NOVA MENTIS LIFE SCIENCES - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Executive Chairman of the Nova Mentis Life Science Management & Directors Team
Derek Ivany has more than two decades of experience successfully working with publicly traded companies and helping generate significant shareholder value in a variety of sectors through corporate development outreach, mergers and acquisitions, capital markets support and other strategic value enhancement initiatives.
Having worked with a variety of international groups, Mr. Ivany has established a network of high-profile business leaders across such sectors as medicinal products, health and wellness, mining, oil and gas, coffee, technology, horse racing and real estate.
Mr. Ivany joins the Nova team with a personal interest in advancing autism spectrum disorder (ASD) research. He is now the primary caregiver for his brother, who was diagnosed with severe ASD at a young age. He has witnessed first-hand the devastating effects that severe autism can have on a family and is passionate about finding new and effective treatment options to help improve the lives of people impacted by the disorder.
Job Titles:
- Lead Scientist, Strategic Advisor
Specializing in scientific discovery and corporate strategy, Dr. Perederiy holds expertise along the full spectrum of biological innovation, from single-cell analytics to systems-level therapeutics. Julia is an author of multiple peer-reviewed publications, including highly regarded studies on the neurogenetics of autism and brain plasticity in neurodegeneration.
Dr. Perederiy is also an experienced entrepreneur and management consultant, helping biotechnology companies with business planning, market research and fundraising. Dr. Perederiy holds Bachelor's degrees in Neurobiology and Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley, a Master's in Technology Entrepreneurship from University of Portland and a PhD in Neuroscience from Oregon Health & Science University.
Job Titles:
- Director of Data Science at Nike, Inc
Dr. Ambert is currently Director of Data Science at Nike, Inc. and has extensive experience in data analytics, machine learning, artificial intelligence and applied analytics. His previous experience includes postings with the National Library of Medicine and Intel Corp. Dr. Ambert holds a PhD in Biomedical Informatics from Oregon Health & Science University.
Job Titles:
- Immunologist
- Member of the Chairman of Scientific Advisory Board
Dr. Hausman is an Immunologist and Board-Certified Urological Surgeon with more than 30 years of drug research and development experience with various pharmaceutical companies, including Bristol-Myers International, Mead-Johnson Pharmaceutical Co., E.R. Squibb, Medco Research, and Axonyx.
He was a co-founder of Medco Research Inc., a NYSE listed clinical research organization and biotechnology company specializing in adenosine products that was subsequently acquired by King Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Hausman was also a co-founder of Axonyx, and served in various capacities as President, CEO and Chairman until the company merged into NASDAQ listed Torrey Pines Therapeutics Inc. in 2006. Dr. Hausman is currently a Director of NuGenerex Biotechnology Corporation and is Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Science and Technology Officer of Entia Biosciences Inc.
Dr. Hausman has done residencies in General Surgery at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York, and in Urological Surgery at UCLA Medical Center. He received his medical degree from New York University School of Medicine.
He is on the Alumni Board of Governors of NYU Grossman School of Medicine.
Job Titles:
- Chief Science Officer
- Director
- Member of the Nova Mentis Life Science Management & Directors Team
Dr. Stephen Glazer began practicing medicine in Toronto, Ontario, Canada at North York Branson Hospital in 1994, and since then has been practicing as a board-certified specialist in Internal Medicine and Intensive Care Medicine in Ontario. He has become specialized in pre-operative risk assessment, has worked in the areas of cardiology and diabetes, and is recognized as a specialist in sleep medicine.
He is a national leader and specialist in bariatrics, the branch of medicine that deals with the study and treatment of people living with obesity. In 2010, Dr. Glazer became the Medical Director for Bariatrics at Humber River Hospital in Toronto. He sits on the board for the Ontario Bariatric Network, as well as on multiple committees. He is also the President of the Canadian Association of Bariatric Physicians and Surgeons.
Job Titles:
- Founder and CEO of Altucell Biotech
Gary R. Harlem is the founder and CEO of Altucell Biotech, a cellular engineering and biotech company focused on fulfilling a large "unmet need" in cell, molecular and regenerative therapy for treatment of diabetes and other autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases. He is an accomplished entrepreneur focused on the health and wellness sector, launching several companies in the nutritional supplement and health food markets.
Mr. Harlem has a degree in Education from Dowling College in New York and began his career as a special education teacher. He became interested in exploring novel treatment strategies for autoimmune diseases when his son was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of 10.
Job Titles:
- COO
- Director
- Member of the Nova Mentis Life Science Management & Directors Team
Jacqueline McConnell has over twenty years of experience working for Apotex Inc., one of Canada's largest pharmaceutical companies. She provides critical business strategy input at a senior leadership level to support an organization's ability to achieve local and global growth and corporate sustainability. Ms. McConnell has proven experience developing and implementing programs and systems. Her key contributions include building and leading numerous successful teams to support efficient management of capital and operating activity across budget management, scheduling, quality, safety, and regulatory compliance.
Job Titles:
- Board Certified Behaviour Analyst
John Molinaro is a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst (BCBA) with a Master's degree in Applied Behaviour Analysis, as well as a Bachelor's degree in Psychology. For more than 13 years, Mr. Molinaro has dedicated his life to supporting children, youth and adults challenged with physical and cognitive disabilities.
Since 2015, Mr. Molinaro shifted his efforts primarily towards the autism community and started the Colours of the Spectrum ABA autism clinic in 2018. Mr. Molinaro and his team have supported hundreds of children and families with varying severities of autism through one-on-one behaviour therapy and parent coaching.
Mr. Molinaro continues to be a passionate advocator for the research and use of cannabis and classical psychedelics in the field of mental health. As his passion continues to grow, Mr. Molinaro hopes to one day soon bring the science of psychedelic medicine into the realm of autism intervention.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Nova Mentis Life Science Management & Directors Team
- Corporate Administrator
Kelly Pladson has provided corporate governance and regulatory compliance services to many TSX Venture and CSE listed companies since 2009. She works closely with the company's CEO and legal counsel in maintaining corporate records, managing the day to day operations of the company and ensuring the company's filings with the securities commissions and exchanges are accurately filed and in accordance with their deadlines. Prior to 2009, Ms. Pladson was an investment advisor's assistant for two years.
Job Titles:
- CFO
- Member of the Nova Mentis Life Science Management & Directors Team
- Chartered Professional Accountant
Ms. Hudson is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA) with over 23 years of experience in accounting and financial reporting, corporate finance, risk management, financial audit and corporate governance, serving a range of industries, including mining and exploration, oil and gas, cannabis, manufacturing and retail, and not-for-profit. Ms. Hudson has served as CFO, and consulted for, a number of publicly-listed resource companies with projects in North and South America and across Europe. Ms. Hudson holds a Bachelor's Degree and a Masters of Accounting from the University of Waterloo. She is a strategic, senior financial leader with a proven record in building financial operations and developing talent in growth-focused organizations.
Job Titles:
- CEO
- Member of the Nova Mentis Life Science Management & Directors Team
- President
Mr. Rascan brings +30 years' experience in the investment brokerage/capital markets industry, currently as President & CEO of Nova Mentis Life Science Corp (formerly Liberty Leaf Holdings) and previous to that, as CEO of Weststar Resources. During his tenure at Liberty Leaf, Mr. Rascan oversaw all aspects of the business which included a fundamental change of business into the cannabis sector, successfully shepherding its Health Canada cultivation and processing license and growing the company to +$100mm mkt cap.