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2017ANNUAL CONFERENCE

& EXHIBITION (ACE)

MAY 21–24DIPLOMAT HOTELHOLLYWOOD, FL

PROGRAM BOOK

NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON PUBLIC EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT SYSTEMS

E D U C A T I O N

A D V O C A C Y

R E S E A R C H

Follow Us on Twitter #NCPERSACE17

Thank You to the Generous Sponsors of the Annual Conference & Exhibition

GOLD

SILVER

GENERAL

#NCPERSACE17 | NCPERS 2017 Annual Conference and Exhibition | Program Book • 1

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Letter from the NCPERS President 2

Tips for Navigating the Conference 4

Index of Speakers 7

Schedule of Events 10

Exhibitor List 32

Speaker Biographies 38

NCPERS Leadership 80

2016–2017 National Committee Members 81

NCPERS Leadership Biographies 82

NCPERS Resolutions 100

2 • Program Book | NCPERS 2017 Annual Conference and Exhibition | #NCPERSACE17

LETTER FROM THE NCPERS PRESIDENT

Welcome to the Annual Conference and Exhibition in Hollywood, Florida!

This is my first full year of leading this great organization, and I am eager to confront the challenges that we face The challenges began almost immediately in 2017 One of the stated goals of the majority party – which controls all levers of power in Washington, D C – is to undo a Department of Labor (DOL) regulation that provided legal clarity as to whether states can establish retirement savings programs for small businesses that currently don’t provide an employer-sponsored plan to their employees The DOL regulation stated that in DOL’s opinion, states can sponsor such plans and they would not be preempted by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)

As of the time this book is headed to print, House Joint Resolution (H J Res ) 66, which would undo this regulation and inject legal uncertainty into this space, is being actively pursued in the US Congress H J Res 66 passed the US House of Representatives on February 15, 2017 The senate majority leader has deliberately kept the vote schedule on H J Res 66 hidden, so we don’t know exactly when it might come to the Senate floor for a vote

Sadly, challenges to public pensions continue as well Currently, we have 27 states on a watch list of states with adverse public pension legislation moving through the legislative process Further, the 2016 national elections resulted in the Republican Party’s picking up four trifectas: Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, and New Hampshire Two states – Nevada and North Carolina – changed from Republican trifectas to divided government, while one state – Vermont – changed from a Democratic trifecta to divided government The 2017 state legislative sessions began with a total of 25 Republican trifectas, 6 Democratic trifectas, and 19 states under divided government

#NCPERSACE17 | NCPERS 2017 Annual Conference and Exhibition | Program Book • 32 • Program Book | NCPERS 2017 Annual Conference and Exhibition | #NCPERSACE17

LETTER FROM THE NCPERS PRESIDENTLETTER FROM THE NCPERS PRESIDENT

We are very proud of our long history and that of our member plans What public pensions have achieved for tens of millions of hardworking public employees over 150 years is nothing short of amazing Providing retirement security in an efficient, low-cost, and sustainable way to teachers, public safety personnel, and other state and local public servants is a major achievement

Those who seek to undermine our plans still refuse to acknowledge our mission, history, and success They attack public pensions as dinosaurs that have outlived their usefulness or as special interests pitting public pensions against taxpayers These assaults come from a variety of places, including the US Congress, federal bankruptcy courts, state legislatures, and well-known foundations with positive public personas but dark and – until recently – hidden agendas

NCPERS is undaunted! I am excited about the challenges and opportunities ahead While I cannot see the future, I am certain that NCPERS will continue to play a leading role in that future

I encourage you to attend the sessions and take back to your plans all that you have learned Our future depends on you actively exercising your fiduciary responsibility of learning (and applying what you’ve learned) for the benefit of your participants Have a great conference!

Daniel FortunaNCPERS President


TIPS FOR NAVIGATING THE CONFERENCE

REGISTRATION HOURSRegistration services are available during the following hours:

Sunday, May 21 2:00 PM–6:00 PM

Monday, May 22 6:30 AM–2:00 PM

Tuesday, May 23 7:00 AM–2:00 PM

Wednesday, May 24 7:30 AM–12:00 PM

EXHIBIT HALL HOURSThe exhibit hall will be open during the following hours:

Sunday, May 21 4:00 PM–6:00 PM

Monday, May 22 8:00 AM–1:30 PM

Tuesday, May 23 8:00 AM–1:30 PM

REGISTRATION BADGESPlease wear your name badge at all times Your badge serves as your passport to NCPERS activities, including the educational sessions, exhibit hall, and social events Attendees without name badges will not be admitted

RECOMMENDED DRESSWe recommend that you wear layers to all educational sessions, as the temperature in meeting rooms is difficult to regulate at times, and personal comfort can vary widely

CELL PHONES / ELECTRONIC DEVICESPlease remember to respect your neighbors and turn off your cell phones, pagers, and other electronic devices (or put them on vibrate) while in sessions


TIPS FOR NAVIGATING THE CONFERENCETIPS FOR NAVIGATING THE CONFERENCE

NCPERS ANNUAL CONFERENCE APPDownload the NCPERS Annual Conference app and navigate the conference using your personal device

m Easily access the conference schedule of events and sessions

m View materials for the breakout sessions

m Search for speakers, exhibitors, and colleagues

m Communicate with fellow attendees at the conference

BREAKOUT SESSION MATERIALSIn an effort to be more eco-friendly, NCPERS no longer provides printed materials The program materials are available to attendees in two electronic formats:

m Conference app m Online PDF compilation available at

www NCPERS org/annconf

NCPERS SOCIAL MEDIAWe encourage conference attendees to use #NCPERSACE17 on social media to engage with others and make the most of their conference experience:

WIRELESS INTERNET ACCESSNCPERS has arranged for wireless Internet access to be available in the meeting area Please stop by the registration desk for login information


INDEX OF SPEAKERS



EDUCATION SESSION SKILL LEVELSBasicYou have a fundamental awareness or common knowledge and understanding of basic techniques and concepts Your experience is limited The focus is on learning

IntermediateYou understand and can discuss the application and implications of concepts, policies, and systems in this topic area You have applied these concepts in life, work, or pension experiences Help from an expert may be required from time to time, but you can usually perform the relevant actions independently The focus is on applying and enhancing knowledge or skill

AdvancedYou are able to participate in senior-level discussions regarding this topic You are capable of instructing others in this area by translating complex nuances of this topic into understandable terms You can perform the required actions relating to this topic without assistance The focus is on broad organizational/professional issues

CONFERENCE UPDATESThis book was printed on May 8 Updated conference information can be found in the Annual Conference mobile app


INDEX OF SPEAKERSINDEX OF SPEAKERS



NAME ORGANIZATION PAGES

Amrose, Jeffrey Gabriel, Roeder, Smith & Company 14, 38

Attanasio, Mark Crescent Capital Group 25, 38 Azevedo, Melissa CalPERS 13, 39

Bell, Collin Goldman Sachs Asset Management 27, 39

Berger, Barrie Tabin AARP 21, 40

Borkon, Peter Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro, LLP 19, 40

Bowen, Timothy Mesirow Financial 20, 41

Chow-Tai, Michele Fairview Capital Partners 15, 42

Cole, Brandon Arthur J. Gallagher 15, 43

Colton, Sinead BNY Mellon 18, 44

Collins, Denise Arkansas Local Police and Fire Retirement System 22, 43

Davidson, Jonathan Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check 12, 44

Doggett, Glenn CFA Institute 26, 45

Donaldson Smith, Kimberly Chimicles & Tikellis, LLP 17, 46

Doyle Orekhov, Erin Voya Investment Management 14, 47

Driscoll, David Buck Consultants 27, 47

Dugan, Suzanne Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll, PLLC 26, 48

Fletcher, Tina Ullico Casualty Group 15, 48

Gauss, Robert Ice Miller, LLP 19, 49

Gonzalez, Janice Aon Hewitt 12, 50

Heilman, Don Gallagher Benefit Services, Inc. 15, 50

Jeevarathnam, Brijesh Adams Street Partners, LLC 25, 51

Joyner, Leon F. “Rocky,” Jr. The Segal Group 13, 52

Kahn, Michael NCPERS 25, 53

Kelly, Brad Global Governance Advisors 22, 53

Kimpson, Marlon Motley Rice 12, 54

Klausner, Robert Klausner, Kaufman, Jensen & Levinson 16, 55

Landers, Peter Global Governance Advisors 22, 56

Lettenberger, Thomas BMO Global Asset Management 19, 57

Lieberman, Jeremy Pomerantz, LLP 20, 57

Livanas, John SAS Trustee Corporation 18, 58


INDEX OF SPEAKERS

NAME ORGANIZATION PAGES

Lowman, Tom Bolton Partners 13, 59

Marzinsky, Jeff Milliman 11, 60

Massena, Lisa Oregon Retirement Savings Plan 24, 60

Mattamana, Alan Fairview Capital Partners 15, 61

McAtamney, Kenneth William Blair 18, 62

McIntyre, Ryan Tocqueville Asset Management 26, 62

Merlob, Michael Foster & Foster 12, 63

Mixon, Peter K&L Gates 12, 63

Moller, Nick J.P. Morgan Asset Management 13, 64

Nielsen, Dan Great Lakes Advisors 13, 64

Nipp, Jeff Milliman 11, 65

O’Brien, Maureen Segal Marco Advisors 29, 66

Palandjian, Peter Intercontinental Real Estate Corporation 21, 66

Petersen, Kai Buck Consultants 27, 67

Raymond, Jeannine Markoe National Association of State Retirement Administrators 21, 68

Regan, Julian Segal Marco Advisors 29, 68

Robbins, Darren Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd, LLP 20, 69

Rosen, Laurence The Rosen Law Firm 12, 70

Schwimmer, Randy Nuveen Investments 15, 71

Shelby, Ryan Wells Fargo Asset Management 18, 71

Sheran, Jeff Allianz Global Investors 19, 72

Shuldiner, Benjamin Board of Education Retirement System of the City of New York 28, 72

