Board

Director, Fairfield and Woods
John A. Eckstein focuses on the general representation of technology-based companies and venture capital funds, investors, investment bankers, financial advisors and financial institutions. He works often with complex legal structures in entity and project financings; however, lately he has often represented private business owners in the exit sale of their companies.

As a securities lawyer active in corporate finance, John has been involved in a range of offerings in the U. S. capital markets, including initial public offerings; other primary and secondary offerings of securities; exchange offers; tender offers; and private and limited offerings. He also has assisted clients in preparing and reviewing all types of disclosure reports for businesses regulated under federal and state securities laws.

John provides advice regarding integrated legal strategies for board-level challenges faced by all kinds of companies. He is interested in the application of technology to the business of energy and is actively involved in legal and public policy aspects of energy, biomedical and IT/software.

Eckstein holds degrees from the University of Iowa, an M.A. from SAIS at Johns Hopkins, and a law degree from UVA.

CEO & President, PALTOWN Development Foundation
Ms. Brown, a Montana native, had a long and healthy career as a corporate executive search professional in the consumer packaged goods and telecommunications industries until – at age 58 – she was diagnosed with late-stage colorectal cancer. Once her treatment was completed, she refocused her professional energies on the undeveloped niche of disease-specific patient empowerment, founding COLONTOWN, the patient community. COLONTOWN features deeply engaged, experience-specific, secret support groups that are exclusively dedicated to colorectal cancer patients and family members.

In 2016, Brown co-founded the PALTOWN Development Foundation to create additional disease-focused communities for even more patients and families. COLONTOWN is the model for patient community building, providing the template and proof -of- concept for disease communities that will be developed.

Erika holds a B.A. in Liberal Arts (French) from the University of Montana.

Ms. Brown is grateful, empowered, and disease-free – 14 years later.

COO & Vice President, PALTOWN Development Foundation
Seybold began her career as the first Web editor for the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and soon moved to the National Cancer Institute, where she built a web-based initiative to increase understanding of and participation in cancer clinical trials. While at NCI, Seybold participated in a number of high-level initiatives surrounding the push to develop a unified, branded web presence (now cancer.gov) for the Institute.

Seybold has spent the last 16 years consulting to clients in the health information, biomedical, and public health fields as an information architect and user experience practitioner. Clients include several institutes at the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Education, Memorial Sloan Kettering, and Johnson & Johnson.

Seybold co-founded the PALTOWN Development Foundation, a 501(c)3 corporation, in 2016. The Foundation develops and manages online support communities for patients and caregivers affected by serious disease.

Seybold holds a B.A. in Humanities and M.A. in Medieval Studies from Yale University.

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Linh Nguyen is a nationally recognized leader in organizational strategy, talent development, and change management. Over the last four years, Linh has served as vice president for learning and impact, then chief operating officer at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation in Battle Creek, Michigan. Prior to joining the foundation, Linh spent over 25 years in investment consulting and management consulting.

Linh started in consulting with Cambridge Associates, an international financial and investment consulting firm based in Boston, MA. Pivoting from numbers to people, Linh continued his career at Accenture, where he grew to lead the firm’s U.S. public sector talent and organizational performance group. In recognition of his expertise, Linh was selected in 2008 to serve on the Obama Presidential Transition Team as transition co-lead for the Office of Personnel Management.

Starting this September 2017, Linh will return to consulting, serving nonprofit clients in the areas of strategic planning, organizational change and capacity building. He will also begin a new journey as a practicing artist.

Linh holds a Bachelor of Arts in anthropology from Yale University in New Haven, CT. He lives with his college sweetheart and thirteen year old daughter in Albuquerque, NM. In his spare time, Linh is also a practicing artist, musician, and avid cook.

Senior Vice President, Spectrum Science Communications
Larry James Thompson has written about science and medicine for more than 30 years, first as a journalist and later as a communications professional, including 19 years at the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

In February 2017, Thompson joined Spectrum Science Communications as a senior vice president. Previously, he was senior director of communications in the Johnson & Johnson Office of the Chief Medical Officer, which he joined in May 2014. For the previous 13 years, he was the communications director for the National Human Genome Research Institute, one of the 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health. He entered federal service in 1995 as a science policy analyst and speechwriter for the FDA commissioner and served on the FDA team that sought to regulate tobacco in the 1990s, among other assignments at FDA.

