CORIELL - Key Persons
Alan Wechsler has owned and operated a number of businesses in a variety of fields during his 48-year business career. Most recently, Mr. Wechsler was founder, chairman, and CEO of Cherry Hill Photo Enterprises, a provider of seasonal photography services to shopping centers and department stores throughout the United States and Canada. Prior to this, Mr. Wechsler was owner, chairman, and CEO of Alaura, Inc., which manufactured store fixtures, custom institutional cabinetry and millwork; the company was acquired by American Greeting Card Company in 1980.
In addition to serving on Coriell's board, Mr. Wechsler is donor trustee and current president of the Gertrude and Raymond Saltzman Foundation, and is currently serving as vice chairman of the board of directors and chair of the investment committee of Elwyn Inc., which has been developing and providing unique, innovative services to people with special needs for over 155 years. Mr. Wechsler has also served as past president of the Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Professor of Medicine
Dr. Reboli is a Professor of Medicine and the Dean of Cooper Medical School of Rowan University in Camden, NJ. As such, she is the Chief Academic Officer with ultimate responsibility for all areas of the school. Prior to this, she was Founding Vice Dean and was responsible for oversight of the LCME accreditation process, undergraduate and graduate medical education, faculty affairs and faculty development, and developing affiliations for the medical school.
Antonio Tillis, PhD, serves as the Chancellor of Rutgers University-Camden where he leads the university in efforts large and small to advance the campus, meet the needs of students and faculty, develop innovative and appropriate programs, and forge partnerships to improve the quality of life in Camden and the Delaware Valley.
Before joining Rutgers University-Camden, Antonio D. Tillis served as interim president of the University of Houston-Downtown, a comprehensive urban institution offering more than 50 degree-granting programs and serving more than 15,000 students. In this capacity, he worked collaboratively to promote student and faculty development, engage the community, and advance the strategic vision for the second-largest campus in the University of Houston system.
Also at the University of Houston, he served as dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, the largest of the 15 academic and professional colleges at the university. Under his leadership, the reputation and resources of that school grew significantly. He successfully led a $60 million fundraising campaign while developing new opportunities for student learning experiences and creating partnerships with community organizations in the city and throughout the region. He increased student scholarships, recruited and retained nationally known faculty, created an infrastructure to nurture the research profile of the school, and greatly expanded outreach to the city by launching such programs as the Dean's Mayoral Summer Internship and a mobile unit to deliver social and health-related services in the community. The University of Houston in 2017 named Tillis as the M.D. Anderson Professor in Hispanic Studies.
Tillis, who is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese, is a noted scholar in the field of Afro-Hispanic studies. He was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to Brazil in 2009, and he has presented his scholarship at lectures and conferences across the United States and around the world. He is the coeditor of several books, including The Trayvon Martin in ‘US': An American Tragedy (Peter Lang, 2015), The Afro-Hispanic Reader and Anthology (Randal Publishing, 2018), and Critical Perspectives on Afro-Latin American Literature (Routledge, 2012). He has served as editor of the journal Publication of the Afro-Latin/ American Research Association, as coeditor of the Afro-Hispanic Review, and as associate editor of the International Journal of Comparative Literature and Translation Studies.
Arnaud Bastien, MD, is the Global Program Development Lead for Cardiovascular at Bristol Myers Squibb.
Prior to this role, Dr. Bastien served as Vice President and Head of Clinical Development at Roivant Sciences and before that was senior Director of Clinical Development at Amarin Corporation, an innovative biopharmaceutical organization based in New Jersey. In that role, he was responsible for overseeing the organization's clinical development efforts for present and future filings. Dr. Bastien also spent more than six years at Bristol Myers Squibb Company, ascending to the role of Director of Global Clinical Research for the Cardiovascular and Metabolics divisions.
Other past positions include Medical Monitor; Co-Chair of the Protocol Review Committee; Global Clinical Representative to the Commercial and Medical Affairs arms of the CV-Metabolics development program and attending physician, Associate Professor of Medicine, and Section Head of the Division of General Internal Medicine Clinical Research at Cooper University Hospital. Since March 2007, Dr. Bastien has been an Adjunct Associate Professor of Medicine at UMDNJ Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
Dr. Bastien received his medical degree at the Universidad Mundial Dominicana, Dominican Republic. He completed his residency in Internal Medicine at UMDNJ, Cooper University Hospital. In 2009, Dr. Bastien attended Rutgers University School of Business and Management for executive education in Biopharma Innovation.
Bob is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Institute's facility, its infrastructure, oversees Coriell's procurement, shipping and receiving departments.
