Investment Analyst
Associate
Anthony Manno is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio solutions and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was an investment analyst supporting the institutional investor group, portfolio review department, and financial advisor business at Vanguard since joining the industry in 2018. Anthony attended undergraduate and graduate school at the University of Delaware where he graduated with a M.S. in Finance and a B.S. in Economics.
Associate Director
Tor Martinsen is a member of the Private Equity team at CF Private Equity. He previously worked as an Investment Associate at The Kresge Foundation, a $3.6 billion foundation based in metro-Detroit, where he was a generalist on the Investment team. Tor earned a B.S. in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Chief Regulatory Counsel
Lambrina Mathews serves as Chief Regulatory Counsel of Commonfund. She joined Commonfund in 2017 as Chief Compliance Officer and Associate General Counsel. In her private practice, she principally represented financial institutions and other public and privately-held companies and their officers and directors in corporate governance and securities litigation and other complex business litigation matters. Before joining Cadwalader, Lambrina served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Richard K. Eaton of the United States Court of International Trade. Prior to joining Commonfund, Lambrina also served briefly as Principal Counsel in the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s (“FINRA”) Department of Enforcement in New York. Prior to pursuing her career in the law, Lambrina enjoyed a career in the field of education, earning her B.A. in Elementary Education from the City University of New York and her M.S. in Reading and Remediation from Adelphi University. Lambrina received her J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law and is a member of the New York State Bar and authorized house counsel in the State of Connecticut.
Director
Donna Mayne is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for overseeing the service group for transactions and reporting. She has over 20 years of experience in customer service, banking, sales and marketing. Prior to Commonfund, Donna held various managerial positions within the financial and sales/marketing departments at R.C. Bigelow and at People’s Bank managing the Electronic Funds Transfer Department. Donna received a B.S. in Business Administration and an M.B.A., with a concentration in marketing, from the University of New Haven.
Director
Sean McDermott is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment Team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Sean was an Executive Director and Portfolio Specialist at Morgan Stanley Investment Management in New York, NY. Previously, he was a Vice President and Relationship Manager with the Institutional Relationship Management team at Cohen and Steers Capital Management and was a Client Service and Sales Associate at Robeco Investment Management in New York, NY. He was also a member of the Legal Department for the City of Yonkers, NY working as Legal Aide/Assistant to the Corporation Counsel. Sean received a BA from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA and holds the Series 7, 31, and 63 registrations.
Senior Analyst
Madeline McGrath is a member of the Private Equity team of CF Private Equity. Madeline earned a B.S. in Finance from Brigham Young University.
Managing Director
Paul McKiernan is Head of CF Private Equity Business Development and leads a team responsible for the management and development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to rejoining CF Private Equity, Paul lead the Institutional Business Development and Consultant Relations effort at QS Investors, LLC. Prior to QS Investors, Paul had worked with Commonfund’s clients in the Midwest. Paul also served as a Vice President of Institutional Sales and Relationship Management at Deutsche Asset Management, a portfolio analyst at Nicholas Advisors and an assistant trader on Morgan Stanley’s fixed income proprietary trading desk. Paul received his B.A. from Catholic University.
Director
Nicole Melwood is a member of the Commonfund OCIO team and is responsible for the management and development of outsourced CIO solutions across endowments, foundations, and other philanthropic organizations throughout the United States as well as Canada . Prior to joining Commonfund, she worked at Everstrong Capital, where she led business development in the U.S. and Investec Asset Management, where she was a member of the western U.S. institutional sales team. Nicole started her career at JPMorgan Asset Management, where she was a client portfolio manager on the Global Fixed Income and Currency team. She holds a B.A. in Government from Wesleyan University and a M.B.A from Duke University, The Fuqua School of Business, where she was a Robert Toigo fellow. Nicole holds Series 7, 63, and 31 licenses. Currently, she is a Board member for A Better Chance, Inc., where she also serves as chairperson on the National Advisory Council. Nicole formerly served on the Executive Committee for DukeNY Women’s Forum.
Director
Meredith Messina is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team and provides relationship management to outsourced CIO clients. In her role, Meredith works with members of the investment team to assist in the implementation of custom solutions. Prior to her current role, she was a Managing Associate on the Relationship Management and Business Development teams, providing service support to existing clients and developing new business. She was also responsible for all client communications for these teams. Before joining Commonfund, Meredith worked for JAOtech Corporation as a Sales Engineer. She started her career as a Client Service Associate at UBS Financial Services in Boston, MA. Meredith received a B.S. in Finance from Bentley University.
Associate Director
Enrique Millán joined CF Private Equity and is a member of the ex-U.S. Private Equity team. He previously worked at the Private Equity team of Arcano Partners, with a focus on primaries, secondaries and co-investments predominantly in Western Europe. Prior to Arcano, Enrique worked at Indra Sistemas, a global publicly listed IT & defense company as a corporate strategy & investor relations analyst. Enrique received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the Universidad Pontificia de Comillas (ICADE) and a master’s degree in media management from the Universidad de Navarra.
Managing Director
Aaron Miller is Head of Global Venture Capital, a member of the Investment Committee and Senior Executive Group of CF Private Equity. His primary responsibilities include due diligence, investment selection, portfolio construction, monitoring and fundraising for the firm’s venture capital platform. In addition, Aaron oversees sourcing, screening, execution and monitoring of the venture growth direct investment practice. He also contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, emerging markets, real assets and sustainability strategies. Aaron brings over 20 years of private equity, M&A, capital markets and management consulting experience. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Aaron was a senior banker at Lazard Frères & Co. in the mergers and acquisitions department in New York. During his tenure at Lazard, he counseled companies and institutions in technology, media and telecom industries (TMT) advising on strategic, financial, takeover defense and capital structure matters. As an investment banker, he completed investments and executed transactions in North America, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Aaron also worked in the corporate finance department at Barclays Capital and Lehman Brothers. Prior to investment banking, Aaron began his career as a management consultant, where he advised a broad range of clients on strategy, sales force effectiveness and organizational design matters. Aaron serves on the advisory boards of several venture capital partnerships. Aaron earned a B.A. from University of Michigan and an M.B.A. from Yale University.
Chief Human Resource Officer
Elaine Mizer is responsible for executing Commonfund’s business and strategic plan from a human capital perspective. She leads Commonfund’s human resources practice to develop talent and leverage it effectively for consistency with our business strategy and plans for growth while overseeing all other human resources functions and facilities management. Elaine serves as Chair of the Commonfund Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Office and is also a member of the Commonfund Operating Committee. Prior to Commonfund, she was Head of Human Resources and Administration at Aquiline Capital Partners. Previously, Elaine held roles in Human Resources at Citigroup and Securitas Capital, and began her career in Human Resources at Smith Barney. She earned a B.A. degree in Human Resources from Western Connecticut State University.
Associate Director
Roman Moravec supports the oversight of client portfolio rebalancing, best execution analysis, and contributes to the operational due diligence process as a member of the risk management team. Prior to joining the risk management team, he was part of Commonfund OCIO where he focused on research and analytics for investments and managers. When first joining Commonfund, Roman worked on the Operations team where he conducted operational due diligence on hedge fund managers and was responsible for daily oversight of hedge fund and commodities programs. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked for Quantitative Financial Strategies, Inc. and began his career at Deloitte as an auditor in the financial services group. Roman holds an M.S. in Accounting from Pace University, a B.S. in International Business from Berkeley College and is a CFA charter holder.
Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer
Dana Moreau has firm-wide oversight and responsibility for risk management, investor services, information technology, operations, and human resources and oversees the financial management of Commonfund, creating and maintaining all financial policies and procedures for the firm. He has over 20 years’ experience in finance and operations and serves as a member of the Commonfund Operating Committee. Prior to joining Commonfund, Dana worked at State Street Bank & Trust where his primary responsibilities were portfolio accounting and administration for the bank’s hedge fund clients. He has a B.A. in Economics from Assumption College and an M.B.A. from Columbia University.
Managing Director
W. Kelso Morrill is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Kelso was with Crossroad Capital Partners, SEI Investments, and Bankers Trust Company, where he focused on private capital investments, including private equity, project finance and real estate. He has a B.S.E. and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
Trustee
Tobias "Toby" Moskowitz currently holds the Dean Takahashi ’80 B.A., ’83 M.P.P.M. Chaired Professorship in Finance at Yale University at the Yale School of Management, for which he is the inaugural chair holder (in 2016). He was previously the Fama Family Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, where he taught from 1998 to 2016. Professor Moskowitz was recognized by the American Finance Association with its 2007 Fischer Black Prize, which is awarded biennially to the top finance scholar in the world under the age of 40 in years when one is deemed deserving. The award cited his "ingenious and careful use of newly available data to address fundamental questions in finance." Moskowitz also won the Ewing Marion Kauffman Medal in 2012 for the top research in entrepreneurship for scholars under the age of 40. His research papers have received numerous awards, including the Smith-Breeden Prize for the best paper published in the Journal of Finance, the Brattle Prize for the best non-asset pricing paper published in the Journal of Finance, two Fama-DFA Prizes for the best paper published in the Journal of Financial Economics, two Michael Brennan Awards for the best paper published in the Review of Financial Studies, the Swiss Finance Institute Outstanding Paper Award, and the Bernstein-Fabozzi and Jacobs-Levy Award for the best paper in the Journal of Portfolio Management, two Harry Markowitz prizes for the best paper published in the Journal of Investment Management, the Whitebox Prize for best financial research, and multiple Q-Group Best Paper Awards. His work has been cited in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Financial Times, US News and World Report, Money magazine, and a 2005 speech by then Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. He has also appeared on CNBC's Closing Bell and Squawk Box, CNN, FOX, Bloomberg, as well as ESPN, Sport Illustrated, HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. Professor Moskowitz serves as a research associate for the National Bureau of Economic Research and is a former editor of the Review of Financial Studies, an associate editor of the Journal of Finance, and an associate editor at the Journal of Financial Economics. His research studies financial markets and investments, including the behavior of prices and investors. He has explored topics as diverse as momentum in stock returns, biases in investment portfolios, the return to private business ownership, financial contracting in commercial real estate, mutual and hedge fund performance, the political economy of financial regulation, and the economics of sports. He has presented his research at many academic, corporate, and government institutions worldwide. Professor Moskowitz spent the 2007-2008 and 2014-2015 academic years on leave at AQR Capital Management, LLC a hedge fund in Greenwich, CT, with which he has an ongoing consulting relationship. He was made a principal at the firm in 2015, where he contributes to research on asset pricing and investments for AQR’s domestic and international investment strategies. In collaboration with David F. Swensen, the CIO of the Yale Investments Office, Professor Moskowitz founded the Yale School of Management’s Master’s program in Asset Management, for which he serves as the Academic Director and whose inaugural class will graduate in 2022. The one-year program seeks to train Master’s students in the theory and practice of asset management, with a curriculum that is tailored for that aim. In 2011, he wrote the New York Times best-seller "Scorecasting: The Hidden Influences Behind How Sports are Played and Games are Won," (Crown Archetype, Random House) co-authored with L. Jon Wertheim of Sports Illustrated, that uses economic principles to explain the hidden side of sports. He and Wertheim are also authors of the children’s book “The Rookie Bookie” in the Fall of 2015 (Little Brown). Born in West Lafayette, IN, Moskowitz earned a bachelor's degree in industrial management and industrial engineering (with distinction) in 1993 from Purdue University, a master's degree in management from Purdue in 1994, and a Ph.D. in finance from UCLA in 1998.
Senior Policy and Research Analyst
Amanda Novello is a member of the Commonfund Institute team and is responsible for thought leadership creation and data analysis across all Institute activities, including benchmarks studies, DEI initiatives, and ESG. Prior to working at Commonfund, she was an economic policy researcher for various nonprofit organizations, producing analyses of economic and labor market trends, and the distributional impacts of public policy. Amanda earned an M.A. in Economics from the New School for Social Research and a B.S. in Economics and Mathematics from the University of Southern California.
Director
Ikem Nwaesei is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was a Portfolio Manager at BlackRock’s ETF and Index Investments Group. There he managed a wide array of asset classes, currency-hedged portfolios and model based funds. Previously, he worked as part of Northern Trust’s Foundation and Institutional Advisors (FIA) Group, a dedicated practice that manages investment programs for foundations, endowments and other nonprofit organizations. Prior to that, he worked in different roles for TD Bank Group and TD Asset Management in Toronto, Canada. He began his career as an Investment Analyst with a boutique investment management firm in Nigeria. Ikem received a B.S. in Industrial Chemistry from University of Lagos, Nigeria, a post-graduate diploma in International Business Management from St. Clair College in Windsor, Canada and an MBA with concentration in Finance and Accounting from the Terry College of Business, University of Georgia.
Analyst
Feray Ok is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. She was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Feray earned a B.A. in Economics from Dartmouth College.
Managing Director
Hong Pan is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the origination, evaluation, underwriting, and execution of secondary investments. Additionally, he contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability strategies. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Hong worked at Oppenheimer & Co. in its investment banking division, advising corporate clients on mergers & acquisitions and capital markets transactions. Hong holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he graduated with Distinction.
Senior Associate
Aisha Patel is a member of the Commonfund Marketing team and is primarily responsible for the development and maintenance of marketing content that supports business development and client service. Prior to her role at Commonfund, Aisha managed projects for the commodities team at Citadel, and was a Senior Marketing Associate and Digital Project Manager for AMG Funds. Prior to her role at AMG Funds, she had a variety of marketing, investor relations, and support roles at FrontFour Capital, Episteme Capital Management, JWM Partners, Contact Public Relations, and A&E Television Networks. Formerly, Aisha served as State Director on the executive board for the Greenwich Junior Chamber of Commerce and currently manages Volunteers of Fairfield of Westchester, a philanthropic group she founded in 2016. She holds a B.A. in English from the University of Rhode Island, an Agile Project Management Training Certificate from the University of Connecticut School of Business, and Digital Marketing Certification from Cornell University.
Managing Director
Anthony Peretore is a senior leader on the Commonfund OCIO Investment team. He is responsible for the design, tailoring and, implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of client portfolios. In addition, Anthony is a voting member of Commonfund’s Asset Allocation Committee, which is charged with overseeing and making strategic and tactical asset allocation decisions on behalf of OCIO clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked as a convertible securities analyst for BCP Securities in Greenwich, CT. His primary responsibilities included analyzing company credit profiles and capital structures, making security recommendations and establishing new client relationships. Anthony received his B.A. in Political Science and a Business minor from Saint Joseph’s University. He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst designations.
Director
Jason Platzer is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for asset allocation, portfolio construction, manager sourcing, rebalancing, due diligence, and investment monitoring and reporting for equity portfolios. Jason began his career as a private capital accountant for CF Private Equity before working as a fund accountant on the Operations team. He then spent many years working in a hybrid role at the intersection of hedge funds, quantitative research and analytics, and risk management. Jason holds a B.S. in Finance, summa cum laude and an MBA in Finance with Distinction, both from Mercy College. He also holds an MSc in History (with Merit) from The University of Edinburgh.
Associate
Laura Pollack is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, she worked as a summer analyst at East Rock Capital, LLC., a multi-family office. She also spent a summer at Colgate Palmolive as a Global Talent Acquisition Intern. Laura earned a B.B.A. in Marketing and Information Systems & Operations Management from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School.
Managing Director
Paige L. Rabalais is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team. She is responsible for the development of outsourced CIO solutions across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations and other nonprofits throughout the United States. Prior to joining Commonfund, she managed institutional relationships with Neuberger Berman in New York, NY and Strategic Value Partners in Greenwich, CT. Previously, Paige was a senior regional marketing associate with Putnam Investments in Boston, MA. She earned a B.S. in Business Management from Babson College and an M.B.A. in Finance from Tulane University. Paige holds Series 6, 7, 30, 31, 63 and 65 licenses. Additionally, she has achieved the CFA Institute Certificate in ESG Investing and has been awarded the Chartered Alternatives Investment Analyst designation. Currently, she is a Director of the YWCA of the City of New York where she serves as co-chair of the investment committee. Paige also served as former board member of Oldfields School in Glencoe, MD on the investment committee.
Associate
Alexandra Romanowski is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is responsible for assisting with asset allocation, manager sourcing, due diligence, and investment monitoring for investment portfolios with a focus in real asset strategies and private real estate investments. Before joining Commonfund, Alexandra worked as an Associate as part of the Commercial Real Estate Team for Bank of Montreal Harris, where she focused on Healthcare Real Estate lending and investing. Prior to that, she worked as an Investor Relations Analyst for Graham Capital Management, L.P., a Macro Hedge Fund in Rowayton, CT, as well as a Management Development Associate at M&T Bank. Alexandra received a B.S. in Business Administration with a minor in International Relations from the State University of New York, College at Geneseo.
Chief Risk Officer
Brian Rondeau has responsibility for the comprehensive enterprise risk management program at Commonfund including market, credit, liquidity and operational risk. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was Vice President – Risk at Harvard Management Company where he led a team responsible for counterparty credit risk as well as investment risk for Harvard’s illiquid asset class portfolios. In addition, Brian was involved in liquidity risk management, managing HMC’s banking relationships and analysis related to sustainable investing at Harvard. Prior to Harvard, he spent four years with RBS Greenwich Capital in risk roles analyzing financial institutions and the asset-backed finance business. Brian is a Chartered Financial Analyst and member of the CFA Society Stamford. He earned a B.A. from Columbia University.
Controller
Gene Ropiak is Controller for CF Private Equity and oversees the preparation of financial and tax statements and the operational accounting for CF Private Equity’s partnerships. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he spent five years in various accounting positions, most recently with Health Partners, Inc. Gene earned a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Connecticut and an M.B.A. in Finance from the University of New Haven.
Managing Director
Luke Rossiter is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity and his responsibilities include sourcing, due diligence, manager selection and investment management for the firm’s global venture capital platform; across primaries, direct investments, secondaries and blockchain. Before joining CF Private Equity, he was a Senior Investment Analyst at VenCap International plc, a venture capital advisory firm based in Oxford, England. Luke received his Bachelor of Science degree (with honours) in Psychology and Law from Swansea University and completed his Legal Practice Course at the Oxford Institute of Legal Practice where he focused on Equity Finance, Private Acquisitions and Commercial Law.
Director
Ilana is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. Prior to joining Commonfund, she spent her career on the sell side covering institutional accounts in research and sales capacities, spanning both fixed income and equity markets. Ilana gained her foundational experience in emerging market research covering sovereign debt markets at Thomson Reuters. She then moved over to Merrill Lynch’s economic research team serving emerging market asset managers while working closely with Merrill’s fixed income sales and trading team. Transitioning to Merrill Lynch’s equities sales desk, Ilana covered Latin American markets and US markets for institutional investors. Most recently she worked with UBS’s commission management accounts during the industry transition to MiFID II regulation. Ilana is fluent in French and Spanish and holds a B.A. in Economics from Tulane University and a M.B.A in Finance from NYU’s Stern School of Business.
General Counsel
Sharad Samy serves as the General Counsel and Secretary of Commonfund. He has extensive transactional and litigation experience, having served as the general counsel of two prominent investment management firms; as a partner of the international law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP; and as counsel to both plaintiffs and defendants in complex civil litigation and arbitration matters. He has worked extensively in Connecticut, New York and the United Kingdom on matters involving jurisdictions in North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Asia. Sharad was a Judge Advocate for the U.S. Army Reserve from 1997 through 2008, having served in the Horn of Africa in connection with Operation Enduring Freedom, and he currently serves as a Major in the Connecticut Army National Guard. In addition to his professional activities, he is active in the veteran community, serving as a Trustee of the State of Connecticut Board of Veterans Affairs and as the Judge Advocate for Post 6933 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He is also active in the non-profit community, serving as a Director of the Karam Foundation, an aid organization supporting young Syrian refugees, as Treasurer of the Connecticut Bar Association, and as a director and pro bono volunteer for Lawyers for Children America. Sharad was awarded the Game Changer Award from the Connecticut Law Tribune in 2020, the Modern 100 Governance Award by Diligent in 2019 and the Outstanding Veteran Volunteer Award by the Stamford Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution in 2018. He is a graduate of Columbia College with an A.B. in Political Science and of Columbia University Law School with a J.D. He is admitted to practice law in the State of Connecticut and the State of New York and is a solicitor in England and Wales.
Analyst
Omar Sarr is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to Commonfund, Omar earned a B.A. in economics and French and francophone studies from Bates College.
Associate
Arjun Sawai is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team focused on macroeconomic research. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked on an algorithmic trading desk at Fidelity Capital Markets. Arjun earned a B.S. in Finance from Boston University.
Managing Director, London Office
Miriam Schmitter is Head of Buyout and Growth Equity investments outside the United States, a member of the Investment Committee and Senior Executive Group of CF Private Equity. She is based in CF Private Equity’s London investment office. Miriam's primary responsibilities include due diligence, investment selection, portfolio construction, monitoring and fundraising for the firm’s buyout and growth equity programs that are constructed with primaries, secondaries and co- investments. She also contributes to the firm’s venture capital and real assets and sustainability strategies. Before joining CF Private Equity, she was with Cambridge Associates (“Cambridge”) where she served as Managing Director and Head of International Private Equity Research in London. Miriam was also a member of the internal Investment Committee at Cambridge. She started with Cambridge in Boston in 2005 and was responsible for due diligence on investment opportunities and research published by the firm on private equity funds which resulted in significant client commitments to private capital managers, overseeing consultants and associates in the Boston, London, and Singapore offices. Prior to 2005, she was an investment manager of private equity fund investments at APEP (Allianz Private Equity Partners), where she researched and selected private equity investment opportunities. Prior to that, Miriam was an investment professional at DB Capital Partners/ DB Investor, the direct private equity investment division of Deutsche Bank, where she evaluated buyout investment opportunities. She also worked as a consultant for Deloitte & Touche performing financial analysis and valuations and conducting financial due diligence for clients. She is presently a member of the advisory boards of several private equity limited partnerships. Miriam has a PhD from the University of Darmstadt and a Diplom-Kauffrau (an M.B.A.) from the University of Mannheim.
Director
Peter Schretzenmayer is a member of the Operations team and has over 15 years of fund operations experience. He is responsible for fund accounting, reporting and custodial oversight for Commonfund’s marketable alternative funds and certain private distressed debt partnerships. Before joining Commonfund, Peter worked at State Street Bank first as a pension fund accountant then as a performance analyst. He has also worked as a fund accountant for a private hedge fund located in Stamford, CT. Each of these positions had responsibilities for fund valuations, operations, financial reporting and compliance. Peter earned a B.S. in Business Administration from Central Connecticut State University and an M.B.A, with a concentration in finance, from the University of Connecticut.
Director
Jennifer Seidler is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. Prior to joining the relationship team, Jennifer was a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team, where she was responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Jennifer managed corporate investment portfolios for RBC Wealth Management and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) in San Francisco. Her previous experience includes working with institutional bank clients on investment strategies and portfolios with Banc Investment Group LLC. Jennifer began her career at Banc of America Securities in the loan syndications group and also was part of an investment strategies team. She serves as a member of the Finance Council for St. Dominic’s Church (SF) and is Board Emeritus on the Board of African Library Project where she was Treasurer for four years. Jennifer holds a B.S. in Economics from Santa Clara University, an M.S. in Financial Analysis and an M.B.A. from University of San Francisco.
Vice Chair
Mamak Shahbazi is a seasoned investment executive with a 35-year track record of raising assets, building and managing high-performance marketing and client service teams, developing business, maintaining key client and consultant relationships, overseeing and delivering impressive growth and ROI. A Founding Member of Colchester Global Investors, which provides a complete range of investment management services for global and emerging market bonds, Mamak was the company’s President, Director and Global Head of Marketing From 2001 to 2019. She was responsible for growing assets under management from $15 million to $43 billion since inception. Mamak is accomplished in the effective execution of both short and long-term deliverables. She is a team player with demonstrated success in the development and motivation of staff and the nurturing and maintenance of relationships with prospects, clients from diversified categories in the US and around the world, and industry participants. Mamak has built Colchester’s marketing and client service structure globally, with offices in New York, London, Singapore, Australia and soon in the United Arab Emirates. Her client service efforts resulted in the firm receiving the Greenwich Associates prestigious Quality Leader in Institutional Client Service award. A keen determination to provide clients with optimal solutions to their investment needs, combined with a background in engineering and years of experience in fixed income research and analysis, has made Mamak extremely effective as a solution provider to institutional investors. An invited guest speaker at various prominent investment conferences, Mamak has presented at the ABANA Annual Conference 2016 on Leading Women in Finance, the Mangham Associates (endowment management firm) Client Conference 2015, and The Salvation Army South Investment Conference 2014 and 2012. Additionally, Mamak was a Founding Angel Member of 100 Women in Finance, a global network of investment professionals working to assist women at every stage of their careers. Prior to Colchester, Mamak built an impressive record in the investment community. She served as Director of Institutional Marketing at the hedge fund firm Zweig-DiMenna Associates, where she was responsible for building the institutional marketing and client services effort. She raised over $500 million in assets under management despite stressed market conditions and performance. Before Zweig-DiMenna, Mamak served as Director of Global Bond Marketing and Client Service at Delaware Investment Advisors. She was responsible for building the Global Bond marketing effort for the Delaware International Advisors subsidiary. Starting with $50 million in assets, she built the enterprise to over $5.6 billion during her seven-year term. As Director/Vice President of Fixed Income Investments at Credit Suisse First Boston Corp. for eight years, Mamak assisted the Managing Director in charge of research and analysis of high yield corporate bonds and risk management of the portfolios. She was also responsible for the conduct of overall client facing activities. Further, Mamak published articles on high yield investing and specific bond activities. Mamak began her career at Arthur D. Little Valuation, Inc., as an Analyst, where, in addition to writing Fortran based computer programs to analyze bank and savings and loan institutions, she assisted in writing mathematical formulas to ascertain market values of deposit accounts and loan books. Chairman of the Board of Colchester Global Investors, Inc., and a Member of the Board of Colchester Global Investors Limited, Mamak also serves on other boards, including Freeman and Company’s Advisory Board and New York University College of Arts and Science’s Advisory Council. Previously Mamak served as a Board Member of the Miller Howard High Income Equity Fund and as an Advisory Board Member of Proctor Investment Management. A graduate of the University of Maryland, Mamak holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering with an emphasis in mathematics and computer science. She resides in New York City with her husband and is the mother of two adult children.
Associate Director
Dave Shekar is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity. Before joining CF Private Equity, he was an Associate at The Raine Group, a global tech, media, and telecommunications merchant bank based in New York City, where he focused on the firm’s growth equity and M&A advisory practices. Before Raine, Dave was a Senior Financial Analyst at Yext, a New York City-based enterprise technology company that went public in 2017, and prior to that, was an Associate at Summit Partners, where focused on sourcing and evaluating growth equity investments in the technology sector. He received his Bachelor of Business Administration (with honors) from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and his Master of Business Administration from Columbia Business School.
Associate
Lawrence Shoykhet is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the evaluation, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Lawrence earned a B.S. in Industrial & Labor Relations from Cornell University.
Managing Director
Russell Simon is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for the development of private market mandates across endowments and foundations, healthcare organizations and pensions. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Russell worked at Allianz Global Investors, where he co-managed the Taft-Hartley practice and was responsible for managing relationships in the public, corporate, and E&F channels for the Western United States. Prior to Allianz, he was an options trader at the RND Group and a research analyst at LECG (Law and Economic Consulting Group.) Russell has more than 13 years of experience in the Investment management business. He earned his B.S.B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis and is a CAIA charter holder and member of the CAIA association of San Francisco.