Thompson began his career as a journalist, working in a wide range of media, including newspapers, magazines, books and broadcast. He co-founded the Health Section of The Washington Post, founded the Science and Medicine Section of The San Jose Mercury News, and served as the first medical editor of The Call-Chronicle Newspapers in Allentown, Pa. He was a broadcast correspondent for Medical News Network and was an on-air panelist on WETA’s Science Journal. He has written two books, including Correcting the Code: Inventing the Genetic Cure for the Human Body, published by Simon & Schuster, and has worked as a freelance writer and freelance television producer. He also has coauthor of several peer-reviewed papers and won numerous awards for writing and producing.

Thompson holds an undergraduate degree in biology, a master of science in molecular biology from Lehigh University, and a master of fine arts in film and electronic media from American University, Washington, D.C. He also received the first Dorothy Rider Pool Health Care Trust Fellowship in public health at the Yale University School of Medicine.

CEO, ConferenceEdge, Inc.
Trevor Barlow has been actively involved in enterprise technology and building global companies for over 20 years.  He has helped pioneer multiple technology companies while building solutions that scale for SMBs all the way up to the Fortune 50.  
He is the founder & CEO of ConferenceEdge, Inc., an enterprise event registration company, that provides technology solutions for webinars, webcasts and in-person business conferences.  

His professional expertise encompasses all areas of business development and leadership with and experience navigating local, federal and international political environments.

Trevor’s personal interests involve international travel (he speaks 4 languages), outdoor activities (biking, hiking and skiing).  Barlow has a long history of environmental and social volunteer work (Big Brothers Big Sisters, Outward Bound, Environmental Fundraising, USSA Coaching, are a few of his favorites).

Business Consultant
Teah Bennett brings over 20 years of leadership know-how to her business consulting practice to include executive/team coaching and facilitation. Her success as a business consultant /coach is based on a unique combination of hands-on practical experiences in key leadership roles and a passion for helping executives and their teams become exceptional leaders who make a difference in their organizations.

Teah is known for delivering honest, direct feedback that leads to powerful outcomes. During her career, Teah has successfully performed in Executive Leadership roles in Technology Consulting, Commercial Software and Professional Services reaching the executive suite as Vice President of Implementix, CEO of I*Level and President of InnerCircle, respectively.

Ms. Bennett’’s current consulting efforts focuses on small businesses turn around, executive coaching and executive teams developing their leadership to meet the needs of the business. Working with companies of all sizes, spanning a wide range of industries and disciplines, Teah is often called upon to help organizations transform through enhanced leadership behaviors.
In the past, she has participated on several advisory boards, hrQ, a national executive search, interim and HR consulting firm, Saligent, a marketing automation company, ”DBA Board”- Denver Business Advisors, which coaches(pro-bono) the leadership of small businesses in the Denver area and Companion Arts, a 501C organization that supports caregivers.

She is also a past winner of the “Trailblazer Award” for Women in Communication and a finalist for CSIA Entrepreneur of the Year.

Art Director, American Chemical Society
In 1982, Robin Braverman received a BFA from Virginia Commonwealth University. She has been working as a graphic artist since graduation, and has spent the last 27 years working at the American Chemical Society, mainly as an Art Director for Chemical & Engineering News, the weekly newsmagazine of the Society.

She was diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer in August of 2002. Surgery was immediately performed, and she enjoyed a period of remission for 18 months. A recurrence was discovered in July of 2004. Since that initial diagnosis, she has endured three major surgeries, several minor procedures, and three different chemotherapy “cocktails.” She has been NED (no evidence of disease) since May of 2005, and has had no chemotherapy since that time.

She and some family members underwent genetic testing at MD Anderson Cancer Center, and it was determined that she had the MSH2 mutation of Lynch Syndrome. Her daughter was tested at the age of 18, and does not carry the gene mutation.

Wanting to help spread the word about colorectal cancer prevention, she became active with and joined the Board of Directors of Chris4Life (now the Colon Cancer Alliance). She participated in two public service announcements, a video, and has spoken to various groups about her journey. She was one of the first twenty people in COLONTOWN, and participates in the continuing discussion.

Senior Vice President, Powell Tate
With 25 years of public affairs experience, Hoffman is an expert at devising and executing strategic communications programs that achieve legislative, regulatory and reputational goals. His experience includes corporate communications and running issue-oriented media, advocacy and third-party initiatives. Eric also has deep experience managing crisis communications programs.

Eric’s issue portfolio focuses on highly-regulated industries, including having deep experience for the medical device industry. Eric has worked with numerous patient advocacy groups to bring their voice to legislative and regulatory decisions at CMS and the FDA. His current clients include the Medical Imaging & Technology Alliance, Siemens USA, Bayer Consumer Health and PhRMA. Eric has won numerous PR industry awards, including a 2015 Sabre award for his work for the Lung Cancer Alliance to convince Medicare a lung cancer screening should be an essential health benefit.