Sokol, William Weinberg, Roger & Rosenfeld 24, 73

Spellos, James Meeting U 16, 23

Temple, Ronald Lazard Asset Management 17, 74

Tinaglia, Greta Fulton County Georgia Public Schools 12, 74

Waldman, Chet Wolf Popper, LLP 17, 75

Walny, Ronit Neuberger Berman 28, 76

Wood, Paul Gabriel, Roeder, Smith & Company 14, 76

Yasenchak, Richard INTECH 18, 77 SCED

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SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

SUNDAY, MAY 21REGISTRATION 2:00 PM–6:00 PM | Great Hall Foyer

EXHIBITION 4:00 PM–6:00 PM | Great Hall 3

WELCOME RECEPTION4:00 PM–6:00 PM | Great Hall 3

SUND

AY, M

AY 21


SCHEDULE OF EVENTSSCHEDULE OF EVENTS

MONDAY, MAY 22BREAKFAST6:30 AM–7:45 AM | Great Hall 1

REGISTRATION 6:30 AM–2:00 PM | Great Hall Foyer

EXHIBITION8:00 AM–1:30 PM | Great Hall 3

FIRST GENERAL SESSION8:00 AM–10:30 AM | Great Hall 4

8:00 AM Opening Ceremony and Annual ReportDaniel Fortuna, NCPERS President

8:15 AMThe Role and Functions of an Investment ConsultantThis presentation will discuss developments within the investment consulting industry, as well as consultants’ interaction with pension fund trustees, staff, actuaries, and investment managers This session is designed to help educate attendees about industry trends, best practices, and the primary functions that consultants provide, with the goal of creating more beneficial consultant-client relationships Specific topics to be addressed include the types of players in the investment consulting industry, typical fee arrangements, assumption setting, asset allocation, manager research and selection, ongoing monitoring, and the impact of plan policies and priorities on the consultant’s role

Speakers: Jeff Marzinsky, Milliman; Jeff Nipp, Milliman

MONDAY, M

AY 22


SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

8:45 AM Recent Legal DevelopmentsThis panel discussion will cover recent legal developments that affect institutional investors Topics covered will include Dodd-Frank, the Department of Labor fiduciary rules, the Class Action Fairness Act, and vested rights issues for public plans

Moderator: Jonathan Davidson, Kessler Topaz Meltzer & CheckPanelists: Marlon Kimpson, Motley Rice; Peter Mixon, K&L Gates; Laurence Rosen, The Rosen Law Firm

9:30 AM Retirement Planning for TrusteesThis session will provide a summary of the intricacies of Social Security and discuss how you can put all the retirement pieces together to help your participants make informed decisions

Speaker: Michael Merlob, Foster & Foster

10:00 AM Outsourced Chief Investment Officer (OCIO): What Is It? Is It Suitable for Public Pensions?This session will define the role of a delegated OCIO and delve into the current selection process employed by trustees and staff, as well as expanding upon the similarities and differences between the traditional chief investment officer (CIO) role and the OCIO role, the pros and cons of both, and the necessary tools to create a framework for trustees and staff to determine whether an OCIO model is a suitable solution for their plan

Moderator: Hank Kim, NCPERSSpeakers: Janice Gonzalez, Aon Hewitt; Greta Tinaglia, Fulton County Georgia Public Schools

EXHIBIT BREAK10:30 AM–11:00 AM | Great Hall 3

MON

DAY,

MAY

22



CONCURRENT BREAKOUT SESSIONS

SESSION A11:00 AM–12:00 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 1Expect the Unexpected: Plans for Risk ManagementThis session will provide an overview of the major risks to retirement systems, including the effects of investment risks and the growth of the plan relative to the employer The speakers will discuss the need to address these major risks and present possible risk management plan designs Projected outcomes for six potential risk management designs after a future market downturn will also be included

Skill Level: IntermediateModerator: Bill Lundy, Arkansas Fire and Police Pension Review BoardSpeakers: Melissa Azevedo, CalPERS; Leon F. “Rocky” Joyner, Jr., The Segal Group; Tom Lowman, Bolton Partners

SESSION B11:00 AM–12:00 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 2ESG Investing and ImplementationOnce seen as detractors from investment performance, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations have become essential contributors to better decision making across asset classes In this session, the speakers will discuss how ESG integration and implementation can improve investment performance for both plan sponsors and investment managers In addition, the speakers will provide specific examples of how private investment managers implement these considerations in practice in the infrastructure sector, an asset class that lends itself well to ESG principles

Skill Level: IntermediateModerator: Will Pryor, Los Angeles County Firefighters Local 1014Speakers: Nick Moller, J.P. Morgan Asset Management; Dan Nielsen, Great Lakes Advisors

MONDAY, M

AY 22


SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

SESSION C 11:00 AM–12:00 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 3Going Beyond Style Box InvestingWhile the advent of the style box in the 1990s has provided a useful framework for constructing a diversified equity portfolio, investing strictly within the style box framework may create portfolio gaps that can lead to unintended consequences This presentation aims to help plan sponsors think about (1) how they can go beyond the confines of style boxes to help participants achieve a secure retirement, (2) how outcome-oriented approaches can help them find a balance between maximizing total return and minimizing volatility, and (3) what they should look for when evaluating outcome-oriented strategies

Skill Level: IntermediateModerator: Ken Hauser, Policemen’s Annuity & Benefit Fund of ChicagoSpeaker: Erin Doyle Orekhov, Voya Investment Management


SESSION A12:15 PM–1:15 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 1Actuarial Issues A to ZUsing sound actuarial principles to value the liability of a pension plan is a hot topic these days With public pension plans facing so much outside pressure, it is hard to tell what is real and what is not This session will help clear the air and arm you with an understanding of actuarial issues from A to Z The speakers will delve into topics such as the goals of a pension plan; the role of actuarial assumptions; why proper actuarial assumptions are vital to the health of the plan; and best approaches for setting two of the most important assumptions, mortality and the discount rate Whether you are a seasoned veteran or an actuarial newcomer, this session is for you

Skill Level: BasicModerator: Mel Aaronson, NCPERSSpeakers: Jeff Amrose, Gabriel, Roeder, Smith & Company; Paul Wood, Gabriel, Roeder, Smith & Company

MON

DAY,

MAY

22



SESSION B12:15 PM–1:15 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 2Cyber Liability Insurance: Risk Management for Today’s TrusteesIn the process of administering benefits, pension plans often store the personal information of their participants If a data breach occurs, most states mandate that the entity must respond in a timely manner by notifying potentially affected individuals, regulators, and the press This session will explore the gaps that can remain after breach-oriented protection, cover some of the best-in-class features of contemporary identity theft programs, review appropriate insurance policies, discuss risk management practices that are important to adequately protect fund data, and examine claims response procedures

Skill Level: BasicModerator: Dale Chase, Howard County, Maryland Retirement SystemSpeakers: Brandon Cole, Arthur J. Gallagher; Tina Fletcher, Ullico Casualty Group; Don Heilman, Gallagher Benefit Services, Inc.

SESSION C 12:15 PM–1:15 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 3Investment Opportunities in Private MarketsThe purpose of this panel discussion is to provide a high-level introduction to and education on the private markets, with a focus on private credit, private equity, and venture strategies Attendees will receive a primer on the private markets industry, hear about the virtues of the private credit and private equity asset classes, understand what makes them attractive, and learn ways to gain access to these segments of the market

Skill Level: IntermediateModerator: Carol Stukes-Baylor, City of Philadelphia Board of Pensions and RetirementSpeakers: Michele Chow-Tai, Fairview Capital Partners; Alan Mattamana, Fairview Capital Partners; Randy Schwimmer, Nuveen Investments

MONDAY, M

AY 22


SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

LUNCH & LECTURE SERIES 1:30 PM–2:30 PM | Great Hall 1(Not open to guests)

Don’t Let This Happen to You!NCPERS general counsel Robert Klausner has represented state and local government retirement systems throughout the United States for 40 years In this session, he will discuss common and uncommon problems that may seem small in the beginning but can turn into major issues later The stories will be dramatic and sometimes funny, but they all share the common theme of how a little planning can save a lot of liability later on Each scenario will end with a recommendation on how the issues could have been avoided

Skill Level: BasicSpeaker: Robert Klausner, Klausner, Kaufman, Jensen & Levinson

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT TRACK2:45 PM–3:45 PM | Great Hall 5Social Media 101: The Essential DiscussionFacebook … Twitter … Instagram … Pinterest These social services have revolutionized how people communicate and share information today They are also very simple to use and master, whether on your desktop computer or your mobile device If you have any fear or question about how to use these tools (and stay more closely connected with friends and family), this session will demystify these services and give you the fundamental information you need to be part of the social revolution

After attending this session, the attendee will be able to do the following:

m Identify the six major social media servicesm Understand the strengths and weaknesses of each

of the six, as well as how to get started and become comfortable with them

m Use these tools on both desktop and mobile devices

Skill Level: BasicSpeaker: James Spellos, Meeting U

NATIONAL COMMITTEE ELECTION 2:45 PM–3:45 PM | Great Hall 4

MON

DAY,

MAY

22



TUESDAY, MAY 23BREAKFAST6:30 AM–7:45 AM | Great Hall 1

REGISTRATION7:00 AM–2:00 PM | Great Hall Foyer

EXHIBITION8:00 AM–1:30 PM | Great Hall 3

SECOND GENERAL SESSION8:00 AM–10:30 AM | Great Hall 4

8:00 AMGlobal Economic Update Global equities have generated extraordinary performance over the past eight years, and their gains since the election have left many investors wondering how much upside remains The argument for further gains is premised on what appears to be a synchronized global economic recovery, after years of the United States and China being the only islands of relative strength However, political upheaval, geopolitical risks, and economic imbalances could undermine this positive economic story In this session, Ronald Temple will examine the prospects for economic growth and the implications for investors Speaker: Ronald Temple, Lazard Asset Management

