Barrow Neurological Foundation is proud to announce the appointment of three new leadership positions to its Board of Trustees. Mitchel Sayare, PhD, will serve as the new Board Chair, Donna Johnson as Vice Chair, and Ellen Katz as Secretary. Under the Board’s guidance, Barrow Neurological Foundation remains the leading foundation in the CommonSpirit system, increases overall philanthropy each year, and provides record grants to Barrow Neurological Institute.
Outgoing Chair Mike Hecomovich has provided tremendous leadership to the Foundation during his tenure, leading to a total of $121 million raised, $92.5 million transferred to the Institute, and a 7% growth in the Foundation’s donor base.
Incoming Chair Mitchel Sayare, PhD, was co-founder, chairman, and CEO of NASDAQ-listed ImmunoGen, Inc. (IMGN), a billion-dollar biotechnology company focused on the development of anti-cancer drugs. He is chairman of the board of The Lundquist Institute, a member of the Dean’s Council of the WP Carey School of Business at ASU, and the co-founder of the ASU Health Futures Council. He is also chairman of the board or a director of several for-profit biotech companies.
Incoming Vice-Chair Donna Johnson has held leadership positions among various Arizona nonprofit organizations for the past twenty years. She is the Vice President of Advancement for the Phoenix Country Day School Board of Trustees, Phoenix Art Museum’s Circles Advisory Council, and the Arizona Costume Institute’s Board of Directors. She also serves on the boards of the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) and Los Milics Vineyards.
Incoming Secretary Ellen Katz serves as a trustee of Northwestern University, Mount Sinai Health System, Lincoln Center Theater, the Child Mind Institute, and the Phoenix Art Museum, which she chaired from 2007 to 2010. Ellen and her husband, Howard, are supporters of ASU, where they chaired the President’s Council, as well as HonorHealth and the Arizona Science Center.
Barrow Neurological Foundation is also proud to announce that three new trustees have joined its Board: Dr. Chris Howard, Nan Howlett, and Lauri Termansen.
Chris Howard, DPhil, is executive vice president and chief operating officer of Arizona State University. Previously, Dr. Howard served as president of Robert Morris University, president of Hampden-Sydney College, and vice president for leadership and strategic initiatives at the University of Oklahoma. He is a trustee on the Harvard University Board of Overseers and serves on the Board of Directors of AvalonBay Communities, a publicly traded real estate corporation. Dr. Howard served on the National Security Education Board, appointed by President Barack Obama, and the MyVA Advisory Committee for the Department of Veterans Affairs. He is the founder and a trustee emeritus of the Impact Young Lives Foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports South African youth.
Nan Howlett, originally from Phoenix, lived in Paris, France, from 1984 to 2001. There, she managed duty-free locations in 21 countries across Europe and North Africa for L’Oréal Corporation, the largest cosmetics company in the world. Prior to joining L’Oréal, she worked for Bozell and Jacobs J/T Advertising in Phoenix and McCann Erickson Advertising in Paris. Upon returning to the United States, Nan became involved in several Phoenix non-profits, including Arizona Women’s Board, Arizona Foundation for Women, March of Dimes, Phoenix Heart Ball, Phoenix Theatre’s 100th Anniversary, Phoenix Symphony, JDRF, HomeBase Youth Services, and Homeward Bound.
Lauri Termansen is the founder and president of Capital Merchant Services, a payment processing company in New York City. There, she developed a sales and operations team that helps businesses accept credit and debit payments. She also oversaw risk and residuals and continues to maintain revenue streams for existing clients. Lauri is a former trustee of the Arizona Opera and has served on fundraising committees for the American Heart Association, Ballet Arizona, Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Phoenix Art Museum, Planned Parenthood, Arizona Costume Institute, and Barrow Neurological Foundation’s Neuro Night event.
“We are fortunate to have a group of trustees who bring enormous intellectual power and business acumen to our important work. This holds true for the three new members joining our Board. Chris’s proficiency in leading academic institutions, Nan’s expertise in international business, and Lauri’s experience in the payment processing industry will be invaluable to the Foundation’s evolution as the Institute expands its global footprint,” said Mitchel Sayare, PhD, Chair of the Barrow Neurological Foundation Board of Trustees.
Barrow Neurological Foundation is governed by the Board of Trustees, which comprises community members who serve on a voluntary basis. Initial Board appointments are for one year, with reappointment up for three consecutive three-year terms.