Joseph A Ripp was appointed as President and Chief Operating Officer of Dendrite International, Inc. in November 2005. Dendrite was a leading supplier of sales, marketing, clinical and compliance solutions for the pharmaceutical industry with over 4,000 employees in 52 countries around the world. Mr. Ripp operated the company for over 18 months until its sale in May 2007 to a major competitor for a price, which was twice its public trading value.
Prior to joining Dendrite Mr. Ripp was Senior Vice President of Time Warner's Media & Communications Group reporting to Don Logan, the Group Chairman. During his tenure in this position Joe worked with Don to develop alternative strategies for Time Warner's America Online unit.
Joe's responsibilities at Time Warner, Inc. included America Online, where, as Vice Chairman from 2002 to 2004, he oversaw AOL's advertising, technology, network operations, marketing, call centers, human resources and legal departments. In this capacity he was directly responsible for revenues in excess of $7 billion and costs in excess of $5 billion. Mr. Ripp is credited for launching an aggressive cost containment program at AOL, which reduced run rate costs by over $400 million per year. He is also credited with the development of AOL's safety and security line of products as well as many new innovative approaches to AOL's marketing efforts. He was previously AOL's Chief Financial Officer.
Prior to leading AOL and since he joined Time Warner in 1985, Joe held numerous senior positions, including Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Time Warner Inc. from 1999 to 2001, and Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Time Inc. At the time Mr. Ripp was Chief Financial Officer, Time Warner's revenues were in excess of $30 billion.
Mr. Ripp served on the Board of Directors of Greenfield Online, Inc. until it was sold in November 2007 to Microsoft. He has also served on the Board of Whittle Communications and American Express Publishing.
In the Not-for-profit world Mr. Ripp serves on the Board of Trustees of Manhattan College, the Board of Directors of the Advertising Educational Foundation and is the Chairman of the Lighthouse International Board of Directors where he also serves on the Executive Committee in addition to several others. He formerly served on the Executive Committee of the Advertising Council, Inc. and of A Better Chance, Inc. He is also a founding member of the Wilton Educational Foundation.
Mr. Ripp graduated from Manhattan College, Riverdale NY in 1973 with a Bachelor of Arts degree and earned his Masters of Business Administration from Bernard M. Baruch College of the City University of New York in 1978. He is a native of Babylon, NY.
Mr. Ripp resides in Wilton, CT with his wife Virginia.
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Sarah E. Smith (Vice Chair and Treasurer)
Sarah is the Controller and Chief Accounting Officer of Goldman Sachs, with responsibility for the 1,200 members of the Global Controllers Department. She serves on the Firmwide Risk Committee, the Commitments Committee, the Partnership Committee and the PIA Investment Committee. She is Co-Chair of the Structured Products Committee and has oversight of Operational Risk. Sarah joined Goldman Sachs in 1996 as Vice President in Finance and held various positions prior to becoming controller in 2002. She was named Managing Director in 1998 and Partner in 2002.
Prior to joining the firm, Sarah worked in the national and audit practices of KPMG in both London and New York, and held several finance positions at Bristol-Myers Squibb.
Sarah attended City of London University and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. She is former chair of the Securities Industries Association Accounting Policy Committee and a member of the Washington-based Committee for Economic Development.
Currently, Ms. Smith serves as the Vice Chair and Treasurer for the Board of Directors at Lighthouse International. She also serves on numerous Committees including the Audit, Compliance and Risk, Executive and the Finance and Administration Committees.
