Internet, among many other issues.

Before her appointment at the FCC, Ms. Harris’ practice focused on litigation and antitrust counseling, primarily with respect to the healthcare and communications industries, and included the defense and prosecution of class action lawsuits, and grand jury, merger and other investigations involving the Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission. In addition to her recent government position, Ms. Harris served as a senior trial attorney with the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice. Her first job after graduating from Yale Law School was as a law clerk to the Honorable James A. Belson, now of the D.C. Court of Appeals. Ms. Harris is married to Norman Ornstein, a political analyst and commentator with the American Enterprise Institute. They have two sons, Daniel and Matthew.

Areta Kupchyk, J.D.

Areta Kupchyk is a partner at Nixon Peabody, one of the largest law firms in the world. Ms. Kupchyk advises clients on post-approval compliance and enforcement matters such as adverse event reporting, initiating and managing recalls, responses to warning letters, cGMP inspections, import/export requirements, and other issues.  Ms. Kupchyk also specializes in the FDA regulation of advertising and promotional activities, including FDA’s restrictions on off-label use.  In addition, Ms. Kupchyk is a regular presenter at FDA in their CDER new employee training programs.

Prior to her current position, Ms. Kupchyk was a partner at Reed Smith, where she supported the firm’s life sciences healthcare practice by providing counsel primarily on the FDA regulation of drugs, medical devices, biologics, and biotechnology products.  Before that, she served as Associate Chief Counsel for Drugs and Biologics at the FDA, as well as Assistant General Counsel for Litigation between 1993 and 2003.  Between 1990 and 1993, she served as Assistant General Counsel in the Office of the Attorney General of Maryland and was counsel to the Maryland Department of Health and Human Hygiene, where she worked on family health issues including state care for foster children and child support.

Ms. Kupchyk has received numerous awards for her work, and has been listed as a leading lawyer in biotechnology law by The Best Lawyers in America since 2008. During her time at the FDA, she was a three-time recipient of the FDA Commissioner’s Special Citation for Outstanding Achievement, and was recognized for her role in developing a regulatory framework for human cellular and tissue-based products, and FDA guidance on pharmaceuticals produced with bioengineered plants.  In addition to her professional positions, she served as the Board Chair of L’Arche Greater Washington, D.C., a faith-based non-profit community where people with and without intellectual disabilities live together in community.

Ms. Kupchyk received her J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law, Order of the Coif in 1990 and a B.A. in American Studies and Women’s Studies in 1979.

Alan Mendelson, LLD

Alan Mendelson was elected to the Board of Directors of the National Research Center for Women & Families in June 2006. He is a venture capitalist in Hartford, Conn., where he is the founder and managing general partner of Axiom Venture Partners. Axiom has over $200 million under management and invests in both information technology and the life sciences. Mendelson heads the life science practice.

Prior to founding Axiom, Mendelson served as vice president for Aetna Life and Casualty for about 25 years. In this capacity, he oversaw many projects including Aetna’s $135 million venture program, which generated over $300 million of profits. He also helped to create MBIA, the country’s largest municipal bond insurance company and he worked directly on over three billion dollars of corporate loans. Mendelson successfully worked with the chief information officer to formulate strategy and policy regarding Aetna’s $27.5 billion commercial mortgage loan portfolio. During this time, he also initiated and served as president and CEO of Aetna, Jacobs, and Ramo, a venture capital deal sharing arrangement.

He has dedicated more than two decades of his career to technology policy and development in Connecticut. As the finance committee vice chairman of the State’s first High Technology Task Force in 1984, Mendelson created Connecticut Seed Ventures and two Centers of Excellence. He has served on the Advisory Board of Connecticut Innovations since 1989, and is currently a board member of the Connecticut Technology Council. In his industry roles for the State, he has received the Distinguished Service Award from Connecticut Innovations and the Leadership Award from the Connecticut Venture Group, of which he was a past president.

Mendelson currently serves on the Board of the MIT Enterprise Forum and the Advisory Council of Claremont College’s Keck Graduate Institute, which offers a master’s degree in Bioscience. He also is treasurer and a Board of Trustee member of the Jewish Community Foundation, a director of the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford, and chairman of the Board of Trinity College Hillel.

 Mendelson graduated Phi Beta Kappa, with a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Trinity College. He received, with honors, his LLD degree from the University of Connecticut.

Scott Parven, J.D.

Scott Parven, J.D. is a partner at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, an international law firm.  He has successfully represented Fortune 500 companies, major trade associations and foreign governments.

Mr. Parven was previously the founder and president of Parven Pomper Strategies (PPS) Inc. He holds a distinguished record of government relations success on behalf of some of America’s most well-known corporations.