8:30 AM The Trump Effect: A Panel Discussion on the New Administration’s Potential Effect on Institutional InvestorsThe new administration has stated an intention to create a pro-business environment that will create jobs Its position is that reducing or modifying existing regulations on businesses will promote growth and job creation This nonpartisan presenta-tion will explore the proposed changes with respect to investor protection regulations and the Securities and Exchange Com-mission agenda, and how such changes could impact investors Moderator: Bill Lundy, Arkansas Fire and Police Pension Review Board Panelists: Kimberly Donaldson Smith, Chimicles & Tikellis; Chet Waldman, Wolf Popper

TUESDAY, MAY 23


SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

9:15 AM The Continuing Evolution of the Active vs. Passive Management OptionsThe debate over active vs passive investment management styles continues to be a hot topic in the world of investing Both sides have made exhaustive and valid arguments for and against both approaches This panel discussion will seek to define the characteristics of each approach, and how each is evolving, in an effort to help you understand your options

Moderator: Doug Moseley, NEPC. LLCSpeakers: Sinead Colton, BNY Mellon; Kenneth McAtamney, William Blair; Ryan Shelby, Wells Fargo Asset Management; Richard Yasenchak, INTECH

10:00 AMOverseeing the Implementation of an Investment StrategyThis engaging session will provide a comparative look at how a major plan in Australia is confronting challenges that many plans in the United States are facing Using case studies and personal experiences, John Livanas will cover topics such as (1) the role of the trustee directors in setting investment objectives, strategies, and risk appetite; (2) consideration of liabilities and funding plans; and (3) internal and external communication and managing resources

Speaker: John Livanas, SAS Trustee Corporation

EXHIBIT BREAK10:30 AM–11:00 AM | Great Hall 3

TUES

DAY,

MAY

23




SESSION A 11:00 AM–12:00 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 1Regulatory Update: Developments from the Treasury, IRS, DOL, and SEC Affecting Governmental PlansThis presentation will provide an overview of current regulatory developments from the Department of the Treasury, the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Labor, and the Securities and Exchange Commission that relate to state and local governmental retirement plans The presenters will discuss the status of developments regarding the definition of a governmental plan, the proposed normal retirement age regulations, the fiduciary rule, and public plans for private employees Regulatory developments in the first months of the new administration will also be discussed

Skill Level: Basic Moderator: Emmitt Kane, State of Hawaii Employees’ Retirement System Speakers: Peter Borkon, Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro; Robert Gauss, Ice Miller

TUESDAY, MAY 23

SESSION B11:00 AM–12:00 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 2Don’t Punt! How to Extract Attractive Returns from Your Public Equity AllocationMany plan sponsors have given up on active public equity management, especially of the domestic large-cap allocation The problem with indexing is that forward-looking returns for the beta are modest, while your equity allocation needs to play a large role in helping you reach your actuarially required rate-of-return target What if you could add an options alpha engine to help your public equity allocation work harder? Jeff Sheran will challenge the conventional wisdom that you need to index this allocation Tom Lettenberger will explain why adding a dedicated micro-cap mandate to your public equity allocation offers benefits to institutional investors, including higher returns, greater alpha opportunities, and purer access to the US economy

Skill Level: IntermediateModerator: Stacy Birdwell, Shreveport Firefighters Association Local 514Speakers: Thomas Lettenberger, BMO Global Asset Management; Jeff Sheran, Allianz Global Investors


SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

SESSION C 11:00 AM–12:00 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 3Fiduciary Liability Insurance: Coverage That Protects YOU … the TrusteePublic pension trustees and employees face increased personal liability exposure in their role as fiduciaries The presenter in this session will cover pension code standards and fiduciary duties, how to enforce provisions and limitations on liability, and insurance authorization and indemnification provisions, and will ultimately offer solutions to lessen a pension trustee’s fiduciary exposure

Skill Level: IntermediateModerator: John Niemiec, Fairfax County Virginia Professional Firefighters & ParamedicsSpeaker: Timothy Bowen, Mesirow Financial


SESSION A 12:15 PM–1:15 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 1Pursuing Securities Fraud Claims: Recent Judicial and Legislative Developments This panel will discuss how recent developments in securities fraud litigation, including H R 985 (the so-called Class Action Fairness Bill), the April 2017 U S Supreme Court argument in Lehman Brothers, and the Supreme Court’s opinion in Halliburton II, impact institutional investors’ ability to recover securities fraud losses

Skill Level: BasicModerator: Peter Carozza, Jr., Uniformed Professional Fire Fighters Association of ConnecticutSpeakers: Jeremy Lieberman, Pomerantz; Darren Robbins, Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd

TUES

DAY,

MAY

23



SESSION B 12:15 PM–1:15 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 2Why and How to Invest in Real EstateDuring this session, attendees will learn about the current real estate market trends, forecasted market conditions, and how pensions can benefit from investing in commercial real estate The main objective of the session is to teach audience members how to make educated decisions when investing pension money in real estate

Skill Level: BasicModerator: Rick Miller, NCPERSSpeaker: Peter Palandjian, Intercontinental Real Estate Corporation

SESSION C 12:15 PM–1:15 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 3New Resources for State Pension AdvocacyNew resources have been developed to help elected and appointed public officials and their staff understand how public pensions operate and the important role they play in meeting the needs of public employees, employers, and taxpayers These resources can serve as additional tools to help reshape the pension conversation in statehouses around the country This session will discuss the newly released Elected Officials’ Guide to Public Pensions, as well as other research findings and materials that focus on the importance of sufficient pension contributions, recently enacted state pension reforms, and how these new resources can help and have helped inform and direct state pension advocacy

Skill Level: BasicModerator Kathy Harrell, NCPERSSpeakers: Barrie Tabin Berger, AARP; Jeannie Markoe Raymond, National Association of State Retirement Administrators

TUESDAY, MAY 23

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

ADMINISTRATORS FORUM

12:15 PM–1:15 PM | Great Hall 6In response to the need for administrators of small plans to meet and discuss issues with peers who have similar challenges, this open forum will allow municipal and county public plan administrators and staff members to ask questions and discuss mutual concerns

Hosted by Denise Collins, Chief Financial Officer of Arkansas Local Police and Fire Retirement System

LUNCH & LECTURE SERIES (Not open to guests)

1:30 PM–2:30 PM | Great Hall 1Navigating Governance Risk: How to Proactively Avoid Fiduciary Potholes and Limit Legal LiabilitiesGovernance demands and fiduciary expectations are increasing for boards and executives throughout all sectors of our economy However, with added public attention, tenuous political relationships, member commitments, and today’s stressful investment environment, pension trustees and executives are feeling exponentially more pressure

This session will address key governance risks that pension trustees and executives need to be aware of and understand how to avoid

Skill Level: IntermediateSpeakers: Brad Kelly, Global Governance Advisors; Peter Landers, Global Governance Advisors


TUES

DAY,

MAY

23

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT TRACK2:45 PM–3:45 PM | Great Hall 5Social Media 201: Beyond the BasicsIf you attended the Social Media 101 session, or just feel comfortable learning more about how social media can work for you, this session is one you shouldn’t miss Beyond the Basics provides you with a deeper understanding of how these services work and how you can use them without spending your entire day on them Topics such as the importance of social curation and aggregators will be part of this discussion

After attending this session, the attendee will able to do the following:m Understand how social and mobile tools have changed

the way we consume news and informationm Identify more than 10 curation tools that can help you

share and utilize social information for your personal usem Understand the importance of social aggregators in

using social media tools more efficiently

Skill Level: BasicSpeaker: James Spellos, Meeting U

NATIONAL COMMITTEE EXECUTIVE BOARD ELECTION 2:45 PM–3:30 PM | Great Hall 4


TUESDAY, MAY 23


SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

WEDNESDAY, MAY 24

BREAKFAST6:30 AM–7:45 AM | Great Hall 1

REGISTRATION7:30 AM–12:00 PM | Great Hall Foyer

THIRD GENERAL SESSION8:00 AM–10:30 AM | Great Hall 4

8:00 AMSecure Choice: What Is the Future of Small Business Retirement Savings?This session will explore Secure Choice and other state-assisted retirement savings programs for small businesses and their employees who currently do not have access to an employer-sponsored plan In a panel discussion with Lisa Massena, executive director of the Oregon Retirement Savings Plan, and William Sokol, member of the board of the California Secure Choice Retirement Savings Program, this session will explore the effects of recent congressional activities, how states are moving forward, and what California and Oregon anticipate as enrollment comes online

Moderator: Hank Kim, NCPERSPanelists: Lisa A. Massena, Oregon Retirement Savings Plan; William Sokol, Weinberg, Roger & Rosenfeld

8:45 AM Artificial Intelligence, Autonomous Cars, Drones, and More: How Tech Innovation Is Transforming the World and Generating Investment ReturnsInnovations in technology are reshaping the world; nearly every aspect of our daily lives is being transformed by “start-up” technology companies These companies are financed by venture capital firms to accelerate and scale their growth With internal rates of return of 15–25 percent or more, venture capital investing can be a critical asset class for pensions trying to surpass their actuarial assumptions That said, however, not all venture investments are created equal

WED

NESD

AY, M

AY 24



Brijesh Jeevarathnam will discuss future technology trends and their potential impact, show how the venture capital landscape has evolved in recent years and where it might go next, and shed light on the challenges pension plans face in creating a venture capital portfolio and how risk can be managed without limiting return potential

Speaker: Brijesh Jeevarathnam, Adams Street Partners

9:30 AM Investing, Public Pensions, and the National Pastime: A Conversation with Mark AttanasioIn this session, Hank Kim, NCPERS executive director, will host Mark Attanasio, co-founder and managing partner of Crescent Capital Topics discussed will include geopolitical factors that impact near-term investing, fiscal and monetary policies impacting public plans, and ownership of the Milwaukee Brewers

Moderator: Hank Kim, NCPERSSpeaker: Mark Attanasio, Crescent Capital Group

10:15 AMEconomic Consequences of Prevailing Pension ReformsPrevailing pension reforms are slowly chipping away at pensions as a result of misinformation promoted by opponents of public pensions Not many policymakers realize the damage they are inflicting on local economies This session focuses on the expected magnitude of economic damage in 2025 if the prevailing reforms continue The session will also explore ways to preserve public pensions