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Jonathan M. Wainwright, Esq. (Vice-Chair and Secretary)
Jonathan M. Wainwright is the Vice Chair & Senior Counsel, Financial Services, at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP. His practice is concentrated in the areas of investment management and alternative investment products. Mr. Wainwright's practice focuses on structuring pooled investment entities, complex joint ventures and transactions for private and public companies, merchant banks, investment managers, and not-for-profit organizations. Mr. Wainwright also has extensive experience counseling private equity and investment funds, including partnerships, limited liability companies and off-shore structures. He represents and counsels U.S. and non-U.S. clients, including not-for-profit organizations, in corporate governance matters, private placements of debt and equity securities, mergers, acquisitions, sales, leveraged buyouts, exchange offers and significant investment issues. His clients include domestic and off-shore banks, hedge funds, fund of funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds, real estate funds and other investment managers' consulting firms, service companies, not-for-profit organizations, and family offices.
Mr. Wainwright is a member of the Federal Bar Council. He serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the managers of several large hedge funds, as well as numerous closely-held U.S. companies and foreign corporations. Currently, he serves as the Vice Chair and Secretary for the Lighthouse Board of Directors. Additionally, he serves as Co-Chair of the New York Board of Advisors and Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee.
Mr. Wainwright graduated with honors from Yale College in 1965, with a bachelor's degree in American Studies. He received his J.D. degree from New York University School of Law in 1968 and began working at Cadwalader the same year. He is admitted to practice in the State of New York (1968), the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (1975) and the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (1975).
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Mark G. Ackermann - President and CEO
Mark G. Ackermann assumed the position of Lighthouse International as President and CEO in September of 2009. In joining the Lighthouse, Mr. Ackermann continues his exemplary career in health care leadership, which has spanned more than 30 years.
Mr. Ackermann served in various senior management positions at St. Vincent's Hospital and Medical Center beginning in 1983, and held the position of Chief Administrative Officer of the hospital's successor corporation, St. Vincent's Catholic Medical Centers of New York (SVCMC) until June 2007. He was also President of the SVCMC Foundation and successfully undertook a $100 million capital fundraising campaign, which included funding for the proposed new Rudolph W. Giuliani Trauma Center at St. Vincent's Manhattan.
Among his many achievements, Ackermann and the management team of St. Vincent's expanded the ophthalmology department and created a strong working relationship with the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary. His executive management skills were honed as Interim President and CEO of St. Clare's Hospital and Health Center during the mid-nineties.
Beginning in 2007, Mr. Ackermann served as the Special Assistant to Edward Cardinal Egan and Executive Director of the Office of the Papal Visit for the Archdiocese of New York. In this capacity, he was responsible for a number of special projects, including all aspects of the visit to New York by Pope Benedict XVI in April 2008; including 8 major events and coordination of federal, state and city agencies and the offices of the Vatican.
Mr. Ackermann received a B.A. in Journalism and Communications from Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., and an M.S. in Healthcare Management from New York University. He has served as an Adjunct Professor in the Graduate School of Management and Urban Professions of the New School University, as well as, a Clinical Instructor in the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of New York University, New York. He now lives in Howell, NJ, with his wife June. The couple has six children and three grandchildren.
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Roger O. Goldman - Chairman Emeritus
After receiving his B.A. degree from NYU in marketing and his J.D. from the Washington College of Law at American University, he joined Citicorp. He moved from trainee to managing a series of successively larger and more complex businesses, becoming the youngest senior credit officer at Citicorp. Mr. Goldman was a member of the original management team when Citicorp started its consumer business in 1976. In 1983, he became President and CEO of a community bank in California until late 1986 when he became a partner in a boutique financial services consulting firm. In 1990, he joined the Coreast Savings Bank as part of a regulator-inserted senior management team where he was responsible for consumer and small business activities and for the "work-out" of almost $10 billion in troubled assets. After Coreast was sold, he became EVP in charge of the community banking group of NatWest Bancorp ($31 B) where he was responsible for managing all consumer and small business activities overseeing a staff of 4,500. While at NatWest, he was a member of the holding company's Management Committee, Risk Policy Committee, Asset and Liability Committee, and Technology Steering Committee.
