Leadership Teams

Board of Trustees

William D. Rueckert

Chair of the Board and the Executive Committee
also Serves On The Compensation, Governance & Nominating, Audit & Risk, And Investment Committees

Mr. Rueckert is president of Oyster Management Group, LLC., an investment fund that focuses on domestic, community banks. His career has also been highlighted by involvement in oil and gas exploration, real estate, and resort development.

He is an emeritus director of the YMCA of Greater New York and chair emeritus of the Board of Trustees of Teachers College, Columbia University.

Mr. Rueckert has served on many corporate boards in the banking and biotech industries. He is director and president of the Cleveland H. Dodge Foundation.

He earned a BA in Spanish from the University of New Hampshire.

Mr. Rueckert has been a Trustee since 2014.


Patricia Haverland

Vice Chair Of The Board And Chair Of The Governance & Nominating Committee
Also serves on The Executive, Audit & Risk, and Benefits & Operations Committees

Ms. Haverland is the retired vice president and chief investment officer for Siemens, North America Pensions.

During her time at Siemens, Ms. Haverland led the company’s efforts to reduce pension risk. Before joining Siemens, she carried broad industry knowledge gained from investment leadership roles at several Fortune 500 companies within the insurance, financial, and healthcare sectors.

Ms. Haverland is an innovator and leader within the pension industry. She completed a three-year term on the ERISA Advisory Council advising the U.S. Department of Labor secretary on key ERISA matters, including lifetime income solutions in 401(k) plans and cybersecurity considerations for benefit plans.

Currently, she is an adjunct business finance professor at Seton Hall University’s Stillman School of Business. Ms. Haverland sits on the board of directors of the Madison Area YMCA in New Jersey. She also served as a director or member of many other organizations, contributing her financial insight in various advisory roles.

She earned a BA in economics and political science from Duke University and completed her MBA at Columbia University.

Ms. Haverland has been a Trustee since 2020.


Mark Baumgartner

Chair of the Investment Committee
also serves on the Executive and Compensation Committees

Mr. Baumgartner is chief investment officer of the Dalio Family Office (DFO), which supports the Dalio family in their ventures and investments as well as in their work through Dalio Philanthropies.

Prior to joining DFO, he was CIO at Carnegie Corporation of New York, a private foundation supporting peace, democracy, and education, and CIO at the Institute for Advanced Study, a research foundation in Princeton, New Jersey. Previously, he served as director of asset allocation and risk at the Ford Foundation, and co-head of Morgan Stanley’s institutional solutions group. Mr. Baumgartner was a portfolio manager at two hedge funds, Quantal Asset Management, a quantitative equity market neutral fund, and Strategy Capital, a fundamental equity fund. He began his career as a management consultant.

Mr. Baumgartner is a member of the Board of Directors of Scientific Technologies Ltd, a startup focused on developing technologies that will have a transformative impact at a global scale, chair of The Investment Fund for Foundations Investment Program (TIP). He served on the Board of Directors and Investment Program Committee for the Foundation Financial Officers Group (FFOG).

He earned a BSE from the University of Florida and a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering and a Certificate in Public Policy from Princeton University. He is a CFA charterholder.

Mr. Baumgartner has been a trustee since 2015.


Jayesh Bhansali

Serves on the Investment Committee

Mr. Bhansali is the chief investment officer at IRIQIV, a multi-family office. He currently serves as an independent director for VanEck Mutual Fund, as an advisor to the Connecticut Public Broadcasting Retirement Plan, and an adjunct faculty member at Fordham University’s Gabelli Business School.

Previously, he managed $70 billion across several portfolios at TIAA, where he served as a managing director for over two decades. During his tenure at TIAA, he was a member of the chief investment officer team to the General Account ($240 billion in AUM), where his responsibilities included strategic and tactical asset allocation, portfolio construction, risk budgeting, ALM, tail risk management, and capital optimization decisions. Prior to TIAA, he worked with Citibank and ICICI’s Investment Banking Group in India.

As an industry expert, he has contributed to the development of policy guidelines for the President’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board, Federal Reserve Bank & Basel III forums, and the Counterparty Risk Management Policy Group. He is a member of the CFA Institute’s Standards of Practice Council, an Editorial Board Member for the Journal of Alternative Investments, and serves on other non-profit boards.

He earned a BS in Accounting and Finance at the University of Mumbai, and a MS in Financial Engineering from New York University – Polytechnic School of Engineering. Mr. Bhansali holds the CFA and CAIA designations. He is an avid follower of the ancient Vipassana meditation practice over the past 25 years.