Mr. Parven has been affiliated with centrist Democrats for his entire professional career and works closely with members of Congress and their staff in driving market-based solutions to public policy problems.  Mr. Parven has been listed as “Best In The Business” by The Hill newspaper and National Journal magazine.  In 2010, he was named to the board of the Democratic Leadership Council.

Before founding PPS, Mr. Parven served as head of international public policy at Aetna, where he helped the company transform into a global financial services leader through his work with foreign governments, the U.S. Congress, the White House and other dignitaries.

Mr. Parven has also represented a number of media and publishing companies, with a portfolio that includes tax, international trade and intellectual property issues, and other issues of importance to these businesses.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Parven was the chair of public policy at a global law firm, working under Secretary Mickey Kantor, and he was a policy advisor at the Federal Policy Group.

Mr. Parven earned his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1991.  He earned his B.A. in political science from Vassar College in 1986.

Sharon Scribner Pearce

Sharon Scribner Pearce is Director of Public Policy for the Girl Scouts of the USA.

Prior to joining the staff of the Girl Scouts, she was Senior Managing Director of Sonnenschein, an international law firm that provides legal services and business counseling. She worked on many successful legislative initiatives, including an effort to provide for the regulation of all contact lenses as medical devices, which became Public Law 109-96 in 2005.

Ms. Pearce previously worked for six years on Capitol Hill, most recently as Legislative Director for Representative Gene Green (D-TX). Her legislative achievements included enactment of several public health bills, and securing federal funding for several health projects.

Ms. Pearce is also widely known for her knowledge and expertise in the public health field and has presented many times before the National Health Council.

A long-time member of the Congressional Chorus, Ms. Pearce is also an active member of Women in Government Relations.

Omega Logan Silva, M.D.

Omega Logan Silva, M.D., is professor emeritus of medicine at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. She is a long-standing advocate for universal health care and a committed supporter of the advancement of women in medicine.

Omega Silva started her career as a chemist as the National Institutes of Health, and in 1963 returned to Howard University to train as a physician. After earning a doctor of medicine degree in 1967, Dr. Silva completed a residency in internal medicine at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Washington, D.C., and from 1970 to 1974 served as a fellow in endocrinology at George Washington University.

In 1975 she was appointed assistant professor of medicine at George Washington University, and in 1977 she was also appointed associate professor of oncology at Howard University. Dr. Silva has held academic posts at both institutions ever since, becoming full professor at Howard in 1985 and at George Washington in 1991. In 1983 she was elected president of the Howard University Medical Alumni, making her the first woman to hold that post. From 1977 to 1996 Dr. Silva was also assistant chief of the Metabolic Section and chief of the diabetic clinic at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Silva is a member of dozens of local and national committees and organizations and from 2000 to 2002 served as president of the American Medical Women’s Association. She has served on six separate advisory groups for the National Institutes of Health and was a consultant to the Food and Drug Administration’s Immunology Section from 1981 to 1989. Dr. Silva has also served on the board of directors for the Howard University Medical Alumni Association, the National Association of Veterans Affairs Physicians, the American Medical Women’s Association and the Foundation for the History of Women in Medicine.

Dr. Silva has made numerous media appearances to highlight issues in women’s health including smoking, cervical cancer, and thyroid disease. She has also participated in various career days and educational events at local schools, and has been an editorial referee for Chest, Archives of Internal Medicine and The Medical Letter on Drugs and Therapeutics.

In 1984, Dr. Silva received a Letter of Commendation from the President Reagan and in 1995 she was given a Letter of Thanks from President Clinton for her participation in health care reform. In 2003 Dr. Silva was elected to a Mastership at the American College of Physicians. She is also listed in American Men and Women of Science, Who’s Who in Black America, Who’s Who in Professional and Executive Women, and Who’s Who of American Women.

Susan F. Wood, Ph.D.

Dr. Susan F. Wood is Research Professor at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, where her work focuses on the use of scientific knowledge in public policy. She is also Director of the Jacob’s Institute of Women’s Health at GWU.

Dr. Wood served as Director of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Women’s Health from November 2000 through August 2005. She championed women’s health both inside and outside the FDA, and then resigned on principle over FDA’s delay of approval of emergency contraception for over-the-counter sale.

Previously, Dr. Wood was the Director for Policy and Program Development at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health, where she led the development of policy for the Office. She also coordinated the activities of the Public Health Service Coordinating Committee on Women’s Health. From 1990 to 1995, Dr. Wood worked on Capitol Hill for the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues, an organization of Members of Congress dedicated to legislation that promotes legal, economic, and health equity for women. Prior to coming to Capitol Hill, Dr. Wood was a research scientist at the John Hopkins University School of Medicine, in the Department of Neuroscience, where her research focused on cellular mechanisms of sensory transduction. She received her Ph.D. in biology from Boston University at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, MA, where she carried out basic research on the biochemistry of vision.

Dr. Wood has received numerous awards in recognition of her work. She is married and has a 12-year old daughter.