From 1996 to 2000 Mr. Goldman was President and CEO of Global Sourcing Services, LLC which he grew from a start-up to several hundred million dollars in sales before it was sold. Since 2000, he has been a private investor and a board member of numerous public and private corporations including Resource Bankshares Mortgage Group (sold); Authentidate, an Internet document verification company; Minyanville, an Emmy winning new media company; and Cyota, an Internet security company (sold). He is Chairman of the Audit Committee of American Express Bank, FSB, the principal domestic lending card issuer, and a wholly owned subsidiary of American Express Company. He has served on AXP's US Bank boards since 2001. He is the general partner of the Berkshire Opportunity Fund, a mezzanine fund investing in companies in the Northeast.
He also serves as the current Chairman Emeritus of the Lighthouse International where he was the Board Chariman from 1998 – 2012 and is also the former Chairman of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
He is married to Fern Portnoy, a philanthropic consultant, and both live in Alford, Massachusetts in the Berskshires.
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As owner, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cohen Brothers Realty Corporation (CBRC), Charles S. Cohen has achieved an enviable national reputation for his exceptional business acumen, innovation and creativity at every turn. An entrepreneurial real estate executive in the truest sense, Mr. Cohen, one of the country's legendary commercial real estate owners/developers with a portfolio of over 12 million square feet of prime properties located in New York, Texas, Florida and Southern California, is one of the rare breed of developers with a vision that is clearly and ultimately defined by design. Beyond his mastery of business transactions, he has brought his impeccable--and innate--taste and style to a wide range of high-profile projects, from office skyscrapers to corporate parks to his newest passion--Design Centers.
Mr. Cohen's rare mix of business savvy and design sensibilities has been instrumental in CBRC's extraordinary record of success and achievement. Since purchasing the company outright in 1988, he broadened its horizons and, at the same time, significantly increased its profitability. These results can be attributed to Mr. Cohen's unparalleled expertise in all phases of building development--from construction to leasing, to financing, marketing and managing. At CBRC, he has scrupulously assembled a team of more that 400 employees who share his passion for and commitment to achieving the highest standards of excellence in the real estate field. The CBRC team finances, assembles, constructs and manages its own properties. An exacting dedication to detail and superior leadership skills are hallmarks of both CBRC and Mr. Cohen himself.
Despite his inordinately busy schedule, Mr. Cohen has always found the time to pursue other interests--both professional and personal. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors for Lighthouse International, Mr. Cohen is a Board Member and Former Chairman of the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation, a position that he held from 1991 to 1993. In 2008, Mr. Cohen joined the Board of Trustees of the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Los Angeles. He is also the Former Chairman of the Metro New York Chapter of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO), the international business organization's largest chapter. Mr. Cohen is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York, the Young Men's and Women's Real Estate Association, the American Bar Association and the Association of the Bar of the City of New York. He is a licensed Real Estate Broker in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. In 2001, Mr. Cohen received the USO's prestigious Gold Medal for a lifetime of patriotic service to his country and was honored on both coasts by B'Nai B'rith International for his humanitarian and community service. He received the prestigious Israel Peace Medal in 2002 at a luncheon event in his honor that raised an all-time record $52.4 million for the State of Israel Bonds.
Charles S. Cohen is a 1974 graduate of Tufts University and a 1977 graduate of Brooklyn Law School. He resides in suburban Connecticut (where his home has a movie theatre in it) and New York City. Mr. Cohen is married and has three children.
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Donald J. D'Amico, MD, Professor and Chairman of Ophthalmology at Weill Cornell Medical College and Ophthalmologist-in-Chief at New York Presbyterian Hospital, is an internationally recognized leader in the field of vitreoretinal surgery. He recently assumed the Chair at Weill Cornell after his longstanding positions at Harvard Medical School as Professor of Ophthalmology, and as Associate Chief of Ophthalmology and Director of the Diabetic Unit at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary.
A graduate of the University of Illionois College of Medicine, he completed his residency at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. He completed his fellowship in vitreoretinal diseases at the University of Miami, Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, followed by selection as Chief Resident in Ophthalmology at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary prior to joining the Harvard faculty.