Mr. Bhansali has been a trustee since 2023.


Christopher O. Blunt

Serves On The Governance & Nominating And Benefits & Operations Committee

For more than 30 years, Christopher O. Blunt has held senior leadership positions at several major insurance and financial services companies.

He joined F&G in 2019 and currently serves as the chief executive officer. Prior to that, he served as chief executive officer at Blackstone Insurance Solutions and spent nearly 13 years at New York Life in a variety of executive roles.

Mr. Blunt has served on several committees and boards, including the YMCA of Greater New York, the American College of Financial Services, LL Global Board LIMRA LOMA, and the University of Michigan Dean’s Advisory Committee.

He earned a BA in history from the University of Michigan and an MBA in finance from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Mr. Blunt has been a trustee since 2023.


Scott C. Evans

Serves on the Investment and Benefits & Operations Committees

Mr. Evans is the retired Deputy Comptroller and chief investment officer for the NYC Office of the Comptroller.

During his time at the NYC Office of the Comptroller, Scott directed the Bureau of Asset Management, the investment advisor to all five NYC public Defined Benefit Plans, which collectively support 715,000 NYC employees with more than $190 billion in assets.

Previously, Scott spent 27 years at TIAA-CREF, where he led the asset management organization responsible for managing all of TIAA-CREF’s proprietary pension and mutual fund portfolios for it’s 3.5 million participants in the academic, medical, cultural and research fields.

Currently, Scott is a board member and chair of the finance & investment committee of the William T. Grant Foundation and a member of the investment advisory committee at UNOPS. Prior board assignments include serving as a trustee of the IFRS Foundation, external advisor to the ABP Pension Fund and as a member of an advisory committee to the Securities and Exchange Commission. He was chair of the finance committee of the Rockefeller Family Fund, a trustee of Barnard College, served as a member of the investment committee at Tufts University, and as a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

He earned a BA in economics from Tufts University and completed his MM at Northwestern University, Kellogg Graduate School of Management. He is a CFA charterholder.

Mr. Evans has been a trustee since 2021.


Stephen A. Ives

Chair of The Compensation Committee
Also serves on The Executive and Investment Committees

Mr. Ives is the retired president of Cheyenne Petroleum Company, an oil and gas exploration company. He is also the retired CFO of a private family office, along with his positions as trustee and director of various entities.

Mr. Ives is a former adjunct professor at the Price College of Business at the University of Oklahoma and continues his duties as chairman and board member of various advisory boards at Price College of Business.

He is a CPA and earned a BBA and Master of Accountancy from the University of Oklahoma.

Mr. Ives has been a Trustee since 2015.


Lauren A. Koontz

Serves On The Audit & Risk And Benefits & Operations Committees

Ms. Koontz is the president and chief executive officer of the YMCA of Metro Atlanta.

Her YMCA career has spanned more than 10 years. Ms. Koontz began her YMCA journey at the YMCA of Metro Atlanta in 2012 as the vice president & chief developmental officer. She was later the executive vice president and became president & chief executive officer in 2019.

Prior to joining the YMCA Movement, she worked at Mount Vernon Presbyterian School as director of development, Coxe Curry & Associates as senior campaign manager, Emory University School of Medicine as director of development, and held several leadership positions at the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Ms. Koontz serves on the Board of Advisors for The J. Mack Robinson School of Business at Georgia State University, the Community Advisory Board of Truist Bank, the Advisory Board of Promise All Atlanta Children Thrive, the Youth Advisory Council for the Atlanta Police Foundation, the Board of Directors of The Fox Theatre, and is on the Board of Advisors for the Metro Atlanta Chamber.

She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia — Terry College of Business and an MBA from Georgia State University — J. Mack Robinson College of Business.

Ms. Koontz has been a Trustee since 2023.


 

Jurij Z. Kushner

Serves on The Compensation, Audit & Risk, and Benefits & Operations Committees

Mr. Kushner is a retired vice president and corporate controller of the optical health corporation Bausch & Lomb.

He is a respected supporter of the YMCA of Greater Rochester, serving on the board of directors from 1994 to 2005. He recently rejoined the Board of Directors of the Rochester YMCA, continues to serve on the finance committee, and was named the chair of the Strengthening Our Communities Comprehensive Campaign.

Mr. Kushner is also the former controller and director of administration at the University of Rochester’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics.

He earned an MBA and a BA in economics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Mr. Kushner has been a Trustee since 2013.


