Our People and Teams

Paula Schneider
President and CEO

Paula Schneider is president and CEO of Susan G. Komen®, responsible for the strategic direction and day-to-day operation of Komen’s research, community health, public policy advocacy and global programs. Schneider brings a personal perspective to Komen’s mission as a breast cancer survivor whose mother died of metastatic breast cancer.
Learn more about Paula now.

Ed Dandridge
Chair of the Board of Directors

Ed Dandridge is a recognized business leader with a 30+ year track record of joining executive management teams of leading global companies at critical points of transition, working closely with CEOs and boards of directors to help reshape their market positioning and reputation among key stakeholders.
Learn more about Ed now.

Eunice Nakamura
General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

Eunice Nakamura serves as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary and is responsible for the Legal, Audit and Risk functions. Eunice previously practiced at a Dallas law firm, representing corporations and organizations of all types and sizes. She has also served as Vice President of Legal for a large national hotel company overseeing compliance and litigation.
Learn more about Eunice now.

Catherine Olivieri
SVP Human Resources

As vice president, human resources for Susan G. Komen^®, Catherine Olivieri oversees the people-related programs and policies to connect and align business to people strategies throughout the organization. This includes talent acquisition, talent management, employee benefits, compensation, employee relations, succession planning and organizational development. She assures that Susan G. Komen complies with requirements of ERISA, EEO and all federal, state and local statutes in support of the world’s largest breast cancer organization.
Learn more about Catherine now.

Ria Williams
Chief Financial Officer

As chief financial officer for Susan G. Komen®, Ria Williams is responsible for all financial matters affecting the world’s largest breast cancer organization, including the oversight of Komen’s finance and accounting systems. Williams will guide financial strategy for operations at Komen’s headquarters as well as its global network of Affiliates.
Learn more about Ria now.

Victoria Wolodzko Smart
SVP Mission

As senior vice president of mission for Susan G. Komen^®, Victoria leads a team of scientists, public health professionals, educators, and administrators in developing and executing Komen’s investment to fulfill our vision, working to end breast cancer in the U.S. and throughout the world through groundbreaking research, education, screening, and treatment programs in more than 30 countries.
Learn more about Victoria now.

Kim Blackwell
Dr. Blackwell serves as Chief Executive Officer of Zentalis Pharmaceuticals. Prior she served as Chief Medical Officer and SVP of Oncology Clinical Development at Tempus Labs, after serving as VP of Early Phase Oncology and Immunology-oncology at Eli Lilly. Dr. Blackwell was a faculty member at Duke University Cancer Institute for 18 years where she served as the principal or co-principal investigator for over 50 cancer clinical trials, co-founded Cereius, and co-directed the Women’s Cancer Program and Precision Medicine Initiative. She holds a BA degree in Bioethics from Duke University and a MD degree from Mayo Clinic Medical School.

Michelle Bottomley is the Chief Executive Officer of the Modern Growth Exchange, a tech-enabled growth acceleration business. Immediately prior, Michelle served as Chief Marketing Officer for New York Life, Staples, Mercer and Barclaycard. She started her career on the agency side in client and agency leadership roles at Bronner Slosberg Humphrey (currently Digitas), Epsilon and Ogilvy. A fellow with the National Association of Corporate Directors, Michelle has served on the boards of Bose Corp and currently serves on the board of directors for the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) and Prophet, a business transformation consultancy. Bottomley has taken courses toward a Ph.D. in Economics from Boston University (ABD), after completing a B.S. in Biology and a B.A. in Economics from Northeastern University.

Elizabeth de Saint-Aignan is a seasoned private equity and venture capital investor with 25 years of experience investing in rapidly growing technology companies. Elizabeth is currently responsible for AVP’s Late Stage growth equity fund. Before joining AVP, Elizabeth held the positions of Managing Director at Sun Capital Partners and Partner at Jump Capital. Elizabeth previously spent more than seven years at TA Associates. Elizabeth has a BA in International Relations and Economics from Brown University. She holds an MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School. Elizabeth spends time in Boston and New York with her husband and three children. 

