Board

Keith Foster is a Partner at Trend Forward Capital where he invests in early stage technology companies. Before Trend Forward Capital, Keith lived in London, UK for 8 years and served as Vice President & Chief of Staff of Trend Micro and prior to that as HR Director, supporting the global field operation. Keith’s organization transformation acumen and international business partnering expertise, assisted in fulfilling Trend Micro’s expansion and vision.

Jared Fox, Ph.D., was the science department chair at Washington Heights Expeditionary Learning School (WHEELS) in Manhattan and has been recognized as a Math for America (MƒA) Master Teacher. Prior to teaching at WHEELS, Jared worked as a teacher in Edinburgh, Scotland and served as a Teach for America corps member in the Bronx. Jared holds a Ph.D. in science education from Teachers College, Columbia University where he researched how mobile science labs influence student attitudes towards science.

Stephen Jan, M.S., is a software engineer. His background includes communication applications at Google, e-commerce at Nook.com, digital advertising at Doubleclick.com, and several startups. Stephen has also founded a nonprofit that donates funding, medical equipment, and ambulances to hospitals in Africa, South America, and Asia. Stephen earned both his Masters and Bachelors degree in computer science and a Masters in bioengineering from Columbia University.

John Butler, J.D., is a Policy Advisory for the Office of the Governor in the State of New Jersey. Previously, he was an attorney and a Fellow at the Center for Court Innovation, a criminal justice think tank based in midtown. He has extensive experience in nonprofit management and operations as well as public sector consulting, including: director of fundraising and operations for Big Brothers Big Sisters, co-founding a nonprofit consulting firm offering communications and public relations services to small nonprofits, and co-founding the Iraq Legal Education Initiative at the American University of Iraq. He was also a design fellow at the Stanford Institute for Innovation in Developing Economies, has represented clients through the Stanford Criminal Defense Clinic, and serves as a Trustee at Frost Valley, YMCA. He is a graduate of Brown University, has a masters in comparative politics from the London School of Economics and a JD from Stanford Law School.

Preston C. Demouchet, Esq., is an attorney in the Trusts and Estates group at Carter Ledyard and Milburn LLP, where he provides tax and estate planning to individuals, families and corporate fiduciaries. Prior to law school, Preston taught middle school math in New York City as a Teach for America Corps member. Preston has been selected to the New York Metro Rising Stars list for Estate Planning and Probate in 2016, 2017 and 2018. Preston holds a B.B.A. in finance from Marymount University and a J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law. Preston is currently pursuing an Executive LL.M in Taxation at Georgetown University Law Center.

Mandë Holford, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in Chemistry at Hunter College and CUNY-Graduate Center, with scientific appointments at the American Museum of Natural History and Weill Cornell Medical College. Her joint appointments reflect her Mollusks to Medicine interdisciplinary research, which combines chemistry and biology to discover, characterize, and deliver novel peptides from venomous marine snails as tools for manipulating cellular physiology in pain and cancer. She is a World Economic Forum New Champion Young Scientist, recipient of the prestigious Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, and an National Science Foundation CAREER awardee. Dr. Holford is actively involved in science education, advancing the public understanding of science, and science diplomacy. In this regard she co-founded several initiatives, including KillerSnails.com, an award-winning learning games company that uses extreme creatures as a conduit to advance scientific teaching and learning, and RAISEW.org, an NSF project to increase women in science. She is a member of the Council of Foreign Relations, the World Economic Forum Expert Network, and a AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow. Dr. Holford joined BioBus’s board in 2018.

Jayne Raper, Ph.D. is a professor of microbiology at NYU School of Medicine.

Joel Oppenheim, Ph.D., was Professor Emeritus and Diversity Advisor to the Office of Science Research and served on the admissions committees for the M.D. and M.D./Ph.D. programs at NYU School of Medicine. Dr. Oppenheim’s leadership increased the participation of women and minorities in Ph.D. biomedical sciences. He ran a National Institutes of Health-funded research lab, was co-PI on an NIH training grant, served as the microbiology departmental graduate advisor, and served as Senior Associate Dean for Biomedical Sciences and Director of the Sackler Institute of Graduate Biomedical Sciences. In these positions, Dr. Oppenheim oversaw approximately 350 students and over 700 postdoctoral trainees annually, as well as all twelve graduate research training programs. Dr. Oppenheim created the largest university-based career development programs for predoctoral and postdoctoral fellows in the country. He served on many national advisory committees, on numerous grant study sections, and as a reviewer of National Research Council, National Science Foundation, and National Academy of Sciences reports involved with graduate education, pipeline issues, and the recruitment and retention of underrepresented students to graduate programs. He spoke widely on topics ranging from how to prepare for and apply to graduate and professional schools to strategies for the recruitment and retention of students and career options. Dr. Oppenheim received the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences Lifetime Mentor Award. He was a founding member of the Leadership Alliance, which received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Engineering and Mathematics.
Joel was a treasured member of our community, a leading voice on our Board of Directors, and dedicated his life to increasing equity in graduate school education in biomedical sciences. He touched countless lives as a mentor and friend. Share your memories of Joel with a message and learn more about his enormous impact at .