Prior to joining the firm, Eric spent eight years at another agency focusing on health care advocacy. His clients included the American Cancer Society, Nike, U.S. Oncology, Kaiser Permanente, PhRMA and American Health Care Association.

Previously, Eric served as press secretary for the U.S. Senate campaign of Democrat Mark R. Warner. Eric was Warner’s spokesman and designed and executed Sen. Warner’s 1996 campaign communications strategy. Prior to taking part in Warner’s campaign, he served in the Clinton Administration working for the Childhood Immunization Program at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). At the CDC, he planned high-profile media events with First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and U.S. Health and Human Services Department Secretary Donna E. Shalala.

Eric earned his B.A. in journalism from Michigan State University.

Chief of Staff, Global Digital and Analytics & Global Finance and Operations, Boston Consulting Group
Kelly has also led finance and planning, strategy development, plan execution and business operations for Boston Consulting Group’s North America region, where her duties included:

• Managing member of Americas Region executive leadership team, a partner-driven group that sets and leads BCG’s strategy and operations in the region
• Partners with global leadership, specialty functions, other operations and broader Partner group on business building, strategy and operations initiatives, including new business development and implementation
• Leads team encompassing Controller functions, Financial Planning and Analysis, Business Reporting, Payroll, Risk Management and other finance operations for North America
• Directs Americas’ region functions related to real estate, financial IT investment management, workplace management, compensation programs, travel operations and procurement/vendor management
• Develops and executes internal and executive communications programs

Previously, she was a Principal in client service, working in consumer goods, travel and tourism, energy, and non-profit, as well as for the US Government. Her experience includes strategy, process development, organizational design and change management.

In addition, Kelly spent 6 years with Northrop Grumman, a U.S. defense contractor, including extensive work on large-scale initiatives, including post merger integration, staff retention initiatives, and projects realigning employee skill-sets to new industry and organizational needs.

Prior to that, she worked with KPMG’s Corporate Finance practice and with a California-based manufacturer and distributor of industrial chemicals.

Ms. Nelson has a M.B.A. from the Smith School of Business (University of Maryland), where she was part of student team investing and managing a $1.2 million equity portfolio. She holds a B.A. in Psychology and Environmental Studies from Yale University.

Senior Advisor for Mental Health Services, Epidemiology, and Economics, National Institute of Mental Health
Dr. Schoenbaum directs a unit charged with conducting analyses of mental health burden, service use and costs, intervention opportunities, and other policy-related issues, in support of Institute decision-making; and with helping to strengthen NIMH’s relationships with outside stakeholders, to increase the public health impact of NIMH-supported research.

Dr. Schoenbaum’s research has focused particularly on the costs and benefits of interventions to improve health and health care, evaluated from the perspectives of patients, providers, payers and society. He has been a scientific principal in NIMH’s Army Study to Assess Risk and Resilience in Servicemembers (http://www.armystarrs.org; now STARRS-LS); and has worked on initiatives with the Veterans Health Administration, the Social Security Administration, the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Statistics, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and the National Business Group on Health, among others.

Prior to joining NIMH, Dr. Schoenbaum spent nine years at the RAND Corporation, where his work included studies of the feasibility and consequences of improving care for common mental disorders, particularly depression; studies of the social epidemiology and economic consequences of chronic illness and disability; design and evaluation of decision-support tools to help consumers make health benefits choices; and international health sector development projects.

Dr. Schoenbaum was a Robert Wood Johnson Scholar in health policy at the University of California, Berkeley, from 1995-1997. He holds a PhD in Economics from University of Michigan.

Partner, WilmerHale
Daniel Zimmerman, has advised emerging companies and technology startups for more than 20 years, drawing on his extensive expertise in complex corporate transactions and venture technology issues. Zimmerman provides counsel on a variety of corporate governance and finance matters, as well as exit transactions such as public offerings and mergers and acquisitions. He further counsels Silicon Valley-based venture capital firms, as well as global venture and private equity funds in their portfolio investments in the US and abroad.

Zimmerman is co-chair of WilmerHale’s Diversity Committee. He has served as Chair of the Executive Committee of the International Law Section of the State Bar of California for the 2009-2010 term and as Chairman of the Board of the German American Business Association. He has also previously served as president and board member of Alto International School in Menlo Park and serves as primary pro bono counsel to the School.

Zimmerman holds an LLM from UCLA and was educated at the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany.