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Founder and CEO
Dr. Mensah holds a BSc (Hons) in Biomedical Sciences degree from the University of the West of England, UK, a Master’s degree in Medical Genetics & Immunogenetics from Brunel University, UK and a Triple Doctorate degree in Anatomy, Physiology and Genetics from University of Oxford, UK.
He is the founder and executive director of The Pathway Initiative Inc (TPI). He sees the founding of The Pathway Initiative as a clarion call, as he has experienced first-hand the devastating impact of health inequality in underserved communities by the sudden loss of both parents six-months apart.
Dr. Mensah has over 15 yr of experience in medical education, admissions, teaching, research, and student supervision. He trained as a scientist and researcher at the University of Cambridge, UK, Harvard Medical School, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). His research publications span hemato-oncology, genetics, bioengineering, photomedicine and nanomedicine. He is a recipient of the prestigious International Young Investigator Scientific Award in hematology.
He has mentored over 35 students, some are now practicing physicians.
Given his own humble beginnings from a small town in Ghana, he strongly believes that no child’s future should be shackled by their socio-economic background.
Besides academia, he takes to his other passion which spans over two decades of church leadership and educational support to the youth in his local community. He credits his career journey to the amazing grace of the Lord. He is married to his beautiful wife, Rosemary, they are blessed with two children, Edna and Lawrence Jr.
Physician, Harvard Medical School & Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Dr. Andrew Becker is a physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and member of the faculty at Harvard Medical School. An anesthesiologist by training, Andrew is both a practicing physician and active advisor to tech-enabled healthcare startups in the Boston area. Andrew is a Flare Scholar at Flare Capital — a VC fund focused on healthcare based in Boston, MA — and previously served as an internal consultant in the value based care division of Cigna.
Prior to coming to Boston, Andrew was a fellow at the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics where he led research engagements and published on multiple topics, including the economic drivers of care during Covid-19, home-based care investments in Medicare Advantage, and the effects of the Social Determinants of Health on readmissions. Andrew completed his MD, MPH, and residency training at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
Chief External Relations Officer – Rosie’s Place
Sue Chandler has worked diligently for decades to advocate for social justice, health, and equity issues. She earned her Master of Public Health and Master of Social Work degrees at the University of Michigan, focusing on Management of Health & Human Services and Women’s Health Education & Public Policy. Sue served as the Executive Director DOVE (Domestic Violence Ended), Inc., from 2010-2023. Sue Chandler is currently the Chief External Relations Officer of Rosie’s Place, a multi-service community center for poor and homeless women.
Prior to this, Sue was the Director of the Community Advocacy Program of the Center for Community Health Education, Research, and Service, Inc. (CCHERS), from 1998-2010; the Community Advocacy Program is a partnership of community health center-based domestic violence programs in Boston. She also was an Instructor in Suffolk University’s Graduate Program in Women’s Health & Human Rights in 2009. She previously worked as a health advocate at the Vermont Women’s Health Center, a trainer on women’s health exams with several medical and nursing schools, and a health educator with migrant and seasonal farmworker youth in Michigan.
Executive Management Consultant & Nonprofit Project Director
George Earley is an award-winning producer of conferences and trade shows in the US and internationally, having produced over 1000+ events in the US, Canada, UK, Switzerland, Italy, and Dubai. His events have specialized in IT, biotech, economics, refugee affairs, and women’s causes, and often attract high-level speakers from leading positions in their fields.
After 10 years of leading major conference and marketing campaigns across the world, George turned his attention to nonprofit consulting to help human services nonprofits raise funds using the same techniques deployed by the largest corporate campaigns in the market.
Since 2021, George has helped dozens of grassroots nonprofits and social activists secure over $15 million in funding for services benefiting refugees and immigrants, case management, and equity issues. In Boston, his experience has benefited organizations like the Simmons Institute for Inclusive Leadership, the GK Fund, VISIONS Inc., and more. His nonprofit work has aligned closely with leading institutions, including specializing in university experiences, having produced Presidential events for 6 university leaders including presidents at Harvard, MIT, Northeastern, and Simmons.
Clinical Program Manager and Franchise Lead – Boston Scientific
Ornela Gjata has established a significant presence in the medical device industry through her roles at Boston Scientific, progressing from Clinical Project Specialist to Clinical Program Manager. Since February 2023, she has served as the Clinical Program Manager and Franchise Lead, directing strategic initiatives across departments and providing scientific expertise that spans training, regulatory support, and product development. Her work focuses on enhancing disease understanding and product competitiveness within specific franchises such as Access & Patency, Metabolic & Bariatric Endoscopy, and Endoluminal Surgery.
During her tenure at Boston Scientific, she has also developed and managed clinical studies, established key partnerships with physicians, and driven clinical strategy and integration efforts. Ornela’s early career stages involved substantial research and coordination responsibilities at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, contributing to her deep scientific and clinical expertise.
Ornela’s educational background includes a Master’s degree in Biological Sciences from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from George Mason University. Her professional skill set is complemented by several certifications in clinical research and medical device monitoring. Her work has been recognized with multiple awards and publications, underscoring her contribution to medical science and technology.
Head of Plasma Derived Therapies, Data & Digital Technologies Strategy and Operations at Takeda Pharmaceuticals.
Dr. Gurley has broad experience in Health Information Technologies currently serving
as the Head of Plasma Derived Therapies, Data & Digital Technologies Strategy and Operations at Takeda Pharmaceuticals out of Cambridge MA.
Dr. Gurley has spent her 25-year career leading Digital Transformations and developing technologies that support acute and post-acute care, hospice, dialysis, and laboratory and life sciences.
Dr. Gurley earned her Ph.D. from the University of Maryland Baltimore County, and her research thesis is in Information Technology/ Human Centered Computing with a focus on technology and
Aging/Accessibility issues.
Though Dr. Gurley’s career has been focused on technology, Dr. Gurley’s true passion is serving others by creating opportunities which create individual success through coaching. Dr. Gurley is the Founder of ISO Life Coaching Services, where she helps clients find success both professionally and personally. “I am inspired every day observing the impact of a positive conversation on someone’s paradigm,” she said. Dr. Gurley is a certified Executive and Career Coach with expertise in Holistic Emotional Intelligence, Positive Intelligence, and Life Harmony Coaching. The ISO in her business stands for her business motto: “I Serve Others.” She wanted to create a platform to help others feel or learn to feel as passionate about their careers as she feels about her own.
In her spare time Dr. Gurley is also an author and international speaker. In her latest book “Leading Humans” Dr. Gurley provides a handbook to new leaders who are leading a team for the first time and provides tactical steps for readers searching to find effective ways to lead a human workforce.
Director of Vaccine Communications – Takeda Pharmaceuticals
Shay Hyman is a strategic communications professional with over a decade of experience in the biopharma industry. She supports communications for Takeda’s Global Vaccine Business Unit, which aims to develop and deliver innovative vaccines that tackle some of the toughest problems in public health. Shay develops integrated communications plans to support clinical and regulatory milestones across Takeda’s vaccine pipeline, including the approval and launch of a dengue vaccine in countries around the world. She also leads the business unit’s internal communications, digital communications, and executive visibility strategy. Shay has served as a board member on Takeda’s Gender Parity Employee Resource Group, and a member of the Vaccines DE&I Steering Committee.
Prior to joining Takeda in 2018, Shay spent six years at Sanofi Genzyme in various roles of increasing responsibility supporting internal and digital communications, and product communications. Throughout her career, Shay has supported all facets of communications across various therapeutic areas including rare diseases, immunology, and oncology.
Shay specializes in leadership communications, change management, employee communications, event management, and writing. She is a skilled storyteller driven to impact public health and improve the lives of people around the world.
Shay received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication Studies from Northeastern University, graduating magna cum laude.
Enna Jimenez is a seasoned quality assurance executive, author, and advocate for DEI and women empowerment. Her mission is to drive innovation and excellence through quality assurance practices, and to inspire and equip professionals, especially women and Latinas, to pursue quality assurance career paths. She is an executive career coach specializing in leadership and personal growth. With 30+ years in leadership, technology, and transformation management, Enna also mentors and champions DEI initiatives.
