Board of Directors

The Institute is governed by a Board of Directors made up of individuals who share a passion for eradicating the number one killer of Americans.

	Richard J. Katz, MD, FACC. Chairman Richard J. Katz, MD is the director of the division of Cardiology at The George Washington University Hospital, a position he has held since 1997. He also is the Bloedorn Professor of Cardiology. Dr. Katz is involved in numerous research studies evaluating heart failure, coronary artery disease and cardiac rhythm disorders. He has served as the principal investigator for a number of national clinical trials, including: CAST, Cardiac Arrhythmia Suppression Trial; PEACE, Prospective Evaluation of ACE Inhibitors; and BEST, Beta-blocker Evaluation of Survival Trial.
	Barbara L. Bass, MD, RESD ’86 Board Member Barbara L. Bass, MD, RESD ’86, vice president for health affairs (VPHA), dean of the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS), and chief executive officer of The GW Medical Faculty Associates (GW MFA), is a widely respected leader in academic medicine, a surgeon, and a published author known for her pioneering innovation in academic surgery.
	Steven London Board Member Since joining Savills Studley in 1989, Steve has provided real estate advisory services to law firms, corporations, not-for-profit organizations and trade associations throughout the Washington, DC metropolitan area and United States. He has represented tenants totaling in excess of 6 million square feet and in excess of $3 billion.
	Timothy McCaffrey, PhD Board Member Timothy A. McCaffrey, PhD, relocated his laboratory from the Cornell University Medical College in New York City to The George Washington University in 2001. At GW, he founded the Genomics Core Facility, which provides microarray services and other genomics support to the entire research faculty at GW. In the same year, he co-founded a new Master’s program in Genomics, Proteomics and Bioinformatics; he and his colleagues are currently constructing a highly innovate PhD in this rapidly expanding field.
	Robert Miller, PhD Board Member Dr. Robert Miller is a neuroscientist, researcher and administrator in the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences. He is a professor in the Department of Anatomy and Regenerative Biology and was installed as the university's Vivian Gill Distinguished Research Professor in 2015.
	Farzad Najam, MD Board Member Farzad Najam, MD, serves as the Director of Cardiac Surgery and Clinical Professor of Surgery at The George Washington University Hospital. He is board certified in Thoracic Surgery. He specializes in cardiac surgery and has expertise in mitral valve repair surgery, surgery for atrial fibrillation, valvular heart disease, thoracic aortic diseases, Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO).
	Jonathan S. Reiner, MD, FACC Board Member Jonathan S. Reiner, MD, is the director of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory at The George Washington University Hospital and a professor of Medicine at The George Washington University Medical Center. He is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology and maintains membership with the American Heart Association.
	Kimberly D. Russo, MBA Board Member Kimberly Russo, MS, was appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the George Washington University Hospital in May 2016. Before being named CEO, Ms. Russo served as Chief Operating Officer for the hospital since April 2009. Prior to that, she was Associate Administrator at the hospital since August 2006, and was previously Executive Director of Rehabilitation Services. She holds an MBA from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, through a collaborative leadership program with Gallup, a Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology from Rush University in Chicago, and a Bachelor of Science in Speech Language Pathology and Audiology from Illinois State University.
	Anton Sidawy, MD, MPH Board Member Dr. Sidawy is professor and chairman of the Department of Surgery at The GW Medical Faculty Associates. He is a Vascular Surgeon with special interest in the management of lower extremity diabetic vascular disease. Dr. Sidawy finished his Vascular Surgery Fellowship at Boston University Hospital. He also obtained a M.P.H degree in Health Care Administration from George Washington University.
	Kannan Srinivasan Board Member Kannan Srinivasan is a Finance professional with 30 years of experience in building high performance teams and helping companies achieve and manage high growth in customer service, insurance and retail sector.
	Cynthia M. Tracy, MD, FACC Board Member A cardiologist with more than twenty years experience in the Washington area, Dr. Cynthia Tracy is a professor of Medicine and the director of Cardiology Services at The George Washington University Hospital. She is also on the team of the hospital’s Atrial Fibrillation Center, which offers the latest medical and surgical advances to diagnose and treat irregular heartbeats.
	Alan G. Wasserman, MD, MACP, FACC Board Member Dr. Alan Wasserman is the Eugene Meyer Professor of Medicine and the chairman of the Department of Medicine at the George Washington University Medical Center. He is also the chairman of the board of trustees and president of the George Washington University Medical Faculty Associates, which comprises the University’s clinical faculty.