Christine C. Marcks

Chair of the Benefits & Operations Committee
Also Serves on The Executive and Compensation Committees

Ms. Marcks is the retired president and CEO of Prudential Retirement.

Over her tenure as CEO, Prudential Retirement expanded beyond providing defined contribution and defined benefit plans for corporate and non-profit employers to become a recognized market leader and innovator in investment and risk management solutions.

She is a strong advocate for strategies to improve the financial security of women and the average American worker, earning a reputation as a thought leader in her industry and among her Prudential colleagues.

Ms. Marcks served as board chair of PRIAC, a Connecticut-based insurance company. She also held key roles on several corporate councils such as the Chair’s Senior Talent Advisory Council and served as chair of the U.S. Business Marketing Council.

Committed to giving back to her community, Ms. Marcks has held board leadership roles on the local, regional, and national levels for the YMCA since 1996. During her term as chair of the National Board, in 2014 she oversaw the selection and onboarding of Y-USA President and CEO Kevin Washington, a 38-year Y professional who is the 14th person and first African American to lead Y-USA.

She earned a BA in foreign affairs from Assumption College and an MA in economics from Georgetown University.

Ms. Marcks has been a Trustee since 2018.


Brian T. Pedersen

Serves on the Investment and Benefits & Operations Committees

Mr. Pedersen is vice president & actuary, Actuarial Enterprise Capabilities for Prudential, Hartford, CT and Newark, NJ.

He has a proven track record of leading large teams and collaborating with diverse business partners across large organizations. His responsibilities include enablement of agile and process improvement disciplines, development of modeling capabilities, and asset-liability management.

Prior to a variety of advancing positions at Prudential, Mr. Pedersen was vice president at the Hartford Financial Services Group and held leadership roles for CIGNA Investment Management and GE Asset Management.

He earned a BA in Mathematics and Actuarial Science from the University of Connecticut. He is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and a CFA charterholder.

Mr. Pedersen has been a trustee since 2022.


W. Kelvin Walker

Serves on The Governance & Nominating and Investment Committees

Mr. Walker is the chief executive officer of the Dallas Citizens Council.

Throughout his career, he has gained experience in mergers and acquisitions, merchant banking, corporate finance, credit analysis, business planning, and strategic development.

He serves on the board of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Foundation and has served on the boards of United Way of Metropolitan Dallas and the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Business Community Advisory Council.

Mr. Walker is the former chair of the Board of the YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas.

He earned a BA in finance from Morehouse College and an MBA from Northwestern University.

Mr. Walker has been a Trustee since 2018.


Joseph R. Weist

Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee
Also serves on the Executive and Investment Committees

Mr. Weist is the chief financial officer of the Tampa Metropolitan Area YMCA.

His YMCA career has spanned more than 30 years. Prior to joining the Tampa team in 2022, he was the chief financial officer at the YMCA of Greater Hartford in 2002 and director of finance for the YMCA of Greater Des Moines, Iowa in 1992.

In addition to his duties in Hartford, Mr. Weist is a national trainer in fiscal management for the YMCA of the USA.

He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and an MBA from Iowa State University. He is a certified public accountant.

Mr. Weist has been a Trustee since 2016.

Senior Leadership

Michael B. Cefole

President and CEO

Michael B. Cefole was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer in December 2022. He joined the Fund in 2020 as the Chief Financial Officer where he oversaw the financial operations of the organization, while also developing strategies that ensure the long-term stability of the Fund.

Prior to joining the Fund, Mike was President of Everest Advisory Partners, a firm providing consulting services to the retirement industry. He also worked for Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, where he was the President of the company’s retirement businesses and was the CFO of their Group Benefits business. Mike has also worked for the Hartford Financial Services Group for over 20 years where he held a variety of business and financial leadership roles.

Mike has extensive experience in annuities and retirement plans, as well as a unique combination of finance, actuarial, plan design, and regulatory experience. He has also served on a variety of industry boards, including the Employee Benefits Research Institute and the SPARK Institute, and is currently the chair of the Scholarship Foundation of the CT Society of CPAs. Mike currently serves on the board of directors of the Church Benefits Association and the Church Alliance.

Mike holds a BS in business administration with a concentration in accounting from the University of Hartford. He is a Certified Public Accountant.

Click here to learn more about Mike, his background, and his leadership focus.


Derrick Stewart

Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

Derrick Stewart is responsible for the Education, Communication, Y Relations, Customer Service and Operations teams. He joined the Fund in 2021 as Senior Vice President to help lead the development and delivery of comprehensive communication and education strategies to strengthen relationships with our constituency. In 2023 Derrick added the Customer Service and Operations teams to his scope of responsibility.