Director
Neva Simunkovic shares responsibility for the oversight of client portfolio rebalancing, best execution analysis, and contributes to the operational due diligence process as a member of the risk management team. Prior to joining the risk management team, she was a member of the COMANCO investment team where she participated in manager selection, monitoring and analysis across marketable strategies. Neva was also a product specialist for a number of hedge fund customized accounts and began at Commonfund as part of the rotational analyst program where she supported all areas of quantitative analysis across Marketable Investment groups. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was a graduate assistant at College of Business at Arkansas State University, responsible for assisting the finance faculty in teaching and research. Neva holds a B.S. in Corporate Finance and an M.B.A with emphasis in Finance from Arkansas State University. She is a CFA charterholder and a member of the New York Society of Security Analysts and the CFA Institute.
Associate
Emily Sine is a member of Commonfund OCIO Relationship team responsible for providing client service to OCIO clients. Prior to working at Commonfund, she was a Client Associate at IRC Wealth, an Atlanta based RIA, responsible for client onboarding, maintaining existing client relationships and all company and client reporting. She began her career as a Revenue Analyst at Insight Global. Emily earned a B.S. in Economics and Finance from the University of Alabama.
Managing Director
Steve Snyder is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. He previously served as the head of relationship management for Commonfund’s non-advisory investors. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was a Cash Management Consultant supporting the education industry for CoreStates Bank, N.A., and First Union National Bank in Philadelphia. Steve has served on the Investment Committees of the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia and recently completed several terms as an Investment Committee member for Lancaster County Community Foundation. He also served as a member of the President’s Business Council at the University of Scranton. Steve has a B.S. in Finance from the University of Scranton.
Associate
Justin Sorbo is a member of the Fund Operations team and is responsible for providing enhanced support and service to Commonfund’s investors, advisory clients, and funds. He also assists with the Investor Services group – providing clientele with audit, performance, and reporting material. Prior to this, Justin worked alongside Commonfund OCIO, aiding in research, modeling, and analytics for endowment portfolios. He has a B.S. in Economics, as well as a Business Certificate, from the Pennsylvania State University.
Director
Rachel Stavola Clivaz is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for assisting in the design, tailoring and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients, as well as client portfolio analysis and specialized analytical requests. Prior to joining Commonfund, Rachel attended undergraduate school at Fordham University where she graduated with a B.S. in Business Administration and a minor in Mathematics.
Executive Director
George Suttles leads Commonfund’s educational, thought partnership, and professional development activities as Executive Director of Commonfund Institute. He serves on multiple advisory boards and steering committees, including Intentional Endowments Network’s (IEN) steering committee which provides strategic guidance to the network and chairs the steering committee for the Impact Finance Center’s Diverse Manager Initiative. Prior to joining Commonfund, George was a Program Officer at the John A. Hartford Foundation, an independent, national private foundation focused on improving care for older adults. Before joining the foundation, he was a Vice President, Senior Philanthropic Relationship Manager at U.S. Trust/Bank of America. In this role he worked with private and institutional clients on issues related to best practices in governance and strategic grantmaking. He is a member of numerous nonprofit boards and investment committees including Mertz Gilmore Foundation, Auburn Seminary, and the New York Foundation, where he serves as Treasurer and chair of the investment committee. George is frequently asked to speak on topics concerning fiduciary duty and stewardship, philanthropy, investment governance, Diversity Equity and Inclusion and values aligned investing, among other topics. Currently, he is on the Adjunct Faculty at the New York University (NYU) School of Professional Studies, teaching classes on private and corporate philanthropy. George received a B.A. from Wesleyan University, an M.A. in Philanthropic Studies from Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy (IUPUI) and an M.P.A. from Baruch College, City University of New York (CUNY), Marxe School of Public and International Affairs. George is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Education (Ed.D) at New York University Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, with a focus on leadership and innovation.
Senior Associate
Cameron Szary is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity and is responsible for due diligence across the firm’s Venture Partners, Venture Direct Opportunities and Blockchain Ventures strategies. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Cameron was an Investment Research Analyst at Simon Quick, an investment firm started by the families of former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury William E. Simon and Quick & Reilly co-founder, Leslie Quick. At Simon Quick, he primarily focused on market research, manager selection and co-investment diligence across various asset classes and supported the management of two internal Fund of Funds strategies. Cameron earned a B.B.A. from the University of Miami and completed the Economics of Blockchain and Digital Assets program offered through the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Managing Director
Stephen Talbot is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the origination, evaluation, underwriting, and execution of secondary investments. Additionally, he contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability strategies. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Stephen worked at BB&T Capital Markets in its investment banking division, advising corporate clients on mergers & acquisitions and capital markets transactions. Stephen holds a B.S. in Business and Enterprise Management from Wake Forest University.
Chair
Dr. David A. Thomas took office as the 12th President of Morehouse College on Jan. 1, 2018, ushering in a new era of progressive leadership for the nation’s largest and most prestigious liberal arts institution for men. With more than 30 years of experience in the business of higher education, Thomas is a visionary leader who is nationally respected as an expert in organizational change. He is the former Dean of Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, and has served as a business school professor at Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania. Under Thomas’ leadership at Morehouse, the college has increased enrollment and philanthropic giving. Morehouse made history in higher education in May 2019 when a chief executive officer that he invited to serve as Commencement speaker surprised the graduating class by offering to pay off their student loans. Thomas holds a doctorate in Organizational Behavior Studies and a Master of Philosophy degree in Organizational Behavior, both from Yale University. He also has a master’s degree in Organizational Psychology from Columbia University, and a Bachelor of Administrative Sciences degree from Yale College. He is the co-author of three books.
Deputy General Counsel
Seth Thomson is Deputy General Counsel for Commonfund and its subsidiaries. Seth has been a practicing attorney since 2008 and was previously an associate at Proskauer Rose in the Private Investment Funds Group in Boston. Prior to his legal career, Seth was an actuarial assistant at a leading U.S. based surplus lines insurer in Boston. Seth holds a B.A. in Philosophy of Politics & Law from the State University of New York at Binghamton and J.D. from Boston University School of Law.
Director, Chief Representative Beijing Office
Xiaonan Tian is a member of Emerging Markets team at CF Private Equity and heading the Beijing office. She is mainly responsible for the oversight of due diligence, manager selection, investment monitoring and portfolio construction for the firm’s private equity and venture capital investment management programs in the Asia-Pacific basin. Prior to CF Private Equity, she was a Senior Vice President at HSBC China responsible for sponsors coverage strategy, before that at Deutsche Bank Singapore and Sal. Oppenheim Private Equity Partners, engaged in venture capital and private equity investments in different geographies, especially in China, India and Southeast Asia. Xiaonan received a B.A. from University of International Business and Economics and a Master’s Degree from Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg.
Senior Associate
Andrew Vetterlein is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for supporting the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he spent over two years doing business development at Dakota, a third-party fundraising organization and data provider based in the Philadelphia area. Andrew earned a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from Bucknell University and is Series 7 and Series 63 licensed.
Managing Director, Head of Secondaries Investor Relations
Mario Virtudes, Managing Director, Head of Secondaries Investor Relations is responsible for the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to rejoining CF Private Equity, he was a Managing Director at Capital Dynamics where he was responsible for Institutional Business Development and Consultant Relations. Prior to Capital Dynamics, Mario had worked with Commonfund’s clients in the Midwest. Earlier in his career, he was a Director at Societe Generale Corporate Investment Banking focused on developing their alternatives business in the US, and he also held various roles at Deutsche Bank Absolute Return Strategies Group and Chase Manhattan Bank. Mario holds a B.S. in Finance from the University at Albany and an M.B.A. with a concentration in Financial Management from Pace University.
Managing Director
Paul Von Steenburg is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for asset allocation, manager sourcing, due diligence, and investment monitoring for investment portfolios with a focus in real asset strategies and private real estate investments. He serves as a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment Committee. Paul also serves on advisory boards of the firm’s investment managers. Prior to joining Commonfund, Paul was a Vice President in the consulting division of Wilshire Associates, where he advised institutional investors. Paul was also the Chair of Wilshire’s Hedge Fund Committee, where he was responsible for conducting research and providing advice on the selection of hedge fund managers. Prior to Wilshire, Paul worked in equity research for Waddell & Reed Asset Management. He also spent five years with the Instinet Group as Manager of the Global Correspondent Trading Group. Paul earned a M.B.A in Finance from Cornell SC Johnson College of Business and a B.S. from Rutgers University. Paul also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst designations.
Managing Director
Lew Wallace is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management for investors in the Southern region. Lew has over 15 years of higher education and financial services experience and, prior to joining Commonfund, Lew owned and operated a financial planning firm focused on investment management strategies for individuals and nonprofit organizations. Prior to that, he was an Assistant to the Mayor and Administrative Manager for the City of Danbury. Concurrently, Lew served 10 years as a State Representative in the Connecticut General Assembly on the Education Committee and he is the Chairman of the Cultural Alliance of Western Connecticut. Lew holds a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.B.A. from the College of William and Mary.
Senior Analyst
Beata Wantke is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management and is responsible for providing support to the relationship management team including customer service, reporting and project management. Prior to joining Commonfund, Beata worked at Investcorp International for over two years where she held roles in Marketing and Sales for their Hedge Fund Group. Prior to that, she worked at Deutsche Bank, Alternative Investment Group for over 10 years, where she held an Administrative Assistant role with heavy concentration on sales support. Beata obtained her B.A. in Business Studies with concentration in Finance from Pace University.
Trustee
Michael Warren is Managing Director of Albright Stonebridge Group, part of Dentons Global Advisors. Mr. Warren brings many years of leadership in financial services, international business, and government policy. He advises clients on international growth strategies, stakeholder management issues, and economic and geopolitical issues affecting global markets. He also leads strategic growth initiatives, which includes oversight of sectoral teams and client work in the United States and Canada. He served as ASG’s Managing Principal from 2013 to 2017 and as Principal from 2009 to 2013. Mr. Warren serves on the boards of a number of institutional investors. He serves on the Board of Directors of Walker & Dunlop, Inc., a commercial real estate finance and lending company, the Board of Directors of MAXIMUS, an American government services company, and the Board of Directors of Ripple, a blockchain network solution U.S.‐based technology company. He serves on the Board of Trustees of the Commonfund, a Connecticut‐based institutional investment firm that manages $24 billion in assets. He is also a Trustee of Yale University, and a member of the Yale Corporation Investment Committee. Mr. Warren formerly served as a Trustee of the District of Columbia Retirement Board (DCRB). During the first term of the Obama administration, Mr. Warren served as Senior Advisor in the White House Presidential Personnel Office, overseeing the appointments process for the economic agencies in the U.S. government. He was also a member of the Obama‐Biden Presidential Transition as co‐lead for the Treasury and Federal Reserve agency review teams. In 2010, Mr. Warren was appointed by President Obama to serve as a member of the Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. development finance institution, where he chaired the Audit Committee until his term ended in 2019. During the Clinton administration, Mr. Warren served in the White House as Executive Director of the National Economic Council and at the U.S. Department of Labor in the Office of the Secretary. Previously, Mr. Warren worked at McKinsey & Company, where he was based in the U.S. and South Korea, both as a strategic consultant in the technology and financial institutions practices and as a fellow of the McKinsey Global Institute. He has also held senior operating positions at two high‐ growth companies. A native of Indiana, Mr. Warren graduated from Yale University and from Balliol College, University of Oxford, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. He is based in Washington, D.C.
Director
Betsy Wilson is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for investment monitoring, rebalancing and reporting for investment portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was an analyst for a consumer-based long/short equity hedge fund. While in Dallas, she was an Assistant Vice President and analyst with Westwood Management, a large-cap value fund with over $4 billion in assets under management. At Westwood, she was responsible for industry/company analysis and issuing stock recommendations across multi-cap products. Betsy is a CFA charterholder and is a member of the Stamford CFA Society and the CFA Institute. She received her undergraduate degree and M.B.A. from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.
Senior Analyst
Paul Woolhouse is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he worked as a Corporate FP&A Summer Analyst at Aptiv PLC. Paul earned a B.S. in Business Administration concentrating in Finance from Carnegie Mellon University.
Senior Associate
Jewel Wozniak is a member of the Marketing team and is primarily responsible for the creation of digital marketing materials and execution of the firm’s digital marketing strategies. Prior to joining Commonfund, Jewel worked for Stan Johnson Company as a Senior Marketing Specialist. While in this role, she managed marketing materials for the Corporate and Property Marketing teams. She earned a B.F.A. in Animation with a Minor in Storyboarding from the Savannah College of Art and Design.
President and CEO, Commonfund OCIO
Timothy T. Yates, Jr. heads Commonfund OCIO and is responsible for managing all aspects of Commonfund OCIO's business, which focuses exclusively on non-profit institutions. In this role, he leads a team of professionals that advise, implement and monitor custom investment solutions for institutions with total assets under management of more than $15 billion. Tim is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Executive Group and serves on both the Commonfund Asset Allocation and Operating Committees. Tim joined Commonfund as an associate in the CF Private Equity Associate Program. In 2003, he was a founding member of Commonfund's OCIO platform, where he was responsible for the design, tailoring and implementation of total portfolio solutions. Additionally, he held several roles with CF Private Equity including having responsibility for custom accounts and serving as a senior member of the firm’s emerging markets private equity portfolio leadership team with a focus on Latin America. Before joining Commonfund, Tim was an instructor of Spanish and Italian at Fordham Preparatory School in the Bronx, NY. He holds an M.B.A. in Finance with a designation in International Business from Fordham University and a B.A. in Modern Languages from Trinity College. Tim is a member of the investment committee for St. Paul’s Church in Fairfield, CT, the Advisory Board of Girls Who Invest, a member of the Trinity College Board of Fellows, and the Board of Directors of Caroline House—a non-profit in Bridgeport, CT, focused on enabling women and children to reach the fullness of their potential through education in English language and life skills.
Associate Director
Viola Yee is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for supporting the middle office operations and client service for all outsourced CIO solutions clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Viola was a Performance Measurement Associate at Pequot Capital Management where she was responsible for product information, investment fund commentary and verifying performance numbers. Prior to that, she was a Marketing Manager at Simms Capital Management, a boutique investment management firm that specialized in global equity portfolio strategies. Viola received her M.B.A. with a Finance concentration from the University of Bridgeport and her B.S. in Marketing from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
Managing Director, Chief Technology Officer
Dave Young has over 25 years of experience in mutual funds and fund-to-funds technology backed initiatives, solutions and infrastructure. Dave is primarily responsible for Commonfund’s technology infrastructure, cyber-security, application development, systems support, and business analysis/project management. Prior to joining Commonfund, David worked at Alliance Capital Management and their fund services group as a supervisor focusing on total quality management through technology. He has a B.S. in Finance/Law & Public Policy from Syracuse University, an M.B.A. from Bridgeport University, and holds several cyber-security and project management certifications from Villanova University.
Fund Operations Associate
Anna Zhao is a member of the Fund Operations team and is responsible for providing operational support and service to Commonfund’s investors, advisory clients, and Funds. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was an operations assistant at Edgehill Endowment Partners in New Haven, CT. She also worked at China Merchants Bank for its corporate banking department in Nanning, China. Anna earned an M.B.A with honors and an M.S. in Finance from University of New Haven. She holds a B.A in Chinese Language and Literature from Guangxi University for Nationalities.
Associate Director
Robert Allen is a member of the Fund Operations team and has over 20 years of operations and fund accounting experience. He is responsible for providing operational support and service to Commonfund’s investors, advisory clients, and Funds, including marketable alternative Funds, private equity Funds, and certain private distressed debt partnerships. Prior to joining Commonfund, Rob worked at State Street Bank as a mutual fund accountant and mutual fund portfolio administrator; was an account administrator for an investment firm in Boston; and was a senior associate at a mutual fund company in Norwalk, CT. He earned a B.S. in Business Administration from North Adams State College and an M.B.A. from the University of New Haven.
Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer, Commonfund
Mark Anson is the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of the Commonfund and Chair of the Boards of CF Private Equity and Commonfund OCIO. Previously, he was the President and Chief Investment Officer for the Bass Family Office of Ft. Worth, Texas which was recognized as Family Office of the Year for 2014 & 2015. He was the President and Global Head of Investment Management at Nuveen Investments, a full-service asset management company with over $900 billion in assets under management. Prior to Nuveen, Mark served as the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer for the British Telecom Pension Scheme (BTPS), the largest institutional investor in the UK with assets of £55 billion. In addition, Mark was the CEO of Hermes Pensions Management in London, a £60 billion asset management company that is wholly owned by the BTPS. Prior to joining BTPS, he served as the Chief Investment Officer of the California Public Employees' Retirement System, the largest institutional investor in the United States with over $400 billion in assets. Mark is currently a Trustee, member of the Committee and Chair of the Investment Committee of the $65 billion UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust. He also serves on the Law Board of the Northwestern University School of Law, Board of PanAgora Asset Management and the Board of Directors of the Toigo Foundation. He is the only person to serve on the Board of Governors for both the CFA Institute and the CAIA Association. He was an inaugural member of the SEC Investor Advisory Committee and the Chairman of the Board for the International Corporate Governance Network. Mark has published over 90 investment articles in professional journals and has won three Best Paper Awards. He is the author of five financial textbooks including the Handbook of Alternative Assets, which is the primary textbook used for the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst program. Mark earned a B.A. in Economics and Chemistry from St. Olaf College, a Ph.D. and Masters in Finance from Columbia University Graduate School of Business, and a J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law, all with honors. He has also received several industry awards in recognition of his leadership in asset management including the Lifetime Achievement Award in Pension Fund Management from Plan Sponsor and the CAIA Leadership Award from the CAIA Association. Last, Mark has earned the Chartered Financial Analyst, Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst, Certified Public Accountant, and Chartered Global Management Accountant professional degrees, and he is a Member of the Law Bar of New York and Illinois.
Trustee
Ms. Nicole Arnaboldi is currently a Partner at Oak Hill Capital, a mid-market private equity firm, and an independent director of Manulife Financial Corporation (MFC), Commonfund, NextEra Energy, Inc. and Merit Hill Capital. She previously served as Vice Chairman of Credit Suisse Asset Management and earlier as Head of Credit Suisse’s Illiquid Alternatives businesses, which included a wide range of private equity, real estate, and credit products. She also served on the boards or investment committees of private equity joint ventures in the U.S., Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. Ms. Arnaboldi joined Credit Suisse in November 2000 when it merged with DLJ, where she was a Managing Director in the Merchant Banking area. Before the merger, Ms. Arnaboldi spent 15 years at DLJ, mainly in the private equity and venture capital groups. Ms. Arnaboldi is a member of the Dean’s Advisory Board at Harvard Law School and a member of the Advisory Board for Harvard’s Office of the Vice Provost for Advances in Learning. She serves as Investment Committee Chair and Vice President of Prep for Prep and is a member of the board of Local Initiative Support Corporation (LISC). She previously served on other boards including the Harvard University Corporation Committee on Finance, the New York Federal Reserve Bank’s Investor Advisory Committee on Financial Markets, and New Yorkers for Children. Ms. Arnaboldi holds a B.A. magna cum laude from Harvard College, a J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School, and an M.B.A. with high distinction from the Harvard Business School, where she was a Baker Scholar.
Director
Danielle Baleeiro is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team responsible for private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to joining the Business Development Team, Danielle served as Associate Director on the CF Private Equity Investor Services Team responsible for investor portfolio reviews, investor communications, client reporting, and special projects. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she worked on the trading desk at Silver Point Capital. She earned her B.A. from Denison University.
Managing Director
Nancy Kiernan Bard is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team and is responsible for overseeing relationship management for all outsourced CIO clients and consultants. Nancy has over 25 years of experience in investments and client service. Previously, she was a member of the Client Sales and Service Team where she was responsible for managing client relationships and developing new business in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Before that Nancy held a series of roles at the firm in Business Development and on the investment team. Before joining Commonfund, Nancy was a Research Associate at KR Capital Advisors, an equity investment manager, and a corporate bond Sales Assistant at Lazard Freres & Co. She received a B.S. in Finance from Sacred Heart University. Nancy is also a former board member of The Adam Wysota Foundation, a nonprofit that provides grief education and peer support to children and families.
Administrative Assistant
Daniella Barone is a member of the CF Private Equity team and is primarily responsible for assisting the team with various tasks, projects and initiatives. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Daniella was at CLEAR in Manhattan working within the Office of the CISO as an Assistant managing various projects and driving community amongst the team. She built out various processes to help enable the team's day to day operations run more effectively. Prior to CLEAR, she was at Bridgewater Associates in Westport, CT holding various roles including Principles Client Coordinator and Management Support. Daniella earned a BA in Business Management with a concentration in Entrepreneurship from LIM College.
Managing Director
Mark Bennett is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for asset allocation, manager sourcing, due diligence, and investment monitoring for investment portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Mark was an Investment Consultant for defined benefit services at CIGNA Retirement and Investment Services. He was an asset allocation analyst and consultant for CIGNA-Connecticut General Pension Services. Previously, Mark was a benefit technician for CIGNA Retirement and Investment Services. He received a B.S. from Bryant College and his M.B.A. from the University of Hartford. Mark is a CFA charterholder and is a member of the Hartford Society of Financial Analysts and the CFA Institute.
Director
Carolyn Blanch is a member of Commonfund OCIO and is primarily responsible for risk management, compliance and due diligence oversight with respect to Commonfund’s funds and sub-advisors and working with senior management to develop, monitor and implement strategic business issues, policies and procedures as well as daily operations. Prior to her current role, Carolyn worked in several areas of Commonfund including the Legal group and CF Private Equity. Prior to joining Commonfund, Carolyn was a Senior Paralegal at the law firm of Ackerly & Associates. Carolyn holds a B.S. from Sacred Heart University with a focus in Business and Legal Administration.
Managing Director
Issa Brandt is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Issa was a Relationship Manager in the U.S. Institutional Group at Allianz Global Investors (formerly RCM Capital Management LLC) where he was responsible for servicing the firm’s Corporate, Public, Union, Taft-Hartley, and Endowment & Foundation Clients beginning in 2000. While at Allianz Global Investors, Issa also coordinated with their global offices servicing the firm’s International client base. He holds a B.A. in Geography from California State University, Fresno.
Trustee
Jessica Hoffman Brennan is a Partner and Head of Strategy and Investor Relations at Kohlberg, a $10 billion private equity investment management firm. Prior to joining Kohlberg in 2022, Ms. Brennan spent 9 years as a Partner and Managing Director of The Carlyle Group where she was responsible for investor relations and business development. There, she worked with many of Carlyle’s largest investors, including sovereign wealth funds, public pension funds, insurance companies, ultra-high net worth individuals, and formed several strategic separate accounts with some of Carlyle’s largest investors In addition to her role at Carlyle, Ms. Brennan previously served as the Head of the Client and Product Solutions Group at Onex Corp. and was a Managing Director in the Private Fund Group at Credit Suisse which acquired, Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette. Over her 20+ year career, Ms. Brennan has raised billions of dollars annually with some notable highs. She is a recognized leader in fundraising in alternative asset classes and her capital formation activities span 400+ alternative investment strategies, including: private equity, private credit, real assets, liquid alternatives, specialty and niche alternatives, such as strategic accounts and structured credit products. Ms. Brennan is a board member of The Commonfund, a $30 billion alternative asset management company that invests on behalf of endowments and foundations. She serves on the Executive Board of the Wharton Graduate School, the Women’s Leadership Board at Harvard Kennedy School’s Women and Public Policy Center, the Dean’s Advisory Council of the University of Michigan’s Literature Science & the Arts college. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Ms. Brennan holds an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and an AB degree in both Economics and Literature from the University of Michigan.
Director
Zoë Brizzolara is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management and provides client service to investors in the western region. She brings over 20 years of experience in institutional asset management. Prior to joining Commonfund, Zoë was at Robeco working on business building and operational management. Before this she was at Investec Asset Management focusing on consultant relations in the Midwest and Southeast. She started her career in Boston at Oechsle International Advisors. She holds a B.S. degree in Business Administration from the University of Hartford and a Masters in Communication Management from Simmons College.
Senior Paralegal
Amanda Brown is a Senior Paralegal in the Legal Department. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was the Contract Administrator at SimplexGrinnell, a subsidiary of Tyco International. Previously, Amanda was a Paralegal at Graham Capital Management, L.P. supporting the Legal and Compliance Departments. She has a B.S. in Legal Administration and A.S. in Paralegal Studies from Sacred Heart University.
Associate
Kiyana Campbell is a member of the Commonfund Institute team and supports all Institute activities, including benchmarks studies, DEI initiatives, governance research in the nonprofit institutional investor space, and ESG. Prior to working at Commonfund, she was an Associate at G4 Capital Partners, a commercial real estate investment firm. Kiyana earned a B.A. in Philosophy from Herbert H. Lehman College.
Director
Alexandra Casey is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for delivering full middle office operational support and client service across all outsourced CIO solutions clients. Before joining Commonfund, Alexandra worked for the Bank of New York Mellon in Westport, CT as a Senior Investor Services Associate. Prior to that, she was a Fund & Client Service Associate at Bridgewater Associates in Westport, CT as well as a Private Client Associate at AllianceBernstein. Alexandra received a B.B.A. in Finance and Marketing from the University of Miami.
Director
Jason Casey is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team with a primary focus on research and analytics providing both quantitative and qualitative due diligence on investments and managers. Prior to joining Commonfund, Jason worked in the Trust Department for Citibank’s Private Bank. Jason received his B.S. in Chemistry from Yale University and a M.B.A. from the University of Rochester’s Simon Graduate School of Business.
Chief Compliance Officer
Violetta Cerasuolo serves as the Chief Compliance Officer of Commonfund. Prior to joining Commonfund, Violetta was a Senior Vice President and Senior Compliance Officer at Capstone Investment Advisors, LLC, a global alternative investment management firm. Prior to joining Capstone, Violetta was a Senior Compliance Officer at Bridgewater Associates, LP for over five years. At Bridgewater, she primarily focused on regulatory matters, including filings, registrations, and examinations. Prior to Bridgewater, she spent over two and half years at GE Capital as a Senior Regulatory Reporting Leader and almost six years at Goldman Sachs in various compliance operations roles. Violetta earned a B.A. in Economics with minors in Business Administration and German from Fordham University.
Director
Olga Chiriac is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for assisting in investment monitoring, rebalancing and reporting for investment portfolios with a focus in fixed income and credit strategies. Prior to joining Commonfund, Olga was with Telekurs Financial USA as an Assistant Manager for Corporate Fixed Income. While at Telekurs she was responsible for the oversight of corporate bond market coverage, corporate actions and pricing support. Olga received her B.S. and her M.B.A. from the University of Bridgeport and is a CAIA charterholder.
