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Leadership

The Rheumatology Research Foundation is led by a wide range of rheumatology community members from private practice, academic investigators and rheumatology professionals, as well as corporate representatives and public members dedicated to the Foundation’s mission.

Board of Directors  

Liana Fraenkel, MD, MPH

Bryce Binstadt, MD, PhD
Liana Fraenkel, MD, MPH
President

Berkshire Medical Center

Bryce Binstadt, MD, PhD
Vice
President
University of Minnesota

Anne Bass, MD

Edward Behrens, MD

Anne Bass, MD
Treasurer

Hospital for Special Surgery

Edward Behrens, MD
Chair, Scientific Advisory Council

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

 Jody Hargrove, MD  Alfred Kim, MD, PhD
Jody Hargrove, MD
Chair, Development Advisory Council 

Arthritis & Rheumatology Consultants, P.A.

Alfred Kim, MD, PhD
Chair, Impact Advisory Council

Washington University School of Medicine
Carrie Hansen Elaine Husni, MD
Carrie Hansen
Member-at-Large

Elaine Husni, MD
Member-at-Large

Cleveland Clinic

Corinne Karp Firas Kassab, MD
Corinne S. Karp, MAEd
Member-at-Large
Firas Kassab, MD
Member-at-Large

South Charlotte Rheumatology
Vikas Majithia, MD, MBBS, MPH
Vikas Majithia, MD, MBBS, MPH
Member-at-Large
Mayo Clinic Jacksonville

Ted Mikuls, MD, MSPH
Member-at-Large
University of Nebraska Medical Center


Leo Wegemer, JD, LLM Carol Young, MD
Leo Wegemer, JD, LLM
Member-at-Large
Carol Young, MD
Member-at-Large
Arthritis Medical Clinic of North County, Inc.
Ryan DeMasi, MD  Marian Hannon, DSc, MPH

Ryan DeMasi, MD
Corporate Roundtable 
Abbvie

Marian Hannan, DSc, MPH
Representative of ARP
Harvard Medical School

Linda Hiraki, MD Bethany Marston, MD
Linda Hiraki, MD, FRCPC, ScD
ACR Research Representative
The Hospital for Sick Children

Bethany Marston, MD
ACR Training Representative
University of Rochester

   
Marta Bean, MD  
Marta Bean, MD
Fellow-in-Training (2023-2024)
 
University of Pennsylvania

 

   
Invited guests  
Colleen Correll, MD  
Colleen Correll, MD
Chair, ACR's Pediatric Special Committee
University of Minnesota Medical Center
 
   
V. Michael Holers
Foundation Immediate Past President (2021-2023)
 
University of Colorado
 
   

Ex-Officio Members

 
Deborah Desir, MD  Carol Langford, MD, MHS

Deborah Desir, MD
President, American College of Rheumatology
Yale-New Haven Medical Center

Carol Langford, MD, MHS
President-elect, American College of Rheumatology

Cleveland Clinic

 Kori Dewing, DNP, ANP-BC, ARNP

 

Aileen Ledingham, PT, MS, PhD
President, Association of Rheumatology Professionals



Rachel Myslinski, MBA
Executive Director

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HONORARY BOARD OF ADVISORS

The Honorary Board of Advisors is reserved for individuals who have made a transformative contribution, either through monetary support and/or an act of leadership, which made an indelible mark on the Foundation's future fundraising success.

Mark Andrejeski

Stanley B. Cohen, MD

Mary K. Crow, MD

Ephraim P. Engleman, MD
Inducted posthumously

Norman B. Gaylis, MD

Beverly Guin

Stuart Kassan, MD, MACR

Stephen E. Malawista, MD and Tobé Malawista
Dr. Malawista was inducted posthumously

Audrey M. Nelson, MD

James R. O'Dell, MD

Arthur L. Weaver, MD

Leo Wegemer, JD, LLM and Terry Wegemer

Michael H. Weisman, MD

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Development Advisory Council

The Development Advisory Council is charged with overseeing the Foundation’s fundraising program to ensure the Foundation is cultivating the stable support needed to fulfill its mission.

Jodi Hargrove, MD
Chair

Arthritis & Rheumatology Consultants P.A.