Prior to joining the Fund, he served on the Fund’s Board as an Employed Officer Trustee. During his more than 20-year Y career, Derrick has held several management positions including serving as President & CEO of The YMCA of Greater Indianapolis from 2019–2021 and as CEO of the YMCA of Southwestern Indiana from 2009–2019.

Derrick is a past member of the YMCA of the USA National Board of Directors and served as chair of the 2019 YMCA General Assembly Planning Task Force. He is currently a member of the YMCA Employee Benefits Management Committee and is a member of the Board of Directors of Old National Bancorp, where he chairs the Corporate Responsibility Committee and serves on the Enterprise Risk and Executive Committees.

Derrick earned a BA in business and finance from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business.


Gordon Bailey

Chief Administrative Officer

Gordon Bailey is the Fund’s Chief Administrative Officer. He is a member of the Fund’s leadership team and devises strategies to meet the Fund’s objectives. He provides leadership to the Human Resources, Audit, Actuarial, and Finance teams to ensure continued excellence in HR/Talent strategies and practices, Financial Planning & Analysis, analyzing market opportunities, and designing product features.

Gordon comes to the Fund with over 25 years of experience in business and financial leadership roles, with a strong focus on the retirement and investment businesses. Prior to joining the Fund, Gordon was with Guardian as the Head of FP&A overseeing all aspects of budgeting, planning, forecasting and analysis. He was also Chief Financial Officer for the Individual Life, Wealth Management and Retirement Solutions businesses. Prior to joining Guardian, he served as Chief Financial Officer for the Retirement Services Division of ADP.

Gordon is a Certified Public Accountant, Chartered Accountant and CFP. A graduate of the University of Cape Town, South Africa, he holds a Bachelor of Commerce and post graduate degree in accounting.


Marcela Deitrich

Senior Vice President of Operations and Customer Service

Marcela Deitrich provides leadership and supervision to the Fund’s Customer Service and Administrative Services Departments. She is responsible for the design, development, and execution of short and long-term operational strategies, and manages the overall performance of people and processes to achieve the highest levels of customer satisfaction.

Prior to joining the Fund, she served as customer service manager at PromptCare, and held various roles at AXA Financial in New Jersey, and New York Life Insurance Company in New York City.

Marcela holds an MBA from the New York University’s Stern School of Business with a specialization in leadership, marketing, and global business. She also earned the Certificate in Business Excellence and Certificate in Strategy from Columbia Business School. She graduated cum laude from St. Peter’s University where she obtained a BA in political science.


Elizabeth Delgado

Vice President – Human Resources and Chief Human Resources Officer

Elizabeth Delgado joined the Fund in 2000. She is responsible for leading the Fund’s human resources strategy, recruitment and staff development, diversity and inclusion, organizational design, cultural development and compensation and benefits.

Liz is a member of the Society for Human Resources Management and received her designation as a Senior Professional in Human Resources in 2010. She received her BS in Business Management from New Jersey City University. She served as Co-Chair for the YMCA CHRO Group from 2019-2022.


Suleyman Gokcan

Senior Managing Director of Risk

Suleyman Gokcan joined the Fund in 2016. He is responsible for leading risk management and managing the YRF’s asset allocation process.

Suleyman has over 19 years of risk management experience. In addition, he has extensive experience in asset allocation and quantitative analytics.

From 2009 to 2016, Suleyman was responsible for Investment Analytics and Asset Allocation for the Investments Office of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center where he developed risk management, asset allocation, and investment analytics capabilities.

His past experience includes Global Head of Risk Management for Deutsche Bank Fund of Hedge Funds, Director of Risk Management for Merrill Lynch Hedge Fund Management Group, and Director of Risk Management for Citigroup Fund of Hedge Funds.

Suleyman began his career as an assistant professor of economics at Saint Peter’s College and taught undergraduate and graduate economics and finance classes. Suleyman has published several risk management and asset allocation articles in various journals.

Suleyman earned his Ph.D. in Economics from Graduate Center, City University of New York, and his MA in Economics from Queens College.


Kerri R. Hayes

Deputy General Counsel

Kerri R. Hayes is responsible for all legal aspects of the Fund’s investments, including reviewing and negotiating various agreements and documents for both traditional and alternative investments. She also provides counseling on the design, implementation, and operation of the Fund’s retirement plans and ensures compliance with ERISA and the Internal Revenue Code requirements.