Calvin H. Knowlton, BSPharm, MDiv, PhD, is the Chairman and CEO of CareKinesis, a healthcare company which provides personalized medication therapy management to individuals with complex medication needs. Dr. Knowlton is also Chairman and CEO of RevolutionCare, Inc., a nurse practitioner, primary care service for seniors with chronic conditions who live at home or in a nursing facility.
After graduating from Temple University's School of Pharmacy, Dr. Knowlton received his master of divinity degree in ethics and education from the Princeton Theological Seminary. He obtained his doctorate in pharmacoeconomics from the University of Maryland.
In addition to having served on Coriell's board, Dr. Knowlton serves on several boards including St. Christopher's Hospice for Children in Philadelphia, and the National Hospice Foundation. He is the founding chair for the Corporate and Professional Council of Samaritan Hospice in New Jersey, and serves on the Dean's Advisory Board for Jefferson University School of Pharmacy.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Investigators and Staff
- Research Initiative
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President
Christopher R. Gibson is President of Archer Law and also serves as chairman of Archer's Litigation Department and both the Environmental Law and Eminent Domain practice groups.
During his nearly 35 years in practice, Mr. Gibson has litigated and tried a variety of commercial, employment, construction and toxic tort/product liability cases seeking personal injuries and property claims, but he is best known as a leading environmental litigator.
Mr. Gibson also acts as local and regional counsel to nationally and regionally known corporations, and represents and advises smaller and mid-size local businesses in various commercial litigation, employment and environmental matters. Additionally, Mr. Gibson represents many governmental clients. He has also been appointed to act as New Jersey counsel to the Delaware River Port Authority (DRPA) of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The DRPA is a $200 million regional transportation and economic development bi-state authority. Chris provides legal counsel to the New Jersey Commissioners and the management of the DRPA on all issues concerning New Jersey law. Mr. Gibson also served on the Law and Justice Committee for New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy's 2018 transition team.
In addition to his role on Coriell's Board of Trustees, Mr. Gibson served as a member as well as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The College of New Jersey and has served on the boards for Underwood Memorial Hospital and Inspira Healthcare Network.
Job Titles:
- Community Volunteer
- Member of the Emeritus
Constance M. Madara is a community volunteer and was formerly manager of public relations and advertising for The Madara Company, an insurance brokerage firm.
Mrs. Madara graduated from Mount Holyoke College with a degree in political science.
In addition to serving on Coriell's board, Mrs. Madara has long engaged in community outreach activities focused on education and public service in our region. Significant among her accomplishments are chair of the Docent Education Program for The Philadelphia Orchestra, past president of the board for the Guidance Center of Camden County, and serving the United Way of Burlington County.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, External Affairs
In this capacity, she works to elevate the Institution's public image and its relationships with the public, especially elected officials, external stakeholders and community partners.
Job Titles:
- Laboratory Technician III
As Chief Financial Officer, Denise oversees the financial health of the Institute, leads the organization on major strategic decisions, and manages all aspects of financial planning, analysis, reporting, and forecasting.
Job Titles:
- Associate Director, Laboratory Services
Diego oversees Coriell's Research and Development Department to implement new products and services for Coriell's global customer base.
Job Titles:
- Associate Director, Biobanking Logistics & Customer Service
Donna oversees Coriell's Biobanking Logistics and Customer Service teams, ensuring safe sample storage and procession and quality support for Coriell's global customer base.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Director of the MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper
Dr. Generosa Grana is the Director of the MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper. She is Professor of Medicine at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University and serves as an Adjunct Professor of Cancer Medicine at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
After receiving a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Notre Dame, Dr. Grana attended medical school at the Northwestern University School of Medicine in Chicago before pursuing a residency in internal medicine at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dr. Grana completed her fellowship in hematology and oncology at Fox Chase Cancer Center and Temple University in Philadelphia where she also completed a post-doctoral fellowship in preventive oncology.
She joined Cooper University Hospital in 1994, where she has held multiple administrative roles including Division Head of Hematology and Medical Oncology and currently Cancer Center Director. Dr. Grana serves as a member of the Cooper University Board of Trustees, The Cooper Foundation Board of Trustees, the fundraising arm of the organization. She is also a member of the Cooper University Physicians Executive Committee. Dr. Grana has been actively involved in the teaching of medical students, residents and fellows and has been actively involved in multiple community outreach initiatives.
Dr. Grana's clinical and research endeavors at Cooper have focused on breast cancer, cancer genetics and community outreach interventions aimed at underserved populations and she continues to be very active in each of these areas. She has been active in clinical trials for breast cancer as well as in research focusing on the study of the hereditary aspects of breast, ovary and colorectal cancer.
Job Titles:
- CEO
- President
- Expert
- Professor / President & CEO
Jean-Pierre Issa, MD, is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Coriell Institute for Medical Research. As such, Dr. Issa leads all aspects of the Coriell Institute in its mission to better understand human health and disease as well as serve as a trusted supplier of high quality biomaterials to the global scientific community.
Dr. Issa is an expert in the study of epigenetics - how the turning on and off of genes affects our health - and to better understanding epigenetic changes in aging and cancerous cells.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor at the Coriell Institute for Medical Research
- Professor
Dr. Nora Engel is Associate Professor at the Coriell Institute for Medical Research, which is a partner in the Camden Cancer Research Center in Camden, NJ. Nora received her Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics from the University of Buenos Aires School of Biochemistry. Her graduate work focused on transcriptional regulation in cancer. She then pursued a postdoctoral fellowship in the laboratory of Dr. Marisa Bartolomei at the University of Pennsylvania, where she investigated mechanisms of genomic imprinting during embryogenesis in mouse models.
As an independent investigator, Nora continued her studies on how imprinted regions are regulated and how the epigenetic and three-dimensional conformation is disturbed in imprinting disorders.
Currently Nora's major interest is in how sex differences are established in somatic tissues during embryogenesis, how the sex chromosomes contribute independently to those differences at the transcriptional and epigenetic levels and how these differences are reflected in sex disparities in cancer risk and outcomes, using melanoma as a paradigmatic non-reproductive cancer that is male-biased.
Edward D. Viner, MD served as Cooper University Hospital's Chief of Medicine from 1987 through 2006. Currently, Dr. Viner is Cooper's Chief Emeritus of the Department of Medicine, in addition to serving as the Senior Advisor to the dean of the Cooper Medical School of Rowan University.
Dr. Viner graduated with honors from both Harvard College and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. He is board-certified in internal medicine, hematology, and medical oncology, and has been named to national lists of Best Doctors. In 2003, he was named Laureate by the American College of Physicians, and in 2008, was elected to Mastership in the College.
Dr. Viner has been recurrently recognized for his teaching skills and will be increasingly involved in teaching and faculty development at the new Cooper Medical School of Rowan University.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Executive Director of the United States Semiquincentennial Commission
- President and CEO of Atlantic Trailer Leasing Corporation
- President and CEO of the Philly POPS
Frank Giordano became President and CEO of the Philly POPS in 2011. By applying for-profit strategies to a struggling non-profit, he led the POPS to unprecedented success in ticket sales, contributed revenue, community engagement and artistic expression.
Mr. Giordano is Executive Director of the United States Semiquincentennial Commission. He is also the Honorary Consul of Malta for Pennsylvania. He was appointed by the President of the United States to the President's Advisory Committee on the Arts of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
Mr. Giordano is also President and CEO of Atlantic Trailer Leasing Corporation, a transportation and storage equipment company that has been in the Giordano family since 1949.
Mr. Giordano is a graduate of Rutgers University and resides with his wife Dottie in Moorestown, New Jersey where Frank and Dottie Giordano's Responsibility Scholarship financially supports working Rutgers Camden students while they gain business experience in unpaid internships
Job Titles:
- Chief Scientific Officer
- Professor / Chief Scientific Officer
Our team is working to further uncover the role of epigenetics, specifically through DNA methylation and histone modification, in two particularly relevant areas for human health: cancer and aging.
Our work is funded by grants from many sources, from the National Institutes of Health to private foundations. We are the proud beneficiary of an NIH SPORE (Specialized Programs of Research Excellence) Grant for which we are the first-ever epigenetically focused recipient. This SPORE funding provides our researchers the means to pursue their interests within a highly collaborative and cutting-edge network of other SPORE cancer researchers across the country.
Jaroslav is the Chief Scientific Officer at Coriell and as such oversees all research efforts and directs an epigenetic research group at the Institute.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor / Senior Scientist for Stem Cell Biology and Genetic Engineering
I'm passionate about investigating hematopoietic stem cells, the stem cells that develop into the various blood cell types, and the molecular pathways that control them. A stronger understanding of how these cells communicate and grow into their adult cell types will better allow us to use them in therapies.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Emeritus
- President of Stratton Management Company
John A. Affleck is president of Stratton Management Company, an investment management firm located in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania. He also serves as chairman of the Stratton Mutual Fund Group.
Mr. Affleck received his undergraduate degree from Lafayette College, and his MBA from Temple University. He is a member of the Financial Analysts Society of Philadelphia and the Association for Investment Management and Research.