Director
David Claiborn is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team with a focus on requests for proposals or RFPs. He shares responsibility for responding to RFPs, Due Diligence Questionnaires (DDQs), and to consultant requests. David is also responsible for creating new RFP responses and editing existing content. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was a Vice President and Senior Marketing and Branding Specialist at Barclays, and was responsible for writing and distributing weekly highlights, crafting and refining content, and internal education. Before joining Barclays, he was Vice President and Senior Client Service Specialist at O’Shaughnessy Asset Management, where he focused on servicing Institutional clients, writing commentaries and content for RFPs, and reviewing collateral. Previously, he was a Vice President and Product Manager for the Systematic team at Bear Stearns Asset Management, serving as a liaison between the portfolio management team and clients. David also held an Investment Specialist role at Citigroup Asset Management and eventually Legg Mason, and RFP positions at Deutsche Asset Management and Diversified Investment Advisors. David holds an M.B.A. in Marketing and a B.S. in Business Administration from Iona College.
Managing Director
Brian Cohen is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Brian worked as a product analyst for IPREO. Brian received B.S. in Business Management from Bentley University and his M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University.
Managing Director
Dan Connell is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team for CF Private Equity. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he worked as a principal investor on energy infrastructure with GE Capital’s Energy Financial Services, where he focused on both project finance debt and international equity. Before his time with GE Capital, Dan worked in commercial development for Atlantic Power and served as an Intelligence Officer in the US Navy. He has a B.A. from Seton Hall University, an M.P.A. from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and an M.B.A. from MIT’s Sloan School of Management.
Associate Director
Bella Cristovao is an Associate Director, working with CF Private Equity on the management of the distressed capital program. Her responsibilities include analysis and oversight of the managers within the firm’s distressed fund of funds program. She has two decades of investment experience, spanning due diligence and monitoring of hedge fund and private equity managers, as well as various aspects of direct investing in corporate credit. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Mrs. Cristovao worked on this program at Commonfund OCIO as a distressed credit specialist within the Fixed Income team. Prior to Commonfund, she worked at Hartford Investment Management Company, where her experience included credit analysis, trading, and quantitative analysis, primarily for the international fixed income sector. Mrs. Cristovao received her B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Connecticut, with dual concentrations in Finance and Management Information Systems. She also has the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
Director
Jennifer is a member of the Marketing team, where she oversees the strategic management, creation, and maintenance of content across a diverse range of internal and external systems. Her role involves crafting compelling marketing materials tailored for print, email, and our company’s website, ensuring consistency and engagement across all platforms. In addition, Jennifer contributes to shaping the firm's marketing and digital media strategies, with a particular focus on enhancing our presence across social media channels. She holds an A.A.S. in Visual Communications from Katherine Gibbs College and graduated summa cum laude with a B.S. in Graphic Design from Southern New Hampshire University.
Investor Services Assistant
Julie Czamanski is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for providing support to investors and the Investor Services team. Julie has also held a series of roles within the Commonfund organization across the Compliance, CF Private Equity and Corporate Accounting groups. Prior to joining Commonfund, Julie worked as a Receptionist/Administrative Assistant for Rayonier, Inc.
Associate Director
Amanda Daher is a member of the Commonfund Marketing team and is primarily responsible for the creation and maintenance of CF Private Equity marketing materials and initiatives, as well as social media streams. Prior to her role in Marketing, Amanda supported the Sales and Service team at Commonfund for 4 years where she focused on client service support and reporting. Before joining Commonfund, Amanda worked at Altrinsic Global Advisors, LLC, an asset management firm in Greenwich, CT. Prior to that, Amanda was a Content Analyst at Affinion Group in Stamford, CT. Amanda earned a B.A. in Mass Communications from Iona College.
Associate
Darcy Dang is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales Team. She is responsible for business development of outsourced CIO solutions across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, and other philanthropic organizations. Prior to Commonfund, she worked as a Business Development Associate at O'Neil Global Advisor. Darcy earned a B.S. in Finance and Business Analytics from the University of Rochester.
Trustee
Kent Daniel is the Jean-Marie Eveillard/First Eagle Professor of Business at Columbia Business School. In 2017-18 Professor Daniel served as the Chair of the Finance Division, and from 2019 through 2022 he served as Senior Vice Dean of Faculty Affairs at Columbia Business School. Professor Daniel is a member of the academic advisory board of Martingale Asset Management. From 1996 to 2007, Professor Daniel was on the faculty of the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, where he was the John and Helen Kellogg Distinguished Professor of Finance (on leave from 2005-2007). He also served on the faculties of the University of Chicago and the University of British Columbia. His work, both theoretical and empirical, has been primarily in the areas of asset pricing and behavioral finance. Between 2004 and 2010, he was with the Quantitative Investment Strategies group at Goldman Sachs Asset Management. In 2005, he became a managing director and head of equity research effort in 2005 and became a co-chief investment officer in 2009. In addition to other awards, his papers received the 1997 and 1999 Smith-Breeden awards for the best paper in the Journal of Finance. His papers have been reprinted in several books. He received the Sidney J. Levy Teaching Award for 1996-1997 and 2000-2001 at the Kellogg School, and the Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence at Columbia Business School in 2016. Professor Daniel's academic research, both theoretical and empirical, has been primarily in the areas of behavioral finance and asset pricing. Kent is a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research and has served as an associate editor for the Journal of Finance, and as director of both the American Finance Association and the Western Finance Association. Professor Daniel holds a B.S. with honors in physics from the California Institute of Technology, an M.B.A. from UCLA, and a Ph.D. in Finance from UCLA.
Associate Director
Joe DeCicco is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity. His responsibilities include sourcing, due diligence, manager selection and investment management across the Firm’s Venture Capital programs. Joe joined CF Private Equity from CPP Investments, where he was a Senior Associate focused globally on venture capital and growth equity fund, secondary, and direct investments. Before CPP, Joe was an Associate at Industrial Growth Partners, a middle market private equity firm investing in the industrials sector, and prior to that, began his career in investment banking with Barclays, focused on M&A advisory as well as debt and equity offerings for technology companies. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Economics with a minor in Accounting from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Managing Director, Head of Research and Analytics
John Delano is Head of Commonfund OCIO Research and Analytics and leads the team responsible for quantitative analysis of investments and managers. He also serves as a member of both the Commonfund OCIO Investment and the Commonfund Asset Allocation Committees. Prior to joining Commonfund, John was a consultant in Global Public Opinion Research at Altria Corporate Services and a research assistant at Columbia University′s Institute of Social and Economic Research and Policy. Prior to that, he worked as a media buyer at Horizon Media, using statistical analysis to forecast audience deliveries for television commercials. John has a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Chicago and an M.A. in Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences from Columbia University. He also holds the Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF).
Director
Tiffany Delevante serves as project manager for various marketing programs and campaigns, including creation and execution of digital marketing initiatives. Tiffany serves as liaison with Marketing, Sales and Service for various Commonfund sponsored events to ensure consistency in messaging and execution and is event manager for Commonfund Forum. She also serves on the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. Tiffany has a B.S. in Journalism from Southern Connecticut State University, as well as a Masters in Communication from Fairfield University.
Director
Michael Devanny is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for cost accounting, portfolio reconciliation, performance and client reporting for all outsourced CIO solutions clients. Previously, Mike was a member of the Fund Accounting team where he was responsible for accounting and custodial oversight for Commonfund’s marketable funds and certain private partnerships. Prior to joining Commonfund, he served as a Mutual Fund Supervisor at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Services & Co. in New York with responsibility for fund valuations, operations, financial reporting and compliance. Mike received a B.S. in Accounting from Lehman College.
Director
Michelle DiMaio is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team where she is responsible for supporting all aspects of investor servicing including onboarding for both Commonfund OCIO and CF Private Equity. Prior to joining Commonfund, Michelle worked at Barclays Capital in New York as a Senior Vice President on the Structured Finance Trading Desk where she structured and reverse engineered Asset Back Securities. Prior to that she was an Assistant Vice President in the Asset and Mortgage Backed Securities Analytics Group at Merrill Lynch in New York. Michelle began her career at Prudential Securities in New York, in the Mortgage and Asset Backed Structured Finance Investment Banking Group, where she structured, priced, and closed MBS deals for issuance in the primary market. She received a B.A. in Economics from the University of Rhode Island.
Director of Fund Administration
Renee Diones-Cahill is a member of the CF Private Equity Investor Services team and is responsible for investor operations, reporting and service for private capital investors. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Renee worked for Tradition Financial Services. She has a B.A. from Hunter College.
Senior Analyst
Robert DiRenzo is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and responsible for portfolio reconciliation, cost accounting, performance, and reporting for outsourced CIO solutions clients. Prior to Commonfund, Robert has 10 years of combined experience as a Financial Analyst and Accountant primarily with First Union Bank. Robert received a B.S. degree from Sacred Heart University.
Managing Director, Head of Fund Operations
Russell Dobransky has over 25 years of experience in financial operations and fund accounting and is responsible for fund valuations, financial reporting, processing of shareholder activity and tax and regulatory reporting for Commonfund funds. Prior to joining, Russ was an auditor with Price Waterhouse in their financial services group, and was a Supervisor of Fund Accounting at Alliance Capital Management. He holds a B.A. in Economics from Fordham University.
Managing Director
Ryan Driscoll is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is focused on macroeconomic research. Ryan serves as the investment officer for the firm’s Multi-Asset Portfolio investors and is also responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for Treasury clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Ryan worked at Sailfish Capital Partners, a multi-strategy fixed income fund, where he served on the Emerging Markets team. Prior to that, he was on the fixed income team at Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo & Co. and was an equity/fixed income trader at Loring, Wolcott and Coolidge, in Boston. Ryan received his B.S. in Finance and M.S. in Global Financial Analysis (with Distinction) from Bentley University. He is a CFA Charterholder and is a member of the Boston Securities Analyst Society and CFA Institute.
Managing Director
Susan Durrell is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. In this capacity, she leads a team of relationship managers that support Commonfund investors across the country. Prior to joining Commonfund, Susan was an operations and investor relations manager for Capricorn Management, G.P., a private asset management firm, where her primary responsibilities included marketing and reporting functions with existing and new investors. Prior to Capricorn Management, she worked in the Sales and Operations Group in sales and client service at Interleaf, Inc. Susan has a B.A. from the University of Hartford and an M.B.A. in Finance with high honors from Sacred Heart University. She also served as a board member for the Easton Community Center and the Welch College of Business Economics and Finance Advisory Board for Sacred Heart University.
Senior Associate
Branden Elkins is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team at CF Private Equity. He is responsible for investments across energy, agriculture, and resource efficiency. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he worked as a management consultant in PwC’s Power & Utilities Advisory practice and as a Business Operations Manager at Hive AI. While in business school, Branden worked at Energy Foundry, a cleantech-focused venture capital firm, and Wave Equity Partners, a sustainability-focused growth equity firm. Branden earned an M.B.A. from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University.
Director
Joseph Falcha is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was an Investment Advisor for Drax Asset Management, LLC ─ an investment management firm. Joe was responsible for advising high net worth individuals and non-profit organizations, conducting research, executing trades and developing new business. Prior to Drax, he spent several years working for Hartford Financial and MetLife Financial in a variety of different consulting and service roles. Joe received his B.S. in Business Management from Albertus Magnus College and holds the Certified Investment Management Analyst designation. He is a member of the Investment Management Consultants Association.
Head of Operations
Matt Fliesser is the Head of Operations for CF Private Equity and is responsible for the overall management and coordination of the day-to-day operations of CF Private Equity. Prior to rejoining CF Private Equity, he was the Controller of Alvarez & Marsal Capital. Prior to Alvarez & Marsal Capital, Matt was the Assistant Controller of CF Private Equity. He began his career at PwC in their asset and wealth management group where he audited hedge funds and private equity funds. Matt earned a B.S.B.A. in Accounting from Western New England University and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Analyst
Owen Gannon is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He previously worked as a Secondaries Summer Analyst at CF Private Equity. Owen earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of Notre Dame.
Director
Steven Gasparini is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for assisting in the design, tailoring and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients, as well as client portfolio analysis and specialized analytical requests. Prior to joining Commonfund, Steven attended undergraduate school at the University of Connecticut where he graduated with a B.S. in Finance and a minor in Economics. At the University of Connecticut, Steven also co-led the Student Managed Fund his senior year, assisting with the management and investment of endowment funds entrusted by the UConn Foundation.
Senior Associate
Alessandro Giacometti is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for supporting the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to working at CF Private Equity, Alessandro spent over four years at HQ Capital, where he focused on building out the North American client base for the European private equity manager, across both institutional and private investors. Alessandro earned a B.A. in Political Science and Corporate Strategy from Vanderbilt University.
Team Administrator
Jill Gibson is a member of the Commonfund OCIO team and is primarily responsible for assisting the team with various tasks, projects, and initiatives. Jill has worked in the Finance world for more than 15 years. Prior to working at Commonfund, she worked at De Beers Group the world’s leading diamond company as a Commercial Sales Executive. Prior to that, she spent 5 years as an Executive Assistant at L Catterton, one of the world’s leading consumer growth investors. Jill earned her Associate Degree in Finance from Berkeley College.
Associate
Dolores Gillap is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team with a focus on requests for proposals or RFPs. She shares responsibility for responding to RFPs, Due Diligence Questionnaires (DDQs), and to consultant requests. Dolores is also responsible for maintaining the RFP database with new content as well as editing existing content. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was with Altrinsic Global Advisors as a member of the Client Experience Team and was responsible for all request for proposals, crafting and refining content, as well as writing performance commentaries for clients. Before joining Altrinsic, she was a Senior RFP Writer with HSBC Asset Management, where she focused on content for RFPs, DDQs and maintenance and population of a number of consultant databases. Dolores also held RFP roles with Insight Investment Management and Rogge Global Partners. Dolores received a B.S. in Finance from Sacred Heart University.
Managing Director
Caroline Greer is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible diverse and impact manager investments across asset classes. Caroline currently serves as a member of the Commonfund Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Office and Commonfund OCIO’s Investment Committee. Prior to joining Commonfund, she served as a Partner and Principal for Contego Capital Management, LLC, specializing in customized funds of hedge funds. She was responsible for sourcing, evaluating and monitoring hedge fund managers across a full range of strategies. Prior to joining Contego, Caroline was a Senior Vice President for Oppenheimer and Co. where she co-managed their funds of hedge funds program and monitored Oppenheimer’s private equity fund. Caroline began her career at Montrose Advisors, a boutique financial advisor specializing in managing customized funds of hedge funds and private equity and venture capital portfolios. In 2015, Caroline was named one of the 50 Leading Women in Hedge Funds globally by The Hedge Fund Journal. Caroline received a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Toronto, and an M.A. and M.Phil. from Columbia University of New York.
Counsel
Terrence Griffiths is Counsel for Commonfund and its subsidiaries. Prior to working at Commonfund, Terrence was a Senior Associate Attorney at Riveles Wahab, a boutique law firm representing private investment funds including venture capital, private equity funds and crypto funds. Terrence’s previous experience also includes legal and administrative roles at Credit Suisse, CBS Sports Network and the U.S. Marshals Service. Terrence earned a B.A. in Criminal Justice from Quinnipiac University and a J.D. From New York Law School, and is admitted to practice law in the State of New York and the State of Connecticut.
Part-Time Associate
Ann Guercio is a member of the Commonfund Marketing team and supports the development and maintenance of CF Private Equity marketing materials and initiatives. Prior to her role in Marketing, Ann was a Portfolio Strategist with First Citizens Bank and an Associate Client Portfolio Manager with J.P. Morgan Asset Management where she conducted portfolio analysis and marketed investment strategies to institutional and high net worth clients. She began in the industry in 2005 and earned a B.S. with concentrations in finance and economics from Boston College. She is a holder of the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
Associate
Amy Gusitsch is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales Team. She is responsible for business development of outsourced CIO solutions across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, and other philanthropic organizations. Prior to Commonfund, Amy was formerly an Executive Assistant at Alternative Investment Management in New York City. She has held a number of administrative, client and event planning positions. Her early career began teaching in IL and at Cider Mill in Wilton, CT specializing in mathematics. She has served on several foundations and executed events in her community with a concentration in education, sports and diabetes. Amy earned her B.S. in Elementary Education at Western Illinois University where she also earned a full scholarship to be part of the Division I the volleyball team. She received her M.S. in Educational Leadership at Aurora University.
Director
Elijah Han is a member of the Private Equity team at CF Private Equity and is responsible for sourcing, due diligence and investment underwriting for the firm’s private equity strategy. He previously worked as an Investment Banking Analyst at Mesirow Financial where he specialized in financial advisory and mergers and acquisitions in the aerospace and defense, industrials and plastics and packaging industries. Elijah began his career as an Associate at Mesirow Financial Consulting, LLC, advising on corporate turnarounds, financial restructurings, valuation and litigation related engagements. He earned a B.S. in Accountancy and Finance from the College of Business at the University of Illinois.
President and CEO, Commonfund Securities
Anita Hariton is President and CEO of Commonfund Securities, Inc. and Head of Client Engagement for Commonfund OCIO, providing oversight to the sales, service and RFP teams and processes. She is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Executive Group where she contributes to the overall strategic and operational direction of Commonfund’s OCIO business. Prior to joining Commonfund OCIO, Anita served as Head of Investor Services for CF Private Equity where her team was responsible for investor portfolio reviews, investor communications, client reporting, RFP responses, and special projects. Prior to moving into this role, she held a series of positions across the Commonfund organization, serving on the operations, treasury, and client relationship teams and leading clients through decisions on asset allocation, investment policy, treasury management and governance. Anita previously served eight years as a Trustee for Temple Israel, Westport, four as Executive Vice President. She has a B.M. from Susquehanna University and an M.B.A. with a concentration in Finance from Fairfield University. Anita is a member of the Private Equity Women’s Investor Network.
Managing Director, Head of Operations
Amy Harlacker is Head of Operations. She oversees the delivery of operational and investor services to outsourced CIO clients and fund investors which includes the management of valuations and financial and regulatory reporting for Commonfund funds. As a member of the Commonfund OCIO Executive Group, Amy is responsible for collaborating with members of the team to provide operational leadership, direction and support during the implementation of the organization’s strategic plans and initiatives. She has also held a series of roles within the Commonfund organization across the Financial Operations, Client Service and Information Technology groups. Prior to joining Commonfund, Amy was a business analyst at Energy East Corporation. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Aspetuck Land Trust and holds an M.B.A. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Lehigh University.
President and CEO, CF Private Equity
Mark Hoeing is President and CEO of CF Private Equity, Head of the firm’s Buyout and Growth Equity investment practice, a member of the Investment Committee and Senior Executive Group of CF Private Equity and a member of the Operating Committee of Commonfund Group. As President and CEO, Mark’s responsibilities include the strategic direction of the firm and oversight of investment solutions in buyouts, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability. As Head of Buyouts and Growth Equity investments, his responsibilities include managing due diligence, investment selection, portfolio construction, monitoring, and fundraising for the firm’s buyout and growth equity strategies that include primaries, secondaries and co-investments. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, his experience includes positions at Deutsche Bank, evaluating third-party managers in the private capital funds division, as well as direct private capital investing with DB Capital Partners, Deutsche Bank’s merchant banking subsidiary. Part of Mark’s work at Deutsche included the bank’s coverage of the Asia-Pacific basin. Mark began his career as a credit analyst and commercial lending officer with Citizens Financial Group. He is presently a member of the advisory boards of several private equity limited partnerships. Mark has a B.S. in Health Policy and Management and an M.B.A. from Providence College.
Associate Director
Diana Hoffman is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team where she provides analysis for the firm. She previously was a Sales Assistant for the Endowment and Foundation Sales team at Commonfund. Prior to joining Commonfund, Diana worked at RBS Greenwich Capital for over five years where she held roles in Operations and Sales for their Credit Markets trading & sales desk. Diana obtained her B.S. in Finance and Marketing from Providence College.
Director, Financial Analysis
Wendy Hopkinson is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team where she is responsible for financial analysis and reporting for the firm. Wendy has over 25 years of experience in financial operations. Prior to her current role, Wendy was a Director in Fund Accounting at Commonfund. Before joining Commonfund, she held various positions within the financial operation departments at Mellon Bank in Boston, LIT Europe, and Blade Investments in London. Wendy received a B.S. in Accounting from Northeastern University and an M.B.A., with a concentration in finance, from Scared Heart University.
Senior Analyst
Anthony Hughes is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team of CF Private Equity and is responsible for investments across energy, agriculture, and resource efficiency. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he served as an Aerographer’s Mate in the U.S. Navy. Anthony earned a B.A. in Applied Economics and Management from Cornell University.
Chief Marketing Officer
Tony Ialeggio is responsible for the development and execution of firm-wide marketing strategies and branding. Prior to joining Commonfund, Tony was Executive Vice President, Director of Global Marketing at Cohen & Steers where he had overall responsibility for branding, communications, marketing strategy and product management. Prior to Cohen & Steers, he spent ten years at AllianceBernstein, where he was a Managing Director and held a number of marketing, planning and product management positions. Tony has twenty years of professional experiences and has a B.A. in Political Science from Tulane University.
Managing Director
David Isacovici is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he was a Director of Business Development at Amundi Asset Management, where he was responsible for marketing the firm’s alternative investment funds and solutions to institutional and wealth management clients across the Americas. Prior to Amundi, David held business development roles at TIAA Asset Management (now Nuveen Investments), Merrill Lynch and Refco. He earned his B.A. from Brandeis University and holds the Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) designation, offered by the Investments & Wealth Institute in partnership with the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business.
Senior Analyst
Dhruv Jindal is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team of CF Private Equity and is responsible for economic research and analysis across energy, agriculture, and resource efficiency. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he interned on Shell’s Crude Lease Desk and Suncor’s Oil Sands F&P Team. Dhruv earned a B.Comm in Finance with Distinction from the University of Calgary.
Analyst
Dana Johnson is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she was a Corporate Strategy Summer Analyst at Ares Management in New York City. Dana earned a B.S. in Business and Enterprise Management from the Wake Forest University of Business and a B.A. in Studio Art.
Administrative Assistant
Jill Kakaletris is a member of the CF Private Equity team and is primarily responsible for assisting in daily office needs and managing administrative activities. Before joining CF Private Equity, she worked as an executive assistant handling complex calendars and domestic travel. Prior to that, she ran her own small business controlling all backend operations. Jill earned a B.A. in Sociology from Fordham University.
Director
Shameer Karim is a Director for Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. He has over 15 years industry experience working for asset management firms, hedge funds and large corporate pension plans. Prior to joining Commonfund, Shameer worked at TOBAM as a Senior Vice President handling relationship management and client service for the North American client base. Shameer earned a B.S. in Finance from Pace University. He has earned the CFA Institute Certificate in ESG Investing and awarded the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. Shameer is also a member of the CFA Institute and the New York Society of Security Analysts.
Director
Allison Kaspriske develops and manages programs and research initiatives for Commonfund Institute, including the Commonfund Benchmarks Studies®, the Council on Foundations-Commonfund Study of Foundations® (CCSF) and is also involved in developing and maintaining strategic partnerships. She manages the Institute's educational initiatives such as Commonfund Institute Online and the Investment Stewardship Academy and is actively involved in all other educational programs that Commonfund provides. She earned a B.A. in English from the University of Connecticut, Storrs.
Senior Associate
Anisa Kelib is a member of the CF Private Equity Investor Services team and supports all investor operations, reporting and service for private capital investors. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Anisa worked for State Street Corporation. She began her career in 2004 in Tax operations and subsequently held several roles in their Custody Services division in their Boston, Toronto and NY offices. She has a B.A. in Computer Science from Boston University.
Senior Associate
Sarah Kirshy is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team at CF Private Equity. She is responsible for overseeing, managing and monitoring the ESG considerations across the firm’s Real Assets and Sustainability programs. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Sarah was a Senior ESG Consultant at ERM: Environmental Resources Management. At ERM she primarily focused on driving sustainability strategies for private equity clients. Sarah holds a BA from Binghamton University in Politics & Law, and a Sustainability Finance Professional Certification from Columbia University.
Managing Director
Vincent Kravec is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for investment monitoring, manager sourcing, rebalancing and reporting for investment portfolios with a focus in fixed income and credit strategies. Prior to joining Commonfund, Vincent was with Lazard Asset Management as a member of the Fixed Income operations staff. While at Lazard he was a trading assistant on the Emerging Markets team. He was also a supervisor in Fixed Income Accounting and had responsibilities in trading operations involving allocating trades and resolving trade problems for corporates, treasuries, municipals, asset backs and FX trading desks. Previous experience includes positions at Morgan Stanley, Alliance Capital and Evaluation Associates. Vincent earned his M.B.A. in from New York University’s Stern School of Business and his B.A. from Fairfield University. He is also a CFA charterholder.
Associate
Jack Kulesh is a member of the Private Equity team of CF Private Equity and is responsible for sourcing, due diligence and investment underwriting for the firm’s private equity strategy. Jack earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of Chicago.
Managing Director
George Wu is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the origination, evaluation, underwriting, and execution of secondary investments. Additionally, he contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability strategies. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, George worked at Morgan Stanley in its investment banking division, advising corporate clients on mergers & acquisitions and capital markets transactions. George holds a B.S. in Business Administration and a B.S. in Mathematics/Economics from the University of Southern California. George is also a CFA charterholder.
Chief Market Strategist
Kristofer Kwait formulates and communicates strategic market views, economic perspectives, and investment themes to clients and internal constituents for Commonfund OCIO. He serves on the Commonfund OCIO Executive Group and is a member of the Investment Committee and Commonfund Asset Allocation Committee. Prior to his current role, Kris was head of the Hedge Fund Strategies Group and previously served as head of hedge fund research with responsibility for overseeing the design and implementation of proprietary models for manager selection, portfolio construction, and risk management. Before joining Commonfund, Kris was a proprietary trader at both Andover L.L.C. and A.B. Watley, where he managed relative value equity strategies. Prior to his experiences as a trader, he was a stockbroker at Smith Barney. Kris attended pre-college at Juilliard School of Music, has a B.S. from Purdue University and an M.B.A. from the Yale School of Management.
Associate
Grace Lamb is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund OCIO, she was as an investment research analyst, supporting the investment solutions and consulting business at Clearbrook working primarily with Endowments, Foundations and High Net Worth individuals. Grace earned a B.A. in Finance from Loyola University Maryland, and a minor in Information Systems prior to joining the industry in 2019.
Analyst
Calvin Lei is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he worked at StepStone Group and BNB Chain. Calvin earned a B.A. in Cognitive Science from the Johns Hopkins University.
Managing Director
Ethan Levine is Head of Real Assets and Sustainability, a member of the Investment Committee and Senior Executive Group of CF Private Equity. His primary responsibilities include due diligence, investment selection, portfolio construction, monitoring, and fundraising for the firm’s real assets and sustainability programs, which include mandates surrounding natural resources and environmental sustainability that are constructed with co-investments, direct operating platforms, secondaries and primaries. Additionally, he contributes to the firm’s buyouts, growth equity, and venture capital strategies. Ethan originally joined CF Private Equity in 2007 as a Senior Analyst in the CF Private Equity Associate Program. Prior to CF Private Equity, Ethan specialized in energy markets at Charles River Associates, an economic and litigation consulting firm in Boston, MA. At Charles River Associates, he advised power and utility clients with their damages litigation, regulatory approval and business strategy forecasting. While at business school, Ethan worked at Rockland Capital, a power generation focused private equity firm, headquartered in The Woodlands, TX, where he conducted due diligence on potential power generation asset acquisitions and helped manage existing portfolio investments. Ethan is a member of the advisory boards of several private equity limited partnerships. He is the treasurer and former chairperson of the Board for Hillel at Dartmouth College. Ethan received a B.A., B.E. and an M.E.M. from Dartmouth College and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
Associate
Adrian Lim is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He previously worked as a Secondaries Summer Analyst at CF Private Equity and an Investment Banking Summer Analyst at Dowling Hales. Adrian earned a B.S. in Information Science from Cornell University.