Prior to joining the Fund in 2011, Kerri was an associate with Proskauer where she counseled clients in the areas of employee benefits and executive compensation, including the investment of plan assets, the implementation of employee benefit plans, and employee benefits issues related to corporate mergers and acquisitions.

Kerri earned a BA in political science magna cum laude from the College of the Holy Cross and a JD magna cum laude from Fordham University School of Law.


James G. Kirschner

Chief Strategy Officer

James G. Kirschner works with the Fund’s Trustees and Senior Management to formulate and track long-term strategies and to ensure that current objectives are in support of the Fund’s Vision, Mission, Values, and Guiding Principles. He also provides leadership in the area of Enterprise Risk Management. He is responsible for tracking and analyzing constituent statistics within an overall focus on providing data for decision-making.

James provides staff support to the Fund’s Trustees in the areas of governance and board development. He earned the designation of Governance Fellow from the National Association of Corporate Directors.

He also serves as the Fund’s advisor to YMCA Alumni, a network of YMCA Retirees organized into 17 chapters around the USA.

James began his YMCA career in New York City in 1984 and held senior management roles at both the branch and association level of the YMCA of Greater New York. Prior to joining the Fund in 2003, he was the principal in his own consulting practice, focusing on strategic management and leadership issues. He has been an adjunct professor at the graduate level at Columbia University, Adelphi University, and Springfield College.

He earned a BA in economics at Trinity College and an MBA at Columbia Business School. He is a Certified Retirement Counselor.


Elizabeth A. Kurilla

Vice President – Internal Audit

Elizabeth Kurilla provides leadership and supervision for the overall management and focus of the internal audit department. Her responsibilities include evaluating and improving the effectiveness of risk management, control, and performing Investment Manager operational reviews, and ensuring Investment Managers have an appropriate control environment and are in conformity with industry best practices.

Prior to joining the Fund, she was a senior manager in the Audit and Enterprise Risk Services group of Deloitte & Touche LLP and an auditor in the Audit and Assurance Practice group of CohnReznick.

Elizabeth received her BS in Accounting cum laude from Fairleigh Dickinson and a certificate in Portfolio Management from New York University. She is a certified public accountant and member of the American Institute of CPAs, New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants, and the Institute of Internal Auditors.


Patrick Lachanski

Senior Vice President and Head of Finance

Patrick Lachanski provides analysis and insights of the Fund’s financial results along with assessing the impact of Fund and Plan changes on YMCAs, participants and the financial stability of the Fund. Patrick also leads the budgeting, forecasting, long-term financial planning, and business financial analysis of the Fund.

Prior to joining the Fund, Patrick was Vice President of Finance with Lombard International. While at Lombard International, he was head of financial planning & analysis for the U.S., and managed capital markets activities for the consolidated entity, including M&A and exit opportunities. He also served as Director of Financial Planning Analysis for The Related Companies and New York Life Insurance Company.

Patrick holds an MBA from Yale University and a BS in business administration from Manhattan College. He is a CFA charterholder and certified public accountant.


Joe Maksoud

Senior Director of Infrastructure

Joe Maksoud works to coordinate and direct the functions of the organization’s infrastructure. This includes the design, implementation, and operation of server, network, and storage systems. Joe is responsible for ensuring that the organization’s information technology assets are secure, reliable, efficient, and scalable.

Prior to joining the Fund, Joe worked as the AVP of IT at Transamerica supporting the pension division’s infrastructure and mission critical applications. Prior to Transamerica, Joe held several IT positions in the pharmaceutical industry for a little over 20 years. Joe has extensive experience in overall infrastructure support, cyber-security, and cloud strategy.

Joe holds a BS in Computer Science from Manhattan College and an MS in Computer Science and Math from Pace University.


John Quiñones

General Counsel

John is the Fund’s General Counsel. He has 30 years of experience advising financial institutions on legal, strategic, business and regulatory matters. Prior to joining the Fund, John was a partner at one of the largest global law firms in the US, where he served as the lead partner for Fortune 100 insurance companies. He also served as Managing Counsel for investments at TIAA-CREF.

John is committed to community service and has served on the Boards of the Bronx YMCA, Hostos Community College Foundation, LatinoJustice PRLDEF, and the Cornell University Council.

He holds a BS from Cornell University, JD from NYU School of Law and is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.


Hunter S. Reisner

Chief Investment Officer

Hunter S. Reisner has been the Fund’s Chief Investment Officer since joining the Fund in 2010. He has led several investment teams and organizations over his 40 years in the investment business. His investment experience spans most asset classes, including domestic and international public and private equity, as well as public and private credit and many types of alternatives. In most of these Hunter has invested directly and via investment managers.