She has led QA teams at IDEMIA, Eastern Bank, Kronos, and Wellington Management, showcasing her prowess in driving quality and excellence across diverse industries. Enna actively engages in community initiatives and serves on boards like the ALPFA National Board of Directors, the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Eastern Massachusetts and The Pathway Initiative (TPI).
Her impact in tech coupled with her commitment to fostering talent engagement and cultivating community initiatives has earned her widespread recognition and admiration. Notable accolades include Amplify Latinx inaugural ALX100 Award, Involve ‘Heroes’ as an Executive Role Model in 2023 & 2022 and ALPFA’s Women of ALPFA 2022 award. She has also been recognized as one of the 2021 Leading Latinas by Hispanic Executive magazine and was a recipient of the E.L.I.T.E. Award from NSBE Boston Professionals.
Her co-authored book “Extraordinary Latinas: Powerful Voices of Resilience, Courage & Empowerment” amplifies diverse voices, reflecting her dedication to empowerment. Enna’s commitment to excellence and inclusion continues to inspire positive change.
Chief Financial Officer – VIVTEX CORPORATION
Mr. Lopez is a global finance executive and business leader with 20+ years of experience in operational and financial management as well as business partnering and strategic leadership with a core emphasis on profitable growth (with outstanding business acumen, operational & commercial excellence, M&A, fundraising, and analytics skills), working with global companies (start-up, small, mid, and large-cap, both public and private) across different industries including pharma & biotech, consumer products, lighting/energy, specialty chemicals, semiconductors as well as R&D and manufacturing.
Mr. Lopez holds a Global MBA from Suffolk University in Boston, MA, and a Masters in Economics from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogota, Colombia. He also earned the “Business Excellence” Certification for completing the CFO Executive Program at Columbia Business School in New York, NY.
Mr. Lopez’s work experience includes, in his most recent role, he served as CFO at Vivtex Corporation, a private pre-clinical drug development Biotech company, based in Cambridge, MA. Prior to Vivtex Corporation, he served as CFO at Gemline, a leader in the promotional products industry. Prior to Gemline, he served as CFO, SLS Energy Solutions at WESCO International and CFO, Lighting Solutions at OSRAM, in which he led a successful due diligence and M&A process.
Director of Marketing and Communications – The Dimock Center
Golsa Mirhosseini is the Director of Marketing and Communications at The Dimock Center, a community health center in Roxbury, MA offering primary and specialty medical care, behavioral health, early education, and more.
She brings experience in communications strategy, marketing operations, media relations, fundraising, and events. With a commitment to ensuring that all youth have the opportunities they need to thrive, Ms. Mirhosseini has held positions in several Boston-based human services agencies. Currently, she serves on the board of Accompany Doula Care.
She received her Master of Social Work from the Boston University School of Social Work and a Bachelor of Arts from Boston University.
Managing Director at Koya Partners, Executive Search, Higher Education
Ms. Beth Schaefer is a Managing Director at Koya Partners in Boston, part of the Diversified Search Group, working in the higher education and non-profit sectors. Beth specializes in leading Chief Financial Officer, Chief Human Resource Officer, Chief Enrollment Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Procurement Officer, and senior executive searches in academic and administrative leadership roles across multiple functional areas.
With more than twenty years of corporate experience in the human resources role and over a decade of executive search experience in higher education, non-profit, and corporate sectors, Beth partners with a broad range of institutions from liberal arts colleges, Jesuit and other faith based institutions, to large public and private research universities and academic medical centers.
Before joining Koya Partners in 2017, Beth worked as a search consultant with a boutique higher education search firm as well as with a regional human resources leadership search firm. Prior to a career in search she held roles in human resources management in a mix of industries, mainly in the Boston area.
Beth is an active participant in career coaching and on panels with national professional higher education associations such as NACUBO, ACE, and CUPA-HR. Beth is an active member of Boston-area and national human resources organizations, local community arts and environmental sustainability organizations and volunteers at a women’s shelter.