Managing Director
Cari Lodge is Head of Secondaries, a member of the CF Private Equity Investment Committee, Board of Directors, and Senior Executive Group. She oversees the origination, evaluation, structuring and negotiation of secondaries transactions as well as the portfolio construction, monitoring and fundraising of the firm’s secondary funds. Additionally, Cari contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability strategies. Cari has over 24 years of secondaries experience and has closed over 495 secondary transactions for greater than $3.3 billion in total exposure. She began her career at Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette (which merged with Credit Suisse in 2000) as an Associate in Investment Banking. She spent 12 years with Credit Suisse’s Secondary Team, Strategic Partners, since its founding in 2000, and served as a member of the Investment Committee. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Cari was at Tulane University’s Investment Management Office where she was responsible for overseeing the private equity and private real assets investments for the endowment. She is presently a member of the advisory board of several private equity limited partnerships. Cari is also a member of the Investment Committee of her alma mater, The Hotchkiss School. In 2022, she was recognized by PEI as one of the top ten women of influence in private markets1. In 2024, the WSJ Pro Private Equity named her as a “Woman to Watch.2" She received an A.B. from Dartmouth College in both Economics and Government and an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School.
Senior Analyst
David Santa is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and responsible for portfolio reconciliation, cost accounting, performance, and reporting for outsourced CIO solutions clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was a part of the Fund accounting team at GoldenTree Asset Manager. David began his career in the Alternative Investments audit practice PwC. David earned a B.A. in Business Administration and Accounting from The University of Richmond.
Trustee
Susan E. Manske is Vice President and Chief Investment Officer of the MacArthur Foundation. In this position, Manske is responsible for managing the Foundation's $8 billion endowment and is a member of the Leadership Advisory Team that advises the President on strategic and policy matters. Manske joined the Foundation in May 2003 after having served as Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Trust Investments at the Boeing Company since 2001. At Boeing, Manske was responsible for managing the firm's defined benefit and defined contribution retirement plans. Prior to joining the Boeing Company, Manske spent 13 years with the Ameritech Corporation in Chicago. She joined the firm in 1987 as Manager, Fixed Income and moved through successive positions in Ameritech's investment group including Director, Capital Markets and Director, Risk Management, ultimately serving for two years, 1998-2000 as Chief Investment Officer. Earlier in her career she worked as a Portfolio Manager for the Ford Motor Company. Manske’s Board activity has included: United Way/Crusade of Mercy, Chicago Academy for the Arts, Pritzker Family Foundation, The Chamberlin Group, and the Education District 181 Foundation. She is a summa cum laude graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, with a Master of Business Administration degree from Marquette University. Manske is also a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Managing Director
Felipe Arguello is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for designing, tailoring, and implementing custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked for 14 years at BlackRock, where he was responsible for delivering custom multi-asset solutions for institutional clients across North America, Europe and Asia. When Felipe first joined the firm, he was with the Financial Institutions Group, where he oversaw asset allocation strategy and client service for insurance and other taxable investors. Before BlackRock, he worked at Lloyds Banking Group in various locations including New York, Switzerland, and Uruguay, providing advisory solutions to high net worth individuals, endowments, and foundations. Felipe earned a bachelor degree, with honors, in international business from La Sabana University and is a CFA Charterholder.
Senior Compliance Officer
Kelly Tiscia is a member of the Compliance team and is responsible for monitoring adherence to regulatory policies and procedures. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was Senior Compliance Professional at Silver Point Capital, L.P., a registered investment adviser focused on credit and special situation investments. Kelly started at Silver Point in September 2007. Prior to Silver Point, she was a Real Estate Assistant for Alpha Realty Advisors, a division of the commercial mortgage company, Velocity Commercial Capital. Kelly earned a B.A. in Human Development and Family Studies at the University of Connecticut, Storrs.
Director
Navid Gordpour is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. Prior to joining Commonfund, Navid worked at Matthews International Capital Management where he served as a Portfolio Specialist focusing on Business Development & Portfolio Strategy for the Private Wealth Channel. Prior to Matthews, Navid was an Investment Counselor at Citi and HSBC Private Bank where he was responsible for advising HNW, UHNW and Family office clients on asset allocation and portfolio construction across public and private markets. Navid earned a B.S. in Finance from Binghamton University School of Management.
Accounting Manager
Marina Da Silva is a member of the CF Private Equity Finance and Accounting team and is responsible for operational accounting for CF Private Equity’s partnerships. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was a Senior Fund Controller at HighVista Strategies, an alternative asset manager. She joined HighVista in 2023 as part of its acquisition of the abrdn U.S. private market business. Marina was responsible for overseeing the accounting and fund administration of the Private Equity and Venture Capital Strategies. Marina worked on the HighVista Private Equity and Venture Capital funds for over a decade, at HighVista and abrdn in an oversight role, at Gen II Fund Services as a Director, and at FLAG Capital Management prior to its acquisition by abrdn in 2015. Before joining FLAG in 2014, Marina worked at Deloitte in the audit and assurance practice. Marina earned a B.A. in Accounting and International Business from Fairfield University.
Accounting Manager
Emily Lee is an Accounting Manager for CF Private Equity and oversees the accounting department's daily operations. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she worked at a fund administrator and a real estate credit fund manager. Emily earned a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Connecticut and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Analyst
Margaux Fessard de Foucault is a member of the Private Equity team of CF Private Equity and based in the London investment office. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she worked at SWEN Capital Partners, in Paris. Margaux earned a Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Economics from King’s College London and a Master in Management from IE Business School.
Marketing Events Associate
Natalie Quiles is a member of the Marketing team and is primarily responsible for planning and facilitating all aspects of the firm's events for endowments and foundations, healthcare organizations and public pensions. Prior to joining Commonfund, she worked at a global consulting firm as a Senior Product Marketing Specialist, focusing on email marketing, webinar development, and strategizing thought leadership and paid media campaigns. Natalie has over 5 years of experience working within professional services and has a strong background in research, digital marketing, and project management. Natalie earned a B.A. in Political Science from Quinnipiac University. Natalie is also a certified yoga teacher and in her spare time enjoys salsa dancing and traveling.
Senior Software Architect
Michael Ertel is a member of the Information Technology team and is responsible for the development and support of various applications. Mike has over 20 years of experience as a software engineer. Before joining CommonFund, Mike worked at Ingalls & Snyder LLC, a financial advisor and broker-dealer. Before Ingalls, Mike worked at Apollo Global Management, Royal Bank of Canada, UBS, World Wrestling Entertainment, and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Mike earned a B.S. in Computer Science from Dickinson College.
Associate
Andrew Garside is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for supporting the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to working at CF Private Equity, he worked at AlphaSights, an information services company in New York. Andrew earned a B.S. in Human and Organizational Development and Business from Vanderbilt University.
Analyst
Liam Rosengren is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and responsible for portfolio reconciliation, cost accounting, performance, and reporting for outsourced CIO solutions clients. He worked previously as a Summer Analyst on Commonfund’s Investor Services team. Liam earned his B.A. from Kenyon College in both Economics and Applied Mathematics.
Analyst
Mary Elizabeth Dinan is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Mary Elizabeth earned a BSBA in Finance from Auburn University’s Harbert College of Business.
Analyst
Ryan Glanville is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability (RAS) team of CF Private Equity and is responsible for economic research and analysis across energy, agriculture, and resource efficiency. He previously worked as a RAS Summer Analyst at CF Private Equity. Ryan earned a B.B.A. in Finance with a minor in Economics from Emory University.
Analyst
Emma Markus is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team of CF Private Equity and is responsible for economic research and analysis across energy, agriculture, and resource efficiency. She previously worked as a Real Assets and Sustainability Summer Analyst at CF Private Equity. Emma earned a B.A. in Economics and International Relations from Tufts University.
Senior Accountant
Matt Capriglione is a member of the Finance & Accounting team and assists with the preparation of financial and tax statements and the operational accounting for CF Private Equity’s partnerships. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Matt earned a B.S. in Finance and Accounting from Sacred Heart University.
Associate
Leah Wersebe is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team responsible for providing client service to OCIO clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was a Business Development and Client Services Supervisor at Pzena Investment Management, LLC, where she supervised the Business Development and Client Services team and was responsible for requests for proposals, due diligence questionnaires, and various other prospect and client information requests. Before joining Pzena, Leah was a freelance writer, an adjunct professor and Teaching Assistant at CUNY Hunter College in Psychology, and a temporary worker for Beacon Hill Staffing Group working as an administrative assistant, among other roles. Previously, Leah worked at Financial Services Volunteer Corps, an international development financial services non-profit for five years. Leah earned an M.A. in Psychology, with a concentration in Animal Behavior and Conservation from CUNY Hunter, an M.A. in International Politics and Business from New York University, and a B.A. in International Relations and Cinema & Screen Studies from SUNY Oswego.
Analyst
Nidhi Gowda is a member of the CF Private Equity team and is responsible for sourcing, due diligence and investment underwriting for the firm’s private equity strategy. She was an intern at CF Private Equity Summer 2023, and previously interned at BlackRock on the Investment Grade Credit team as a Girls Who Invest SIP Summer 2022 Scholar. Nidhi earned a B.A. in Economics with minors in Business Studies and Data Science from New York University.
Analyst
Gabriel Ruiz is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he worked as a Financial Reporting Summer Analyst at Valuation Research Corporation. Gabriel earned a B.A. in Economics from Yale University.
Analyst
Emily Schuster is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she worked as an Institutional Equity Sales & Trading Summer Analyst at Morgan Stanley. Emily earned a B.A. in Engineering from Dartmouth College.
Analyst
Nathan Lee is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Nathan earned a B.S. in Business concentrating in Finance from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University.
Analyst
Alexander King is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Alexander King earned a B.S. in Business Administration from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California.
Associate Director
Justin Seewald is an Associate Director on the Commonfund Compliance team. Prior to Commonfund, Justin worked at Deloitte and GE Capital, where he held various roles leading enterprise-wide initiatives related to regulatory operations, process and systems implementation, corporate restructuring, and program management. Justin earned a B.S. in International Business with a minor in Legal Studies from Quinnipiac University.
Analyst
Rachael Kong is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. She was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Rachael earned a B.A. in Economics and English from Cornell University.
Analyst
Meredith Moran is a member of the CF Private Equity team and is responsible for sourcing, due diligence, and investment underwriting for the firm’s private equity strategy. She previously worked as a Buyouts and Growth Equity Summer Analyst at CF Private Equity. Meredith earned a B.S. in Operations Research and Information Engineering (ORIE) from Cornell University, as well an M.Eng in Applied Operations Research (AOR) from Cornell.
Associate
Carol Hevesy is a member of the CF Private Equity Investor Services team and supports all investor operations, reporting and service for private capital investors. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she worked for UBS in wealth management supporting both institutional and high net worth clients. She began in the industry in 1992 with Alex Brown and Smith Barney handling trading and operations for high net worth clients. Carol earned a B.A. in Economics from Rollins College.
Analyst
Alexia Glynn is a member of the Fund Operations team and is responsible for providing enhanced support and service to Commonfund’s investors, advisory clients, and funds. Prior to joining Commonfund, she interned at the National Bureau of Economic Research in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Alexia earned a B.A. in Economics and Psychology from Boston University.
Analyst
Jack Mintzer is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Jack earned a B.S. in Information from the University of Michigan where he studied Information Analysis and UX Design.
Human Resources Assistant
Alyssa Fried is a member of the human resources team and assists with payroll, recruiting, scheduling, and training tasks. Prior to joining Commonfund, she worked at PrideStaff in Melville, NY as a recruiting assistant. Alyssa earned a B.S. in Business Administration/Business Management from Bloomsburg University.
Senior Associate
Joshua Lopes is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for supporting the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he spent several years at Legg Mason asset management as well as MetLife Investors. Joshua holds a B.S. in Finance from Bryant University.
Associate
Anthony Manno is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio solutions and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was an investment analyst supporting the institutional investor group, portfolio review department, and financial advisor business at Vanguard since joining the industry in 2018. Anthony attended undergraduate and graduate school at the University of Delaware where he graduated with a M.S. in Finance and a B.S. in Economics.
Associate Director
Tor Martinsen is a member of the Private Equity team at CF Private Equity. He previously worked as an Investment Associate at The Kresge Foundation, a $3.6 billion foundation based in metro-Detroit, where he was a generalist on the Investment team. Tor earned a B.S. in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Chief Regulatory Counsel
Lambrina Mathews serves as Chief Regulatory Counsel of Commonfund. She joined Commonfund in 2017 as Chief Compliance Officer and Associate General Counsel. In her private practice, she principally represented financial institutions and other public and privately-held companies and their officers and directors in corporate governance and securities litigation and other complex business litigation matters. Before joining Cadwalader, Lambrina served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Richard K. Eaton of the United States Court of International Trade. Prior to joining Commonfund, Lambrina also served briefly as Principal Counsel in the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s (“FINRA”) Department of Enforcement in New York. Prior to pursuing her career in the law, Lambrina enjoyed a career in the field of education, earning her B.A. in Elementary Education from the City University of New York and her M.S. in Reading and Remediation from Adelphi University. Lambrina received her J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law and is a member of the New York State Bar and authorized house counsel in the State of Connecticut.
Director
Donna Mayne is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for overseeing the service group for transactions and reporting. She has over 20 years of experience in customer service, banking, sales and marketing. Prior to Commonfund, Donna held various managerial positions within the financial and sales/marketing departments at R.C. Bigelow and at People’s Bank managing the Electronic Funds Transfer Department. Donna received a B.S. in Business Administration and an M.B.A., with a concentration in marketing, from the University of New Haven.
Director
Sean McDermott is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment Team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Sean was an Executive Director and Portfolio Specialist at Morgan Stanley Investment Management in New York, NY. Previously, he was a Vice President and Relationship Manager with the Institutional Relationship Management team at Cohen and Steers Capital Management and was a Client Service and Sales Associate at Robeco Investment Management in New York, NY. He was also a member of the Legal Department for the City of Yonkers, NY working as Legal Aide/Assistant to the Corporation Counsel. Sean received a BA from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA and holds the Series 7, 31, and 63 registrations.
Senior Analyst
Madeline McGrath is a member of the Private Equity team of CF Private Equity. Madeline earned a B.S. in Finance from Brigham Young University.
Managing Director
Paul McKiernan is Head of CF Private Equity Business Development and leads a team responsible for the management and development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to rejoining CF Private Equity, Paul lead the Institutional Business Development and Consultant Relations effort at QS Investors, LLC. Prior to QS Investors, Paul had worked with Commonfund’s clients in the Midwest. Paul also served as a Vice President of Institutional Sales and Relationship Management at Deutsche Asset Management, a portfolio analyst at Nicholas Advisors and an assistant trader on Morgan Stanley’s fixed income proprietary trading desk. Paul received his B.A. from Catholic University.
Director
Nicole Melwood is a member of the Commonfund OCIO team and is responsible for the management and development of outsourced CIO solutions across endowments, foundations, and other philanthropic organizations throughout the United States as well as Canada . Prior to joining Commonfund, she worked at Everstrong Capital, where she led business development in the U.S. and Investec Asset Management, where she was a member of the western U.S. institutional sales team. Nicole started her career at JPMorgan Asset Management, where she was a client portfolio manager on the Global Fixed Income and Currency team. She holds a B.A. in Government from Wesleyan University and a M.B.A from Duke University, The Fuqua School of Business, where she was a Robert Toigo fellow. Nicole holds Series 7, 63, and 31 licenses. Currently, she is a Board member for A Better Chance, Inc., where she also serves as chairperson on the National Advisory Council. Nicole formerly served on the Executive Committee for DukeNY Women’s Forum.
Director
Meredith Messina is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team and provides relationship management to outsourced CIO clients. In her role, Meredith works with members of the investment team to assist in the implementation of custom solutions. Prior to her current role, she was a Managing Associate on the Relationship Management and Business Development teams, providing service support to existing clients and developing new business. She was also responsible for all client communications for these teams. Before joining Commonfund, Meredith worked for JAOtech Corporation as a Sales Engineer. She started her career as a Client Service Associate at UBS Financial Services in Boston, MA. Meredith received a B.S. in Finance from Bentley University.
Associate Director
Enrique Millán joined CF Private Equity and is a member of the ex-U.S. Private Equity team. He previously worked at the Private Equity team of Arcano Partners, with a focus on primaries, secondaries and co-investments predominantly in Western Europe. Prior to Arcano, Enrique worked at Indra Sistemas, a global publicly listed IT & defense company as a corporate strategy & investor relations analyst. Enrique received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the Universidad Pontificia de Comillas (ICADE) and a master’s degree in media management from the Universidad de Navarra.
Managing Director
Aaron Miller is Head of Global Venture Capital, a member of the Investment Committee and Senior Executive Group of CF Private Equity. His primary responsibilities include due diligence, investment selection, portfolio construction, monitoring and fundraising for the firm’s venture capital platform. In addition, Aaron oversees sourcing, screening, execution and monitoring of the venture growth direct investment practice. He also contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, emerging markets, real assets and sustainability strategies. Aaron brings over 20 years of private equity, M&A, capital markets and management consulting experience. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Aaron was a senior banker at Lazard Frères & Co. in the mergers and acquisitions department in New York. During his tenure at Lazard, he counseled companies and institutions in technology, media and telecom industries (TMT) advising on strategic, financial, takeover defense and capital structure matters. As an investment banker, he completed investments and executed transactions in North America, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Aaron also worked in the corporate finance department at Barclays Capital and Lehman Brothers. Prior to investment banking, Aaron began his career as a management consultant, where he advised a broad range of clients on strategy, sales force effectiveness and organizational design matters. Aaron serves on the advisory boards of several venture capital partnerships. Aaron earned a B.A. from University of Michigan and an M.B.A. from Yale University.
Chief Human Resource Officer
Elaine Mizer is responsible for executing Commonfund’s business and strategic plan from a human capital perspective. She leads Commonfund’s human resources practice to develop talent and leverage it effectively for consistency with our business strategy and plans for growth while overseeing all other human resources functions and facilities management. Elaine serves as Chair of the Commonfund Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Office and is also a member of the Commonfund Operating Committee. Prior to Commonfund, she was Head of Human Resources and Administration at Aquiline Capital Partners. Previously, Elaine held roles in Human Resources at Citigroup and Securitas Capital, and began her career in Human Resources at Smith Barney. She earned a B.A. degree in Human Resources from Western Connecticut State University.
Associate Director
Roman Moravec supports the oversight of client portfolio rebalancing, best execution analysis, and contributes to the operational due diligence process as a member of the risk management team. Prior to joining the risk management team, he was part of Commonfund OCIO where he focused on research and analytics for investments and managers. When first joining Commonfund, Roman worked on the Operations team where he conducted operational due diligence on hedge fund managers and was responsible for daily oversight of hedge fund and commodities programs. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked for Quantitative Financial Strategies, Inc. and began his career at Deloitte as an auditor in the financial services group. Roman holds an M.S. in Accounting from Pace University, a B.S. in International Business from Berkeley College and is a CFA charter holder.
Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer
Dana Moreau has firm-wide oversight and responsibility for risk management, investor services, information technology, operations, and human resources and oversees the financial management of Commonfund, creating and maintaining all financial policies and procedures for the firm. He has over 20 years’ experience in finance and operations and serves as a member of the Commonfund Operating Committee. Prior to joining Commonfund, Dana worked at State Street Bank & Trust where his primary responsibilities were portfolio accounting and administration for the bank’s hedge fund clients. He has a B.A. in Economics from Assumption College and an M.B.A. from Columbia University.
Managing Director
W. Kelso Morrill is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Kelso was with Crossroad Capital Partners, SEI Investments, and Bankers Trust Company, where he focused on private capital investments, including private equity, project finance and real estate. He has a B.S.E. and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
Trustee
Tobias "Toby" Moskowitz currently holds the Dean Takahashi ’80 B.A., ’83 M.P.P.M. Chaired Professorship in Finance at Yale University at the Yale School of Management, for which he is the inaugural chair holder (in 2016). He was previously the Fama Family Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, where he taught from 1998 to 2016. Professor Moskowitz was recognized by the American Finance Association with its 2007 Fischer Black Prize, which is awarded biennially to the top finance scholar in the world under the age of 40 in years when one is deemed deserving. The award cited his "ingenious and careful use of newly available data to address fundamental questions in finance." Moskowitz also won the Ewing Marion Kauffman Medal in 2012 for the top research in entrepreneurship for scholars under the age of 40. His research papers have received numerous awards, including the Smith-Breeden Prize for the best paper published in the Journal of Finance, the Brattle Prize for the best non-asset pricing paper published in the Journal of Finance, two Fama-DFA Prizes for the best paper published in the Journal of Financial Economics, two Michael Brennan Awards for the best paper published in the Review of Financial Studies, the Swiss Finance Institute Outstanding Paper Award, and the Bernstein-Fabozzi and Jacobs-Levy Award for the best paper in the Journal of Portfolio Management, two Harry Markowitz prizes for the best paper published in the Journal of Investment Management, the Whitebox Prize for best financial research, and multiple Q-Group Best Paper Awards. His work has been cited in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Financial Times, US News and World Report, Money magazine, and a 2005 speech by then Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. He has also appeared on CNBC's Closing Bell and Squawk Box, CNN, FOX, Bloomberg, as well as ESPN, Sport Illustrated, HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. Professor Moskowitz serves as a research associate for the National Bureau of Economic Research and is a former editor of the Review of Financial Studies, an associate editor of the Journal of Finance, and an associate editor at the Journal of Financial Economics. His research studies financial markets and investments, including the behavior of prices and investors. He has explored topics as diverse as momentum in stock returns, biases in investment portfolios, the return to private business ownership, financial contracting in commercial real estate, mutual and hedge fund performance, the political economy of financial regulation, and the economics of sports. He has presented his research at many academic, corporate, and government institutions worldwide. Professor Moskowitz spent the 2007-2008 and 2014-2015 academic years on leave at AQR Capital Management, LLC a hedge fund in Greenwich, CT, with which he has an ongoing consulting relationship. He was made a principal at the firm in 2015, where he contributes to research on asset pricing and investments for AQR’s domestic and international investment strategies. In collaboration with David F. Swensen, the CIO of the Yale Investments Office, Professor Moskowitz founded the Yale School of Management’s Master’s program in Asset Management, for which he serves as the Academic Director and whose inaugural class will graduate in 2022. The one-year program seeks to train Master’s students in the theory and practice of asset management, with a curriculum that is tailored for that aim. In 2011, he wrote the New York Times best-seller "Scorecasting: The Hidden Influences Behind How Sports are Played and Games are Won," (Crown Archetype, Random House) co-authored with L. Jon Wertheim of Sports Illustrated, that uses economic principles to explain the hidden side of sports. He and Wertheim are also authors of the children’s book “The Rookie Bookie” in the Fall of 2015 (Little Brown). Born in West Lafayette, IN, Moskowitz earned a bachelor's degree in industrial management and industrial engineering (with distinction) in 1993 from Purdue University, a master's degree in management from Purdue in 1994, and a Ph.D. in finance from UCLA in 1998.
Senior Policy and Research Analyst
Amanda Novello is a member of the Commonfund Institute team and is responsible for thought leadership creation and data analysis across all Institute activities, including benchmarks studies, DEI initiatives, and ESG. Prior to working at Commonfund, she was an economic policy researcher for various nonprofit organizations, producing analyses of economic and labor market trends, and the distributional impacts of public policy. Amanda earned an M.A. in Economics from the New School for Social Research and a B.S. in Economics and Mathematics from the University of Southern California.
Director
Ikem Nwaesei is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was a Portfolio Manager at BlackRock’s ETF and Index Investments Group. There he managed a wide array of asset classes, currency-hedged portfolios and model based funds. Previously, he worked as part of Northern Trust’s Foundation and Institutional Advisors (FIA) Group, a dedicated practice that manages investment programs for foundations, endowments and other nonprofit organizations. Prior to that, he worked in different roles for TD Bank Group and TD Asset Management in Toronto, Canada. He began his career as an Investment Analyst with a boutique investment management firm in Nigeria. Ikem received a B.S. in Industrial Chemistry from University of Lagos, Nigeria, a post-graduate diploma in International Business Management from St. Clair College in Windsor, Canada and an MBA with concentration in Finance and Accounting from the Terry College of Business, University of Georgia.
Analyst
Feray Ok is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. She was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Feray earned a B.A. in Economics from Dartmouth College.
Managing Director
Hong Pan is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the origination, evaluation, underwriting, and execution of secondary investments. Additionally, he contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability strategies. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Hong worked at Oppenheimer & Co. in its investment banking division, advising corporate clients on mergers & acquisitions and capital markets transactions. Hong holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he graduated with Distinction.
Senior Associate
Aisha Patel is a member of the Commonfund Marketing team and is primarily responsible for the development and maintenance of marketing content that supports business development and client service. Prior to her role at Commonfund, Aisha managed projects for the commodities team at Citadel, and was a Senior Marketing Associate and Digital Project Manager for AMG Funds. Prior to her role at AMG Funds, she had a variety of marketing, investor relations, and support roles at FrontFour Capital, Episteme Capital Management, JWM Partners, Contact Public Relations, and A&E Television Networks. Formerly, Aisha served as State Director on the executive board for the Greenwich Junior Chamber of Commerce and currently manages Volunteers of Fairfield of Westchester, a philanthropic group she founded in 2016. She holds a B.A. in English from the University of Rhode Island, an Agile Project Management Training Certificate from the University of Connecticut School of Business, and Digital Marketing Certification from Cornell University.
Managing Director
Anthony Peretore is a senior leader on the Commonfund OCIO Investment team. He is responsible for the design, tailoring and, implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of client portfolios. In addition, Anthony is a voting member of Commonfund’s Asset Allocation Committee, which is charged with overseeing and making strategic and tactical asset allocation decisions on behalf of OCIO clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked as a convertible securities analyst for BCP Securities in Greenwich, CT. His primary responsibilities included analyzing company credit profiles and capital structures, making security recommendations and establishing new client relationships. Anthony received his B.A. in Political Science and a Business minor from Saint Joseph’s University. He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst designations.
Director
Jason Platzer is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for asset allocation, portfolio construction, manager sourcing, rebalancing, due diligence, and investment monitoring and reporting for equity portfolios. Jason began his career as a private capital accountant for CF Private Equity before working as a fund accountant on the Operations team. He then spent many years working in a hybrid role at the intersection of hedge funds, quantitative research and analytics, and risk management. Jason holds a B.S. in Finance, summa cum laude and an MBA in Finance with Distinction, both from Mercy College. He also holds an MSc in History (with Merit) from The University of Edinburgh.
Associate
Laura Pollack is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, she worked as a summer analyst at East Rock Capital, LLC., a multi-family office. She also spent a summer at Colgate Palmolive as a Global Talent Acquisition Intern. Laura earned a B.B.A. in Marketing and Information Systems & Operations Management from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School.