Hunter has invested on behalf of pension funds, endowments, insurance companies and fund-of-funds, as well as family offices and high net worth individuals. Previously, Hunter founded and served as managing partner of Citigroup Private Equity (formerly Travelers Investment Group Alternative Investments) which grew to manage over $10 billion of proprietary and client capital. His prior investment affiliations also include Morgan Stanley, Butler Capital, Salomon Brothers and Smith Barney.

Hunter has held seats on the investment committees, advisory boards, and boards of directors of over 20 investment funds, companies and foundations, including serving as Investment Committee Chair for two university-related endowments.

He earned a BA in economics and mathematics from Yale University, where he graduated summa cum laude, and an MBA from Stanford University.


Gerard Rescigno

Chief Information Officer

Gerard Rescigno works to develop a broad technology vision for the YMCA Retirement Fund. He has end-to-end responsibility for the Fund’s technology activities, systems, and provides leadership to the information technology team.

Prior to joining the Fund, Gerard was the Chief Technology Officer of a start-up in the pension industry. He spent most of his career in the retirement industry and served as Transamerica’s Chief Technology Officer for the pension division prior to becoming the Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for Transamerica. Gerard has extensive experience in digital transformation, cyber-security, cloud strategy, IT outsourcing, and software development.

He holds a BS in computer science and an MBA with a concentration in information sciences from Manhattan College.


Mark Sinni

Deputy Chief Investment Officer

Mark Sinni has been with the Fund since April 2013. He is involved in crafting strategic asset allocation, overseeing portfolio management and tactical asset allocation, and selecting managers and strategies across all asset classes. He leads the team’s efforts across Marketable strategies including public equities, hedge fund strategies, fixed income, and special situations.

Prior to joining the Fund, Mark spent over three years at the Tulane University Investment Management Office working across asset classes, asset allocation, and risk management.

Mark earned a BS in cell and molecular biology, cum laude, from Tulane University as well as an MBA from Tulane University’s Freeman School of Business. Mark is a CFA charterholder.


Sweta Vaidya

Senior Vice President, Actuary

Sweta Vaidya performs key actuarial analysis for the YMCA Retirement Fund including directing and overseeing the annual valuation process and working closely with the Fund’s consultants on asset-liability analysis.

Sweta brings a diverse set of experiences to the organization from the asset management and investment and actuarial consulting industries. Prior to joining the Fund, Sweta was the Head of Solution Design at Insight’s New York office where she worked on the design and delivery of investment solutions tailored to address client-specific risk, return, and strategy objectives. Before that, she served as Senior Vice President, Capital Markets Research at Callan LLC, where she consulted to a wide range of asset pools and assisted with their strategic investment planning and investment manager research. Sweta also spent thirteen years at Willis Towers Watson where she performed actuarial valuations and asset/liability studies for some of the largest pension plans in the U.S. to determine asset allocation, explore alternate benefit designs, and make funding policy decisions.

Sweta earned a BS in Finance and Actuarial Science from The Stern School of Business at New York University. She is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries (FSA), an enrolled actuary (EA) and a CFA charterholder.


Lisa Worthy

Senior Vice President – Finance

Lisa Worthy directs the accounting practices, procedures, and maintenance of all financial records, as well as the preparation of all financial reports and is responsible for the financial operating control functions.

Prior to joining the Fund, she was a senior supervising auditor with KPMG LLP.

Lisa is a certified public accountant and member of the NY State Society of Public Accountants. She also volunteers with the Industrial Areas Foundation, Manhattan College Alumni Committee, and Queens Citizens Organization. A YMCA Organizational Leader, she also holds a BA in accounting from Manhattan College.

Investment Staff

Hunter S. Reisner

Chief Investment Officer

Hunter S. Reisner has been the Fund’s Chief Investment Officer since joining the Fund in 2010. He has led several investment teams and organizations over his 40 years in the investment business. His investment experience spans most asset classes, including domestic and international public and private equity, as well as public and private credit and many types of alternatives. In most of these Hunter has invested directly and via investment managers.

Hunter has invested on behalf of pension funds, endowments, insurance companies and fund-of-funds, as well as family offices and high net worth individuals. Previously, Hunter founded and served as managing partner of Citigroup Private Equity (formerly Travelers Investment Group Alternative Investments) which grew to manage over $10 billion of proprietary and client capital. His prior investment affiliations also include Morgan Stanley, Butler Capital, Salomon Brothers and Smith Barney.