Speaker: Michael Kahn, NCPERS

REFRESHMENT BREAK

10:30 AM–11:00 AM | Great Hall Foyer

WEDNESDAY, M

AY 24


SCHEDULE OF EVENTS


SESSION A 11:00 AM–12:00 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 1Natural Resource Investing: Mining for GoldThis session will cover the fundamental topics related to investing in gold and gold mining equities Using macroeconomic data, central bank policy, and individual case studies, the speaker will demonstrate how investors can use a proven value-based approach to invest in gold

Skill Level: BasicModerator: Kelly Fox, Washington State Council of Fire FightersSpeaker: Ryan McIntyre, Tocqueville Asset Management

SESSION B 11:00 AM–12:00 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 2Ethical Considerations for TrusteesAs a pension trustee, you have an obligation to make decisions that are in the ultimate best interest of the plan beneficiaries The fiduciary duty placed on trustees goes beyond compliance with applicable laws and regulations; fiduciary duty can only be fulfilled by engaging in ethical conduct In this session, the presenters will provide an overview of ethical considerations for pension trustees, discuss practical concerns with adhering to fiduciary principles, and share resources for engaging in effective decision making by trustees

Skill Level: BasicModerator: Sharon Hendricks, California State Teachers’ Retirement SystemSpeakers: Glenn Doggett, CFA Institute; Suzanne Dugan, Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll

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SESSION C 11:00 AM–12:00 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 3Understanding Real AssetsReal assets, especially global real estate and infrastructure, continue to see increased interest from institutional investors due to the unique investment attributes they offer, including attractive yield and lower volatility relative to broader equities, capital appreciation, diversification benefits, and greater inflation and interest rate resiliency compared with bonds As the public/listed markets (otherwise known as the liquid real asset space) have matured, institutional investors have increasingly used liquid real assets to complement their private exposure and capture the incremental benefits of greater liquidity and ease of implementation, greater diversification, and access to assets that are often difficult to find in the private markets Attending this session will give attendees an understanding of real assets and why public/listed liquid real assets serve as a good complement to private exposure

Skill Level: BasicModerator: Patricia Reilly, Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of New YorkSpeaker: Collin Bell, Goldman Sachs Asset Management


SESSION A 12:15 PM–1:15 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 1Approaches to Pairing Contribution Stability and Funding AdequacyDoes your system have fixed employer contribution rates or other features and policies that stabilize employer contributions? Have such measures been proposed for your system? This session will examine the latest in professional thinking regarding techniques that provide for sufficient funding while keeping contribution volatility to tolerable levels Case studies from systems that have adopted such measures will be reviewed

Skill Level: IntermediateModerator: Tina Fazendine, NCPERSSpeakers: David Driscoll, Buck Consultants; Kai Petersen, Buck Consultants

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SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

SESSION B 12:15 PM–1:15 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 2Fixed Income in an Environment of UnknownsUnique factors have been impacting fixed-income markets in recent years, but the principles and value of holding fixed income in portfolios remain This session will provide helpful ideas on how to retain fixed-income objectives while navigating the current environment

Skill Level: IntermediateModerator: Sherry Mose, Houston Municipal Employees Pension SystemSpeaker: Ronit Walny, Neuberger Berman

SESSION C 12:15 PM–1:15 PM | Diplomat Ballroom 3Preparing for Deregulation: What We Can Do to Protect Our MembersThis presentation will review actions public pension funds can take to help mitigate the possible future lack of regulation The presentation will be hands-on, with participants discussing their local needs, their current responsible fiduciary activities, and where they would like to focus their work to represent their pensioners

Skill Level: BasicModerator: Dan Givens, Miami Fire Fighters’ Relief and Pension FundSpeaker: Benjamin Shuldiner, Board of Education Retirement System of the City of New York

LUNCH & LECTURE SERIES (Not open to guests)

1:30 PM–2:30 PM | Great Hall 1Key Proxy Votes for 2017 Segal Marco Advisors (formerly Marco Consulting Group), in coordination with NCPERS, will announce the key proxy votes for upcoming shareholder meetings in 2017 Proxy votes are assets of the plan that trustees must oversee With tens of thousands of proxy ballot items at US and non-US public companies each year, understanding the issues and measuring the impact of voting can be a daunting task Segal Marco will highlight key trends in corporate governance and detail

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which votes are top priorities for your funds The presentation will also examine other capital markets challenges facing institutional investors in the current environment

Skill Level: BasicSpeakers: Maureen O’Brien, Segal Marco Advisors; Julian Regan, Segal Marco Advisors

ANNUAL BUSINESS MEETING2:45 PM–3:30 PM | Great Hall 5Business meeting agenda:m Swearing in of newly elected NCPERS executive board

membersm Review of and membership vote on NCPERS conference

resolutions

CLOSING RECEPTION6:00 PM–7:00 PM | Great Hall Terrace

CLOSING DINNER & ENTERTAINMENT7:00 PM–9:00 PM | Great Hall 4This year’s closing dinner entertainment will feature Private/Affair, a multicultural musical group hailing from South Florida with the ability to fuse pop, jazz, soul, and R&B together to re-create the sounds and grooves of today’s (and yesterday’s) top artists This band is sure to get you out of your seat!

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2017 EXHIBITOR LIST

This list includes only those exhibitors registered as of May 2, 2017. For more information on the listed exhibitors, please visit the NCPERS app.

Organization Booth Number

Abraham, Fruchter & Twersky, LLP 4

Adams Street Partners 28

Allianz Global Investors 23

Aon Hewitt 38

Arthur J Gallagher 17

Barrack, Rodos & Bacine 7

Bernstein Liebhard, LLP 1

Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann 16

BMO Global Asset Management 32

BNP Paribas Investment Partners 10

Capital Dynamics 11

CFA Institute 43

Chimicles & Tikellis, LLP 24

Columbia Threadneedle Investments 12

Duff & Phelps Investment Management 6

Foster & Foster Actuaries and Consultants 44

GlobeTax 22

Great Lakes Advisors 25

Identity Guard 27

INTECH 26

International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans 46

Invesco 37

J P Morgan 35


2017 EXHIBITOR LIST

Organization Booth Number

Lazard Asset Management 34

Levi, Ray & Shoup, Inc 5

Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLC 36

Loomis, Sayles & Company 21

Motley Rice, LLC 18

Nationwide 33

Northern Trust 41

Nuveen Asset Management 48

Pension Technology Group 39

PNC Institutional Asset Management 14

Pomerantz 45

Resource Centers, LLC 8/9

Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd, LLP 20

The Rosen Law Firm 13

Sagitec Solutions 2

Saxena White 40

Scott + Scott, LLP 42

UBS Asset Management 3

Ullico Inc 19

Victory Capital 47

William Blair 15

Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz, LLP 31


EXHIBIT HALL MAP

10BNP

ParibasInvest.

5Levi, Ray& Shoup

7Barrack Rodos &Bacine

2Sagitec

Solutions

6Duff & Phelps Invest.

1Bernstein Liebhard

8/9ResourceCenters

4Abraham

Fruchter &Twersky

11Capital

Dynamics

16Bernstein Litowitz

14PNC

Inst. AssetMgmt.

18Motley

Rice

15William

Blair

19Ullico

12Columbia

Threadneedle

17Arthur J.

Gallagher

13Rosen

Law Firm

3UBS

Asset Mgmt

ENTRANCE TO GENERAL SESSION

GREAT HALL 32017 Exhibitor Map


EXHIBIT HALL MAP

24Chimicles& Tikellis

29

21LoomisSayles

26INTECH

20Robbins

Geller

25GreatLakes

Advisors

23AllianzGlobal

Investors

28AdamsStreet

Partners

35J.P.

Morgan

44Foster &

FosterActuaries

4930

38Aon

Hewitt

41Northern

Trust

33Nationwide

46IFEBP

39Pension

TechnologyGroup

40SaxenaWhite

34Lazard

45Pomerantz

36Lieff

Cabraser

43CFA

Institute

31Wolf

Haldenstein

48Nuveen

22GlobeTax

37Invesco

42Scott +

Scott

32BMO

Global

27IdentityGuard

47VictoryCapital

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SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

JEFFREY AMROSE Jeff Amrose is a consulting actuary at Gabriel, Roeder, Smith & Company in Fort Lauderdale, Florida He has 23 years of actuarial and benefits consulting experience with employee retirement systems His clients include cities, counties, and public authorities Amrose is an enrolled actuary and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries He has handled a wide variety of consulting assignments, including preparing and presenting actuarial valuations; conducting and presenting plan design studies; preparing and presenting experience studies, early retirement windows, and cash flow projections; and performing modeling studies, including asset-liability studies using deterministic and stochastic approaches

Amrose has been a frequent speaker at the Florida Public Pension Trustees Association’s Trustees School, Florida Government Finance Officers Association conferences, and Florida’s annual Police Officers’ and Firefighters’ Pension Trustees’ School, addressing topics such as plan redesign, pension reform, and funding policies

Amrose holds a bachelor of science in economics and a bachelor of arts in mathematics from Binghamton University

MARK ATTANASIO

Mark Attanasio is a co-founder and managing partner of Crescent Capital Group and a member of its Management Committee Prior to co-founding Crescent Capital, he was an investment banker and capital markets professional at Drexel Burnham Lambert, Inc and an attorney at Debevoise & Plimpton, LLP Attanasio is the chairman and principal owner of the Milwaukee Brewers Baseball Club and is a member of the board of trustees of Heal the Bay, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County, and the Harvard-Westlake School He is a member of the Major League Baseball Finance and Compensation Committee, Investment Committee, and Labor Policy Committee Attanasio received his JD from Columbia University School of Law and his AB from Brown University


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIESSPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

MELISSA AZEVEDO

Melissa Azevedo is an associate director in the Enterprise Risk Management Division of the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) CalPERS administers a defined-benefit retirement system and purchases health care for more than 1 4 million California public-sector workers and their families, and oversees a global investment portfolio of approximately $300 billion