In addition to serving on Coriell's board, Mr. Affleck serves on the boards of the Woodmere Art Museum and the Philadelphia Orchestra, and is an overseer at the William Penn Charter School.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Chief Solutions Officer for Life Sciences at XponentL Data
John Apathy is currently the Chief Solutions Officer for Life Sciences at XponentL Data, a global data and technology consulting services firm specializing in Data Products. In that role, John assists clients in gaining full business value from data by modernizing data architectures and making data more findable and consumable as products optimized for business value and impact.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the MIT Educational Council
- Principal at ZS Associates
John Piccone is a principal at ZS Associates, the world's largest firm focused exclusively on helping companies improve overall performance and grow revenue and market share through end-to-end sales and marketing solutions.
Prior to his role at ZS Consulting, Mr. Piccone led the Watson Health Agile Insights team for life sciences at IBM and as such he prototyped the analytics and cognitive solutions that Watson Health is offering to its pharmaceutical, biopharma, and medical device and biotech clients. At IBM, Mr. Piccone developed Real World Evidence solutions to identify unmet medical need, differentiate therapeutic alternatives and personalize therapies for individual patients. His work also included solutions to accelerate drug discovery, accelerate and improve clinical trials and improve patient safety.
In addition to serving on Coriell's Board, Mr. Piccone is a member of the MIT Educational Council and is a member of the Life Sciences Industry Academy at IBM.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor / Director of Bioinformatics
- Director, Bioinformatics
In his role as director of bioinformatics, Jozef steers and oversees all bioinformatics work at the Coriell Institute.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Emeritus
- Member of the Palm Beach Women 's Chamber of Commerce
- Owner and President of R. Gregg Inc.
Judith P. Poole is owner and president of R. Gregg Inc., a business consulting firm specializing in growth, operating procedures and management of daily operations. The firm specializes in working with clients on Medicare related issues and with businesses in the health care industry.
Ms. Poole earned her undergraduate degree in political science from Shippensburg University and pursued business management studies at Drexel University, and executive course work in real estate at Temple University.
Ms. Poole is a member of the Palm Beach Women's Chamber of Commerce, and has served the past two years on the Board of the Oak Hill HOA.
Job Titles:
- Scientific Staff Member
- Associate Director of Laboratory Production
As Associate Director of Laboratory Production, Kelly leads the Coriell's cell culture and molecular biology teams.
Kenneth A. Somberg, MD, MBA, currently serves as the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of TrialSpark, Inc., a technology-driven drug development and pharmaceutical company. It this role he is a member of the executive leadership team driving company strategy as well as directly overseeing the medical and scientific aspects of the company.
Outside interests include food insecurity and childhood education. Ken is a regular volunteer for the Interfaith Food Pantry of the Oranges and serves on the Board of Trustees of the Paul Robeson Charter School for the Humanities in Trenton, New Jersey.
Job Titles:
- Director, Repository Science
Laura is the principal investigator of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) Human Genetics Resource Center at the Coriell Institute.
Job Titles:
- Chief Information Officer and Vice President of Innovation
Leo is the Chief Information Officer and Vice President of Innovation and is responsible for all key technology initiatives critical for Coriell.
Job Titles:
- Adjunct Professor
- Member of the Board
- Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer at Cooper University Health Care
- Vice Chairman of the Rowan University / Rutgers - Camden Board of Governors
Lou Bezich is Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer at Cooper University Health Care. He provides vital leadership for Cooper's strategic relationships including government and community relations, real estate, military markets, and higher education. Since March 2020, he has provided administrative leadership for Cooper's COVID-19 response.
Mr. Bezich serves as Vice Chairman of the Rowan University/Rutgers-Camden Board of Governors. He is Board Chair of the Camden Coalition of Health Care Providers, and a member of the Board of the Cooper's Ferry Development Corporation. Mr. Bezich is also President of the Board of the Cooper Lanning Square Renaissance School Facilities, Inc., an affiliate of the KIPP Cooper Norcross Renaissance Schools.
Mr. Bezich is an adjunct professor in the Graduate Department of Public Policy and Administration at Rutgers University-Camden and has previously taught at Camden County College and Rowan University. He is the author of Crack The Code: 10 Proven Secrets that Motivate Healthy Behavior and Inspire Fulfillment in Men Over 50, and a contributing author to Corporate Lawbreaking and Interactive Compliance, Edited by Jay A. Sigler and Joseph E. Murphy. He is a contributing writer on men's health for PhillyVoice and author of numerous articles on public policy and health.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Shareholder
Marc S. Maser, Esq., is a shareholder of McCausland Keen & Buckman which focuses on counseling businesses and individuals in the areas of federal, state and local taxation, business and corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, and estate planning and administration. Mr. Maser also represents clients in taxation matters in federal and state courts and before the Internal Revenue Service and the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue.