Dr. D'Amico has published over 175 articles in vitreoretinal diseases and has co-edited two books covering comprehensive retinal themes. He has participated as a principal investigator or co-investigator in many clinical trials and laboratory investigations. His major interests include: vitreoretinal surgery; diabetic retinopathy; experimental lasers and other technologies for the surgical treatment of vitreoretinal disorders such as retinal detachment; macular degeneration; and endophthalmitis and intravitreal drug therapy. As attending physician specializing in the care of patients with vitreoretinal disorders at the Weill Cornell Department of Ophthalmology, Dr. D'Amico also provides direct instruction of medical students, ophthalmology residents, and retina fellows. In this role he has twice received the Teacher of the Year Award given by the residents of the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. Dr. D'Amico is a distinguished national and international lecturer, and is the recipient of many honors, including the Honor Award and the Senior Achievement Award from the American Academy of Ophthalmology. He serves on the board of four major journals, and is highly active in professional societies. He is currently also a member of the Executive Committee of the prestigious Club Jules Gonin, and is the President-elect of the Retina Society and a Lighthouse International Board Member including Co-Chair of the Research and Medical Advisory Board.
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Marios Damianides, a partner with Ernst & Young in the Risk Advisory Services division in New York, was elected to the Lighthouse Board of Directors on September 22, 2011 where he serves as Chairman of the Audit, Compliance and Risk Committee. At Ernst & Young Mr. Damianides has worked with numerous Fortune 100 companies designing and implementing security management systems.
Mr. Damianides is a member of ISACA (Information Systems Audit and Control Association) and served as its international President from 2003 to 2005 and is also past President of the IT Governance Institute. Mr. Damianides was recognized by the New York Metropolitan Chapter of Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISCA NY) and was awarded the Wasserman Award in 2007.
Philanthropically, Mr. Damianides has garnered corporate support of over $10 million for various nonprofit organizations including the Educational Broadcasting Corporation and has personally supported a wide range of nonprofit organizations.
Mr. Damianides received his undergraduate degree from University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa and his Masters in MIS from Rand Afrikaans University in South Africa. Mr. Damianides lives in Scarsdale, NY with his wife, Anna Damianides, and their two children.
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Henry P. Davison II is a Managing Director at Bessemer Trust Company, a privately owned investment firm. At Bessemer, Mr. Davison assists affluent families with global strategic asset allocation and other wealth management issues.
Mr. Davison graduated from Yale University and began his career at J.P. Morgan. Eventually, he accepted the position of Senior Vice President of the British auction house, Christie’s. During his tenure, he was head of estates and appraisals, bringing art to auction from private families across the country.
Mr. Davison also previously served as the President of the Historic Properties Fund, the largest low-interest loan program for historic preservation in the country. He is still an active member of several not-for-profit boards, including the Citizen’s Committee for NYC. He has also served on the endowment committees for St. Bernard’s School and the Russell Trust Association. At the Lighthouse, Mr. Davison serves as the Chairman of the School Committee.
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Rick Friedberg was elected to the Lighthouse Board of Directors on September 22, 2011 where he serves as the Chairman for the Development Committee. Mr. Friedberg is currently the President of Liberty Connections Ltd., a consulting firm which provides strategic advice for business and non-profit organizations. Mr. Friedberg is also a licensed agent with Prudential Douglas Elliman in New York City.
He served in the Office of the Mayor, under Rudolph Giuliani, as Director of Advance and as Deputy Commissioner for the New York City Commission for the United Nations, Consular Corps and Protocol. Mr. Friedberg also served as Confidential Assistant to New York Governor Hugh L. Carey.
Prior to public service, he was Director of Communications at NYU Medical Center and was Marketing Director of Regent Hospital.