Azevedo has more than 15 years of experience in the areas of enterprise risk management, strategic planning, organizational performance management, and process improvement She joined the CalPERS team in 2016 and is responsible for the refinement of the system’s enterprise risk management and internal control frameworks Prior to joining CalPERS, she led efforts at the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) to integrate results-driven performance management throughout the system and establish enterprise risk reporting to the board

COLLIN BELL

Collin Bell is a senior client portfolio manager on Goldman Sachs Asset Management’s Fundamental Equity team, responsible for real asset and equity income–related portfolios, including global infrastructure, energy and infrastructure, real estate securities, and income builder strategies He is also a member of the Income Builder Investment Committee, which seeks to identify ideas across equities and fixed income that are well suited for conservative, income-oriented investors Previously, from 2001 to 2008, he was a research analyst for the Real Estate Securities team, with a focus on the office and industrial subsectors Before 2001, Bell was a senior relationship manager in the Portfolio Advisory Group, where he advised clients on both the asset allocation and implementation levels He joined Goldman Sachs in the Investment Management Division in 1997 and was named managing director in 2013 Bell earned a bachelor’s degree from Amherst College


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

BARRIE TABIN BERGER

Barrie Tabin Berger is a senior legislative representative at AARP working on budget, tax, and public pension issues for the organization’s State Financial Security & Consumer Government Affairs team Prior to joining AARP in 2015, Berger spent nearly 20 years working at the local level with both the Government Finance Officers Association and the National League of Cities handling a variety of local, state, and federal legislative, legal, and regulatory issues

PETER BORKON

Peter Borkon is a partner at Hagens Berman’s Berkeley, California, office His practice is focused on complex civil litigation, particularly shareholder derivative suits, financial fraud, and antitrust class actions Borkon provides extensive educational opportunities to Hagens Berman’s institutional investor clients He has also served as an adjunct professor at the University of California Hastings College of the Law and is a judge pro tempore in San Francisco County

His notable cases include In re Pacific Gas & Electric Derivative Litigation (San Bruno fire cases), settling with significant corporate governance and safety reforms as well as $90 million; In re Homestore Securities Litigation (settled for more than $100 million); In re China Media Express Holdings, Inc., Securities Litigation (settled for $512 million); In re BigBand Networks Securities Litigation ($11 million); In re Charles Schwab Corp. Securities Litigation (settled for $235 million); JPMorgan Madoff Litigation (settled for $218 million); and In re Oppenheimer Core & Champion Bond Funds Litigation (settled for $100 million)

He is active in numerous community and professional organizations, including the Council of Institutional Investors, the Michigan Association of Public Employee Retirement Systems (MAPERS), the State Association of County Retirement Systems (SACRS), the California Association of Public Retirement Systems (CALAPRS), the National Association of Securities Professionals (NASP), the Illinois Public Pension



Fund Association, (IPPFA), the National Council on Teacher Retirement (NCTR), and the National Association of Public Pension Attorneys (NAPPA), where he is the chair of the SEC Actions working group He is also a longtime member of NCPERS He was recently appointed to a three-year term on the US District Court’s Federal Practice Program Board and is the acting co-chair of the Northern District of California’s Lawyer Representatives Committee

Borkon was named a Northern California Rising Star in 2010 and 2011, and a “Super Lawyer” in 2012, 2015, 2016, and 2017 by Super Lawyers magazine

TIMOTHY BOWEN

Timothy Bowen, a first vice president in Mesirow Insurance’s Management Liability practice, has specialized in negotiating competitive pricing and comprehensive coverage for clients seeking fiduciary liability insurance for the past 11 years He has extensive experience with municipal/public pension funds and currently places more than 250 insurance policies a year on behalf of his clients, making his practice one of the largest in the nation Combined across its practices, Mesirow places more than 500 policies per year and more than $5 million in annual premiums for public pension fund clients Bowen keeps clients and other members of the Management Liability team apprised of developments and changes in the marketplace, including claims trends as well as coverage developments He earned a bachelor of business administration degree from the University of Iowa with a major in finance


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

MICHELE CHOW-TAI

Michele Chow-Tai is director and head of business development at Fairview Capital Partners In this role, she is responsible for developing strategic plans and client strategies that identify opportunities to drive the business Chow-Tai is also a member of the Investment Committee Prior to joining Fairview in 2015, she was relationship manager for institutional relationships at TIAA-CREF, where she was responsible for leading relationships with the company’s largest and most complex clients across business disciplines Prior to her time at TIAA-CREF, Chow-Tai spent 22 years within HSBC’s Global Banking and Markets business in various roles She also served as assistant director of the HSBC Financial Products Institute, a division focused primarily on client education about derivatives and structured products Prior to joining HSBC, Chow-Tai spent five years at Moody’s Investors Service as a bank and finance analyst

Chow-Tai serves as chair of the board of the York College Foundation of the City University of New York (CUNY) York College Foundation and is a member of the board of the New York Chapter of the National Association of Securities Professionals (NASP) and the NASP Foundation, the Cambria Center for the Gifted Child, and the Cambria School of Excellence Chow-Tai holds a BS degree from the City University of New York – York College and also holds credentials in business administration and finance She is FINRA 7 and 63 licensed



BRANDON COLE

Brandon Cole is area vice president and team leader at Arthur J Gallagher & Co In this role his responsibilities include oversight of day-to-day client services for accounts with a focus on nonprofit and scholastics, as well as program development and design He has more than 12 years of experience in the property and casualty insurance industry and previously served as a directors and officers, employment practices, and cyber liability underwriter for a national insurance company

The majority of Cole’s work has been with nonprofit and government entities He has extensive experience in the design, financing, and implementation of comprehensive insurance programs

Cole is an active participant in Gallagher’s Public Entity and Scholastic practice and serves as national program leader This practice represents Gallagher’s largest industry segments and is designed to share insight and best practices, as well as create purchasing leverage for the firm’s governmental clients

DENISE COLLINS

Denise Collins joined the Arkansas Local Police and Fire Retirement System (LOPFI) in February 2001 In October 2015, she moved into her current role as chief financial officer for LOPFI LOPFI is a $1 7 billion retirement system covering 522 Employer Groups with over 28,000 active, retired and terminated participants


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

SINEAD COLTON

Sinead M Colton is the head of investment strategy at Mellon Capital and a portfolio manager for the Dreyfus Dynamic Total Return Fund She represents Mellon Capital’s investment capabilities to clients and consultants, and partners with clients to design global multi-asset solutions

Colton has been in the investment industry since 1994 Prior to joining Mellon Capital in 2012, she served as managing director of investment strategy on the Multi-Asset Client Solutions team at BlackRock and designed tailored investment solutions for institutional clients in the UK and Continental Europe at Barclays Global Investors Previous roles include head of currency at Invesco, where she was responsible for active currency strategies across the Global Fixed-Income team; head of portfolio management at Lee Overlay Partners; currency portfolio manager at J P Morgan Investment Management; and foreign exchange and options salesperson at Chase Manhattan Bank

Colton is a member of Mellon Capital’s Investment Management Committee, Investment Research Committee, and Senior Management Group She earned an MSc in finance from the University of London and a BBS in finance from Dublin City University in Ireland

JONATHAN R. DAVIDSON

Jonathan R Davidson, a partner of Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP, concentrates his practice in the area of shareholder litigation Davidson currently consults with institutional investors from around the world, including public pension funds at the state, county, and municipal levels, as well as Taft-Hartley funds across all trades, with regard to their investment rights and responsibilities Davidson assists the firm’s clients in evaluating and analyzing opportunities to take an active role in shareholder litigation With an increasingly complex shareholder litigation landscape that includes traditional securities class actions, shareholder derivative actions and takeover actions, non-US opt-in actions, and fiduciary actions, for example, Davidson is frequently called



upon by his clients to help ensure that they are taking an active role when their involvement can make a difference, and to ensure that they are not leaving money on the table

Davidson is a graduate of The George Washington University, where he received his bachelor of arts, summa cum laude, in political communication Davidson received his juris doctor and dispute resolution certificate from Pepperdine University School of Law and is licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania and California

GLENN DOGGETT

Glenn Doggett is a director of professional standards for the CFA Institute His responsibilities include providing member guidance in applying the ethics and standards of practice policies, supporting related educational and public awareness activities, and working with the Standards of Practice Council of the CFA Institute on its initiatives He is co-host of the free, live, interactive webinars used by the CFA Institute to promote ethical decision making and global best practices Doggett is also a regular contributor to the CFA Institute Market Integrity Insights blog You can follow him on Twitter, @glenndva, and connect with him on LinkedIn

Previously, as a member of the CFA Institute Financial Reporting Policy Group, Doggett represented membership interests regarding reporting and disclosures initiatives, including XBRL Prior to joining the CFA Institute, he worked in the financial information sector, at SNL Financial There his work focused on the real estate and energy industries, directing the development and maintenance of a financial data storage system He regularly provided insights to the media on events in and the performance of the real estate investment trust industry

Doggett holds a BA in economics from the University of Virginia He was awarded the Chartered Financial Analyst designation in 2006 and is a member of CFA Virginia


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

KIMBERLY DONALDSON SMITH

Kimberly Donaldson Smith, a partner at Chimicles & Tikellis, LLP, has been counseling clients and prosecuting cases on complex issues involving securities, business transactions, and other class actions for more than 17 years Donaldson Smith was instrumental in the outstanding settlements achieved for the investors in In re Empire State Realty Trust, Inc., Investor Litigation, Case 650607/2012 (N Y Supreme Court); CNL Hotels & Resorts, Inc., Federal Securities Litigation, Case No 04-cv-1231 (M D Fla ); Inland Western Retail Real Estate Trust, Inc., et al. Litigation, Case 07 C 6174 (U S D C N D Ill ); and Wells REIT Securities Litigation, Case 1:07-cv-00862/1:07-cv-02660 (U S D C N D Ga ) The settlements included a $55 million cash settlement fund and $100 million in tax savings for the Empire investors, a $35 million cash settlement fund and $225 million in savings for the CNL shareholders, $90 million in savings for the Inland shareholders, and a $7 million cash settlement fund for the Wells investors Notably, Donaldson Smith was an integral member of the trial team that successfully litigated In re Real Estate Associates Limited Partnership Litigation, No CV 98-7035 DDP (C D Cal ), through a six-week jury trial that resulted in a landmark $184 million plaintiffs’ verdict, which is one of the largest jury verdicts since the passage of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act The Real Estate Associates case was settled for $83 million, which represented full recovery for the class (and an amount in excess of the damages calculated by the plaintiffs’ expert) Since 2006, Donaldson Smith has been recognized by Law & Politics and the publishers of Philadelphia Magazine as a Pennsylvania Super Lawyer or Rising Star, as listed in the Super Lawyers publications