Managing Director
Paige L. Rabalais is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team. She is responsible for the development of outsourced CIO solutions across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations and other nonprofits throughout the United States. Prior to joining Commonfund, she managed institutional relationships with Neuberger Berman in New York, NY and Strategic Value Partners in Greenwich, CT. Previously, Paige was a senior regional marketing associate with Putnam Investments in Boston, MA. She earned a B.S. in Business Management from Babson College and an M.B.A. in Finance from Tulane University. Paige holds Series 6, 7, 30, 31, 63 and 65 licenses. Additionally, she has achieved the CFA Institute Certificate in ESG Investing and has been awarded the Chartered Alternatives Investment Analyst designation. Currently, she is a Director of the YWCA of the City of New York where she serves as co-chair of the investment committee. Paige also served as former board member of Oldfields School in Glencoe, MD on the investment committee.
Associate
Alexandra Romanowski is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is responsible for assisting with asset allocation, manager sourcing, due diligence, and investment monitoring for investment portfolios with a focus in real asset strategies and private real estate investments. Before joining Commonfund, Alexandra worked as an Associate as part of the Commercial Real Estate Team for Bank of Montreal Harris, where she focused on Healthcare Real Estate lending and investing. Prior to that, she worked as an Investor Relations Analyst for Graham Capital Management, L.P., a Macro Hedge Fund in Rowayton, CT, as well as a Management Development Associate at M&T Bank. Alexandra received a B.S. in Business Administration with a minor in International Relations from the State University of New York, College at Geneseo.
Chief Risk Officer
Brian Rondeau has responsibility for the comprehensive enterprise risk management program at Commonfund including market, credit, liquidity and operational risk. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was Vice President – Risk at Harvard Management Company where he led a team responsible for counterparty credit risk as well as investment risk for Harvard’s illiquid asset class portfolios. In addition, Brian was involved in liquidity risk management, managing HMC’s banking relationships and analysis related to sustainable investing at Harvard. Prior to Harvard, he spent four years with RBS Greenwich Capital in risk roles analyzing financial institutions and the asset-backed finance business. Brian is a Chartered Financial Analyst and member of the CFA Society Stamford. He earned a B.A. from Columbia University.
Controller
Gene Ropiak is Controller for CF Private Equity and oversees the preparation of financial and tax statements and the operational accounting for CF Private Equity’s partnerships. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he spent five years in various accounting positions, most recently with Health Partners, Inc. Gene earned a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Connecticut and an M.B.A. in Finance from the University of New Haven.
Managing Director
Luke Rossiter is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity and his responsibilities include sourcing, due diligence, manager selection and investment management for the firm’s global venture capital platform; across primaries, direct investments, secondaries and blockchain. Before joining CF Private Equity, he was a Senior Investment Analyst at VenCap International plc, a venture capital advisory firm based in Oxford, England. Luke received his Bachelor of Science degree (with honours) in Psychology and Law from Swansea University and completed his Legal Practice Course at the Oxford Institute of Legal Practice where he focused on Equity Finance, Private Acquisitions and Commercial Law.
Director
Ilana is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. Prior to joining Commonfund, she spent her career on the sell side covering institutional accounts in research and sales capacities, spanning both fixed income and equity markets. Ilana gained her foundational experience in emerging market research covering sovereign debt markets at Thomson Reuters. She then moved over to Merrill Lynch’s economic research team serving emerging market asset managers while working closely with Merrill’s fixed income sales and trading team. Transitioning to Merrill Lynch’s equities sales desk, Ilana covered Latin American markets and US markets for institutional investors. Most recently she worked with UBS’s commission management accounts during the industry transition to MiFID II regulation. Ilana is fluent in French and Spanish and holds a B.A. in Economics from Tulane University and a M.B.A in Finance from NYU’s Stern School of Business.
General Counsel
Sharad Samy serves as the General Counsel and Secretary of Commonfund. He has extensive transactional and litigation experience, having served as the general counsel of two prominent investment management firms; as a partner of the international law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP; and as counsel to both plaintiffs and defendants in complex civil litigation and arbitration matters. He has worked extensively in Connecticut, New York and the United Kingdom on matters involving jurisdictions in North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Asia. Sharad was a Judge Advocate for the U.S. Army Reserve from 1997 through 2008, having served in the Horn of Africa in connection with Operation Enduring Freedom, and he currently serves as a Major in the Connecticut Army National Guard. In addition to his professional activities, he is active in the veteran community, serving as a Trustee of the State of Connecticut Board of Veterans Affairs and as the Judge Advocate for Post 6933 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He is also active in the non-profit community, serving as a Director of the Karam Foundation, an aid organization supporting young Syrian refugees, as Treasurer of the Connecticut Bar Association, and as a director and pro bono volunteer for Lawyers for Children America. Sharad was awarded the Game Changer Award from the Connecticut Law Tribune in 2020, the Modern 100 Governance Award by Diligent in 2019 and the Outstanding Veteran Volunteer Award by the Stamford Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution in 2018. He is a graduate of Columbia College with an A.B. in Political Science and of Columbia University Law School with a J.D. He is admitted to practice law in the State of Connecticut and the State of New York and is a solicitor in England and Wales.
Analyst
Omar Sarr is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to Commonfund, Omar earned a B.A. in economics and French and francophone studies from Bates College.
Associate
Arjun Sawai is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team focused on macroeconomic research. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked on an algorithmic trading desk at Fidelity Capital Markets. Arjun earned a B.S. in Finance from Boston University.
Managing Director, London Office
Miriam Schmitter is Head of Buyout and Growth Equity investments outside the United States, a member of the Investment Committee and Senior Executive Group of CF Private Equity. She is based in CF Private Equity’s London investment office. Miriam's primary responsibilities include due diligence, investment selection, portfolio construction, monitoring and fundraising for the firm’s buyout and growth equity programs that are constructed with primaries, secondaries and co- investments. She also contributes to the firm’s venture capital and real assets and sustainability strategies. Before joining CF Private Equity, she was with Cambridge Associates (“Cambridge”) where she served as Managing Director and Head of International Private Equity Research in London. Miriam was also a member of the internal Investment Committee at Cambridge. She started with Cambridge in Boston in 2005 and was responsible for due diligence on investment opportunities and research published by the firm on private equity funds which resulted in significant client commitments to private capital managers, overseeing consultants and associates in the Boston, London, and Singapore offices. Prior to 2005, she was an investment manager of private equity fund investments at APEP (Allianz Private Equity Partners), where she researched and selected private equity investment opportunities. Prior to that, Miriam was an investment professional at DB Capital Partners/ DB Investor, the direct private equity investment division of Deutsche Bank, where she evaluated buyout investment opportunities. She also worked as a consultant for Deloitte & Touche performing financial analysis and valuations and conducting financial due diligence for clients. She is presently a member of the advisory boards of several private equity limited partnerships. Miriam has a PhD from the University of Darmstadt and a Diplom-Kauffrau (an M.B.A.) from the University of Mannheim.
Director
Peter Schretzenmayer is a member of the Operations team and has over 15 years of fund operations experience. He is responsible for fund accounting, reporting and custodial oversight for Commonfund’s marketable alternative funds and certain private distressed debt partnerships. Before joining Commonfund, Peter worked at State Street Bank first as a pension fund accountant then as a performance analyst. He has also worked as a fund accountant for a private hedge fund located in Stamford, CT. Each of these positions had responsibilities for fund valuations, operations, financial reporting and compliance. Peter earned a B.S. in Business Administration from Central Connecticut State University and an M.B.A, with a concentration in finance, from the University of Connecticut.
Director
Jennifer Seidler is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. Prior to joining the relationship team, Jennifer was a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team, where she was responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Jennifer managed corporate investment portfolios for RBC Wealth Management and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) in San Francisco. Her previous experience includes working with institutional bank clients on investment strategies and portfolios with Banc Investment Group LLC. Jennifer began her career at Banc of America Securities in the loan syndications group and also was part of an investment strategies team. She serves as a member of the Finance Council for St. Dominic’s Church (SF) and is Board Emeritus on the Board of African Library Project where she was Treasurer for four years. Jennifer holds a B.S. in Economics from Santa Clara University, an M.S. in Financial Analysis and an M.B.A. from University of San Francisco.
Vice Chair
Mamak Shahbazi is a seasoned investment executive with a 35-year track record of raising assets, building and managing high-performance marketing and client service teams, developing business, maintaining key client and consultant relationships, overseeing and delivering impressive growth and ROI. A Founding Member of Colchester Global Investors, which provides a complete range of investment management services for global and emerging market bonds, Mamak was the company’s President, Director and Global Head of Marketing From 2001 to 2019. She was responsible for growing assets under management from $15 million to $43 billion since inception. Mamak is accomplished in the effective execution of both short and long-term deliverables. She is a team player with demonstrated success in the development and motivation of staff and the nurturing and maintenance of relationships with prospects, clients from diversified categories in the US and around the world, and industry participants. Mamak has built Colchester’s marketing and client service structure globally, with offices in New York, London, Singapore, Australia and soon in the United Arab Emirates. Her client service efforts resulted in the firm receiving the Greenwich Associates prestigious Quality Leader in Institutional Client Service award. A keen determination to provide clients with optimal solutions to their investment needs, combined with a background in engineering and years of experience in fixed income research and analysis, has made Mamak extremely effective as a solution provider to institutional investors. An invited guest speaker at various prominent investment conferences, Mamak has presented at the ABANA Annual Conference 2016 on Leading Women in Finance, the Mangham Associates (endowment management firm) Client Conference 2015, and The Salvation Army South Investment Conference 2014 and 2012. Additionally, Mamak was a Founding Angel Member of 100 Women in Finance, a global network of investment professionals working to assist women at every stage of their careers. Prior to Colchester, Mamak built an impressive record in the investment community. She served as Director of Institutional Marketing at the hedge fund firm Zweig-DiMenna Associates, where she was responsible for building the institutional marketing and client services effort. She raised over $500 million in assets under management despite stressed market conditions and performance. Before Zweig-DiMenna, Mamak served as Director of Global Bond Marketing and Client Service at Delaware Investment Advisors. She was responsible for building the Global Bond marketing effort for the Delaware International Advisors subsidiary. Starting with $50 million in assets, she built the enterprise to over $5.6 billion during her seven-year term. As Director/Vice President of Fixed Income Investments at Credit Suisse First Boston Corp. for eight years, Mamak assisted the Managing Director in charge of research and analysis of high yield corporate bonds and risk management of the portfolios. She was also responsible for the conduct of overall client facing activities. Further, Mamak published articles on high yield investing and specific bond activities. Mamak began her career at Arthur D. Little Valuation, Inc., as an Analyst, where, in addition to writing Fortran based computer programs to analyze bank and savings and loan institutions, she assisted in writing mathematical formulas to ascertain market values of deposit accounts and loan books. Chairman of the Board of Colchester Global Investors, Inc., and a Member of the Board of Colchester Global Investors Limited, Mamak also serves on other boards, including Freeman and Company’s Advisory Board and New York University College of Arts and Science’s Advisory Council. Previously Mamak served as a Board Member of the Miller Howard High Income Equity Fund and as an Advisory Board Member of Proctor Investment Management. A graduate of the University of Maryland, Mamak holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering with an emphasis in mathematics and computer science. She resides in New York City with her husband and is the mother of two adult children.
Associate Director
Dave Shekar is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity. Before joining CF Private Equity, he was an Associate at The Raine Group, a global tech, media, and telecommunications merchant bank based in New York City, where he focused on the firm’s growth equity and M&A advisory practices. Before Raine, Dave was a Senior Financial Analyst at Yext, a New York City-based enterprise technology company that went public in 2017, and prior to that, was an Associate at Summit Partners, where focused on sourcing and evaluating growth equity investments in the technology sector. He received his Bachelor of Business Administration (with honors) from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and his Master of Business Administration from Columbia Business School.
Associate
Lawrence Shoykhet is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the evaluation, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Lawrence earned a B.S. in Industrial & Labor Relations from Cornell University.
Managing Director
Russell Simon is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for the development of private market mandates across endowments and foundations, healthcare organizations and pensions. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Russell worked at Allianz Global Investors, where he co-managed the Taft-Hartley practice and was responsible for managing relationships in the public, corporate, and E&F channels for the Western United States. Prior to Allianz, he was an options trader at the RND Group and a research analyst at LECG (Law and Economic Consulting Group.) Russell has more than 13 years of experience in the Investment management business. He earned his B.S.B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis and is a CAIA charter holder and member of the CAIA association of San Francisco.
Director
Neva Simunkovic shares responsibility for the oversight of client portfolio rebalancing, best execution analysis, and contributes to the operational due diligence process as a member of the risk management team. Prior to joining the risk management team, she was a member of the COMANCO investment team where she participated in manager selection, monitoring and analysis across marketable strategies. Neva was also a product specialist for a number of hedge fund customized accounts and began at Commonfund as part of the rotational analyst program where she supported all areas of quantitative analysis across Marketable Investment groups. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was a graduate assistant at College of Business at Arkansas State University, responsible for assisting the finance faculty in teaching and research. Neva holds a B.S. in Corporate Finance and an M.B.A with emphasis in Finance from Arkansas State University. She is a CFA charterholder and a member of the New York Society of Security Analysts and the CFA Institute.
Associate
Emily Sine is a member of Commonfund OCIO Relationship team responsible for providing client service to OCIO clients. Prior to working at Commonfund, she was a Client Associate at IRC Wealth, an Atlanta based RIA, responsible for client onboarding, maintaining existing client relationships and all company and client reporting. She began her career as a Revenue Analyst at Insight Global. Emily earned a B.S. in Economics and Finance from the University of Alabama.
Managing Director
Steve Snyder is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. He previously served as the head of relationship management for Commonfund’s non-advisory investors. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was a Cash Management Consultant supporting the education industry for CoreStates Bank, N.A., and First Union National Bank in Philadelphia. Steve has served on the Investment Committees of the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia and recently completed several terms as an Investment Committee member for Lancaster County Community Foundation. He also served as a member of the President’s Business Council at the University of Scranton. Steve has a B.S. in Finance from the University of Scranton.
Associate
Justin Sorbo is a member of the Fund Operations team and is responsible for providing enhanced support and service to Commonfund’s investors, advisory clients, and funds. He also assists with the Investor Services group – providing clientele with audit, performance, and reporting material. Prior to this, Justin worked alongside Commonfund OCIO, aiding in research, modeling, and analytics for endowment portfolios. He has a B.S. in Economics, as well as a Business Certificate, from the Pennsylvania State University.
Director
Rachel Stavola Clivaz is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for assisting in the design, tailoring and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients, as well as client portfolio analysis and specialized analytical requests. Prior to joining Commonfund, Rachel attended undergraduate school at Fordham University where she graduated with a B.S. in Business Administration and a minor in Mathematics.
Executive Director
George Suttles leads Commonfund’s educational, thought partnership, and professional development activities as Executive Director of Commonfund Institute. He serves on multiple advisory boards and steering committees, including Intentional Endowments Network’s (IEN) steering committee which provides strategic guidance to the network and chairs the steering committee for the Impact Finance Center’s Diverse Manager Initiative. Prior to joining Commonfund, George was a Program Officer at the John A. Hartford Foundation, an independent, national private foundation focused on improving care for older adults. Before joining the foundation, he was a Vice President, Senior Philanthropic Relationship Manager at U.S. Trust/Bank of America. In this role he worked with private and institutional clients on issues related to best practices in governance and strategic grantmaking. He is a member of numerous nonprofit boards and investment committees including Mertz Gilmore Foundation, Auburn Seminary, and the New York Foundation, where he serves as Treasurer and chair of the investment committee. George is frequently asked to speak on topics concerning fiduciary duty and stewardship, philanthropy, investment governance, Diversity Equity and Inclusion and values aligned investing, among other topics. Currently, he is on the Adjunct Faculty at the New York University (NYU) School of Professional Studies, teaching classes on private and corporate philanthropy. George received a B.A. from Wesleyan University, an M.A. in Philanthropic Studies from Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy (IUPUI) and an M.P.A. from Baruch College, City University of New York (CUNY), Marxe School of Public and International Affairs. George is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Education (Ed.D) at New York University Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, with a focus on leadership and innovation.
Senior Associate
Cameron Szary is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity and is responsible for due diligence across the firm’s Venture Partners, Venture Direct Opportunities and Blockchain Ventures strategies. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Cameron was an Investment Research Analyst at Simon Quick, an investment firm started by the families of former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury William E. Simon and Quick & Reilly co-founder, Leslie Quick. At Simon Quick, he primarily focused on market research, manager selection and co-investment diligence across various asset classes and supported the management of two internal Fund of Funds strategies. Cameron earned a B.B.A. from the University of Miami and completed the Economics of Blockchain and Digital Assets program offered through the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Managing Director
Stephen Talbot is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the origination, evaluation, underwriting, and execution of secondary investments. Additionally, he contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability strategies. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Stephen worked at BB&T Capital Markets in its investment banking division, advising corporate clients on mergers & acquisitions and capital markets transactions. Stephen holds a B.S. in Business and Enterprise Management from Wake Forest University.
Chair
Dr. David A. Thomas took office as the 12th President of Morehouse College on Jan. 1, 2018, ushering in a new era of progressive leadership for the nation’s largest and most prestigious liberal arts institution for men. With more than 30 years of experience in the business of higher education, Thomas is a visionary leader who is nationally respected as an expert in organizational change. He is the former Dean of Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, and has served as a business school professor at Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania. Under Thomas’ leadership at Morehouse, the college has increased enrollment and philanthropic giving. Morehouse made history in higher education in May 2019 when a chief executive officer that he invited to serve as Commencement speaker surprised the graduating class by offering to pay off their student loans. Thomas holds a doctorate in Organizational Behavior Studies and a Master of Philosophy degree in Organizational Behavior, both from Yale University. He also has a master’s degree in Organizational Psychology from Columbia University, and a Bachelor of Administrative Sciences degree from Yale College. He is the co-author of three books.
Deputy General Counsel
Seth Thomson is Deputy General Counsel for Commonfund and its subsidiaries. Seth has been a practicing attorney since 2008 and was previously an associate at Proskauer Rose in the Private Investment Funds Group in Boston. Prior to his legal career, Seth was an actuarial assistant at a leading U.S. based surplus lines insurer in Boston. Seth holds a B.A. in Philosophy of Politics & Law from the State University of New York at Binghamton and J.D. from Boston University School of Law.
Director, Chief Representative Beijing Office
Xiaonan Tian is a member of Emerging Markets team at CF Private Equity and heading the Beijing office. She is mainly responsible for the oversight of due diligence, manager selection, investment monitoring and portfolio construction for the firm’s private equity and venture capital investment management programs in the Asia-Pacific basin. Prior to CF Private Equity, she was a Senior Vice President at HSBC China responsible for sponsors coverage strategy, before that at Deutsche Bank Singapore and Sal. Oppenheim Private Equity Partners, engaged in venture capital and private equity investments in different geographies, especially in China, India and Southeast Asia. Xiaonan received a B.A. from University of International Business and Economics and a Master’s Degree from Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg.
Senior Associate
Andrew Vetterlein is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for supporting the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he spent over two years doing business development at Dakota, a third-party fundraising organization and data provider based in the Philadelphia area. Andrew earned a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from Bucknell University and is Series 7 and Series 63 licensed.
Managing Director, Head of Secondaries Investor Relations
Mario Virtudes, Managing Director, Head of Secondaries Investor Relations is responsible for the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to rejoining CF Private Equity, he was a Managing Director at Capital Dynamics where he was responsible for Institutional Business Development and Consultant Relations. Prior to Capital Dynamics, Mario had worked with Commonfund’s clients in the Midwest. Earlier in his career, he was a Director at Societe Generale Corporate Investment Banking focused on developing their alternatives business in the US, and he also held various roles at Deutsche Bank Absolute Return Strategies Group and Chase Manhattan Bank. Mario holds a B.S. in Finance from the University at Albany and an M.B.A. with a concentration in Financial Management from Pace University.
Managing Director
Paul Von Steenburg is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for asset allocation, manager sourcing, due diligence, and investment monitoring for investment portfolios with a focus in real asset strategies and private real estate investments. He serves as a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment Committee. Paul also serves on advisory boards of the firm’s investment managers. Prior to joining Commonfund, Paul was a Vice President in the consulting division of Wilshire Associates, where he advised institutional investors. Paul was also the Chair of Wilshire’s Hedge Fund Committee, where he was responsible for conducting research and providing advice on the selection of hedge fund managers. Prior to Wilshire, Paul worked in equity research for Waddell & Reed Asset Management. He also spent five years with the Instinet Group as Manager of the Global Correspondent Trading Group. Paul earned a M.B.A in Finance from Cornell SC Johnson College of Business and a B.S. from Rutgers University. Paul also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst designations.
Managing Director
Lew Wallace is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management for investors in the Southern region. Lew has over 15 years of higher education and financial services experience and, prior to joining Commonfund, Lew owned and operated a financial planning firm focused on investment management strategies for individuals and nonprofit organizations. Prior to that, he was an Assistant to the Mayor and Administrative Manager for the City of Danbury. Concurrently, Lew served 10 years as a State Representative in the Connecticut General Assembly on the Education Committee and he is the Chairman of the Cultural Alliance of Western Connecticut. Lew holds a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.B.A. from the College of William and Mary.
Senior Analyst
Beata Wantke is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management and is responsible for providing support to the relationship management team including customer service, reporting and project management. Prior to joining Commonfund, Beata worked at Investcorp International for over two years where she held roles in Marketing and Sales for their Hedge Fund Group. Prior to that, she worked at Deutsche Bank, Alternative Investment Group for over 10 years, where she held an Administrative Assistant role with heavy concentration on sales support. Beata obtained her B.A. in Business Studies with concentration in Finance from Pace University.
Trustee
Michael Warren is Managing Director of Albright Stonebridge Group, part of Dentons Global Advisors. Mr. Warren brings many years of leadership in financial services, international business, and government policy. He advises clients on international growth strategies, stakeholder management issues, and economic and geopolitical issues affecting global markets. He also leads strategic growth initiatives, which includes oversight of sectoral teams and client work in the United States and Canada. He served as ASG’s Managing Principal from 2013 to 2017 and as Principal from 2009 to 2013. Mr. Warren serves on the boards of a number of institutional investors. He serves on the Board of Directors of Walker & Dunlop, Inc., a commercial real estate finance and lending company, the Board of Directors of MAXIMUS, an American government services company, and the Board of Directors of Ripple, a blockchain network solution U.S.‐based technology company. He serves on the Board of Trustees of the Commonfund, a Connecticut‐based institutional investment firm that manages $24 billion in assets. He is also a Trustee of Yale University, and a member of the Yale Corporation Investment Committee. Mr. Warren formerly served as a Trustee of the District of Columbia Retirement Board (DCRB). During the first term of the Obama administration, Mr. Warren served as Senior Advisor in the White House Presidential Personnel Office, overseeing the appointments process for the economic agencies in the U.S. government. He was also a member of the Obama‐Biden Presidential Transition as co‐lead for the Treasury and Federal Reserve agency review teams. In 2010, Mr. Warren was appointed by President Obama to serve as a member of the Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. development finance institution, where he chaired the Audit Committee until his term ended in 2019. During the Clinton administration, Mr. Warren served in the White House as Executive Director of the National Economic Council and at the U.S. Department of Labor in the Office of the Secretary. Previously, Mr. Warren worked at McKinsey & Company, where he was based in the U.S. and South Korea, both as a strategic consultant in the technology and financial institutions practices and as a fellow of the McKinsey Global Institute. He has also held senior operating positions at two high‐ growth companies. A native of Indiana, Mr. Warren graduated from Yale University and from Balliol College, University of Oxford, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. He is based in Washington, D.C.
Director
Betsy Wilson is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for investment monitoring, rebalancing and reporting for investment portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was an analyst for a consumer-based long/short equity hedge fund. While in Dallas, she was an Assistant Vice President and analyst with Westwood Management, a large-cap value fund with over $4 billion in assets under management. At Westwood, she was responsible for industry/company analysis and issuing stock recommendations across multi-cap products. Betsy is a CFA charterholder and is a member of the Stamford CFA Society and the CFA Institute. She received her undergraduate degree and M.B.A. from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.
Senior Analyst
Paul Woolhouse is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he worked as a Corporate FP&A Summer Analyst at Aptiv PLC. Paul earned a B.S. in Business Administration concentrating in Finance from Carnegie Mellon University.
Senior Associate
Jewel Wozniak is a member of the Marketing team and is primarily responsible for the creation of digital marketing materials and execution of the firm’s digital marketing strategies. Prior to joining Commonfund, Jewel worked for Stan Johnson Company as a Senior Marketing Specialist. While in this role, she managed marketing materials for the Corporate and Property Marketing teams. She earned a B.F.A. in Animation with a Minor in Storyboarding from the Savannah College of Art and Design.
President and CEO, Commonfund OCIO
Timothy T. Yates, Jr. heads Commonfund OCIO and is responsible for managing all aspects of Commonfund OCIO's business, which focuses exclusively on non-profit institutions. In this role, he leads a team of professionals that advise, implement and monitor custom investment solutions for institutions with total assets under management of more than $15 billion. Tim is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Executive Group and serves on both the Commonfund Asset Allocation and Operating Committees. Tim joined Commonfund as an associate in the CF Private Equity Associate Program. In 2003, he was a founding member of Commonfund's OCIO platform, where he was responsible for the design, tailoring and implementation of total portfolio solutions. Additionally, he held several roles with CF Private Equity including having responsibility for custom accounts and serving as a senior member of the firm’s emerging markets private equity portfolio leadership team with a focus on Latin America. Before joining Commonfund, Tim was an instructor of Spanish and Italian at Fordham Preparatory School in the Bronx, NY. He holds an M.B.A. in Finance with a designation in International Business from Fordham University and a B.A. in Modern Languages from Trinity College. Tim is a member of the investment committee for St. Paul’s Church in Fairfield, CT, the Advisory Board of Girls Who Invest, a member of the Trinity College Board of Fellows, and the Board of Directors of Caroline House—a non-profit in Bridgeport, CT, focused on enabling women and children to reach the fullness of their potential through education in English language and life skills.
Associate Director
Viola Yee is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for supporting the middle office operations and client service for all outsourced CIO solutions clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Viola was a Performance Measurement Associate at Pequot Capital Management where she was responsible for product information, investment fund commentary and verifying performance numbers. Prior to that, she was a Marketing Manager at Simms Capital Management, a boutique investment management firm that specialized in global equity portfolio strategies. Viola received her M.B.A. with a Finance concentration from the University of Bridgeport and her B.S. in Marketing from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
Managing Director, Chief Technology Officer
Dave Young has over 25 years of experience in mutual funds and fund-to-funds technology backed initiatives, solutions and infrastructure. Dave is primarily responsible for Commonfund’s technology infrastructure, cyber-security, application development, systems support, and business analysis/project management. Prior to joining Commonfund, David worked at Alliance Capital Management and their fund services group as a supervisor focusing on total quality management through technology. He has a B.S. in Finance/Law & Public Policy from Syracuse University, an M.B.A. from Bridgeport University, and holds several cyber-security and project management certifications from Villanova University.
Fund Operations Associate
Anna Zhao is a member of the Fund Operations team and is responsible for providing operational support and service to Commonfund’s investors, advisory clients, and Funds. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was an operations assistant at Edgehill Endowment Partners in New Haven, CT. She also worked at China Merchants Bank for its corporate banking department in Nanning, China. Anna earned an M.B.A with honors and an M.S. in Finance from University of New Haven. She holds a B.A in Chinese Language and Literature from Guangxi University for Nationalities.