For their commitment to philanthropy, Mr. Friedberg and his wife Mrs. Francine LeFrak-Friedberg were awarded the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation Human Spirit Award as well as the Ellis Island Medal of Honor. Board affiliations include the New York City Police Museum, New York POPS, and New York City & Company.
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Thomas S.T. Gimbel is the Executive Managing Director of Optima Fund Management LLC. Mr. Gimbel joined Optima from Credit Suisse Asset Management where he was Managing Director for Hedge Fund Investments responsible for product and business development in the U.S. He represented the firm on CSFB's Asset Allocation Committee for private clients and on CSFB's Hedge Fund Roundtable. He originated various hedge fund investments and structured several fund-of-funds offerings.
Mr. Gimbel was previously a Managing Director and head of the Hedge Fund Department at DLJAM and joined CSAM in 2000 when DLJAM was acquired by CSAM. Prior to DLJAM, Mr. Gimbel was Managing Director in Investment Banking at PaineWebber and Chairman of PaineWebber Futures Management Corporation. Prior to that, for more than five years, he was Managing Director of the Financial Products Group at Kidder, Peabody, which PaineWebber acquired in 1995. Mr. Gimbel began his career in investment banking in 1978.
Mr. Gimbel has a B.A. in economics from Bowdoin College and an MBA in finance from Columbia University Graduate School of Business. He has passed his Series 3, 7, 24. He holds Board Membership to several non-profit organizations, including the Board of Overseers of Children's Hospital in Boston, Lighthouse International, Prime Energy Corporation and a Trustee of Portledge School. At the Lighthouse, Mr. Gimbel serves as Chairman of the New York Board of Advisors.
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Sharon Handler-Loeb, an international business consultant currently works as the Secretary at Hoppman Hydroponics, Inc., a company that uses raft culture to grow lettuce hydroponically with locations in The Plains, VA and Waverly, FL. She has previously worked for the Rudy Giuliani Presidential Committee in 2007 and John McCain in 2008. She received her B.A. from Tufts University and attended Columbia University where she received her law degree.
Her deceased father, Jerry Handler was a founder of Newmark & Co. which is today Newmark Knight Frank, one of the largest independent real estate service firms in the world. Her grandfather was a great philanthropist and was one of the original founders of Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Ms. Handler’s father served as Secretary on the Board of Directors of The Hampshire House for over 20 years.
Ms. Handler is a Board member of the Republican Majority for Choice.
Dr. Hehenberger has served as the Executive Vice President & Chief Medical Officer for Coronado Biosciences since April 2012, a biopharmaceutical company focused on novel immunotherapy biologic agents for autoimmune diseases and cancer. Prior to this, she served as its Senior Vice President of Scientific Affairs since December 2011.
With over 12 years of experience in the healthcare industry, Dr. Hehenberger was Senior Vice President for Strategic Alliances at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF). She was responsible for advancing the JDRF's involvement with scientific, financial, and commercial partners in the diabetes community. Prior to JDRF, Dr. Hehenberger worked at Johnson & Johnson as Vice President of Metabolic Strategy and Business Development. She also has experience in public and private equity, having been a partner in Scandinavian Life Science Venture, a buy-side healthcare equity analyst at Brummer & Partners and Argus Partners, on the senior management team of Eyetech Pharmaceuticals, and earlier in her career as a Strategic Management Consultant at McKinsey & Co. Dr. Hehenberger holds an M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. She continued her research as a JDRF post-doctoral fellow at the Joslin Diabetes Center at Harvard Medical School.
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Travis Howe was elected to the Lighthouse Board of Directors in September 2011 and is currently the Senior Vice President of Digital Advertiser Sales at Sony. This division, which he founded in 2006, supports all entertainment companies of Sony Corp including Sony Pictures, Sony Pictures Television and PlayStation generating revenue across online, mobile / tablet, game consoles and internet-enabled devices. Travis also leads digital ad operations for Sony Pictures Television in North and South America. He previously founded and served as Vice President for integrated cross-platform advertising sales at Sony.