ERIN DOYLE OREKHOV Erin Doyle Orekhov is a client portfolio manager for the equity investment platform at Voya Investment Management, focusing on institutional business Prior to joining the firm, she spent more than a decade at Deutsche Asset Management, most recently as a client advisor responsible for new business development with institutional plan sponsors The bulk of her time at Deutsche was spent working as a global equity research analyst Doyle Orekhov began her investment career as a trader after several years of working in the nonprofit sector, primarily in Russia and Ukraine She received a master’s in international affairs from Columbia University and a BS in Russian from Georgetown University She holds Series 3, 7, and 63 licenses

DAVID DRISCOLL

David Driscoll is a principal and consulting actuary at Buck Consultants, where he serves as national public-sector consulting leader He consults to a wide variety of public-sector clients He qualified as a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries in 1994 and as an enrolled actuary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) in 1989 He holds a baccalaureate degree from Indiana University and a master’s degree from the University of Rochester From 2003 through 2006, Driscoll served as a member of the Pension Committee of the Actuarial Standards Board, which develops and maintains the Actuarial Standards of Practice applicable to pension actuarial work in the United States Currently, he is a member of the California Actuarial Advisory Panel and a member of the General Committee of the Actuarial Standards Board


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

SUZANNE DUGAN

Suzanne M Dugan serves as special counsel to Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll, PLLC She leads the firm’s Ethics and Fiduciary Counseling practice, which provides guidance to pension funds and other public, private, and nonprofit entities on ethics, fiduciary, governance, and compliance issues Dugan has more than 25 years of legal experience, including designing and implementing comprehensive ethics programs as well as providing guidance on fiduciary issues She also assists funds in conducting internal investigations and structuring recommendations for improved policies and procedures Dugan previously served as special counsel for ethics for the Office of the New York State Comptroller, where she counseled the state’s chief fiscal officer and sole trustee of the pension fund on ethics and fiduciary issues, provided fiduciary education and training, and implemented an ethics program for the agency’s 2,500 employees Dugan formerly served as the acting executive director and general counsel to the New York State Ethics Commission, where she oversaw the agency and its programs, including the issuance of formal and informal advisory opinions as well as investigative reports and notices of civil assessment in enforcement proceedings Dugan has also served as an adjunct faculty member at Albany Law School, teaching government ethics She is an elected member of the American Law Institute and a frequent lecturer on ethics and fiduciary issues

TINA FLETCHER

Tina Fletcher is vice president of Ullico Casualty Group She oversees the daily activities of Ullico’s Professional Liability Insurance department, which includes supervising underwriters and monitoring both renewal and new business policies She also manages the company’s underwriting system and composes policy language to keep coverage up-to-date with the needs of the union workplace Fletcher joined Ullico as a senior underwriter in 2009



Fletcher previously worked for United Educators Insurance from 1999 to 2008 as director of underwriting In this role, she managed a $130 million book of liability insurance and a staff of seven underwriters Prior to joining United Educators, she served as underwriter for Victor O Schinnerer, a subsidiary of Marsh, and as a Nationwide agent

Fletcher graduated from Davenport University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with a BS in marketing She holds a property and casualty producer’s license in the state of West Virginia and is working toward the Registered Professional Liability Underwriter (RPLU) designation

ROBERT GAUSS

Robert Gauss is a partner in the law firm of Ice Miller, LLP, and has been practicing law for more than 23 years Gauss’s practice concentrates on helping local and state governmental employers and governmental retirement plans with employee benefit questions and concerns on matters of retirement, health, and welfare benefits This includes working with governmental pension plans across the country, on broad issues involving federal tax, compliance, and fiduciary responsibilities For instance, he helps governmental plans and retirement boards with compliance concerns; corrections, including correction filings with the IRS; and private letter rulings on various matters, including the special tax treatment of certain death and disability benefits for public safety employees Having started his legal career as an officer in the United States Marine Corps, Gauss takes great pride in the fact that he and Ice Miller work with plans across the country that are dedicated to providing retirement security for governmental and public safety employees


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

JANICE GONZALEZ

Janice Gonzalez, associate partner and director of delegated solutions for public markets within Aon Hewitt’s Delegated group, is primarily responsible for leading Aon’s Delegated Public Markets practice and targeted direct sales efforts within the public sector

Prior to joining Aon, Gonzalez worked with TIAA-CREF as a director of institutional business development within TIAA-CREF’s Asset Management division and was primarily responsible for client development via direct market sales to targeted institutional prospects from the public pension, foundation/endowment, corporate, tax-exempt, and healthcare not-for-profit sectors Prior to joining TIAA-CREF, she served as the director of investor relations at an alternative credit fixed-income firm and was the vice president of business development and client service management at Channing Capital Management, a Chicago-based asset management firm

Gonzalez is a FINRA-licensed investment professional, Series 7 and 63 She received her bachelor of science in business administration degree, with a concentration in finance, from Florida A&M University

DON HEILMAN

Don Heilman joined Gallagher Benefit Services, Inc , as an area vice president in 2002 He has more than 25 years of experience in the benefits industry and previously served as a senior consultant for another national consulting firm for more than 12 years

The majority of Heilman’s work has been with large governmental entities He has extensive experience in the design, financing, and implementation of comprehensive health and welfare benefits programs In particular, he has significant experience and expertise in self-funding, and recently has been active in the areas of consumerism and wellness Other areas of expertise include paid time off / disability plan design and retiree health

Heilman is an active participant in the Gallagher Benefit Services Public Entity and Scholastic Practice and previously



served as the national director This practice represents one of the firm’s largest industry segments and is designed to share insight and best practices, as well as create purchasing leverage for Gallagher’s governmental clients

Heilman obtained his undergraduate degree in mathematics and has completed graduate work in statistics He is affiliated with a number of human resources associations and is a frequent speaker on benefits-related topics

BRIJESH JEEVARATHNAM As the co-head of global venture fund investment at Adams Street, and a partner within the Primary Investment team, Jeevarathnam is focused on the firm’s global venture capital fund portfolio and is responsible for building and maintaining relationships with key venture capital general partners around the world

Prior to joining Adams Street, Jeevarathnam spent 10 years at Commonfund Capital, most recently as managing director and co-head of Global Venture Capital, and head of Emerging Markets In this role, he managed a five-person senior investment team and led the fundraising, portfolio construction, and investment of global venture capital funds Jeevarathnam also played a key role in Commonfund’s strategy development regarding new products, markets, and client development

Before joining Commonfund, Jeevarathnam spent four years at McKinsey & Company, where he led consultant teams performing due diligence, executing turnarounds of portfolio companies, and developing investment and organizational strategy for private equity firms Jeevarathnam began his career as a member of GE Capital’s Mergers and Acquisitions team, where he led acquisition-related due diligence and deal structuring

Jeevarathnam earned his BS from St Lawrence University and his MBA from Harvard University


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

LEON F. “ROCKY” JOYNER, JR.

Leon Joyner is a vice president and actuary in Segal Consulting’s Atlanta office He has nearly 40 years of actuarial consulting experience with all types of pension plans Joyner currently serves as a senior actuarial consultant to some of Segal’s largest governmental clients in the Southeast

Joyner is or has been the consulting actuary for many city and county government clients, including the City of Birmingham; the City of Atlanta; Memphis Light, Gas & Water Division; San Antonio Fire and Police Retirement System; Chattanooga Fire and Police; and DeKalb County, Georgia Since 2005, he has also served as the consulting actuary for the Georgia Municipal Employees Benefit System, which covers employees in nearly 300 municipalities across the state of Georgia

Joyner is a cum laude graduate of Washington and Lee University (Lexington, Virginia), where he earned a BS in mathematics and physics-engineering He has also completed graduate work in actuarial science at Georgia State University Joyner is an Associate of the Society of Actuaries, a member of the American Academy of Actuaries, a Fellow in the Conference of Consulting Actuaries, and an enrolled actuary

Joyner has been a conference speaker on public-sector funding issues for numerous organizations, including the Government Finance Officers Association, NCPERS, the Conference of Consulting Actuaries, the Advisory Committee for the Certificate in Public Financial Management program, the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, and the Society of Actuaries He has testified before legislative committees in Texas, Kentucky, and Georgia and has published articles on deferred retirement option plan issues and plan design



MICHAEL KAHN

Michael Kahn is director of research for the NCPERS He brings more than 30 years of research experience in public pensions and state and local tax and economic policies After his retirement from the National Education Association, he established the Institute on Public Pension Solutions for the purpose of preserving and enhancing public pensions In 2014, with support from NCPERS, Kahn developed a joint NCPERS-IPPS Public Pension Funding Forum with Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Laureate, at Columbia University Kahn has also engaged several other Nobel Laureates to bring new thinking into future pension discussions

Kahn served as a trustee of the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and was a member of the Public Employee Committee of the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) He has graduate- and postgraduate-level training in multiple subjects, including economics, geography, and sociology He holds three master’s degrees and a PhD, from the University of Hawaii, University of North Carolina, and Catholic University of America

BRAD KELLY

Brad Kelly is a partner at Global Governance Advisors With extensive experience in strategic planning in large, complex organizations, Kelly works with board members and managers at public pension funds as well as public and private organizations to devise innovative executive compensation and governance solutions to existing or anticipated challenges

Kelly specializes in performance goal setting, strategic review, valuation, and the innovative design of executive compensation and corporate governance programs that help focus and support organizational strategic objectives and stakeholders’ interests as well as mitigate risks Kelly is certified in the assessment of leadership behaviors and skills as well as the assessment of organizational governance effectiveness