Boris Dolgonos is a partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, the global law firm, where his practice focuses on capital markets transactions.  He also advises U.S. and non-U.S. companies on corporate governance, securities laws, stock exchange rules and regulations, and public reporting. Boris is a member of the Advisory Committee of the CONNEX Support Unit, which was conceptualized by the G7 Nations and launched by the German Government to support resource-rich developing countries in negotiating complex commercial contracts, particularly in the extractive industries.  He is also on the Board of Directors of Silkroad, the musical organization that seeks to promote multicultural collaboration and bridge differences through music.  In addition, Boris was the Co-chair of the Board of Directors of the International Senior Lawyers Project, a nonprofit organization that provides legal advice to emerging governments and civil societies on economic development, natural resource governance, and community inclusive development.  Boris is a graduate of Harvard College and Virginia Law School.

Julie Gruber is Chief Legal & Compliance Officer, Corporate Secretary of Gap, Inc. Julie leads the Legal, Compliance, ER, Asset Protection, and Global Security functions for Gap Inc. As Corporate Secretary, she is a trusted advisor to the board and works closely with the Chairman of the Board and the CEO.  Julie’s teams protect the people, property, reputation and information of Gap Inc.’s employees, customers and communities. Julie is a graduate of the University of California’s Hastings College of Law and received her bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Yale University. Julie serves on the Executive Board of LifeMoves – Breaking the Cycle of Homelessness.

Gail Heimann is President and CEO of Weber Shandwick, a leading global communications network that delivers next-generation solutions. Gail oversaw the development of the firm’s evolved service delivery model, designed to drive the kind of deep integration it takes to solve for clients. Gail has accelerated innovation and activation across the firm. She has helped to build brands and burnish reputations for organizations across the industries – from technology and finance to food & beverage and healthcare.

Under Gail’s leadership, Weber Shandwick has won nearly 100 Cannes Lions in partnership with leading brands. She has served on three juries at the Cannes Lions International Festival-of-Creativity: President of the PR jury, 2012; a member of the inaugural Glass Lions jury, which celebrates work that breaks through gender bias and stereotypes, 2014; and a member of the Titanium jury, 2018. In 2020, Gail won PR Agency Head in Campaign’s inaugural U.S. Agency-of-the-Year awards. In 2019, she was honored twice by PRWeek as US Agency Professional of the Year and Global Agency Professional-of-the-Year. Gail and her husband have two daughters and live in New York.

Jerri Johnson began her volunteer efforts with Komen in 2003 and most recently with the Los Angeles County Affiliate as board president. She is a 21 year survivor of stage 4 inflammatory breast cancer and thriver living with metastatic disease. Jerri is an operations executive with over 25 years of experience in the start-up, turnaround, and improvement of organizations in national and international settings. She has demonstrated success in building and leading top-performing teams focused on exceeding organizational goals. She is currently employed with Sony Pictures Entertainment as a VP of Workforce Management Technology.  Prior to joining Sony Pictures Entertainment, she was an executive at The Walt Disney Company and Partner at Ernst & Young leading the ecommerce practice and strategic global accounts. Jerri has a Bachelor of Science in Business from Miami University.

Christina Minnis is global head of Global Head of Credit Finance and Global Head of Acquisition Finance at Goldman Sachs.

Christina joined the firm in 1998 as a vice president in IBD, where she focused on leveraged finance deals. She was named managing director in 2004 and partner in 2008.Prior to joining the firm, Christina was with BT Alex Brown where her last position was managing director in Corporate Finance.