Prior to joining Sony, Travis was a Senior Management Consultant for nine years with Accenture and Inforte. Based in San Francisco and London, he led acquisition teams in operational and change management strategies for global organizations in the financial, manufacturing and entertainment industries.
Mr. Howe has been an active Lighthouse Volunteer in the Saturday morning Music School program since 2004. He volunteers every Saturday of the 36 week-long program and is held in very high regard as a committed volunteer. In 2005, Mr. Howe joined the Young Leadership Committee (YLC) of Lighthouse International and served as Chair from 2008 to 2010. He is also an Executive Council member of the Interactive Advertising Bureau and the Paley Center for Media. At the Lighthouse, Mr. Howe serves as the Chairman for the Music School Board of Advisors.
Mr. Howe attended the University of Colorado at Boulder with a double major in Finance and Marketing.
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Mr. Rajive Johri holds more than 35 years of domestic and international executive experience in building and executing business strategies for leading global companies such as IBM, Citigroup, and JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Mr Johri currently serves as the Chairman and CEO for Take Two LLC, a consumer lending start up, Chairman of Semantifi, Inc. and Boys Town USA. He also serves on the boards of ConAgra Foods, Inc. and Charter Communications, Inc. In January 2009, Mr. Johri retired from First National Bank of Omaha where he had served as its President and Director since 2006 and as the Director for the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce. Prior to these roles, he served as Director and Executive Vice President for the bank’s holding company, First National of Nebraska, Inc.
Additional executive roles include having served as the Director and Chairman for InfiCorp Holdings, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of First National of Nebraska and as Executive Vice President at JP Morgan Chase & Co. in New York where he lead their credit card business marketing and strategy.
Mr. Johri holds a Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology and a Master's Degree in Business Administration from the Indian Institute of Management.
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David Malkin, Esq. is an attorney in private practice. He established the Law Office of David Malkin, P.C, New York, in 1980. Mr Malkin has also been the Director and Vice President of the Filomen M. D’Agostino Foundation since 2001. The foundation is a staunch supporter of the Lighthouse International Filomen D’Agostino Greenberg Music School.
Mr. Malkin graduated from the New York University School of Law and is a member of the American Bar Association and Association of Bar of the City of New York. He was a member of the New York University School of Law Board of Trustees for eight years and now serves a Trustee-Emeritus of the Law School. He has also been a member of the Lighthouse International New York Advisory Board since 2004.
He is the Director and President of the M.W. Frank and Leann Frank Charitable Foundation, a member of the American Museum of Natural History’s Advisory Council, and a member of the Partners in Medicine Group at Weill Cornell Medical College.
Mr. Malkin is married to Marylyn Malkin, a long-time volunteer at Lighthouse International, and an esteemed member of the Lighthouse International Woman’s Committee. The Malkin’s have a daughter, Jessica Amy Malkin and a grandson, Milo Burger.
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Dr. Marfuggi attended medical school at University of Vermont College of Medicine and graduated in 1976. A Board Certified Member of the American Society of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgeons, Inc., Dr. Marfuggi has over 30 years of experience in the realm of plastic surgery practicing in Denville, NJ. He has appeared in many of the top national magazines, including Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, Men's Health, and Allure.
Dr. Marfuggi has served as a member of the American Board of Plastic Surgery, American College of Surgeons, NJ Society of Plastic Surgeons, NY & NJ State Medical Societies, the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery and the American Medical Association (AMA). He is also a HealthGrades Recognized Doctor listed in their honor roll.
Dr. Marfuggi has also been featured as a plastic surgery consultant on a variety of television shows discussing an array of topics from spot reduction to chemical peels.
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Dr. Amelia Quist-Ogunlesi is an optometrist in New York City. Educated in London, she practiced optometry there before moving to New York 23 years ago. She received the necessary credentials to practice in the United States from the SUNY College of Optometry. While studying at SUNY, she participated in an externship/residency program at Lighthouse International, which gave her firsthand knowledge of Lighthouse International’s programs and low vision practice.