Beth received her Bachelor of Science in Business from Providence College, Rhode Island and earned her M.B.A from Simmons University, Massachusetts.
Medical Interpreter and Trainer at Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Andrea Velázquez is an unapologetic, afroLatina born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts with Puerto Rican roots. Andrea’s superpower is bringing the best of both worlds of her AfroLatinidad to the table. She has the power to bridge the linguistic, cultural, medical and community gap between communities and organizations.
Andrea is currently a Medical Interpreter and Trainer at Brigham and Women’s Hospital’s Interpreter Services Department. She also serves on the hospital’s Ethics Committee and the Schwartz Rounds Advisory Committee. She has more than 25 years of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion experience and has been a Medical Interpreter for over 20 years. As a Medical Interpreter Language Coach for over 15 years, she has trained and mentored more than 200 professional Interpreters throughout her career. Andrea continues to inspire and mentor young professionals in this field.
Andrea is the proud mother of an amazing, AfroLatino young man and grandmother to 5 beautiful grandchildren. She is always looking to create opportunities to make the world a better place for her family and her community. Drea is happiest when she is helping others achieve their goals and live in their purpose. Her coaching and mentoring experience have given her the sense of purpose, which is why she started her life coaching business. ”What’s Your Legacy Coaching” is dedicated to supporting youth and adults between the ages of 16-24 in creating a legacy they are proud of.
Andrea currently serves as the Director of Rising Latino Leaders on the ALPFA Boston Board, the Celebrate Literacy Day Committee and the Beth Israel Deaconess Plymouth Advisory Board. Andrea has also served as a mentor with EforAll/EparaTodos, Strong Women Strong Girls and Chica Project.
Andrea considers herself “not the norm” and prefers to color outside the lines and create her own masterpiece.
Director
Bob Vieraitis spent his 30-year technology career bringing innovative hardware, software and online services to market. After serving as Project Engineer in the United States Air Force, Bob joined Data General as a product manager and then moved to Silicon Valley to work for Sun Microsystems, an emerging provider of workstations, servers and operating system software. Bob spent nine years at Sun in roles of increasing responsibility and helped the company grow to more than $6B in revenue.
Bob left Sun to help found one of the first wave of Internet companies and spent the balance of his career as a marketing executive in several different start-ups. He led product management and marketing at Solidcore, a security software provider acquired by McAfee and was VP of product management at Portal Software, where he helped create a pioneering billing system for Internet services and was part of the executive team that led the company to a successful Initial Public Offering.
Bob graduated from MIT with a BS in Computer Science and received his MBA in Finance from Babson College. He is retired and currently serves in various volunteer roles. Bob and his wife Donna live in downtown Boston and Naples, Florida.
Principal at Bridge Boston Charter School
Cherose is a foundational member of the TPI Board and the Executive Committee Team. She has been actively involved with TPI since its establishment. Currently, Cherose Walker holds the position of Principal at Bridge Boston Charter School in Roxbury, MA. She holds a Master of Education (M.Ed.) degree in Prevention Science and Practice from Harvard University, a Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a Marketing Concentration from Suffolk University in Boston, and a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Economics and African-American Studies from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Her dedication to addressing systemic inequities and promoting cultural understanding in educational settings is discernible in both her academic pursuits and personal values, which she applies across all aspects of her professional and personal endeavors.
Senior Associate Director of Planned Giving Marketing – Harvard University
Shannon Watterson has more than 13 years of experience in marketing and communications across non-profit, healthcare, corporate, and consumer industries. With a career spanning both in-house and PR agencies, she has a passion for storytelling and a talent for finding the right message, for the right channel, at the right time.
Shannon is currently Senior Associate Director of Planned Giving Marketing at Harvard University, having previously led marketing efforts for Jimmy Fund events at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute as an Associate Director of Philanthropy Communications. She is passionate about fundraising and improving access to medical care, particularly for oncology. She graduated from Boston University in 2011 with a bachelor’s degree in Communications and a minor in History.
In her free time, Shannon loves to travel, cheer for the Boston Celtics, play board games, and spend time with her fiancé and cat.