Christina is a member of the Yale Development Council and Yale School of Management Advisory Board. Christina earned a BA in Economics from Yale University and an MM from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Luke Sauter is an accomplished finance and operations executive with a proven track record of delivering transformational business outcomes. He has significant experience in finance, operations and technology and is known for fostering a positive culture across Fortune 50 and non-profit organizations. He spent 16 years with Walgreens where he was based in Deerfield, IL and held several key positions: executive lead for the COVID-19 pandemic response, vice president of specialty pharmacy strategy and finance officer overseeing Walgreens’ pharmacy and retail health businesses. He also has deep experience with public/private partnership development, corporate restructuring and working with boards. Luke finds fulfillment in spending quality time with his family and coaching athletics. As a proud husband and father of two little girls he remains committed to fostering a world where every girl and woman can achieve their fullest potential. 

Luke received a B.S. in accounting from the University of Illinois and is a Certified Public Accountant.  He remains actively engaged in professional organizations including the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, while also maintaining a strong connection to his heritage as a member of the Nansemond Indian Tribal Association.

Kristen Maple is a Retired Partner of Lord Abbett, where she was instrumental in fostering the firm’s principles-led, performance-oriented, and purpose-driven culture, leveraging it as a competitive advantage. In her role, Kristen led the teams responsible for delivering an employee experience that attracted, retained, and inspired top talent, while also promoting enterprise sustainability.

Throughout her career at Lord Abbett, Kristen held several senior leadership positions, including Chief Impact Officer, Chief Administrative Officer for both the firm and Client Service, and oversaw teams in Marketing and Institutional Investor Services. Earlier in her career, she worked in the finance division at JPMorgan Chase & Co. and in the defined contribution recordkeeping department at Deutsche Bank. She has been in the financial services industry since 1995.

Kristen earned a BS in Business Administration from the University of Delaware. She serves on the board of directors of Susan G. Komen, the world’s leading nonprofit in the fight against breast cancer. Additionally, she is a member of the Women’s Forum of New York and the G100 Women’s Network. Kristen resides in Chatham, New Jersey, with her husband and two children.

Valerie Rainey was most recently President of iCIMS where she was responsible for the strategic growth of the business.   She is an experienced global executive and Board member with private equity backed and public companies (ranging from $150M – $2.5B) with 20+ years of executive leadership in SaaS/Technology.  She has diverse executive experience leading strategy, corporate development, partner ecosystem, M&A, sales, marketing, customer service, technology, and front & back-office operations.  Through the course of her career, she has developed a track record for building high performing teams, scaling companies, accelerating growth, creating enterprise value and driving successful exits.

Before joining iCIMS, Rainey served as CFO for a number of private equity backed and public companies. Earlier in her career, Rainey was with global public accounting firms.   She currently serves on the Board of Envoy Global.

Rainey was recognized as a leader in finance by NJBIZ in 2021 and received the 2019 Silver Stevie Award for Female Executive of the Year.  She holds a B.S. in Psychology and an M.B.A. from Fordham University.

Charles Rockefeller is the Co-Founder of CuraPatient, an AI-enabled digital health platform in use at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Its primary functions are to provide intuitive care plans, patient engagement tools and automated administration. Curapatient is one of only 21 companies to have been certified as FedRamp High, which indicates the highest possible standard of cybersecurity and government interoperability. CuraPatient also won first prize in a Tech Sprint competition hosted by the National Institute of Artificial Intelligence and was named “The Future of Healthcare.”

BJ Schaknowski is the CEO of symplr, a leading healthcare operations software and services company.   BJ is a seasoned software industry executive, with over 20 years of experience in leadership roles across a wide variety of operating functions. Before joining symplr, BJ served as the Chief Sales & Marketing Officer at Vertafore, the world’s leading provider of insurance technology. He held numerous senior and global leadership roles earlier in his career at LexisNexis, CA Technologies, Intuit, and Sage Software.  BJ brings his dedication to creating balanced value and outcomes for employees, customers, and shareholders to the symplr community. He earned a BA in Communications from the State University of New York at Geneseo and his MBA at the University of Georgia – Terry College of Business. BJ served in the United States Marine Corps infantry as an enlisted reservist for 8 years. He lives in Denver with his wife, Heather, and two children.