Dr. Quist-Ogunlesi lives in New York with her husband, Adebayo O. Ogunlesi, and their two sons. Mr. Ogunlesi is a founder, Chairman and Managing Partner at Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) -- an independent fund that invests in infrastructure assets worldwide. Dr. Ogunlesi is a trustee of the Studio Museum in Harlem and the New York City Parents In Action.
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Stephanie Goldman-Pittel was elected to serve on the Lighthouse Board in 2006: she is a graduate of Syracuse University with a degree in Communications. Mrs. Goldman-Pittel has served on the Board of the Kaplen JCC on The Palisades as Chair of Contributory Membership from 2000-2008. She has served on the National Young Leadership Cabinet of Federation for three years. Currently, she is serving as President of Women's Philanthropy for UJA-NNJ, having chaired Young Women's Division, serving on the UJA's Board of Directors as well as the Executive Board. She is a Berrie Fellow, and a recipient of The Russell Berrie Young Leadership Award in 2006 as well as the Rising Star Award of Women's Division of UJA in 2005. Stephanie is on the Board of the Parkinson's Disease Foundation. She has served as Treasurer of Dwight-Englewood Lower School.
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Dorothy Philips is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Philips Healthcare Communications, Inc. (PHC), a communications agency in the healthcare industry. PHC offers consulting services, strategic planning and execution of marketing communications and educational programs for manufacturers of pharmaceuticals, devices, healthcare products, and institutional clients such as health related trade associations, hospitals/HMOs and organizations that deliver healthcare services.
She was President and Chief Operating Officer of Barnum Communications, a healthcare advertising agency, where she also served as Board Member, Executive Vice President, and Senior Vice President of the Health Industries Group with responsibilities for development of client services and company administration. Prior to this position, Dr. Philips was Senior Vice President of Deltakos, the healthcare agency of J. Walter Thompson.
Dr. Philips has a BA in economics from Wellesley College and MBA and PhD degrees from New York University Graduate School of Business, with majors in marketing and economics. She has been an Adjunct Professor of marketing at Pace University and Associate Professor of marketing at Iona College. At the Lighthouse, she is the Chair of the Marketing Committee and she is the secretary of the Wellesley College Business Leadership Council.
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Ellen Ratner is the White House Correspondent and Bureau Chief for The Talk Radio News Service, covering the White House and providing exclusive reports to talk radio stations from the Congress and government agencies. Ms. Ratner is a news analyst on The Fox News Channel where she has a weekly segment entitled "The Long and Short of It" with Jim Pinkerton. She is heard on over 500 stations across the United States representing individual stations as well as syndicated shows on both commercial and public radio venues. In addition she writes a weekly column "Liberal and Proud" for World Net Daily. She developed the podcasting site, www.newstalkcast.com, which is currently in beta testing. She is also the only talk show host granted two in-person interviews with President Clinton.
Ratner is the Political Editor and Washington Bureau Chief for Talkers Magazine, the "bible" of the talk industry. In addition, she has developed College Media News, a broadcast service for college and university radio stations, served by students interning in Washington, DC. In the capacity as Political Editor of Talkers Magazine, she developed the concept of combining radio rows with immediate Internet access via the site, www.radiorow.net. In addition, she has trained many groups in use of radio, television and Internet media. Her latest book, Getting On! Talk Radio, Talk Television, Talk Internet, was published in November, 2005.
A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Ratner graduated from Goddard College in Plainfield, Vermont. She earned a Masters Degree in Education from Harvard University.
From 1973 to 1986, Ratner served as co-director and co-founder of Boundaries Therapy Center, in Acton, MA. Also, from 1974 to 1981, Ratner was the Director of the Psychiatric Day Treatment Program at South Shore Mental Center in Quincy, MA. In 1984, Ratner joined the Addiction Recovery Corporation as a Consultant on Program Development. From 1986 to 1990, Ratner served as Vice-President of Research, Development, and Service at the Addiction Recovery Corporation and as Director of its ARC Research Foundation. She served as Principal Investigator for an outcome research study, determining treatment outcome factors in alcoholism and chemical dependency treatment.