Hunter has held seats on the investment committees, advisory boards, and boards of directors of over 20 investment funds, companies and foundations, including serving as Investment Committee Chair for two university-related endowments.

He earned a BA in economics and mathematics from Yale University, where he graduated summa cum laude, and an MBA from Stanford University.

 


Mark Sinni

Deputy Chief Investment Officer

Mark Sinni has been with the Fund since April 2013. He is involved in crafting strategic asset allocation, overseeing portfolio management and tactical asset allocation, and selecting managers and strategies across all asset classes. He leads the team’s efforts across Marketable strategies including public equities, hedge fund strategies, fixed income, and special situations.

Prior to joining the Fund, Mark spent over three years at the Tulane University Investment Management Office working across asset classes, asset allocation, and risk management.

Mark earned a BS in cell and molecular biology, cum laude, from Tulane University as well as an MBA from Tulane University’s Freeman School of Business. Mark is a CFA charterholder. He is a member of the Investment Committee at Teachers College of Columbia University.

 


Suleyman Gokcan

Senior Managing Director of Risk

Suleyman Gokcan joined the Fund in 2016. He is responsible for leading risk management and managing the YRF’s asset allocation process.

Suleyman has over 16 years of risk management experience. In addition, he has extensive experience in asset allocation and quantitative analytics.

From 2009 to 2016, Suleyman was responsible for Investment Analytics and Asset Allocation for the Investments Office of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center where he developed risk management, asset allocation, and investment analytics capabilities.

His past experience includes Global Head of Risk Management for Deutsche Bank Fund of Hedge Funds, Director of Risk Management for Merrill Lynch Hedge Fund Management Group, and Director of Risk Management for Citigroup Fund of Hedge Funds.

Suleyman began his career as an assistant professor of economics at Saint Peter’s College and taught undergraduate and graduate economics and finance classes. Suleyman has published several risk management and asset allocation articles in various journals.

Suleyman earned his Ph.D. in Economics from Graduate Center, City University of New York, and his MA in Economics from Queens College.


Katherine Grant

Managing Director

Katherine Grant has been with the Fund since April 2022. She leads portfolio efforts across credit and hedge fund strategies.

Prior to joining the Fund, she spent over seven years at LGT Capital Partners as an Executive Director responsible for US hedge fund and credit allocations as well as portfolio management of US-based clients. Katherine started her career at Hermes Investment Management where she focused on hedge fund investments for the firm’s principal client, BT Pension.

Katherine earned a BS from the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. She is a CAIA charterholder.


Nicholas Bass

Investment Director

Nicholas Bass has been with the Fund since March 2022. He is involved in the manager selection and ongoing due diligence for public markets managers, primarily focusing on hedge funds and other diversifying strategies.

Prior to joining the Fund, Nick spent almost three years at JP Morgan’s Private Bank as a Vice President, where he was involved in manager selection and monitoring of hedge funds and private credit funds. Before that he spent five and a half years at Mousse Partners, a single-family office, doing manager selection and monitoring of hedge funds, fixed income, and public equity, as well as overseeing some of the firm’s direct investments in equities and fixed income. The four years before that were spent at Alternative Investment Group, a fund of hedge funds, where Nick assisted with manager selection, ongoing due diligence, and portfolio construction.

Nick earned a BSE in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and is a CFA charterholder.


John Maimone-Medwick

Investment Director

John Maimone-Medwick joined the Fund in March 2017. He is primarily involved in the real estate, natural resources, private equity, venture capital, and diversifying asset classes. He also assists with fund-wide projects, such as asset allocation and exposure monitoring.

Prior to joining the Fund, John was at Hall Capital Partners. While at Hall Capital, he assisted with the investing, monitoring, and managing of global multi-asset class portfolios for families, endowments, and foundations.

John earned a BA in economics from Williams College, as well as an MS in Real Estate with Distinction from the NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate.


Erik Moss

Investment Director

Erik Moss joined the Fund in August 2016. He is involved in manager selection and ongoing due diligence across private markets with primary responsibilities in the real estate and natural resources portfolios. He also assists with fund-wide projects, such as asset allocation and exposure monitoring.

Prior to joining the Fund, Erik spent three years at Perennial Capital Advisors as an analyst then senior analyst focusing on private real estate fund investments.

Erik earned a BA in economics from Tufts University and is a CFA charterholder.


Nicholas Pon

Investment Director

Nicholas Pon joined the Fund in 2016. He is involved in the manager selection and ongoing due diligence for all public markets managers including hedge funds, fixed income, and public equity. He also assists with fund-wide projects, such as asset allocation and exposure monitoring.