Having spent a number of years as a senior consultant


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

in Hay Group’s Executive Compensation Practice, Kelly had the opportunity to represent stakeholder interests and advise the boards of a wide range of organizations – from public to private and from large, established financial institutions to new corporate or industrial start-ups Prior to this, he spent nearly a decade working in Canada’s Federal Public Service, where he developed a strong knowledge of complex institutions and their needs

Kelly is a masters of public administration graduate of Carleton’s School of Public Policy and Administration He graduated as valedictorian at the University of Waterloo and holds honors degrees and specializations in political science, public administration, legal studies, and philosophy Kelly studied at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and received numerous awards for his work

MARLON KIMPSON

Marlon Kimpson represents victims of corporate malfeasance – from investors in securities fraud cases to people injured or killed in catastrophic incidents – at Motley Rice, LLC

Building upon the firm’s relationships with unions and governmental entities, Kimpson represents individuals, state and municipal pension funds, multiemployer plans, unions, and other institutional investors in securities fraud class actions and merger and acquisition cases to help recover assets and improve corporate governance

Kimpson has worked on shareholder derivative litigation and on merger and acquisition cases that include In re Atheros Communications, Inc., Shareholder Litigation; In re Celera Corporation Shareholder Litigation; In re RehabCare Group, Inc., Shareholders Litigation; and In re Coventry Healthcare, Inc., Shareholder Litigation

In addition to securities fraud litigation, Kimpson has represented victims of catastrophic personal injury, asbestos exposure, and aviation disasters Kimpson has also represented people and businesses filing their claims under the new claims programs established by the two Deepwater Horizon BP oil spill settlements

Kimpson currently serves as South Carolina State Senator for District 42, representing citizens of Charleston and Dorchester Counties



After five years in commercial banking, Kimpson entered the field of law, serving as a law clerk to Judge Matthew J Perry of the US District Court of South Carolina His legal work and volunteer service also earned him the University of South Carolina School of Law Bronze Compleat Lawyer Award

Kimpson is active in his community and formerly served on the board of directors of the Peggy Browning Fund He has held leadership roles with the University of South Carolina Board of Visitors, the Charleston Black Lawyers Association, and the South Carolina Election Commission He is a lifetime member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and a member of the Sigma Pi Phi (Boulé) and Omega Psi Phi fraternities

ROBERT D. KLAUSNER

Robert Klausner is the principal in the law firm of Klausner, Kaufman, Jensen & Levinson For 35 years, he has been engaged in the practice of law, specializing in the representation of public employee pension funds The firm represents state and local retirement systems in more than 20 states Klausner has assisted in the drafting of many state and local laws on public employee retirement throughout the United States He is a frequent speaker on pension education programs and has also published numerous articles on the fiduciary obligations of public employee pension trustees He is co-author of the book State and Local Government Employment Liability, published by Thomson-West Publishers, and is the author of the first comprehensive book on the law of public employee retirement systems, State and Local Government Retirement Law: A Guide for Lawyers, Trustees, and Plan Administrators, published in 2009 and reissued in an expanded version in 2011 Klausner graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Florida with a bachelor of arts and from the University of Florida College of Law with the degree of juris doctor For more than 10 years, Klausner has been listed in the publication The Best Lawyers in America and holds an AV Preeminent


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

rating, the highest rating for competence and ethics, from the Martindale-Hubbell national lawyer rating service In 2008, Klausner successfully represented the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the Kentucky Retirement Systems in the US Supreme Court in Kentucky Retirement Systems v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 128 S Ct 2361

PETER LANDERS

Peter Landers is a partner at Global Governance Advisors He supports boards and senior management at public pension funds as well as public and private organizations with technical insight in the areas of executive compensation, human resource strategy, and corporate governance Landers’s work focuses on forward-looking governance practices and risk management as well as providing education to key stakeholders on complex compensation systems

Landers specializes in the strategic evaluation of compensation and corporate governance programs – including business strategy, compensation philosophy and executive pay alignment, incentive design and valuation, compensation risk audits, and board education – that support clients’ organizational strategies and objectives as well as shareholders’ interests He possesses strong analytical and research skills and widespread knowledge in the general practices of compensation governance and methodology Given his vast experience, Landers has also been asked to share his insights in the media and on industry panels

Landers was previously a consultant in Hay Group’s Executive Compensation practice, focused on advising clients nationally across a broad spectrum of industries His work is specialized in strategic compensation review and design, incentive performance calibration, board compensation, and governance He is also a course developer for the Accredited Fiduciary Program, conducted in partnership with NCPERS, as well as a faculty member for Global Governance Advisors’ Executive Compensation Certificate Program

Landers holds an honors bachelor of business administration degree from the Schulich School of Business at York University, where he specialized in both finance and accounting and graduated with distinction



THOMAS LETTENBERGER

Thomas Lettenberger is senior portfolio manager at BMO Global Asset Management He is responsible for equity portfolio management and research He joined the company in 2005

Previously, he served as a vice president and portfolio manager at Columbia Management and as an equity research analyst at William Blair & Company, LLC He entered the investment industry in 1994

He holds an MA in accounting and a BBA in finance and accounting from the University of Michigan In addition, he is a CFA charterholder, a certified public accountant, and a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society of Chicago

JEREMY LIEBERMAN

Jeremy A Lieberman is co–managing partner of Pomerantz, LLC, and managing partner of the firm’s New York office Lieberman became associated with the firm in 2004 and became a partner in 2010 He was recognized as a Super Lawyer in the New York metro region in 2016

Lieberman serves as lead counsel in In re Petrobras Sec. Litigation, a case arising from a multibillion-dollar kickback and bribery scheme involving Brazil’s largest oil company, Petróleo Brasileiro S A –Petrobras Lieberman has had an integral role in a number of high-profile securities class and derivative actions, including Comverse Technology Securities Litigation, in which he and his partners achieved a historic $225 million settlement on behalf of the class

Lieberman is lead counsel in a putative securities class action that alleges Barclays PLC misled institutional investor clients about the extent of the banking giant’s use of so-called dark pool trading systems He also serves as lead counsel in the firm’s case against Corinthian Colleges for alleged misrepresentations about its job placement rates, compliance with applicable regulations, and enrollment statistics

He was lead counsel in In re Medicis Corp. Securities Litigation, in which the court approved an $18 million settlement, and is lead counsel in a number of the firm’s other litigations

Lieberman is a frequent lecturer regarding corporate governance and securities litigation issues In 2013, he spoke


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

at the Annual Provident Funds Coalition Conference in Israel on Morrison and its implications for Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) investors He also recently led a discussion regarding US securities class actions in Amsterdam

Lieberman graduated from Fordham University School of Law in 2002 Upon graduation, he began his career at a major New York law firm as a litigation associate, specializing in complex commercial litigation

JOHN LIVANAS

John Livanas has been CEO of the A$42 billion fund State Super for the last five and a half years State Super is the New South Wales fund for public servants and employers State Super is a Top 150 global fund and in the top five in Australia by assets under management State Super invests in equities and bonds and has a large allocation to alternative investments (including infrastructure and real assets) State Super has been directly involved in a number of infrastructure and property transactions, including Yorkshire Water (UK), Flinders Ports (Australia), several airports (including Melbourne), and Arlanda Express (Sweden), with partners including Macquarie Bank, SAFE (the Chinese foreign reserves fund), and GIC

Prior to joining State Super, Livanas held the position of CEO of the A$2 0 billion AMIST Super (an Australian industry fund) for more than four years, managing its transition to the highest rating in fund governance while achieving top-quartile investment performance

Livanas’s financial services career has spanned more than 25 years and has included serving as general manager of the A$15 billion superannuation fund group FuturePlus and as the inaugural chief investment officer of Sefalana Employee Benefits Organisation (a precursor to the US$168 billion Government Employees Pension Fund of South Africa) He has also held senior executive roles in consulting and industry with organizations including Deloitte, Kimberly Clark, McCann Erickson (Europe), Rothmans (Australia), and Unified Telecom

Livanas has served on a number of boards, including unlisted property trusts ISPT ($7 billion), ISPT Grosvenor International Property Trust ($1 5 billion), and most recently, StatePlus He holds an MBA and a BSc (in electrical engineering) from the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and has taken additional postgraduate courses in Australia



TOM LOWMAN

Thomas B Lowman is the chief actuary at Bolton Partners Lowman has more than 37 years of pension actuarial experience He is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries (1982), an enrolled actuary (1981), a member of the American Academy of Actuaries (1982), and a Fellow of the Conference of Consulting Actuaries (2009) He is vice chair of the Conference of Consulting Actuaries’ Public Plans Community and the American Academy of Actuaries’ Public Plans Subcommittee

Lowman is recognized as one of the top national experts on public-sector plans and is sought out as a resource in this area by the professional actuarial societies, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB), and national journalists His work with national actuarial organizations is extensive He served a three-year elected term on the Society of Actuaries’ Pension Section Council and served as chair of the Society of Actuaries’ Pension Section Research Committee He also served on the Actuarial Standards Board Pension Committee and the Society of Actuaries’ Enterprise Risk Management Task Force on Pensions

Lowman’s clients include the federal government (Pen-sion Benefit Guaranty Corporation and Treasury), and pen-sion valuation clients in Maryland, Virginia, California, Rhode Island, Florida, and Delaware In the past he has worked on large plans, including the State of New York retirement plan and the Federal Civil Service and Federal Employees’ Retire-ment System (FERS) plans

Lowman holds a mathematics degree from the University of Delaware


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

JEFF MARZINSKY

Jeff Marzinsky is a principal and investment consultant with the Albany, New York, office of Milliman He joined the firm in 1994

Marzinsky is responsible for providing investment advisory and retirement plan consulting services to Milliman’s clients He also works on the design and implementation of new systems He has developed systems for investment performance analysis, pension plan duration analysis and liability matching, client management, and compliance testing

Marzinsky is a frequent speaker at client and professional seminars He has authored several articles and white papers He has also been quoted by The New York Times, Workforce, Money Management Letter, and the Government Accountability Office (GAO)