Associate Director
Robert Allen is a member of the Fund Operations team and has over 20 years of operations and fund accounting experience. He is responsible for providing operational support and service to Commonfund’s investors, advisory clients, and Funds, including marketable alternative Funds, private equity Funds, and certain private distressed debt partnerships. Prior to joining Commonfund, Rob worked at State Street Bank as a mutual fund accountant and mutual fund portfolio administrator; was an account administrator for an investment firm in Boston; and was a senior associate at a mutual fund company in Norwalk, CT. He earned a B.S. in Business Administration from North Adams State College and an M.B.A. from the University of New Haven.
Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer, Commonfund
Mark Anson is the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of the Commonfund and Chair of the Boards of CF Private Equity and Commonfund OCIO. Previously, he was the President and Chief Investment Officer for the Bass Family Office of Ft. Worth, Texas which was recognized as Family Office of the Year for 2014 & 2015. He was the President and Global Head of Investment Management at Nuveen Investments, a full-service asset management company with over $900 billion in assets under management. Prior to Nuveen, Mark served as the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer for the British Telecom Pension Scheme (BTPS), the largest institutional investor in the UK with assets of £55 billion. In addition, Mark was the CEO of Hermes Pensions Management in London, a £60 billion asset management company that is wholly owned by the BTPS. Prior to joining BTPS, he served as the Chief Investment Officer of the California Public Employees' Retirement System, the largest institutional investor in the United States with over $400 billion in assets. Mark is currently a Trustee, member of the Committee and Chair of the Investment Committee of the $65 billion UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust. He also serves on the Law Board of the Northwestern University School of Law, Board of PanAgora Asset Management and the Board of Directors of the Toigo Foundation. He is the only person to serve on the Board of Governors for both the CFA Institute and the CAIA Association. He was an inaugural member of the SEC Investor Advisory Committee and the Chairman of the Board for the International Corporate Governance Network. Mark has published over 90 investment articles in professional journals and has won three Best Paper Awards. He is the author of five financial textbooks including the Handbook of Alternative Assets, which is the primary textbook used for the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst program. Mark earned a B.A. in Economics and Chemistry from St. Olaf College, a Ph.D. and Masters in Finance from Columbia University Graduate School of Business, and a J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law, all with honors. He has also received several industry awards in recognition of his leadership in asset management including the Lifetime Achievement Award in Pension Fund Management from Plan Sponsor and the CAIA Leadership Award from the CAIA Association. Last, Mark has earned the Chartered Financial Analyst, Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst, Certified Public Accountant, and Chartered Global Management Accountant professional degrees, and he is a Member of the Law Bar of New York and Illinois.
Trustee
Ms. Nicole Arnaboldi is currently a Partner at Oak Hill Capital, a mid-market private equity firm, and an independent director of Manulife Financial Corporation (MFC), Commonfund, NextEra Energy, Inc. and Merit Hill Capital. She previously served as Vice Chairman of Credit Suisse Asset Management and earlier as Head of Credit Suisse’s Illiquid Alternatives businesses, which included a wide range of private equity, real estate, and credit products. She also served on the boards or investment committees of private equity joint ventures in the U.S., Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. Ms. Arnaboldi joined Credit Suisse in November 2000 when it merged with DLJ, where she was a Managing Director in the Merchant Banking area. Before the merger, Ms. Arnaboldi spent 15 years at DLJ, mainly in the private equity and venture capital groups. Ms. Arnaboldi is a member of the Dean’s Advisory Board at Harvard Law School and a member of the Advisory Board for Harvard’s Office of the Vice Provost for Advances in Learning. She serves as Investment Committee Chair and Vice President of Prep for Prep and is a member of the board of Local Initiative Support Corporation (LISC). She previously served on other boards including the Harvard University Corporation Committee on Finance, the New York Federal Reserve Bank’s Investor Advisory Committee on Financial Markets, and New Yorkers for Children. Ms. Arnaboldi holds a B.A. magna cum laude from Harvard College, a J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School, and an M.B.A. with high distinction from the Harvard Business School, where she was a Baker Scholar.
Director
Danielle Baleeiro is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team responsible for private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to joining the Business Development Team, Danielle served as Associate Director on the CF Private Equity Investor Services Team responsible for investor portfolio reviews, investor communications, client reporting, and special projects. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she worked on the trading desk at Silver Point Capital. She earned her B.A. from Denison University.
Managing Director
Nancy Kiernan Bard is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team and is responsible for overseeing relationship management for all outsourced CIO clients and consultants. Nancy has over 25 years of experience in investments and client service. Previously, she was a member of the Client Sales and Service Team where she was responsible for managing client relationships and developing new business in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Before that Nancy held a series of roles at the firm in Business Development and on the investment team. Before joining Commonfund, Nancy was a Research Associate at KR Capital Advisors, an equity investment manager, and a corporate bond Sales Assistant at Lazard Freres & Co. She received a B.S. in Finance from Sacred Heart University. Nancy is also a former board member of The Adam Wysota Foundation, a nonprofit that provides grief education and peer support to children and families.
Administrative Assistant
Daniella Barone is a member of the CF Private Equity team and is primarily responsible for assisting the team with various tasks, projects and initiatives. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Daniella was at CLEAR in Manhattan working within the Office of the CISO as an Assistant managing various projects and driving community amongst the team. She built out various processes to help enable the team's day to day operations run more effectively. Prior to CLEAR, she was at Bridgewater Associates in Westport, CT holding various roles including Principles Client Coordinator and Management Support. Daniella earned a BA in Business Management with a concentration in Entrepreneurship from LIM College.
Managing Director
Mark Bennett is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for asset allocation, manager sourcing, due diligence, and investment monitoring for investment portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Mark was an Investment Consultant for defined benefit services at CIGNA Retirement and Investment Services. He was an asset allocation analyst and consultant for CIGNA-Connecticut General Pension Services. Previously, Mark was a benefit technician for CIGNA Retirement and Investment Services. He received a B.S. from Bryant College and his M.B.A. from the University of Hartford. Mark is a CFA charterholder and is a member of the Hartford Society of Financial Analysts and the CFA Institute.
Director
Carolyn Blanch is a member of Commonfund OCIO and is primarily responsible for risk management, compliance and due diligence oversight with respect to Commonfund’s funds and sub-advisors and working with senior management to develop, monitor and implement strategic business issues, policies and procedures as well as daily operations. Prior to her current role, Carolyn worked in several areas of Commonfund including the Legal group and CF Private Equity. Prior to joining Commonfund, Carolyn was a Senior Paralegal at the law firm of Ackerly & Associates. Carolyn holds a B.S. from Sacred Heart University with a focus in Business and Legal Administration.
Managing Director
Issa Brandt is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Issa was a Relationship Manager in the U.S. Institutional Group at Allianz Global Investors (formerly RCM Capital Management LLC) where he was responsible for servicing the firm’s Corporate, Public, Union, Taft-Hartley, and Endowment & Foundation Clients beginning in 2000. While at Allianz Global Investors, Issa also coordinated with their global offices servicing the firm’s International client base. He holds a B.A. in Geography from California State University, Fresno.
Trustee
Jessica Hoffman Brennan is a Partner and Head of Strategy and Investor Relations at Kohlberg, a $10 billion private equity investment management firm. Prior to joining Kohlberg in 2022, Ms. Brennan spent 9 years as a Partner and Managing Director of The Carlyle Group where she was responsible for investor relations and business development. There, she worked with many of Carlyle’s largest investors, including sovereign wealth funds, public pension funds, insurance companies, ultra-high net worth individuals, and formed several strategic separate accounts with some of Carlyle’s largest investors In addition to her role at Carlyle, Ms. Brennan previously served as the Head of the Client and Product Solutions Group at Onex Corp. and was a Managing Director in the Private Fund Group at Credit Suisse which acquired, Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette. Over her 20+ year career, Ms. Brennan has raised billions of dollars annually with some notable highs. She is a recognized leader in fundraising in alternative asset classes and her capital formation activities span 400+ alternative investment strategies, including: private equity, private credit, real assets, liquid alternatives, specialty and niche alternatives, such as strategic accounts and structured credit products. Ms. Brennan is a board member of The Commonfund, a $30 billion alternative asset management company that invests on behalf of endowments and foundations. She serves on the Executive Board of the Wharton Graduate School, the Women’s Leadership Board at Harvard Kennedy School’s Women and Public Policy Center, the Dean’s Advisory Council of the University of Michigan’s Literature Science & the Arts college. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Ms. Brennan holds an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and an AB degree in both Economics and Literature from the University of Michigan.
Director
Zoë Brizzolara is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management and provides client service to investors in the western region. She brings over 20 years of experience in institutional asset management. Prior to joining Commonfund, Zoë was at Robeco working on business building and operational management. Before this she was at Investec Asset Management focusing on consultant relations in the Midwest and Southeast. She started her career in Boston at Oechsle International Advisors. She holds a B.S. degree in Business Administration from the University of Hartford and a Masters in Communication Management from Simmons College.
Senior Paralegal
Amanda Brown is a Senior Paralegal in the Legal Department. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was the Contract Administrator at SimplexGrinnell, a subsidiary of Tyco International. Previously, Amanda was a Paralegal at Graham Capital Management, L.P. supporting the Legal and Compliance Departments. She has a B.S. in Legal Administration and A.S. in Paralegal Studies from Sacred Heart University.
Associate
Kiyana Campbell is a member of the Commonfund Institute team and supports all Institute activities, including benchmarks studies, DEI initiatives, governance research in the nonprofit institutional investor space, and ESG. Prior to working at Commonfund, she was an Associate at G4 Capital Partners, a commercial real estate investment firm. Kiyana earned a B.A. in Philosophy from Herbert H. Lehman College.
Director
Alexandra Casey is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for delivering full middle office operational support and client service across all outsourced CIO solutions clients. Before joining Commonfund, Alexandra worked for the Bank of New York Mellon in Westport, CT as a Senior Investor Services Associate. Prior to that, she was a Fund & Client Service Associate at Bridgewater Associates in Westport, CT as well as a Private Client Associate at AllianceBernstein. Alexandra received a B.B.A. in Finance and Marketing from the University of Miami.
Director
Jason Casey is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team with a primary focus on research and analytics providing both quantitative and qualitative due diligence on investments and managers. Prior to joining Commonfund, Jason worked in the Trust Department for Citibank’s Private Bank. Jason received his B.S. in Chemistry from Yale University and a M.B.A. from the University of Rochester’s Simon Graduate School of Business.
Chief Compliance Officer
Violetta Cerasuolo serves as the Chief Compliance Officer of Commonfund. Prior to joining Commonfund, Violetta was a Senior Vice President and Senior Compliance Officer at Capstone Investment Advisors, LLC, a global alternative investment management firm. Prior to joining Capstone, Violetta was a Senior Compliance Officer at Bridgewater Associates, LP for over five years. At Bridgewater, she primarily focused on regulatory matters, including filings, registrations, and examinations. Prior to Bridgewater, she spent over two and half years at GE Capital as a Senior Regulatory Reporting Leader and almost six years at Goldman Sachs in various compliance operations roles. Violetta earned a B.A. in Economics with minors in Business Administration and German from Fordham University.
Director
Olga Chiriac is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for assisting in investment monitoring, rebalancing and reporting for investment portfolios with a focus in fixed income and credit strategies. Prior to joining Commonfund, Olga was with Telekurs Financial USA as an Assistant Manager for Corporate Fixed Income. While at Telekurs she was responsible for the oversight of corporate bond market coverage, corporate actions and pricing support. Olga received her B.S. and her M.B.A. from the University of Bridgeport and is a CAIA charterholder.
Director
David Claiborn is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team with a focus on requests for proposals or RFPs. He shares responsibility for responding to RFPs, Due Diligence Questionnaires (DDQs), and to consultant requests. David is also responsible for creating new RFP responses and editing existing content. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was a Vice President and Senior Marketing and Branding Specialist at Barclays, and was responsible for writing and distributing weekly highlights, crafting and refining content, and internal education. Before joining Barclays, he was Vice President and Senior Client Service Specialist at O’Shaughnessy Asset Management, where he focused on servicing Institutional clients, writing commentaries and content for RFPs, and reviewing collateral. Previously, he was a Vice President and Product Manager for the Systematic team at Bear Stearns Asset Management, serving as a liaison between the portfolio management team and clients. David also held an Investment Specialist role at Citigroup Asset Management and eventually Legg Mason, and RFP positions at Deutsche Asset Management and Diversified Investment Advisors. David holds an M.B.A. in Marketing and a B.S. in Business Administration from Iona College.
Managing Director
Brian Cohen is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Brian worked as a product analyst for IPREO. Brian received B.S. in Business Management from Bentley University and his M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University.
Managing Director
Dan Connell is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team for CF Private Equity. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he worked as a principal investor on energy infrastructure with GE Capital’s Energy Financial Services, where he focused on both project finance debt and international equity. Before his time with GE Capital, Dan worked in commercial development for Atlantic Power and served as an Intelligence Officer in the US Navy. He has a B.A. from Seton Hall University, an M.P.A. from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and an M.B.A. from MIT’s Sloan School of Management.
Associate Director
Bella Cristovao is an Associate Director, working with CF Private Equity on the management of the distressed capital program. Her responsibilities include analysis and oversight of the managers within the firm’s distressed fund of funds program. She has two decades of investment experience, spanning due diligence and monitoring of hedge fund and private equity managers, as well as various aspects of direct investing in corporate credit. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Mrs. Cristovao worked on this program at Commonfund OCIO as a distressed credit specialist within the Fixed Income team. Prior to Commonfund, she worked at Hartford Investment Management Company, where her experience included credit analysis, trading, and quantitative analysis, primarily for the international fixed income sector. Mrs. Cristovao received her B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Connecticut, with dual concentrations in Finance and Management Information Systems. She also has the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
Director
Jennifer is a member of the Marketing team, where she oversees the strategic management, creation, and maintenance of content across a diverse range of internal and external systems. Her role involves crafting compelling marketing materials tailored for print, email, and our company’s website, ensuring consistency and engagement across all platforms. In addition, Jennifer contributes to shaping the firm's marketing and digital media strategies, with a particular focus on enhancing our presence across social media channels. She holds an A.A.S. in Visual Communications from Katherine Gibbs College and graduated summa cum laude with a B.S. in Graphic Design from Southern New Hampshire University.
Investor Services Assistant
Julie Czamanski is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for providing support to investors and the Investor Services team. Julie has also held a series of roles within the Commonfund organization across the Compliance, CF Private Equity and Corporate Accounting groups. Prior to joining Commonfund, Julie worked as a Receptionist/Administrative Assistant for Rayonier, Inc.
Associate Director
Amanda Daher is a member of the Commonfund Marketing team and is primarily responsible for the creation and maintenance of CF Private Equity marketing materials and initiatives, as well as social media streams. Prior to her role in Marketing, Amanda supported the Sales and Service team at Commonfund for 4 years where she focused on client service support and reporting. Before joining Commonfund, Amanda worked at Altrinsic Global Advisors, LLC, an asset management firm in Greenwich, CT. Prior to that, Amanda was a Content Analyst at Affinion Group in Stamford, CT. Amanda earned a B.A. in Mass Communications from Iona College.
Associate
Darcy Dang is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales Team. She is responsible for business development of outsourced CIO solutions across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, and other philanthropic organizations. Prior to Commonfund, she worked as a Business Development Associate at O'Neil Global Advisor. Darcy earned a B.S. in Finance and Business Analytics from the University of Rochester.
Trustee
Kent Daniel is the Jean-Marie Eveillard/First Eagle Professor of Business at Columbia Business School. In 2017-18 Professor Daniel served as the Chair of the Finance Division, and from 2019 through 2022 he served as Senior Vice Dean of Faculty Affairs at Columbia Business School. Professor Daniel is a member of the academic advisory board of Martingale Asset Management. From 1996 to 2007, Professor Daniel was on the faculty of the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, where he was the John and Helen Kellogg Distinguished Professor of Finance (on leave from 2005-2007). He also served on the faculties of the University of Chicago and the University of British Columbia. His work, both theoretical and empirical, has been primarily in the areas of asset pricing and behavioral finance. Between 2004 and 2010, he was with the Quantitative Investment Strategies group at Goldman Sachs Asset Management. In 2005, he became a managing director and head of equity research effort in 2005 and became a co-chief investment officer in 2009. In addition to other awards, his papers received the 1997 and 1999 Smith-Breeden awards for the best paper in the Journal of Finance. His papers have been reprinted in several books. He received the Sidney J. Levy Teaching Award for 1996-1997 and 2000-2001 at the Kellogg School, and the Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence at Columbia Business School in 2016. Professor Daniel's academic research, both theoretical and empirical, has been primarily in the areas of behavioral finance and asset pricing. Kent is a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research and has served as an associate editor for the Journal of Finance, and as director of both the American Finance Association and the Western Finance Association. Professor Daniel holds a B.S. with honors in physics from the California Institute of Technology, an M.B.A. from UCLA, and a Ph.D. in Finance from UCLA.
Associate Director
Joe DeCicco is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity. His responsibilities include sourcing, due diligence, manager selection and investment management across the Firm’s Venture Capital programs. Joe joined CF Private Equity from CPP Investments, where he was a Senior Associate focused globally on venture capital and growth equity fund, secondary, and direct investments. Before CPP, Joe was an Associate at Industrial Growth Partners, a middle market private equity firm investing in the industrials sector, and prior to that, began his career in investment banking with Barclays, focused on M&A advisory as well as debt and equity offerings for technology companies. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Economics with a minor in Accounting from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Managing Director, Head of Research and Analytics
John Delano is Head of Commonfund OCIO Research and Analytics and leads the team responsible for quantitative analysis of investments and managers. He also serves as a member of both the Commonfund OCIO Investment and the Commonfund Asset Allocation Committees. Prior to joining Commonfund, John was a consultant in Global Public Opinion Research at Altria Corporate Services and a research assistant at Columbia University′s Institute of Social and Economic Research and Policy. Prior to that, he worked as a media buyer at Horizon Media, using statistical analysis to forecast audience deliveries for television commercials. John has a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Chicago and an M.A. in Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences from Columbia University. He also holds the Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF).
Director
Tiffany Delevante serves as project manager for various marketing programs and campaigns, including creation and execution of digital marketing initiatives. Tiffany serves as liaison with Marketing, Sales and Service for various Commonfund sponsored events to ensure consistency in messaging and execution and is event manager for Commonfund Forum. She also serves on the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. Tiffany has a B.S. in Journalism from Southern Connecticut State University, as well as a Masters in Communication from Fairfield University.
Director
Michael Devanny is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for cost accounting, portfolio reconciliation, performance and client reporting for all outsourced CIO solutions clients. Previously, Mike was a member of the Fund Accounting team where he was responsible for accounting and custodial oversight for Commonfund’s marketable funds and certain private partnerships. Prior to joining Commonfund, he served as a Mutual Fund Supervisor at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Services & Co. in New York with responsibility for fund valuations, operations, financial reporting and compliance. Mike received a B.S. in Accounting from Lehman College.
Director
Michelle DiMaio is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team where she is responsible for supporting all aspects of investor servicing including onboarding for both Commonfund OCIO and CF Private Equity. Prior to joining Commonfund, Michelle worked at Barclays Capital in New York as a Senior Vice President on the Structured Finance Trading Desk where she structured and reverse engineered Asset Back Securities. Prior to that she was an Assistant Vice President in the Asset and Mortgage Backed Securities Analytics Group at Merrill Lynch in New York. Michelle began her career at Prudential Securities in New York, in the Mortgage and Asset Backed Structured Finance Investment Banking Group, where she structured, priced, and closed MBS deals for issuance in the primary market. She received a B.A. in Economics from the University of Rhode Island.
Director of Fund Administration
Renee Diones-Cahill is a member of the CF Private Equity Investor Services team and is responsible for investor operations, reporting and service for private capital investors. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Renee worked for Tradition Financial Services. She has a B.A. from Hunter College.
Senior Analyst
Robert DiRenzo is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and responsible for portfolio reconciliation, cost accounting, performance, and reporting for outsourced CIO solutions clients. Prior to Commonfund, Robert has 10 years of combined experience as a Financial Analyst and Accountant primarily with First Union Bank. Robert received a B.S. degree from Sacred Heart University.
Managing Director, Head of Fund Operations
Russell Dobransky has over 25 years of experience in financial operations and fund accounting and is responsible for fund valuations, financial reporting, processing of shareholder activity and tax and regulatory reporting for Commonfund funds. Prior to joining, Russ was an auditor with Price Waterhouse in their financial services group, and was a Supervisor of Fund Accounting at Alliance Capital Management. He holds a B.A. in Economics from Fordham University.
Managing Director
Ryan Driscoll is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is focused on macroeconomic research. Ryan serves as the investment officer for the firm’s Multi-Asset Portfolio investors and is also responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for Treasury clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Ryan worked at Sailfish Capital Partners, a multi-strategy fixed income fund, where he served on the Emerging Markets team. Prior to that, he was on the fixed income team at Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo & Co. and was an equity/fixed income trader at Loring, Wolcott and Coolidge, in Boston. Ryan received his B.S. in Finance and M.S. in Global Financial Analysis (with Distinction) from Bentley University. He is a CFA Charterholder and is a member of the Boston Securities Analyst Society and CFA Institute.
Managing Director
Susan Durrell is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. In this capacity, she leads a team of relationship managers that support Commonfund investors across the country. Prior to joining Commonfund, Susan was an operations and investor relations manager for Capricorn Management, G.P., a private asset management firm, where her primary responsibilities included marketing and reporting functions with existing and new investors. Prior to Capricorn Management, she worked in the Sales and Operations Group in sales and client service at Interleaf, Inc. Susan has a B.A. from the University of Hartford and an M.B.A. in Finance with high honors from Sacred Heart University. She also served as a board member for the Easton Community Center and the Welch College of Business Economics and Finance Advisory Board for Sacred Heart University.
Senior Associate
Branden Elkins is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team at CF Private Equity. He is responsible for investments across energy, agriculture, and resource efficiency. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he worked as a management consultant in PwC’s Power & Utilities Advisory practice and as a Business Operations Manager at Hive AI. While in business school, Branden worked at Energy Foundry, a cleantech-focused venture capital firm, and Wave Equity Partners, a sustainability-focused growth equity firm. Branden earned an M.B.A. from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University.
Director
Joseph Falcha is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was an Investment Advisor for Drax Asset Management, LLC ─ an investment management firm. Joe was responsible for advising high net worth individuals and non-profit organizations, conducting research, executing trades and developing new business. Prior to Drax, he spent several years working for Hartford Financial and MetLife Financial in a variety of different consulting and service roles. Joe received his B.S. in Business Management from Albertus Magnus College and holds the Certified Investment Management Analyst designation. He is a member of the Investment Management Consultants Association.
Head of Operations
Matt Fliesser is the Head of Operations for CF Private Equity and is responsible for the overall management and coordination of the day-to-day operations of CF Private Equity. Prior to rejoining CF Private Equity, he was the Controller of Alvarez & Marsal Capital. Prior to Alvarez & Marsal Capital, Matt was the Assistant Controller of CF Private Equity. He began his career at PwC in their asset and wealth management group where he audited hedge funds and private equity funds. Matt earned a B.S.B.A. in Accounting from Western New England University and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Analyst
Owen Gannon is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He previously worked as a Secondaries Summer Analyst at CF Private Equity. Owen earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of Notre Dame.
Director
Steven Gasparini is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for assisting in the design, tailoring and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients, as well as client portfolio analysis and specialized analytical requests. Prior to joining Commonfund, Steven attended undergraduate school at the University of Connecticut where he graduated with a B.S. in Finance and a minor in Economics. At the University of Connecticut, Steven also co-led the Student Managed Fund his senior year, assisting with the management and investment of endowment funds entrusted by the UConn Foundation.
Senior Associate
Alessandro Giacometti is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for supporting the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to working at CF Private Equity, Alessandro spent over four years at HQ Capital, where he focused on building out the North American client base for the European private equity manager, across both institutional and private investors. Alessandro earned a B.A. in Political Science and Corporate Strategy from Vanderbilt University.
Team Administrator
Jill Gibson is a member of the Commonfund OCIO team and is primarily responsible for assisting the team with various tasks, projects, and initiatives. Jill has worked in the Finance world for more than 15 years. Prior to working at Commonfund, she worked at De Beers Group the world’s leading diamond company as a Commercial Sales Executive. Prior to that, she spent 5 years as an Executive Assistant at L Catterton, one of the world’s leading consumer growth investors. Jill earned her Associate Degree in Finance from Berkeley College.
Associate
Dolores Gillap is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team with a focus on requests for proposals or RFPs. She shares responsibility for responding to RFPs, Due Diligence Questionnaires (DDQs), and to consultant requests. Dolores is also responsible for maintaining the RFP database with new content as well as editing existing content. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was with Altrinsic Global Advisors as a member of the Client Experience Team and was responsible for all request for proposals, crafting and refining content, as well as writing performance commentaries for clients. Before joining Altrinsic, she was a Senior RFP Writer with HSBC Asset Management, where she focused on content for RFPs, DDQs and maintenance and population of a number of consultant databases. Dolores also held RFP roles with Insight Investment Management and Rogge Global Partners. Dolores received a B.S. in Finance from Sacred Heart University.
Managing Director
Caroline Greer is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible diverse and impact manager investments across asset classes. Caroline currently serves as a member of the Commonfund Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Office and Commonfund OCIO’s Investment Committee. Prior to joining Commonfund, she served as a Partner and Principal for Contego Capital Management, LLC, specializing in customized funds of hedge funds. She was responsible for sourcing, evaluating and monitoring hedge fund managers across a full range of strategies. Prior to joining Contego, Caroline was a Senior Vice President for Oppenheimer and Co. where she co-managed their funds of hedge funds program and monitored Oppenheimer’s private equity fund. Caroline began her career at Montrose Advisors, a boutique financial advisor specializing in managing customized funds of hedge funds and private equity and venture capital portfolios. In 2015, Caroline was named one of the 50 Leading Women in Hedge Funds globally by The Hedge Fund Journal. Caroline received a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Toronto, and an M.A. and M.Phil. from Columbia University of New York.
Counsel
Terrence Griffiths is Counsel for Commonfund and its subsidiaries. Prior to working at Commonfund, Terrence was a Senior Associate Attorney at Riveles Wahab, a boutique law firm representing private investment funds including venture capital, private equity funds and crypto funds. Terrence’s previous experience also includes legal and administrative roles at Credit Suisse, CBS Sports Network and the U.S. Marshals Service. Terrence earned a B.A. in Criminal Justice from Quinnipiac University and a J.D. From New York Law School, and is admitted to practice law in the State of New York and the State of Connecticut.