Cheryl Crow, OT
Arthritis Life

Deborah Durkee
University of Utah School of Medicine

Betsy Khan
Teleflex

Kristine Kuhn, MD, PhD
Univeristy of Colorado School of Medicine

Brian Loggins, MBA
Arthritis Associates, PA San Antonio

Lisa Mandl, MD, MPH
Hospital for Special Surgery

Alexa Meara, MD, MS
The Ohio State University

Iris Navarro Millan, MD
Hospital for Special Surgery

Mark Snyder
Pfizer

Jeff Stark
UCB

Benjamin Widener, MD
Sheridan Memorial Hospital

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Impact Advisory Council

The Impact Advisory Council is charged with communicating the work of the Foundation to patients and caregivers in the rheumatology community, advocating for rheumatology research, and highlighting the impact this research has on the patients with rheumatic diseases.

Al Kim, MD, PhD
Chair
Washington University School of Medicine

Heather Benham, DNP

Betty Hsiao, MD
Yale-New Haven Medical Center

Annastasha Parker

Steve Russel, MB

Bernie Rubin, DO, MPH

 

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Scientific Advisory Council

The Scientific Advisory Council is charged with overseeing the Foundation’s research and education funding programs to ensure they are run effectively and efficiently and are meeting the needs of the rheumatology community and people with rheumatic diseases.

Ed Behrens, MD
Chair

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Nunzio Bottini, MD, PhD
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

Scott Canna, MD
Penn Institute for Immunology

Maria Danila, MD, MSPH
University of Alabama at Birmingham

Linda Hiraki, MD, FRCPC, ScD
ACR Research Rep
Hospital for Sick Kids

Jason Kolfenbach, MD
University of Colorado

Katherine Liao, MD, MPH
Brigham and Women's Hospital

Bethany Marston, MD
University of Rochester

Kaleb Michaud, PhD, COR Rep
University of Nebraska Medical Center

Susan Murphy, OT, ScD
University of Michigan

Miriam Shelef, MD, PhD
University of Wisconsin

Jeffrey Sparks, MD, MMSc
Brigham and Women's Hospital

Elizabeth Wellsandt, PT, DPT, PhD
University of Nebraska

Arissa Young, MD
UCLA

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LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL

V. Michael Holers, MD, Chair, Immediate Past President
Liana Fraenkel, MD, MPH, President
Bryce Binstadt, MD, PhD, Vice President
Stacy Ardoin, MD
Alicia Hinze, MD, MHS
Emily Isaacs, MD
Jon Giles, MD
Betsy McKelvey
Stuart Kassan, MD
Barbara Slusher, MSW, PA-C, ARP Representative

 

 

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PAST PRESIDENTS

Arthur Weaver, MD (1991-1993)
Ronald Kaufman, MD, MBA (1993-1995)
Daniel Wallace, MD (1995-1999)
Stanley Cohen, MD (1999-2001)
Joseph Golbus, MD (2001-2003)
Michael Weisman, MD (2003-2005)
James O’Dell, MD (2005-2007)
Leslie Crofford, MD (2007-2009)

E. William St.Clair, MD (2009-2011)
David Daikh, MD, PhD (2011-2013)
David Karp, MD, PhD (2013-2015)
Eric Matteson, MD (2015-2017)
Abby G. Abelson, MD (2017-2019)
S. Louis Bridges, Jr., MD, PhD (2019-2021)
V. Michael Holers, MD (2021-2023)

 

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Peer Reviewers

The following list includes the peer reviewers that served over the last 3 years. The peer reviewers are charged with rigorously reviewing all applications for awards and grants to ensure the proposals adhere to specific criteria and are of a high quality.

RECRUITMENT AWARDS

Lawren H. Daltroy in Health Communication
Patricia (Patti) Katz, PhD
Daniel K. White, PT, ScD, MSc

Mentored Nurse Practitioner/Physician Assistant for Workforce Expansion
Janet L. Bahr, NP
LaurieAnn Hughell, MPH, PA-C
Sara Kellahan, NP
Laura Sampson, PA-C
Erin Siceloff, PA-C

Resident Research Preceptorship
Kevin Deane, MD, PhD
Amanda Nelson, MD, MSCR, RhMSUS
Linda Li, PT, PhD
Aileen Davis, PhD, M.Sc., B.Sc. (P.T.)
Jawad Bilal, MD

Rheumatology Future Physician Scientist Award
Miriam Shelef, MD, PhD
Julia F. Charles, MD, PhD
Bryant England, MD, PhD
David Fernandez, MD, PhD
Monic Guma, MD, PhD
Kevin S. Wei, MD, PhD
Vanessa L. Malcarne, PhD

EDUCATION AND TRAINING AWARDS

Andy Abril, MD
Marissa Blum, MD
Amy Cannella, MD
Lianne Gensler, MD
John Gomez, MD
Myriam Guevara, MD
Jonathan S. Hausmann, MD
Kristen Hayward, MD
Jennifer Huggins, MD
Laura Hughes, MD, MSPH