Prior to joining the Fund, Nicholas worked in General Motors Asset Management’s Absolute Return Strategies group for over two years as an analyst focusing on hedge fund Investments. His past work experience also includes working in UBS’s Hedge Fund Solutions group also focusing on hedge funds.

Nicholas earned a BS in Finance from Bentley University and is a CFA charterholder.


Erik Strobel

Investment Director

Erik Strobel joined the Fund in 2017. He is responsible for overseeing the Fund’s private equity and venture capital investment portfolios. He also assists with fund-wide projects, such as asset allocation and exposure monitoring.

Prior to joining the Fund, Erik spent five years at the UConn Foundation as an investment analyst across all asset classes working on manager selection and portfolio management.

Erik earned a BA in economics from the University of Connecticut and is a CFA charterholder.


Matthew Hoffman

Investment Associate

Matthew Hoffman joined the Fund in 2020. He is involved in manager selection and ongoing due diligence for hedge funds, fixed income, and public equity.

Prior to joining the Fund, Matt was a research analyst at Forester Capital, a hedge fund of funds. While at Forester Capital, he was involved in and assisted with all aspects of investment due diligence and portfolio monitoring, as well as client deliverables, sourcing, and training of junior analysts.

Matt earned a BA in Economics from Colby College. He is also a candidate in the CFA program.


Allison Nguyen

Investment Associate

Allison Nguyen joined the Fund in 2023. She is involved in manager selection and ongoing due diligence across private markets with primary responsibilities in the private equity and venture capital investment portfolios. She also assists with Fund-wide projects, such as asset allocation and exposure monitoring.

Prior to joining the Fund, Allison was at the Hilton Foundation where she was responsible for screening and evaluating new investment opportunities across all asset classes, monitoring and building relationships with existing relationships, and coordinating and executing various internal projects.

Allison earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and is a CFA charterholder.


Aaron Blum

Risk Management & Investment Operations Associate

Aaron Blum joined the Fund in 2019. He is involved in the Fund’s analytical processes for risk management, exposure monitoring, asset allocation, and data management activities of the investment team.

Prior to joining the Fund, Aaron worked at Neuberger Berman within the Portfolio Analysis & Risk group for over three years. At Neuberger Berman, he was responsible for working with the firm’s various institutional Equity, Fixed Income, and Multi-Asset class portfolio management teams by providing investment insights on portfolio construction and risk factor analytics.

Aaron has earned a BBA in Finance from Baruch College and has passed Level II of the CFA exam.


Samuel Dibble

Senior Investment Analyst

Samuel Dibble joined the Fund in 2023. He is primarily involved with the Fund’s investments in the private markets.

Prior to joining the Fund, Samuel was an Investment Associate at Collwick Capital, LLC in Charlotte, NC where he focused on hedge funds as well as direct private real estate and private equity investments.

Samuel earned a BA in Political Science from Davidson College.


James Morgan

Investment Analyst

James Morgan joined the Fund in March 2023. He is involved in manager selection and ongoing due diligence for Private Markets.

Prior to joining the Fund, James was an Analyst at Hamilton Lane in the Portfolio Management Group specializing in private markets research and portfolio modeling.

James earned a BA in Computer Science and Economics, cum laude, from Villanova University.


Khyle Reefer

Investment Analyst

Khyle Reefer joined the Fund in August 2021. He is involved in manager selection and ongoing due diligence for hedge funds and public equity.

Prior to joining the Fund, Khyle spent two years in a rotational analyst program at J.P. Morgan. While at J.P. Morgan, he worked on Prime Brokerage products and projects within the Corporate & Investment Bank.

Khyle earned a BSBA with a concentration in Finance and minor in Africana Studies from Binghamton University.


Denita Grinnard

Cash Manager

Denita Grinnard has been with the Fund since 1995. She manages the Fund’s short term cash and works closely with the Fund’s custodian, JPMorgan Chase, with the movement of funds.

She holds a BS in accounting from Rutgers University.


Kathleen Sammartino

Administrative Assistant

Kathleen Sammartino has been with the Fund since 1998. She worked previously for the executive vice president of the Fund before his retirement.

Prior to joining the Fund, she worked at PNC Bank located in East Brunswick, NJ.

Consultants
Actuary

Willis Towers Watson

Attorney

Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP

Auditor

KPMG LLP

Custodian Bank

JP Morgan Chase

Investment Consultants

Cambridge Associates

Total & Permanent Disability Claims Administrator

Lincoln Life Assurance Company of Boston