Mr. Maser received his undergraduate degree in accounting from the Pennsylvania State University, his JD from the Temple University School of Law, and a Master of Laws degree from New York University. Mr. Maser is a Certified Public Accountant.
Matt is the Co-Principal Investigator of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences Human Genetic Cell Repository and the National Human Genome Research Institute Sample Repository.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Emeritus
- President and COO of Foundation Medicine, Inc
Michael J. Pellini, MD is president and COO of Foundation Medicine, Inc., a personalized cancer diagnostics company that aims to bring comprehensive cancer genome analysis to routine clinical care.
Nahid oversees all biobanking agreements as well as all of Coriell's biobanking and laboratory operations.
Job Titles:
- Associate Director of IT
- Associate Director, IT Infrastructure
Phill is the Associate Director of IT Infrastructure and oversees all computer infrastructure for the Coriell Institute.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Academic Affairs
Ruby helps to expand Coriell's research capacity by pinpointing funding opportunities which align with the institute's priorities.
At Coriell, Ryan manages fiscal year forecasting, enterprisal-executive level reporting, and contracts management. Additionally, Ryan's team analyzes end-to-end business health from proposal to execution.
I am a Professor in Coriell Institute for Medical Research in Camden, New Jersey. I received my PhD in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry from Beijing Cancer Institute, Beijing University, China where my graduate work focus on the cloning and elucidating the functional role of the VEGF receptor KDR on tumor angiogenesis and tumor metastases in gastric cancer. After obtaining my Ph.D at 1999, I immediately pursue my postdoctoral fellowship in UT, MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and focus on cancer biology in gastrointestinal cancers especially specifically in the esophagus, the area of the body where the esophagus joins the stomach, also known as the gastroesophageal (or GE) junction and gastric cancer. I have been gained extensive experience in gastrointestinal cancer biology, gene transcription and expression regulation, and molecular approaches to investigate the molecular mechanisms of GE junction and gastric cancer initiation, progression, and metastasis.
As an independent investigator, my laboratory and the team are working to investigate the molecular mechanisms and novel targets focusing on how deregulation of Hippo/YAP signaling in mediating CSCs traits, therapy resistance and metastases in gastroesophageal cancers. One of the major projects in the laboratory is to decipher how Hippo/YAP/TAZ or other stem cell factors SOXs mediated immunosuppressive tumor microenvironments and the interaction among tumor cell, macrophage, CAFs and T cells for novel therapeutic strategies. The long-term goal is to develop YAP1/TAZ/TEAD inhibitors for targeted therapy of gastrointestinal cancers and discover novel target and immunotherapy in advanced GI tumors by fully exploring patients derived tissues/cells.
Before Coriell, I was a Professor in the Department of Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology at the University of MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas where I focused on GI cancer research for more than 20 years.
Job Titles:
- Scientific Staff Member
- Associate Director, Business Development
Stacey connects the needs of scientists, foundations, and organizations to the product and service offerings at Coriell.
I received my doctorate degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology under Prof. Xian-hui He, Jinan University, where I studied the anti-melanoma effect of cucurbitacin B and its molecular mechanisms. My Ph.D. work has been highly cited and shed new light on the action mechanism of cucurbitacins and will benefit their application as anticancer agents targeting the actin cytoskeleton.
After graduation, I pursued a postdoctoral fellowship and assisted Dr. Hancai Dan setting up a new lab for prostate cancer research at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. After I moved to Houston, I gained many interesting findings in GI stem cell research using novel stem cell culture technology developed by the team of Prof. Frank McKeon. With the support of Dr. Jaffer A Ajani and Prof. Shumei Song, I collected the biopsies from cancer patients without any treatment and successfully cultured patient-matched stem cells of Barretts-Dysplasia-Adenocarcinoma Sequence. Meanwhile, we constructed very high-precision evolution maps of esophageal adenocarcinoma using these single cell derived stem cells. Based on this work, we received two fundings from the National Cancer Institute and set up a drug screen platform. Moreover, I also participated in cancer immunotherapy research under the guidance of Prof. Shuan Zhang.
Before joining Coriell, I worked in Dr. Eric Jonash team for renal carcinoma research at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. After publishing one DNA damaging related research, I made the decision to join Coriell to embark on a new chapter. With the full support of Prof. Song and Coriell colleague, I will work closely with our team members and try my best to build an excellent GI tract cancer research platform.