Part-Time Associate
Ann Guercio is a member of the Commonfund Marketing team and supports the development and maintenance of CF Private Equity marketing materials and initiatives. Prior to her role in Marketing, Ann was a Portfolio Strategist with First Citizens Bank and an Associate Client Portfolio Manager with J.P. Morgan Asset Management where she conducted portfolio analysis and marketed investment strategies to institutional and high net worth clients. She began in the industry in 2005 and earned a B.S. with concentrations in finance and economics from Boston College. She is a holder of the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
Associate
Amy Gusitsch is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales Team. She is responsible for business development of outsourced CIO solutions across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, and other philanthropic organizations. Prior to Commonfund, Amy was formerly an Executive Assistant at Alternative Investment Management in New York City. She has held a number of administrative, client and event planning positions. Her early career began teaching in IL and at Cider Mill in Wilton, CT specializing in mathematics. She has served on several foundations and executed events in her community with a concentration in education, sports and diabetes. Amy earned her B.S. in Elementary Education at Western Illinois University where she also earned a full scholarship to be part of the Division I the volleyball team. She received her M.S. in Educational Leadership at Aurora University.
Director
Elijah Han is a member of the Private Equity team at CF Private Equity and is responsible for sourcing, due diligence and investment underwriting for the firm’s private equity strategy. He previously worked as an Investment Banking Analyst at Mesirow Financial where he specialized in financial advisory and mergers and acquisitions in the aerospace and defense, industrials and plastics and packaging industries. Elijah began his career as an Associate at Mesirow Financial Consulting, LLC, advising on corporate turnarounds, financial restructurings, valuation and litigation related engagements. He earned a B.S. in Accountancy and Finance from the College of Business at the University of Illinois.
President and CEO, Commonfund Securities
Anita Hariton is President and CEO of Commonfund Securities, Inc. and Head of Client Engagement for Commonfund OCIO, providing oversight to the sales, service and RFP teams and processes. She is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Executive Group where she contributes to the overall strategic and operational direction of Commonfund’s OCIO business. Prior to joining Commonfund OCIO, Anita served as Head of Investor Services for CF Private Equity where her team was responsible for investor portfolio reviews, investor communications, client reporting, RFP responses, and special projects. Prior to moving into this role, she held a series of positions across the Commonfund organization, serving on the operations, treasury, and client relationship teams and leading clients through decisions on asset allocation, investment policy, treasury management and governance. Anita previously served eight years as a Trustee for Temple Israel, Westport, four as Executive Vice President. She has a B.M. from Susquehanna University and an M.B.A. with a concentration in Finance from Fairfield University. Anita is a member of the Private Equity Women’s Investor Network.
Managing Director, Head of Operations
Amy Harlacker is Head of Operations. She oversees the delivery of operational and investor services to outsourced CIO clients and fund investors which includes the management of valuations and financial and regulatory reporting for Commonfund funds. As a member of the Commonfund OCIO Executive Group, Amy is responsible for collaborating with members of the team to provide operational leadership, direction and support during the implementation of the organization’s strategic plans and initiatives. She has also held a series of roles within the Commonfund organization across the Financial Operations, Client Service and Information Technology groups. Prior to joining Commonfund, Amy was a business analyst at Energy East Corporation. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Aspetuck Land Trust and holds an M.B.A. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Lehigh University.
President and CEO, CF Private Equity
Mark Hoeing is President and CEO of CF Private Equity, Head of the firm’s Buyout and Growth Equity investment practice, a member of the Investment Committee and Senior Executive Group of CF Private Equity and a member of the Operating Committee of Commonfund Group. As President and CEO, Mark’s responsibilities include the strategic direction of the firm and oversight of investment solutions in buyouts, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability. As Head of Buyouts and Growth Equity investments, his responsibilities include managing due diligence, investment selection, portfolio construction, monitoring, and fundraising for the firm’s buyout and growth equity strategies that include primaries, secondaries and co-investments. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, his experience includes positions at Deutsche Bank, evaluating third-party managers in the private capital funds division, as well as direct private capital investing with DB Capital Partners, Deutsche Bank’s merchant banking subsidiary. Part of Mark’s work at Deutsche included the bank’s coverage of the Asia-Pacific basin. Mark began his career as a credit analyst and commercial lending officer with Citizens Financial Group. He is presently a member of the advisory boards of several private equity limited partnerships. Mark has a B.S. in Health Policy and Management and an M.B.A. from Providence College.
Associate Director
Diana Hoffman is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team where she provides analysis for the firm. She previously was a Sales Assistant for the Endowment and Foundation Sales team at Commonfund. Prior to joining Commonfund, Diana worked at RBS Greenwich Capital for over five years where she held roles in Operations and Sales for their Credit Markets trading & sales desk. Diana obtained her B.S. in Finance and Marketing from Providence College.
Director, Financial Analysis
Wendy Hopkinson is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team where she is responsible for financial analysis and reporting for the firm. Wendy has over 25 years of experience in financial operations. Prior to her current role, Wendy was a Director in Fund Accounting at Commonfund. Before joining Commonfund, she held various positions within the financial operation departments at Mellon Bank in Boston, LIT Europe, and Blade Investments in London. Wendy received a B.S. in Accounting from Northeastern University and an M.B.A., with a concentration in finance, from Scared Heart University.
Senior Analyst
Anthony Hughes is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team of CF Private Equity and is responsible for investments across energy, agriculture, and resource efficiency. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he served as an Aerographer’s Mate in the U.S. Navy. Anthony earned a B.A. in Applied Economics and Management from Cornell University.
Chief Marketing Officer
Tony Ialeggio is responsible for the development and execution of firm-wide marketing strategies and branding. Prior to joining Commonfund, Tony was Executive Vice President, Director of Global Marketing at Cohen & Steers where he had overall responsibility for branding, communications, marketing strategy and product management. Prior to Cohen & Steers, he spent ten years at AllianceBernstein, where he was a Managing Director and held a number of marketing, planning and product management positions. Tony has twenty years of professional experiences and has a B.A. in Political Science from Tulane University.
Managing Director
David Isacovici is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he was a Director of Business Development at Amundi Asset Management, where he was responsible for marketing the firm’s alternative investment funds and solutions to institutional and wealth management clients across the Americas. Prior to Amundi, David held business development roles at TIAA Asset Management (now Nuveen Investments), Merrill Lynch and Refco. He earned his B.A. from Brandeis University and holds the Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) designation, offered by the Investments & Wealth Institute in partnership with the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business.
Senior Analyst
Dhruv Jindal is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team of CF Private Equity and is responsible for economic research and analysis across energy, agriculture, and resource efficiency. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he interned on Shell’s Crude Lease Desk and Suncor’s Oil Sands F&P Team. Dhruv earned a B.Comm in Finance with Distinction from the University of Calgary.
Analyst
Dana Johnson is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she was a Corporate Strategy Summer Analyst at Ares Management in New York City. Dana earned a B.S. in Business and Enterprise Management from the Wake Forest University of Business and a B.A. in Studio Art.
Administrative Assistant
Jill Kakaletris is a member of the CF Private Equity team and is primarily responsible for assisting in daily office needs and managing administrative activities. Before joining CF Private Equity, she worked as an executive assistant handling complex calendars and domestic travel. Prior to that, she ran her own small business controlling all backend operations. Jill earned a B.A. in Sociology from Fordham University.
Director
Shameer Karim is a Director for Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. He has over 15 years industry experience working for asset management firms, hedge funds and large corporate pension plans. Prior to joining Commonfund, Shameer worked at TOBAM as a Senior Vice President handling relationship management and client service for the North American client base. Shameer earned a B.S. in Finance from Pace University. He has earned the CFA Institute Certificate in ESG Investing and awarded the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. Shameer is also a member of the CFA Institute and the New York Society of Security Analysts.
Director
Allison Kaspriske develops and manages programs and research initiatives for Commonfund Institute, including the Commonfund Benchmarks Studies®, the Council on Foundations-Commonfund Study of Foundations® (CCSF) and is also involved in developing and maintaining strategic partnerships. She manages the Institute's educational initiatives such as Commonfund Institute Online and the Investment Stewardship Academy and is actively involved in all other educational programs that Commonfund provides. She earned a B.A. in English from the University of Connecticut, Storrs.
Senior Associate
Anisa Kelib is a member of the CF Private Equity Investor Services team and supports all investor operations, reporting and service for private capital investors. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Anisa worked for State Street Corporation. She began her career in 2004 in Tax operations and subsequently held several roles in their Custody Services division in their Boston, Toronto and NY offices. She has a B.A. in Computer Science from Boston University.
Senior Associate
Sarah Kirshy is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team at CF Private Equity. She is responsible for overseeing, managing and monitoring the ESG considerations across the firm’s Real Assets and Sustainability programs. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Sarah was a Senior ESG Consultant at ERM: Environmental Resources Management. At ERM she primarily focused on driving sustainability strategies for private equity clients. Sarah holds a BA from Binghamton University in Politics & Law, and a Sustainability Finance Professional Certification from Columbia University.
Managing Director
Vincent Kravec is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for investment monitoring, manager sourcing, rebalancing and reporting for investment portfolios with a focus in fixed income and credit strategies. Prior to joining Commonfund, Vincent was with Lazard Asset Management as a member of the Fixed Income operations staff. While at Lazard he was a trading assistant on the Emerging Markets team. He was also a supervisor in Fixed Income Accounting and had responsibilities in trading operations involving allocating trades and resolving trade problems for corporates, treasuries, municipals, asset backs and FX trading desks. Previous experience includes positions at Morgan Stanley, Alliance Capital and Evaluation Associates. Vincent earned his M.B.A. in from New York University’s Stern School of Business and his B.A. from Fairfield University. He is also a CFA charterholder.
Associate
Jack Kulesh is a member of the Private Equity team of CF Private Equity and is responsible for sourcing, due diligence and investment underwriting for the firm’s private equity strategy. Jack earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of Chicago.
Managing Director
George Wu is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the origination, evaluation, underwriting, and execution of secondary investments. Additionally, he contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability strategies. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, George worked at Morgan Stanley in its investment banking division, advising corporate clients on mergers & acquisitions and capital markets transactions. George holds a B.S. in Business Administration and a B.S. in Mathematics/Economics from the University of Southern California. George is also a CFA charterholder.
Chief Market Strategist
Kristofer Kwait formulates and communicates strategic market views, economic perspectives, and investment themes to clients and internal constituents for Commonfund OCIO. He serves on the Commonfund OCIO Executive Group and is a member of the Investment Committee and Commonfund Asset Allocation Committee. Prior to his current role, Kris was head of the Hedge Fund Strategies Group and previously served as head of hedge fund research with responsibility for overseeing the design and implementation of proprietary models for manager selection, portfolio construction, and risk management. Before joining Commonfund, Kris was a proprietary trader at both Andover L.L.C. and A.B. Watley, where he managed relative value equity strategies. Prior to his experiences as a trader, he was a stockbroker at Smith Barney. Kris attended pre-college at Juilliard School of Music, has a B.S. from Purdue University and an M.B.A. from the Yale School of Management.
Associate
Grace Lamb is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund OCIO, she was as an investment research analyst, supporting the investment solutions and consulting business at Clearbrook working primarily with Endowments, Foundations and High Net Worth individuals. Grace earned a B.A. in Finance from Loyola University Maryland, and a minor in Information Systems prior to joining the industry in 2019.
Analyst
Calvin Lei is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he worked at StepStone Group and BNB Chain. Calvin earned a B.A. in Cognitive Science from the Johns Hopkins University.
Managing Director
Ethan Levine is Head of Real Assets and Sustainability, a member of the Investment Committee and Senior Executive Group of CF Private Equity. His primary responsibilities include due diligence, investment selection, portfolio construction, monitoring, and fundraising for the firm’s real assets and sustainability programs, which include mandates surrounding natural resources and environmental sustainability that are constructed with co-investments, direct operating platforms, secondaries and primaries. Additionally, he contributes to the firm’s buyouts, growth equity, and venture capital strategies. Ethan originally joined CF Private Equity in 2007 as a Senior Analyst in the CF Private Equity Associate Program. Prior to CF Private Equity, Ethan specialized in energy markets at Charles River Associates, an economic and litigation consulting firm in Boston, MA. At Charles River Associates, he advised power and utility clients with their damages litigation, regulatory approval and business strategy forecasting. While at business school, Ethan worked at Rockland Capital, a power generation focused private equity firm, headquartered in The Woodlands, TX, where he conducted due diligence on potential power generation asset acquisitions and helped manage existing portfolio investments. Ethan is a member of the advisory boards of several private equity limited partnerships. He is the treasurer and former chairperson of the Board for Hillel at Dartmouth College. Ethan received a B.A., B.E. and an M.E.M. from Dartmouth College and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
Associate
Adrian Lim is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He previously worked as a Secondaries Summer Analyst at CF Private Equity and an Investment Banking Summer Analyst at Dowling Hales. Adrian earned a B.S. in Information Science from Cornell University.
Managing Director
Cari Lodge is Head of Secondaries, a member of the CF Private Equity Investment Committee, Board of Directors, and Senior Executive Group. She oversees the origination, evaluation, structuring and negotiation of secondaries transactions as well as the portfolio construction, monitoring and fundraising of the firm’s secondary funds. Additionally, Cari contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability strategies. Cari has over 24 years of secondaries experience and has closed over 495 secondary transactions for greater than $3.3 billion in total exposure. She began her career at Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette (which merged with Credit Suisse in 2000) as an Associate in Investment Banking. She spent 12 years with Credit Suisse’s Secondary Team, Strategic Partners, since its founding in 2000, and served as a member of the Investment Committee. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Cari was at Tulane University’s Investment Management Office where she was responsible for overseeing the private equity and private real assets investments for the endowment. She is presently a member of the advisory board of several private equity limited partnerships. Cari is also a member of the Investment Committee of her alma mater, The Hotchkiss School. In 2022, she was recognized by PEI as one of the top ten women of influence in private markets1. In 2024, the WSJ Pro Private Equity named her as a “Woman to Watch.2" She received an A.B. from Dartmouth College in both Economics and Government and an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School.
Senior Analyst
David Santa is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and responsible for portfolio reconciliation, cost accounting, performance, and reporting for outsourced CIO solutions clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was a part of the Fund accounting team at GoldenTree Asset Manager. David began his career in the Alternative Investments audit practice PwC. David earned a B.A. in Business Administration and Accounting from The University of Richmond.
Trustee
Susan E. Manske is Vice President and Chief Investment Officer of the MacArthur Foundation. In this position, Manske is responsible for managing the Foundation's $8 billion endowment and is a member of the Leadership Advisory Team that advises the President on strategic and policy matters. Manske joined the Foundation in May 2003 after having served as Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Trust Investments at the Boeing Company since 2001. At Boeing, Manske was responsible for managing the firm's defined benefit and defined contribution retirement plans. Prior to joining the Boeing Company, Manske spent 13 years with the Ameritech Corporation in Chicago. She joined the firm in 1987 as Manager, Fixed Income and moved through successive positions in Ameritech's investment group including Director, Capital Markets and Director, Risk Management, ultimately serving for two years, 1998-2000 as Chief Investment Officer. Earlier in her career she worked as a Portfolio Manager for the Ford Motor Company. Manske’s Board activity has included: United Way/Crusade of Mercy, Chicago Academy for the Arts, Pritzker Family Foundation, The Chamberlin Group, and the Education District 181 Foundation. She is a summa cum laude graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, with a Master of Business Administration degree from Marquette University. Manske is also a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Managing Director
Felipe Arguello is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for designing, tailoring, and implementing custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked for 14 years at BlackRock, where he was responsible for delivering custom multi-asset solutions for institutional clients across North America, Europe and Asia. When Felipe first joined the firm, he was with the Financial Institutions Group, where he oversaw asset allocation strategy and client service for insurance and other taxable investors. Before BlackRock, he worked at Lloyds Banking Group in various locations including New York, Switzerland, and Uruguay, providing advisory solutions to high net worth individuals, endowments, and foundations. Felipe earned a bachelor degree, with honors, in international business from La Sabana University and is a CFA Charterholder.
Senior Compliance Officer
Kelly Tiscia is a member of the Compliance team and is responsible for monitoring adherence to regulatory policies and procedures. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was Senior Compliance Professional at Silver Point Capital, L.P., a registered investment adviser focused on credit and special situation investments. Kelly started at Silver Point in September 2007. Prior to Silver Point, she was a Real Estate Assistant for Alpha Realty Advisors, a division of the commercial mortgage company, Velocity Commercial Capital. Kelly earned a B.A. in Human Development and Family Studies at the University of Connecticut, Storrs.
Director
Navid Gordpour is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. Prior to joining Commonfund, Navid worked at Matthews International Capital Management where he served as a Portfolio Specialist focusing on Business Development & Portfolio Strategy for the Private Wealth Channel. Prior to Matthews, Navid was an Investment Counselor at Citi and HSBC Private Bank where he was responsible for advising HNW, UHNW and Family office clients on asset allocation and portfolio construction across public and private markets. Navid earned a B.S. in Finance from Binghamton University School of Management.
Accounting Manager
Marina Da Silva is a member of the CF Private Equity Finance and Accounting team and is responsible for operational accounting for CF Private Equity’s partnerships. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was a Senior Fund Controller at HighVista Strategies, an alternative asset manager. She joined HighVista in 2023 as part of its acquisition of the abrdn U.S. private market business. Marina was responsible for overseeing the accounting and fund administration of the Private Equity and Venture Capital Strategies. Marina worked on the HighVista Private Equity and Venture Capital funds for over a decade, at HighVista and abrdn in an oversight role, at Gen II Fund Services as a Director, and at FLAG Capital Management prior to its acquisition by abrdn in 2015. Before joining FLAG in 2014, Marina worked at Deloitte in the audit and assurance practice. Marina earned a B.A. in Accounting and International Business from Fairfield University.
Accounting Manager
Emily Lee is an Accounting Manager for CF Private Equity and oversees the accounting department's daily operations. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she worked at a fund administrator and a real estate credit fund manager. Emily earned a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Connecticut and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Analyst
Margaux Fessard de Foucault is a member of the Private Equity team of CF Private Equity and based in the London investment office. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she worked at SWEN Capital Partners, in Paris. Margaux earned a Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Economics from King’s College London and a Master in Management from IE Business School.
Marketing Events Associate
Natalie Quiles is a member of the Marketing team and is primarily responsible for planning and facilitating all aspects of the firm's events for endowments and foundations, healthcare organizations and public pensions. Prior to joining Commonfund, she worked at a global consulting firm as a Senior Product Marketing Specialist, focusing on email marketing, webinar development, and strategizing thought leadership and paid media campaigns. Natalie has over 5 years of experience working within professional services and has a strong background in research, digital marketing, and project management. Natalie earned a B.A. in Political Science from Quinnipiac University. Natalie is also a certified yoga teacher and in her spare time enjoys salsa dancing and traveling.
Senior Software Architect
Michael Ertel is a member of the Information Technology team and is responsible for the development and support of various applications. Mike has over 20 years of experience as a software engineer. Before joining CommonFund, Mike worked at Ingalls & Snyder LLC, a financial advisor and broker-dealer. Before Ingalls, Mike worked at Apollo Global Management, Royal Bank of Canada, UBS, World Wrestling Entertainment, and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Mike earned a B.S. in Computer Science from Dickinson College.
Associate
Andrew Garside is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for supporting the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to working at CF Private Equity, he worked at AlphaSights, an information services company in New York. Andrew earned a B.S. in Human and Organizational Development and Business from Vanderbilt University.
Analyst
Liam Rosengren is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and responsible for portfolio reconciliation, cost accounting, performance, and reporting for outsourced CIO solutions clients. He worked previously as a Summer Analyst on Commonfund’s Investor Services team. Liam earned his B.A. from Kenyon College in both Economics and Applied Mathematics.
Analyst
Mary Elizabeth Dinan is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Mary Elizabeth earned a BSBA in Finance from Auburn University’s Harbert College of Business.
Analyst
Ryan Glanville is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability (RAS) team of CF Private Equity and is responsible for economic research and analysis across energy, agriculture, and resource efficiency. He previously worked as a RAS Summer Analyst at CF Private Equity. Ryan earned a B.B.A. in Finance with a minor in Economics from Emory University.
Analyst
Emma Markus is a member of the Real Assets and Sustainability team of CF Private Equity and is responsible for economic research and analysis across energy, agriculture, and resource efficiency. She previously worked as a Real Assets and Sustainability Summer Analyst at CF Private Equity. Emma earned a B.A. in Economics and International Relations from Tufts University.
Senior Accountant
Matt Capriglione is a member of the Finance & Accounting team and assists with the preparation of financial and tax statements and the operational accounting for CF Private Equity’s partnerships. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Matt earned a B.S. in Finance and Accounting from Sacred Heart University.
Associate
Leah Wersebe is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team responsible for providing client service to OCIO clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was a Business Development and Client Services Supervisor at Pzena Investment Management, LLC, where she supervised the Business Development and Client Services team and was responsible for requests for proposals, due diligence questionnaires, and various other prospect and client information requests. Before joining Pzena, Leah was a freelance writer, an adjunct professor and Teaching Assistant at CUNY Hunter College in Psychology, and a temporary worker for Beacon Hill Staffing Group working as an administrative assistant, among other roles. Previously, Leah worked at Financial Services Volunteer Corps, an international development financial services non-profit for five years. Leah earned an M.A. in Psychology, with a concentration in Animal Behavior and Conservation from CUNY Hunter, an M.A. in International Politics and Business from New York University, and a B.A. in International Relations and Cinema & Screen Studies from SUNY Oswego.
Analyst
Nidhi Gowda is a member of the CF Private Equity team and is responsible for sourcing, due diligence and investment underwriting for the firm’s private equity strategy. She was an intern at CF Private Equity Summer 2023, and previously interned at BlackRock on the Investment Grade Credit team as a Girls Who Invest SIP Summer 2022 Scholar. Nidhi earned a B.A. in Economics with minors in Business Studies and Data Science from New York University.
Analyst
Gabriel Ruiz is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he worked as a Financial Reporting Summer Analyst at Valuation Research Corporation. Gabriel earned a B.A. in Economics from Yale University.
Analyst
Emily Schuster is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she worked as an Institutional Equity Sales & Trading Summer Analyst at Morgan Stanley. Emily earned a B.A. in Engineering from Dartmouth College.
Analyst
Nathan Lee is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Nathan earned a B.S. in Business concentrating in Finance from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University.
Analyst
Alexander King is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Alexander King earned a B.S. in Business Administration from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California.
Associate Director
Justin Seewald is an Associate Director on the Commonfund Compliance team. Prior to Commonfund, Justin worked at Deloitte and GE Capital, where he held various roles leading enterprise-wide initiatives related to regulatory operations, process and systems implementation, corporate restructuring, and program management. Justin earned a B.S. in International Business with a minor in Legal Studies from Quinnipiac University.
Analyst
Rachael Kong is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. She was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Rachael earned a B.A. in Economics and English from Cornell University.
Analyst
Meredith Moran is a member of the CF Private Equity team and is responsible for sourcing, due diligence, and investment underwriting for the firm’s private equity strategy. She previously worked as a Buyouts and Growth Equity Summer Analyst at CF Private Equity. Meredith earned a B.S. in Operations Research and Information Engineering (ORIE) from Cornell University, as well an M.Eng in Applied Operations Research (AOR) from Cornell.
Associate
Carol Hevesy is a member of the CF Private Equity Investor Services team and supports all investor operations, reporting and service for private capital investors. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, she worked for UBS in wealth management supporting both institutional and high net worth clients. She began in the industry in 1992 with Alex Brown and Smith Barney handling trading and operations for high net worth clients. Carol earned a B.A. in Economics from Rollins College.
Analyst
Alexia Glynn is a member of the Fund Operations team and is responsible for providing enhanced support and service to Commonfund’s investors, advisory clients, and funds. Prior to joining Commonfund, she interned at the National Bureau of Economic Research in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Alexia earned a B.A. in Economics and Psychology from Boston University.
Analyst
Jack Mintzer is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Jack earned a B.S. in Information from the University of Michigan where he studied Information Analysis and UX Design.
Human Resources Assistant
Alyssa Fried is a member of the human resources team and assists with payroll, recruiting, scheduling, and training tasks. Prior to joining Commonfund, she worked at PrideStaff in Melville, NY as a recruiting assistant. Alyssa earned a B.S. in Business Administration/Business Management from Bloomsburg University.
Senior Associate
Joshua Lopes is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for supporting the development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he spent several years at Legg Mason asset management as well as MetLife Investors. Joshua holds a B.S. in Finance from Bryant University.
Associate
Anthony Manno is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio solutions and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was an investment analyst supporting the institutional investor group, portfolio review department, and financial advisor business at Vanguard since joining the industry in 2018. Anthony attended undergraduate and graduate school at the University of Delaware where he graduated with a M.S. in Finance and a B.S. in Economics.
Associate Director
Tor Martinsen is a member of the Private Equity team at CF Private Equity. He previously worked as an Investment Associate at The Kresge Foundation, a $3.6 billion foundation based in metro-Detroit, where he was a generalist on the Investment team. Tor earned a B.S. in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Chief Regulatory Counsel
Lambrina Mathews serves as Chief Regulatory Counsel of Commonfund. She joined Commonfund in 2017 as Chief Compliance Officer and Associate General Counsel. In her private practice, she principally represented financial institutions and other public and privately-held companies and their officers and directors in corporate governance and securities litigation and other complex business litigation matters. Before joining Cadwalader, Lambrina served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Richard K. Eaton of the United States Court of International Trade. Prior to joining Commonfund, Lambrina also served briefly as Principal Counsel in the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s (“FINRA”) Department of Enforcement in New York. Prior to pursuing her career in the law, Lambrina enjoyed a career in the field of education, earning her B.A. in Elementary Education from the City University of New York and her M.S. in Reading and Remediation from Adelphi University. Lambrina received her J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law and is a member of the New York State Bar and authorized house counsel in the State of Connecticut.
Director
Donna Mayne is a member of the Commonfund Investor Services team and is responsible for overseeing the service group for transactions and reporting. She has over 20 years of experience in customer service, banking, sales and marketing. Prior to Commonfund, Donna held various managerial positions within the financial and sales/marketing departments at R.C. Bigelow and at People’s Bank managing the Electronic Funds Transfer Department. Donna received a B.S. in Business Administration and an M.B.A., with a concentration in marketing, from the University of New Haven.
Director
Sean McDermott is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment Team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Sean was an Executive Director and Portfolio Specialist at Morgan Stanley Investment Management in New York, NY. Previously, he was a Vice President and Relationship Manager with the Institutional Relationship Management team at Cohen and Steers Capital Management and was a Client Service and Sales Associate at Robeco Investment Management in New York, NY. He was also a member of the Legal Department for the City of Yonkers, NY working as Legal Aide/Assistant to the Corporation Counsel. Sean received a BA from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA and holds the Series 7, 31, and 63 registrations.
Senior Analyst
Madeline McGrath is a member of the Private Equity team of CF Private Equity. Madeline earned a B.S. in Finance from Brigham Young University.
Managing Director
Paul McKiernan is Head of CF Private Equity Business Development and leads a team responsible for the management and development of private market mandates across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, family offices, insurance companies and pensions. Prior to rejoining CF Private Equity, Paul lead the Institutional Business Development and Consultant Relations effort at QS Investors, LLC. Prior to QS Investors, Paul had worked with Commonfund’s clients in the Midwest. Paul also served as a Vice President of Institutional Sales and Relationship Management at Deutsche Asset Management, a portfolio analyst at Nicholas Advisors and an assistant trader on Morgan Stanley’s fixed income proprietary trading desk. Paul received his B.A. from Catholic University.