Robyn Shepherd is the Co-Head of Asia Pacific, responsible for developing and managing the commercial strategy across the region, with a focus on new business development. She joined Bridgewater in 2004 and is a Partner of the firm. She has spent nearly two decades in executive, commercial, and investment roles at Bridgewater, most recently as Head of Corporate Engagement, where she oversaw public affairs, corporate communications, CSR, DEI, and served on the Operating Committee and Commercial and Business Strategy Committee.

Robyn began her career at Bridgewater as a Senior Investment Associate in the Account Management group and later took on other key roles within the firm’s Client Service and Marketing team — first as an Associate Client Advisor covering international clients and business development, and later as the Head of Client Service Analytics. Subsequently, Robyn served as Chief of Staff to CEO David McCormick, partnering with him on the firm’s strategic agenda, business oversight, founder transition, corporate governance, and management of the Client Service and Marketing department.

Robyn was a founding member of the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion Council, and the Co-Founder and Executive Sponsor of Bridgewater’s Women’s Influence Network (WIN). In 2020, she was recognized by The Hedge Fund Journal as one of the “50 Leading Women in Hedge Funds” and was named the 2021 “Women of Excellence: Trailblazer” by Seramount, in partnership with Working Mother and the National Association for Female Executives.

Before joining Bridgewater, Robyn was an Analyst at Lime Rock Partners and an Investment Analyst at HarbourVest Partners. She serves on the boards of Susan G. Komen, the world’s largest non-profit source of funding for the fight against breast cancer, and Oakland Catholic High School, an all-women’s college preparatory school in Pittsburgh, PA. Robyn received her BA in economics from Brown University.

Kathy Sutherland is a Partner and the Chief Executive Officer of GoldenTree Asset Management. In addition, Ms. Sutherland is a member of GoldenTree’s Executive Committee. Ms. Sutherland oversees the firm’s global strategy, product and business development, and long-term planning. Prior to joining GoldenTree, Ms. Sutherland was a Managing Director at J.P. Morgan where she was responsible for Fund and Structured Product Distribution across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia from 2005 to 2008. During that period, J.P. Morgan became recognized as a leading Fund and Structured Product franchise, advising many of the most important asset managers and investors globally. In her 12 years at J.P. Morgan, Ms. Sutherland held several management positions across Portfolio Management, Structured Credit and High Yield including Senior US CLO Structurer, Co-Head of European Secondary Loan Trading, Head of High Yield Credit Derivatives Marketing, and Global Head of Structured Syndicate. Ms. Sutherland graduated from the University of Virginia with a B.A. in Chemistry and specialization in Biochemistry.

Lydia The is Vice President of Strategy & Growth at Eli Lilly, a leading global pharmaceuticals company with the mission of creating medicines that make life better for people around the world. She is in the Corporate Business Development function where she is responsible for potentially transformational transactions. 

Previously, she was a Partner in McKinsey’s Life Sciences Practice. She was the US lead for the McKinsey Cancer Center, which is responsible for the firm’s work on oncology for biopharma, provider, nonprofit and regulator clients. She was also the McKinsey lead for the Bloomberg International Cancer Coalition, co-led by the Bloomberg New Economy Forum, Memorial Sloan Kettering and Asia Society, which has the mission of strengthening international clinical trial collaboration. 

Lydia received her Ph.D. in Molecular & Cell Biology at UC Berkeley, where she was supported by a National Science Foundation’s Graduate Research Fellowship.

Nancy G. Brinker, Founder

Nancy G. Brinker is regarded as the leader of the global breast cancer movement. Her journey began with a simple promise to her dying sister, Susan G. Komen, that she would do everything possible to end the shame, pain, fear and hopelessness caused by this disease. In one generation, the organization that bears Susan’s name has changed the world. Learn more about Nancy now.