Ratner is the author of The Other Side of the Family: A Book for Recovery from Abuse, Incest and Neglect (Health Communications, Inc.), published in 1990. In February 1997, Ratner published 101 Ways to Get Your Progressive Ideas on Talk Radio, published by National Press Books and Talkers Magazine.
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Carol V. Schwartz has spent more than 25 years as a senior lawyer in the Corporate and Securities Law Group at American Express, practicing in the areas of corporate governance, securities law, finance, capital market transactions and mergers and acquisitions. In April 2009, Mrs. Schwartz assumed the position of Corporate Secretary of the American Express Company. In her role, she advises the board of directors and senior management on a range of governance and shareholder relations matters. Prior to joining American Express, she was an associate at Debevoise & Plimpton, and a law clerk in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Ms. Schwartz earned her Juris Doctorate at Columbia Law School and her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science at Tufts University’s Jackson College for Women. She lives in New York City with her husband, who is an attorney. They have three children.
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Laine Siklos is the Chief of Staff at Lion Tree Advisors. Previously, she was Vice President, Global Product Marketing at Warner Bros. Prior to that, Mrs. Siklos served as VP, Digital Marketing at Warner Premiere, the division creating short-form, movie-quality content for digital download on emerging technologies including broadband, mobile, and electronic sell through. Prior to Warner Bros, Mrs. Siklos was Associate Publisher at The Knot Inc. for the print and online media properties. She also worked in strategy and marketing positions at Time Inc. and Heart Magazines International. In addition to serving on the Lighthouse’s Development and School Committees, Mrs. Siklos was the co-founder and co-chair of the Young Leadership Committee to introduce a new generation to the organization. A former elected official in Washington, DC's city government (serving on the Advisory Neighborhood Commission), a White House Intern and US Senate Page, she received her MBA from New York University's Stern School of Business with a double major in Finance and Marketing.
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Ann is Lead Portfolio Manager of the Active International Allocation Equity strategy and a member of the Global Asset Allocation Committee. She joined Morgan Stanley in 1986 and has 16 years of investment experience. Prior to her current role as Managing Director, Ann was a Senior Professional in the firm's Fiduciary group, advising large pension plans and family trusts on asset allocation and manager selection. Previously, she was Co-Head of the firm's Active International Allocation Equity strategy and a Managing Director. Ann received a B.A. in International Relations from James Madison College at Michigan State University and an M.B.A. in Finance from New York University, Stern Business School. She serves as the Chair of the Investment Committee and Board Member at Lighthouse International. Ann is also on the Board of Highbridge Voices, an after school choir program serving over 200 children in the Bronx.
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Larry Yannuzzi is a graduate of Harvard College and Boston University Medical School, where he was honored as a distinguished alumnus. He is a professor of clinical ophthalmology at Columbia University Medical School, Vice-Chairman and Director of The Retinal Research Center of the Manhattan Eye, Ear & Throat Hospital, and Founder of The Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York. He is a world renowned retinal specialist who has published more than 300 scientific papers and 12 textbooks, with particular interest in diseases of the macula, such as diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration. He has also been given awards and distinctions in his field for contributions on retinal imaging drug development, ophthalmic laser, and the diagnosis and treatment of macular and retinal diseases. His achievements have gained worldwide respect and admiration. Most recently, he was given an honorary doctorate at the University at Ancona, the Michelson Award for Retinal Vascular Disease Gent, the Alcon Research Institution Award, a distinguished alumnus award at Boston University, and a lifetime achievement award by the American Academy of Ophthalmology. He also received the coveted Wacker Award from the International Retinal Society, the Club Jules Gonin.
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