Rumey C. Ishizawar, MD, PhD
Eugene Kissin, MD
Jason R. Kolfenbach, MD
Fotios Koumpouras, MD
David Leverenz, MD
Tiffany Lin, MD
Eli Miloslavsky, MD
Rebecca Sadun, MD, PhD
Kelly Rouster-Stevens, MD, MS
Phillip Seo, MD

CAREER DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH AWARDS

Bridge Funding Awards
David Bradley, PhD
Julia F. Charles, MD, PhD
Benjamin Chong, MD
Cong-Qui Chu, MD, PhD
Megan Cooper, MD, PhD
Melissa Cunningham, MD, PhD
Shaun Jackson, MD, PhD
Mehrdad Matloubian, MD, PhD
Christine Pham, MD
James Rosenbaum, MD
Jeffrey Sparks, MD, MSc

Career Development Research,
Basic Science
Eric Allenspach, MD, PhD
Ashira Blazer, MD
Margaret Chang, MD, PhD
Carla M. Cuda, PhD
Anthony French, MD, PhD
Jennifer King, MD, PhD
Pui Lee, MD, PhD
Scott Lieberman, MD, PhD
Christian Lood, MSc, PhD
Anne-Marie Malfait, MD, PhD
Michael Paley, MD, PhD
Grant Schulert, MD, PhD
Jeremy Tilstra, MD, PhD
Jessica Turnier, MD, MS
Michael Waterfield, MD, PhD

Career Development Research, Translational and Clinical Sciences
Sheila Angeles-Han, MD, MSc
Michael George, MD
Lauren Henderson, MD, MMSc
Aimee Hersh, MD
Mariko Ishimori, MD
Deepak Kumar, PT, PhD
Christopher A. Mecoli, MD, MHS
Susan Murphy, ScD, OTR
Uyen-Sa D. T. Nguyen, DSc, MPH
Alan Rathbun, PhD, MPH
Rennie Rhee, MD, MS
Ami Shah, MD, MHS
Jeffrey Sparks, MD, MMSc
Katherine Wysham, MD
Jared Younger, PhD
Yongdong Zhao, MD, PhD

 

INNOVATIVE RESEARCH AWARDS

Innovative Research Awards,
Basic Science
Tom Appleton, MD, PhD
Ru Bryan, PhD
Keith Elkon, MB, BCh
Tanya Freedman, PhD
Matlock Jeffries, MD
Trine Jorgensen, PhD
Insoo Kang, MD
David Markovitz, MD
Mandy McGeachy, MD
Johannes Nowatzky, MD
Andras Perl, MD, PhD
Alessandra Pernis, MD
Richard M. Pope, MD
Anne Satterthwaite, MD
Henri Tiedge, PhD
John Varga, MD

Innovative Research Awards, Clinical/Translational
Felipe Andrade, MD
Joshua F. Baker, MD
Vinod Chandran, MBBS, MD, DM,
PhD, FRCPC
Erika Darrah, PhD
Kristen Demoruelle, MD, PhD
Robyn Domsic, MD, MPH
David Felson, MD
Nancy Lane, MD
Yvonne Lee, MD, MMSc
Katherine Liao, MD, MPH
Gregg Silverman, MD
Jennifer Stevens-Lapsley, PhD, PT
Matthew Stoll, MD, PhD, MSCS
Pamela F. Weiss, MD, MSCE
Elizabeth Wellsandt, PT, DPT, PhD, OCS
Yee Ling Wu, PhD

Innovative Research Awards,
Health Services Research
Kelli Allen, PhD
Alfonso Bello, MD
Carmelita Colbert, MD
Maria Danila, PhD
Maureen Dubreuil, MD
Gerald Eisenberg, MD
Yvonne M. Golightly, PhD, MS, PT
Betty Hsiao, MD
S. Reza Jafarzadeh, DVM, MPVM, PhD
Seoyoung C. Kim, MD, ScD MSCE
Maria A. Lopez Olivo, MD, MSc, PhD
Una Makris, MD
Gopika Miller, MD
Mark Niemer, MD
Siamak Moghadam-Kia, MD, MPH
Jasvinder Singh, MD, MPH
Jinoos Yazdany, MD, MPH

Community Practice Innovation Award
Herbert S. Baraf, MD
Stuart S. Kassan, MD
Elizabeth Perkins, MD

 

 

 

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