Director
Nicole Melwood is a member of the Commonfund OCIO team and is responsible for the management and development of outsourced CIO solutions across endowments, foundations, and other philanthropic organizations throughout the United States as well as Canada . Prior to joining Commonfund, she worked at Everstrong Capital, where she led business development in the U.S. and Investec Asset Management, where she was a member of the western U.S. institutional sales team. Nicole started her career at JPMorgan Asset Management, where she was a client portfolio manager on the Global Fixed Income and Currency team. She holds a B.A. in Government from Wesleyan University and a M.B.A from Duke University, The Fuqua School of Business, where she was a Robert Toigo fellow. Nicole holds Series 7, 63, and 31 licenses. Currently, she is a Board member for A Better Chance, Inc., where she also serves as chairperson on the National Advisory Council. Nicole formerly served on the Executive Committee for DukeNY Women’s Forum.
Director
Meredith Messina is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Relationship team and provides relationship management to outsourced CIO clients. In her role, Meredith works with members of the investment team to assist in the implementation of custom solutions. Prior to her current role, she was a Managing Associate on the Relationship Management and Business Development teams, providing service support to existing clients and developing new business. She was also responsible for all client communications for these teams. Before joining Commonfund, Meredith worked for JAOtech Corporation as a Sales Engineer. She started her career as a Client Service Associate at UBS Financial Services in Boston, MA. Meredith received a B.S. in Finance from Bentley University.
Associate Director
Enrique Millán joined CF Private Equity and is a member of the ex-U.S. Private Equity team. He previously worked at the Private Equity team of Arcano Partners, with a focus on primaries, secondaries and co-investments predominantly in Western Europe. Prior to Arcano, Enrique worked at Indra Sistemas, a global publicly listed IT & defense company as a corporate strategy & investor relations analyst. Enrique received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the Universidad Pontificia de Comillas (ICADE) and a master’s degree in media management from the Universidad de Navarra.
Managing Director
Aaron Miller is Head of Global Venture Capital, a member of the Investment Committee and Senior Executive Group of CF Private Equity. His primary responsibilities include due diligence, investment selection, portfolio construction, monitoring and fundraising for the firm’s venture capital platform. In addition, Aaron oversees sourcing, screening, execution and monitoring of the venture growth direct investment practice. He also contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, emerging markets, real assets and sustainability strategies. Aaron brings over 20 years of private equity, M&A, capital markets and management consulting experience. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Aaron was a senior banker at Lazard Frères & Co. in the mergers and acquisitions department in New York. During his tenure at Lazard, he counseled companies and institutions in technology, media and telecom industries (TMT) advising on strategic, financial, takeover defense and capital structure matters. As an investment banker, he completed investments and executed transactions in North America, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Aaron also worked in the corporate finance department at Barclays Capital and Lehman Brothers. Prior to investment banking, Aaron began his career as a management consultant, where he advised a broad range of clients on strategy, sales force effectiveness and organizational design matters. Aaron serves on the advisory boards of several venture capital partnerships. Aaron earned a B.A. from University of Michigan and an M.B.A. from Yale University.
Chief Human Resource Officer
Elaine Mizer is responsible for executing Commonfund’s business and strategic plan from a human capital perspective. She leads Commonfund’s human resources practice to develop talent and leverage it effectively for consistency with our business strategy and plans for growth while overseeing all other human resources functions and facilities management. Elaine serves as Chair of the Commonfund Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Office and is also a member of the Commonfund Operating Committee. Prior to Commonfund, she was Head of Human Resources and Administration at Aquiline Capital Partners. Previously, Elaine held roles in Human Resources at Citigroup and Securitas Capital, and began her career in Human Resources at Smith Barney. She earned a B.A. degree in Human Resources from Western Connecticut State University.
Associate Director
Roman Moravec supports the oversight of client portfolio rebalancing, best execution analysis, and contributes to the operational due diligence process as a member of the risk management team. Prior to joining the risk management team, he was part of Commonfund OCIO where he focused on research and analytics for investments and managers. When first joining Commonfund, Roman worked on the Operations team where he conducted operational due diligence on hedge fund managers and was responsible for daily oversight of hedge fund and commodities programs. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked for Quantitative Financial Strategies, Inc. and began his career at Deloitte as an auditor in the financial services group. Roman holds an M.S. in Accounting from Pace University, a B.S. in International Business from Berkeley College and is a CFA charter holder.
Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer
Dana Moreau has firm-wide oversight and responsibility for risk management, investor services, information technology, operations, and human resources and oversees the financial management of Commonfund, creating and maintaining all financial policies and procedures for the firm. He has over 20 years’ experience in finance and operations and serves as a member of the Commonfund Operating Committee. Prior to joining Commonfund, Dana worked at State Street Bank & Trust where his primary responsibilities were portfolio accounting and administration for the bank’s hedge fund clients. He has a B.A. in Economics from Assumption College and an M.B.A. from Columbia University.
Managing Director
W. Kelso Morrill is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. Prior to joining Commonfund, Kelso was with Crossroad Capital Partners, SEI Investments, and Bankers Trust Company, where he focused on private capital investments, including private equity, project finance and real estate. He has a B.S.E. and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
Trustee
Tobias "Toby" Moskowitz currently holds the Dean Takahashi ’80 B.A., ’83 M.P.P.M. Chaired Professorship in Finance at Yale University at the Yale School of Management, for which he is the inaugural chair holder (in 2016). He was previously the Fama Family Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, where he taught from 1998 to 2016. Professor Moskowitz was recognized by the American Finance Association with its 2007 Fischer Black Prize, which is awarded biennially to the top finance scholar in the world under the age of 40 in years when one is deemed deserving. The award cited his "ingenious and careful use of newly available data to address fundamental questions in finance." Moskowitz also won the Ewing Marion Kauffman Medal in 2012 for the top research in entrepreneurship for scholars under the age of 40. His research papers have received numerous awards, including the Smith-Breeden Prize for the best paper published in the Journal of Finance, the Brattle Prize for the best non-asset pricing paper published in the Journal of Finance, two Fama-DFA Prizes for the best paper published in the Journal of Financial Economics, two Michael Brennan Awards for the best paper published in the Review of Financial Studies, the Swiss Finance Institute Outstanding Paper Award, and the Bernstein-Fabozzi and Jacobs-Levy Award for the best paper in the Journal of Portfolio Management, two Harry Markowitz prizes for the best paper published in the Journal of Investment Management, the Whitebox Prize for best financial research, and multiple Q-Group Best Paper Awards. His work has been cited in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Financial Times, US News and World Report, Money magazine, and a 2005 speech by then Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. He has also appeared on CNBC's Closing Bell and Squawk Box, CNN, FOX, Bloomberg, as well as ESPN, Sport Illustrated, HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. Professor Moskowitz serves as a research associate for the National Bureau of Economic Research and is a former editor of the Review of Financial Studies, an associate editor of the Journal of Finance, and an associate editor at the Journal of Financial Economics. His research studies financial markets and investments, including the behavior of prices and investors. He has explored topics as diverse as momentum in stock returns, biases in investment portfolios, the return to private business ownership, financial contracting in commercial real estate, mutual and hedge fund performance, the political economy of financial regulation, and the economics of sports. He has presented his research at many academic, corporate, and government institutions worldwide. Professor Moskowitz spent the 2007-2008 and 2014-2015 academic years on leave at AQR Capital Management, LLC a hedge fund in Greenwich, CT, with which he has an ongoing consulting relationship. He was made a principal at the firm in 2015, where he contributes to research on asset pricing and investments for AQR’s domestic and international investment strategies. In collaboration with David F. Swensen, the CIO of the Yale Investments Office, Professor Moskowitz founded the Yale School of Management’s Master’s program in Asset Management, for which he serves as the Academic Director and whose inaugural class will graduate in 2022. The one-year program seeks to train Master’s students in the theory and practice of asset management, with a curriculum that is tailored for that aim. In 2011, he wrote the New York Times best-seller "Scorecasting: The Hidden Influences Behind How Sports are Played and Games are Won," (Crown Archetype, Random House) co-authored with L. Jon Wertheim of Sports Illustrated, that uses economic principles to explain the hidden side of sports. He and Wertheim are also authors of the children’s book “The Rookie Bookie” in the Fall of 2015 (Little Brown). Born in West Lafayette, IN, Moskowitz earned a bachelor's degree in industrial management and industrial engineering (with distinction) in 1993 from Purdue University, a master's degree in management from Purdue in 1994, and a Ph.D. in finance from UCLA in 1998.
Senior Policy and Research Analyst
Amanda Novello is a member of the Commonfund Institute team and is responsible for thought leadership creation and data analysis across all Institute activities, including benchmarks studies, DEI initiatives, and ESG. Prior to working at Commonfund, she was an economic policy researcher for various nonprofit organizations, producing analyses of economic and labor market trends, and the distributional impacts of public policy. Amanda earned an M.A. in Economics from the New School for Social Research and a B.S. in Economics and Mathematics from the University of Southern California.
Director
Ikem Nwaesei is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was a Portfolio Manager at BlackRock’s ETF and Index Investments Group. There he managed a wide array of asset classes, currency-hedged portfolios and model based funds. Previously, he worked as part of Northern Trust’s Foundation and Institutional Advisors (FIA) Group, a dedicated practice that manages investment programs for foundations, endowments and other nonprofit organizations. Prior to that, he worked in different roles for TD Bank Group and TD Asset Management in Toronto, Canada. He began his career as an Investment Analyst with a boutique investment management firm in Nigeria. Ikem received a B.S. in Industrial Chemistry from University of Lagos, Nigeria, a post-graduate diploma in International Business Management from St. Clair College in Windsor, Canada and an MBA with concentration in Finance and Accounting from the Terry College of Business, University of Georgia.
Analyst
Feray Ok is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the transaction, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. She was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Feray earned a B.A. in Economics from Dartmouth College.
Managing Director
Hong Pan is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the origination, evaluation, underwriting, and execution of secondary investments. Additionally, he contributes to the firm’s buyout, growth equity, venture capital, and real assets and sustainability strategies. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Hong worked at Oppenheimer & Co. in its investment banking division, advising corporate clients on mergers & acquisitions and capital markets transactions. Hong holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he graduated with Distinction.
Senior Associate
Aisha Patel is a member of the Commonfund Marketing team and is primarily responsible for the development and maintenance of marketing content that supports business development and client service. Prior to her role at Commonfund, Aisha managed projects for the commodities team at Citadel, and was a Senior Marketing Associate and Digital Project Manager for AMG Funds. Prior to her role at AMG Funds, she had a variety of marketing, investor relations, and support roles at FrontFour Capital, Episteme Capital Management, JWM Partners, Contact Public Relations, and A&E Television Networks. Formerly, Aisha served as State Director on the executive board for the Greenwich Junior Chamber of Commerce and currently manages Volunteers of Fairfield of Westchester, a philanthropic group she founded in 2016. She holds a B.A. in English from the University of Rhode Island, an Agile Project Management Training Certificate from the University of Connecticut School of Business, and Digital Marketing Certification from Cornell University.
Managing Director
Anthony Peretore is a senior leader on the Commonfund OCIO Investment team. He is responsible for the design, tailoring and, implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of client portfolios. In addition, Anthony is a voting member of Commonfund’s Asset Allocation Committee, which is charged with overseeing and making strategic and tactical asset allocation decisions on behalf of OCIO clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked as a convertible securities analyst for BCP Securities in Greenwich, CT. His primary responsibilities included analyzing company credit profiles and capital structures, making security recommendations and establishing new client relationships. Anthony received his B.A. in Political Science and a Business minor from Saint Joseph’s University. He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst designations.
Director
Jason Platzer is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for asset allocation, portfolio construction, manager sourcing, rebalancing, due diligence, and investment monitoring and reporting for equity portfolios. Jason began his career as a private capital accountant for CF Private Equity before working as a fund accountant on the Operations team. He then spent many years working in a hybrid role at the intersection of hedge funds, quantitative research and analytics, and risk management. Jason holds a B.S. in Finance, summa cum laude and an MBA in Finance with Distinction, both from Mercy College. He also holds an MSc in History (with Merit) from The University of Edinburgh.
Associate
Laura Pollack is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, she worked as a summer analyst at East Rock Capital, LLC., a multi-family office. She also spent a summer at Colgate Palmolive as a Global Talent Acquisition Intern. Laura earned a B.B.A. in Marketing and Information Systems & Operations Management from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School.
Managing Director
Paige L. Rabalais is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team. She is responsible for the development of outsourced CIO solutions across endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations and other nonprofits throughout the United States. Prior to joining Commonfund, she managed institutional relationships with Neuberger Berman in New York, NY and Strategic Value Partners in Greenwich, CT. Previously, Paige was a senior regional marketing associate with Putnam Investments in Boston, MA. She earned a B.S. in Business Management from Babson College and an M.B.A. in Finance from Tulane University. Paige holds Series 6, 7, 30, 31, 63 and 65 licenses. Additionally, she has achieved the CFA Institute Certificate in ESG Investing and has been awarded the Chartered Alternatives Investment Analyst designation. Currently, she is a Director of the YWCA of the City of New York where she serves as co-chair of the investment committee. Paige also served as former board member of Oldfields School in Glencoe, MD on the investment committee.
Associate
Alexandra Romanowski is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is responsible for assisting with asset allocation, manager sourcing, due diligence, and investment monitoring for investment portfolios with a focus in real asset strategies and private real estate investments. Before joining Commonfund, Alexandra worked as an Associate as part of the Commercial Real Estate Team for Bank of Montreal Harris, where she focused on Healthcare Real Estate lending and investing. Prior to that, she worked as an Investor Relations Analyst for Graham Capital Management, L.P., a Macro Hedge Fund in Rowayton, CT, as well as a Management Development Associate at M&T Bank. Alexandra received a B.S. in Business Administration with a minor in International Relations from the State University of New York, College at Geneseo.
Chief Risk Officer
Brian Rondeau has responsibility for the comprehensive enterprise risk management program at Commonfund including market, credit, liquidity and operational risk. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was Vice President – Risk at Harvard Management Company where he led a team responsible for counterparty credit risk as well as investment risk for Harvard’s illiquid asset class portfolios. In addition, Brian was involved in liquidity risk management, managing HMC’s banking relationships and analysis related to sustainable investing at Harvard. Prior to Harvard, he spent four years with RBS Greenwich Capital in risk roles analyzing financial institutions and the asset-backed finance business. Brian is a Chartered Financial Analyst and member of the CFA Society Stamford. He earned a B.A. from Columbia University.
Controller
Gene Ropiak is Controller for CF Private Equity and oversees the preparation of financial and tax statements and the operational accounting for CF Private Equity’s partnerships. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, he spent five years in various accounting positions, most recently with Health Partners, Inc. Gene earned a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Connecticut and an M.B.A. in Finance from the University of New Haven.
Managing Director
Luke Rossiter is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity and his responsibilities include sourcing, due diligence, manager selection and investment management for the firm’s global venture capital platform; across primaries, direct investments, secondaries and blockchain. Before joining CF Private Equity, he was a Senior Investment Analyst at VenCap International plc, a venture capital advisory firm based in Oxford, England. Luke received his Bachelor of Science degree (with honours) in Psychology and Law from Swansea University and completed his Legal Practice Course at the Oxford Institute of Legal Practice where he focused on Equity Finance, Private Acquisitions and Commercial Law.
Director
Ilana is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. Prior to joining Commonfund, she spent her career on the sell side covering institutional accounts in research and sales capacities, spanning both fixed income and equity markets. Ilana gained her foundational experience in emerging market research covering sovereign debt markets at Thomson Reuters. She then moved over to Merrill Lynch’s economic research team serving emerging market asset managers while working closely with Merrill’s fixed income sales and trading team. Transitioning to Merrill Lynch’s equities sales desk, Ilana covered Latin American markets and US markets for institutional investors. Most recently she worked with UBS’s commission management accounts during the industry transition to MiFID II regulation. Ilana is fluent in French and Spanish and holds a B.A. in Economics from Tulane University and a M.B.A in Finance from NYU’s Stern School of Business.
General Counsel
Sharad Samy serves as the General Counsel and Secretary of Commonfund. He has extensive transactional and litigation experience, having served as the general counsel of two prominent investment management firms; as a partner of the international law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP; and as counsel to both plaintiffs and defendants in complex civil litigation and arbitration matters. He has worked extensively in Connecticut, New York and the United Kingdom on matters involving jurisdictions in North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Asia. Sharad was a Judge Advocate for the U.S. Army Reserve from 1997 through 2008, having served in the Horn of Africa in connection with Operation Enduring Freedom, and he currently serves as a Major in the Connecticut Army National Guard. In addition to his professional activities, he is active in the veteran community, serving as a Trustee of the State of Connecticut Board of Veterans Affairs and as the Judge Advocate for Post 6933 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He is also active in the non-profit community, serving as a Director of the Karam Foundation, an aid organization supporting young Syrian refugees, as Treasurer of the Connecticut Bar Association, and as a director and pro bono volunteer for Lawyers for Children America. Sharad was awarded the Game Changer Award from the Connecticut Law Tribune in 2020, the Modern 100 Governance Award by Diligent in 2019 and the Outstanding Veteran Volunteer Award by the Stamford Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution in 2018. He is a graduate of Columbia College with an A.B. in Political Science and of Columbia University Law School with a J.D. He is admitted to practice law in the State of Connecticut and the State of New York and is a solicitor in England and Wales.
Analyst
Omar Sarr is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for providing support in portfolio and specialized analysis as well as day-to-day operations for clients. Prior to Commonfund, Omar earned a B.A. in economics and French and francophone studies from Bates College.
Associate
Arjun Sawai is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team focused on macroeconomic research. Prior to joining Commonfund, he worked on an algorithmic trading desk at Fidelity Capital Markets. Arjun earned a B.S. in Finance from Boston University.
Managing Director, London Office
Miriam Schmitter is Head of Buyout and Growth Equity investments outside the United States, a member of the Investment Committee and Senior Executive Group of CF Private Equity. She is based in CF Private Equity’s London investment office. Miriam's primary responsibilities include due diligence, investment selection, portfolio construction, monitoring and fundraising for the firm’s buyout and growth equity programs that are constructed with primaries, secondaries and co- investments. She also contributes to the firm’s venture capital and real assets and sustainability strategies. Before joining CF Private Equity, she was with Cambridge Associates (“Cambridge”) where she served as Managing Director and Head of International Private Equity Research in London. Miriam was also a member of the internal Investment Committee at Cambridge. She started with Cambridge in Boston in 2005 and was responsible for due diligence on investment opportunities and research published by the firm on private equity funds which resulted in significant client commitments to private capital managers, overseeing consultants and associates in the Boston, London, and Singapore offices. Prior to 2005, she was an investment manager of private equity fund investments at APEP (Allianz Private Equity Partners), where she researched and selected private equity investment opportunities. Prior to that, Miriam was an investment professional at DB Capital Partners/ DB Investor, the direct private equity investment division of Deutsche Bank, where she evaluated buyout investment opportunities. She also worked as a consultant for Deloitte & Touche performing financial analysis and valuations and conducting financial due diligence for clients. She is presently a member of the advisory boards of several private equity limited partnerships. Miriam has a PhD from the University of Darmstadt and a Diplom-Kauffrau (an M.B.A.) from the University of Mannheim.
Director
Peter Schretzenmayer is a member of the Operations team and has over 15 years of fund operations experience. He is responsible for fund accounting, reporting and custodial oversight for Commonfund’s marketable alternative funds and certain private distressed debt partnerships. Before joining Commonfund, Peter worked at State Street Bank first as a pension fund accountant then as a performance analyst. He has also worked as a fund accountant for a private hedge fund located in Stamford, CT. Each of these positions had responsibilities for fund valuations, operations, financial reporting and compliance. Peter earned a B.S. in Business Administration from Central Connecticut State University and an M.B.A, with a concentration in finance, from the University of Connecticut.
Director
Jennifer Seidler is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Sales and Service team with a focus on relationship management. Prior to joining the relationship team, Jennifer was a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team, where she was responsible for the design, tailoring, and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients. Prior to joining Commonfund, Jennifer managed corporate investment portfolios for RBC Wealth Management and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) in San Francisco. Her previous experience includes working with institutional bank clients on investment strategies and portfolios with Banc Investment Group LLC. Jennifer began her career at Banc of America Securities in the loan syndications group and also was part of an investment strategies team. She serves as a member of the Finance Council for St. Dominic’s Church (SF) and is Board Emeritus on the Board of African Library Project where she was Treasurer for four years. Jennifer holds a B.S. in Economics from Santa Clara University, an M.S. in Financial Analysis and an M.B.A. from University of San Francisco.
Vice Chair
Mamak Shahbazi is a seasoned investment executive with a 35-year track record of raising assets, building and managing high-performance marketing and client service teams, developing business, maintaining key client and consultant relationships, overseeing and delivering impressive growth and ROI. A Founding Member of Colchester Global Investors, which provides a complete range of investment management services for global and emerging market bonds, Mamak was the company’s President, Director and Global Head of Marketing From 2001 to 2019. She was responsible for growing assets under management from $15 million to $43 billion since inception. Mamak is accomplished in the effective execution of both short and long-term deliverables. She is a team player with demonstrated success in the development and motivation of staff and the nurturing and maintenance of relationships with prospects, clients from diversified categories in the US and around the world, and industry participants. Mamak has built Colchester’s marketing and client service structure globally, with offices in New York, London, Singapore, Australia and soon in the United Arab Emirates. Her client service efforts resulted in the firm receiving the Greenwich Associates prestigious Quality Leader in Institutional Client Service award. A keen determination to provide clients with optimal solutions to their investment needs, combined with a background in engineering and years of experience in fixed income research and analysis, has made Mamak extremely effective as a solution provider to institutional investors. An invited guest speaker at various prominent investment conferences, Mamak has presented at the ABANA Annual Conference 2016 on Leading Women in Finance, the Mangham Associates (endowment management firm) Client Conference 2015, and The Salvation Army South Investment Conference 2014 and 2012. Additionally, Mamak was a Founding Angel Member of 100 Women in Finance, a global network of investment professionals working to assist women at every stage of their careers. Prior to Colchester, Mamak built an impressive record in the investment community. She served as Director of Institutional Marketing at the hedge fund firm Zweig-DiMenna Associates, where she was responsible for building the institutional marketing and client services effort. She raised over $500 million in assets under management despite stressed market conditions and performance. Before Zweig-DiMenna, Mamak served as Director of Global Bond Marketing and Client Service at Delaware Investment Advisors. She was responsible for building the Global Bond marketing effort for the Delaware International Advisors subsidiary. Starting with $50 million in assets, she built the enterprise to over $5.6 billion during her seven-year term. As Director/Vice President of Fixed Income Investments at Credit Suisse First Boston Corp. for eight years, Mamak assisted the Managing Director in charge of research and analysis of high yield corporate bonds and risk management of the portfolios. She was also responsible for the conduct of overall client facing activities. Further, Mamak published articles on high yield investing and specific bond activities. Mamak began her career at Arthur D. Little Valuation, Inc., as an Analyst, where, in addition to writing Fortran based computer programs to analyze bank and savings and loan institutions, she assisted in writing mathematical formulas to ascertain market values of deposit accounts and loan books. Chairman of the Board of Colchester Global Investors, Inc., and a Member of the Board of Colchester Global Investors Limited, Mamak also serves on other boards, including Freeman and Company’s Advisory Board and New York University College of Arts and Science’s Advisory Council. Previously Mamak served as a Board Member of the Miller Howard High Income Equity Fund and as an Advisory Board Member of Proctor Investment Management. A graduate of the University of Maryland, Mamak holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering with an emphasis in mathematics and computer science. She resides in New York City with her husband and is the mother of two adult children.
Associate Director
Dave Shekar is a member of the Venture Capital team at CF Private Equity. Before joining CF Private Equity, he was an Associate at The Raine Group, a global tech, media, and telecommunications merchant bank based in New York City, where he focused on the firm’s growth equity and M&A advisory practices. Before Raine, Dave was a Senior Financial Analyst at Yext, a New York City-based enterprise technology company that went public in 2017, and prior to that, was an Associate at Summit Partners, where focused on sourcing and evaluating growth equity investments in the technology sector. He received his Bachelor of Business Administration (with honors) from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and his Master of Business Administration from Columbia Business School.
Associate
Lawrence Shoykhet is a member of the Secondaries team at CF Private Equity and is engaged in the evaluation, underwriting and execution of secondary investments. He was previously a Summer Analyst on the Secondaries Team at CF Private Equity. Lawrence earned a B.S. in Industrial & Labor Relations from Cornell University.
Managing Director
Russell Simon is a member of the CF Private Equity Business Development team and is responsible for the development of private market mandates across endowments and foundations, healthcare organizations and pensions. Prior to joining CF Private Equity, Russell worked at Allianz Global Investors, where he co-managed the Taft-Hartley practice and was responsible for managing relationships in the public, corporate, and E&F channels for the Western United States. Prior to Allianz, he was an options trader at the RND Group and a research analyst at LECG (Law and Economic Consulting Group.) Russell has more than 13 years of experience in the Investment management business. He earned his B.S.B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis and is a CAIA charter holder and member of the CAIA association of San Francisco.
Director
Neva Simunkovic shares responsibility for the oversight of client portfolio rebalancing, best execution analysis, and contributes to the operational due diligence process as a member of the risk management team. Prior to joining the risk management team, she was a member of the COMANCO investment team where she participated in manager selection, monitoring and analysis across marketable strategies. Neva was also a product specialist for a number of hedge fund customized accounts and began at Commonfund as part of the rotational analyst program where she supported all areas of quantitative analysis across Marketable Investment groups. Prior to joining Commonfund, she was a graduate assistant at College of Business at Arkansas State University, responsible for assisting the finance faculty in teaching and research. Neva holds a B.S. in Corporate Finance and an M.B.A with emphasis in Finance from Arkansas State University. She is a CFA charterholder and a member of the New York Society of Security Analysts and the CFA Institute.
Associate
Emily Sine is a member of Commonfund OCIO Relationship team responsible for providing client service to OCIO clients. Prior to working at Commonfund, she was a Client Associate at IRC Wealth, an Atlanta based RIA, responsible for client onboarding, maintaining existing client relationships and all company and client reporting. She began her career as a Revenue Analyst at Insight Global. Emily earned a B.S. in Economics and Finance from the University of Alabama.
Managing Director
Steve Snyder is a member of the Commonfund OCIO Investment team and is primarily responsible for the design, tailoring and implementation of custom investment solutions for clients through asset allocation recommendations, portfolio oversight and analysis, and tactical rebalancing of portfolios. He previously served as the head of relationship management for Commonfund’s non-advisory investors. Prior to joining Commonfund, he was a Cash Management Consultant supporting the education industry for CoreStates Bank, N.A., and First Union National Bank in Philadelphia. Steve has served on the Investment Committees of the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia and recently completed several terms as an Investment Committee member for Lancaster County Community Foundation. He also served as a member of the President’s Business Council at the University of Scranton. Steve has a B.S. in Finance from the University of Scranton.
Associate
Justin Sorbo is a member of the Fund Operations team and is responsible for providing enhanced support and service to Commonfund’s investors, advisory clients, and funds. He also assists with the Investor Services group – providing clientele with audit, performance, and reporting material. Prior to this, Justin worked alongside Commonfund OCIO, aiding in research, modeling, and analytics for endowment portfolios. He has a B.S. in Economics, as well as a Business Certificate, from the Pennsylvania State University.