Marzinsky holds a bachelor of science in finance from Siena College

LISA MASSENA

Lisa Massena is the executive director of the Oregon Retirement Savings Plan In this role, she manages the development of the Oregon Retirement Savings Plan and serves as principal staff to the Oregon Retirement Savings Plan board, which oversees the plan Previously, Massena worked for a variety of consultancies and investment firms and most recently served as a senior vice president at State Street’s investment analytics unit She earned a BA from Portland State University and is a Chartered Financial Analyst



ALAN MATTAMANA

Alan Mattamana is a partner at Fairview Capital and a member of the firm’s Investment Committee He is involved in investment selection and monitoring activities for Fairview’s venture capital, private equity partnership, and direct co-investment portfolios, and he serves on a number of advisory boards of venture capital and private equity partnerships Prior to joining Fairview in 2009, Mattamana was a principal at Polaris Venture Partners, a diversified venture capital firm with more than $3 5 billion under management He joined Polaris in 2002 and focused on venture capital investments in the software, digital media, consumer, medical technology, and healthcare services sectors He was involved in several successful investments, including Q1 Labs, Archivas, and Turbine Entertainment, and served as board observer to portfolio companies such as Advion BioSciences and GI Dynamics

Previously, Mattamana was a strategy consultant at McKinsey & Company, where he served clients in the software, telecommunications, and aerospace sectors from the firm’s Silicon Valley office He also has prior experience at NASA, Goldman Sachs, and Neuberger Berman

Mattamana graduated from Princeton University with a BSE in chemical engineering and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School He serves on the Greater Hartford YMCA board of directors and the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving board of ambassadors, and is a former member of the board of directors of the Hartford Stage Theatre


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

KENNETH MCATAMNEY

Ken McAtamney is a portfolio manager for the Global Leaders and International Leaders strategies at William Blair He joined the firm in 2005 and previously served as co-director of research, as well as a mid- and large-cap industrials and healthcare analyst Prior to joining William Blair, McAtamney was a vice president for Goldman Sachs and Co , where he was responsible for institutional equity research coverage for both international and domestic equity, and a corporate banking officer at NBD Bank

McAtamney received his bachelor of arts from Michigan State University and his master’s in business administration from Indiana University

RYAN MCINTYRE

Ryan McIntyre is a portfolio manager at Tocqueville Asset Management, LP He serves as a co–portfolio manager of the Tocqueville Gold Strategy as well as the Tocqueville Gold Fund Additionally, he holds research responsibilities for other commodity-related investments He joined Tocqueville in 2008 and focuses on generating ideas and monitoring investments related to precious metals Prior to joining Tocqueville, he was an analyst and then an associate focused on mergers and acquisitions in the metals and mining sector at Macquarie Bank McIntyre holds a bachelor of commerce with distinction (majoring in finance) from Dalhousie University and an MBA from the Yale School of Management He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation



MICHAEL MERLOB

Michael Merlob is a consulting actuary at Foster & Foster, Inc He has more than 35 years of experience assisting clients with the design, financing, and administration of their benefit plans He is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries with particular expertise in pension and retiree medical benefit accounting and valuation, dating back to the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s issuance of Statement 87 in 1985 He has been a frequent speaker at local and national conferences and is a noted author

Now in his 60s, Merlob has recently turned his attention to retirement planning He has conducted several retirement planning seminars to educate employees about the intricacies of Social Security and help them gather the data they need to make informed decisions about their retirement options He also built and holds the copyright for a software application to assist in this process

His clients have run the gamut from small partnerships to Fortune 50 companies as well as cities, towns, and counties throughout the United States He is a former trustee for the City of Norwalk, Connecticut, pension plan and the City of Parkland, Florida, police pension plan

PETER MIXON

Peter Mixon is a partner in the Seattle office of K&L Gates, LLP He began his career in private practice, representing public agencies and other parties in business litigation and constitutional challenges In 1996, he joined the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), becoming general counsel in 2002 He served in this position for 11 years before joining K&L Gates Mixon has a broad practice, representing public pension plans and other institutional investors in fiduciary, governance, investment, and similar matters He is a longtime member of the National Association of Public Pension Attorneys and served on the organization’s board from 2009 to 2013


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

NICHOLAS MOLLER

Nicholas Moller, an executive director at J P Morgan Asset Management, is a product specialist and client portfolio manager focused on informing clients regarding the opportunities, risks, and considerations involved in investing in infrastructure An employee of J P Morgan since 2006, Moller has 11 years of experience in the infrastructure sector Prior to joining J P Morgan Asset Management in 2013, he was a member of J P Morgan’s Public Finance Investment Banking Transportation and Infrastructure Group In that role, he advised both public-sector and private-sector clients on executing infrastructure and public–private partnership transactions In addition, he structured and executed taxable and tax-exempt financings for both publicly and privately owned infrastructure assets Earlier in his career, Moller was a member of J P Morgan Australia’s Equity Capital Markets team, which included a strong focus on the real estate and infrastructure sectors Moller graduated from the University of Auckland in New Zealand with a bachelor of commerce in finance (first-class honors)

DAN NIELSEN

Dan Nielsen is managing director at Great Lakes Advisors, where he leads the firm’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) integration and responsible investing initiatives He works across the company to focus on business development, client service, and product management and development

Prior to joining Great Lakes Advisors, Nielsen served as director of Socially Responsible Investing at Christian Brothers Investment Services, where he oversaw the firm’s Catholic socially responsible investing strategies Earlier, he served as manager of Socially Responsible Investing at the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits of the United Methodist Church Nielsen has served on the board of directors for US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investing and the steering committee of the Sustainable Investment Research Analyst Network (SIRAN),



including two years as co-chair He is the former chair of the board of the Center for Economic Progress Nielsen holds an MBA from the University of Chicago and a BA with honors from the University of Maryland, and he is a Fundamentals of Sustainability Accounting (FSA) Credential holder

JEFF NIPP

Jeff Nipp is a senior investment consultant at the San Francisco office of Milliman, which he joined in 2017

Nipp is a seasoned investment professional with nearly 30 years of experience in constructing and monitoring multi–asset class portfolios Prior to joining Milliman, he most recently served as the head of solutions for Invesco, developing customized portfolios for retail and institutional clients while also providing objective analysis of Invesco’s product offerings Previously, he spent more than five years with BlackRock as a managing director in the Multi-Asset Client Solutions team, where he designed and implemented manager research/selection and asset allocation input processes and chaired the Manager Research Review Committee Prior to that, he spent more than 20 years as an institutional investment consultant at Towers Perrin and Watson Wyatt, heading investment manager research at each firm

Nipp earned an MBA degree from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and a BBA degree from Mercer University He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder, holds the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designation, and is a member of the CFA Society of San Francisco


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

MAUREEN O’BRIEN

Maureen O’Brien is vice president and corporate governance director at Segal Marco Advisors She joined the firm in September 2011 At Segal Marco Advisors, she engages companies on corporate governance issues and oversees the proxy voting service O’Brien serves on the advisory council to the Council of Institutional Investors

O’Brien began her work in shareholder advocacy in 2003 as a research analyst for the Investor Responsibility Research Center She previously served as head of engagement at Conflict Risk Network, where she held dialogues with companies operating in Sudan and other conflict zones In a previous role, she was research director at the Center for Political Accountability, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, where she promoted transparency in corporate political spending

O’Brien co-founded LINC Negotiations, a Washington, D C –based consultancy that provided training in negotiation and mediation She holds an MA from American University in Washington, D C , and a BA from the University of Missouri–Columbia

PETER PALANDJIAN

Peter Palandjian, chairman and chief executive officer of Intercontinental Real Estate Corporation, oversees the affiliated Intercontinental operating companies, with primary responsibility for the strategic planning and direction of all company activities Palandjian is a member of Intercontinental’s Investment and Executive Committees

Prior to joining Intercontinental in 1993, Palandjian worked as the assistant to the CEO of Staples, Inc , and as an associate consultant at Bain & Company

Palandjian holds memberships with the Pension Real Estate Association (PREA) and the National Association of Real Estate Investment Managers (NAREIM) He has also been active on a number of corporate and not-for-profit boards, including those of the Boston Symphony Orchestra (co-chair



of the board of overseers); Dana Farber Cancer Institute; the International Tennis Hall of Fame; American Friends of the Yitzhak Rabin Center; the New England Chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP); O’Neill and Associates; Leader Bank; Harvard Varsity Club; Town of Belmont, Massachusetts (Board of Retirement); the Fessenden School (trustee emeritus); and the Taubman Center at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government

Palandjian works on behalf of Harvard University as a volunteer undergraduate admissions interviewer He was a two-time Harvard captain and world-ranked tennis player on the ATP World Tour Palandjian earned his BA from Harvard University and his MBA from the Harvard Business School

KAI PETERSEN

Kai Petersen is a principal within the Planning and Risk Management group of Buck Consultants, LLC, where he leads the Asset Liability Management group in the United States He has consulted on retirement actuarial, design, investment, and risk management issues for more than 30 years Petersen is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries, an enrolled actuary under ERISA, a member of the American Academy of Actuaries, a Fellow of the Conference of Consulting Actuaries, and a charterholder with the CFA Institute He earned his bachelor’s degree in mathematics from St Olaf College, graduating with honors


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

JEANNINE MARKOE RAYMOND

Jeannine Markoe Raymond has served as director of federal relations for the National Association of State Retirement Administrators (NASRA) since 1997 In this role, she advocates the interests of NASRA members before Congress and the Administration and is a liaison to other professional associations, interest groups, and policy organizations She coordinates numerous policy and federal education efforts and frequently speaks and writes on federal legislative and regulatory matters and national trends in state retirement system policies and administration

Raymond serves on the advisory board of the Wharton School’s Pension Research Council, the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans’ Government Liaison Committee, and the board of directors of the Coalition to Preserve Retirement Security She was a congressionally appointed delegate to the 2002 National Summit on Retirement Savings

Formerly, she was the legislative analyst for the Government Finance Officers Association She also worked as a graduate student associate for the California Debt Advisory Commission within the California State Treasurer’s Office

Raymond received a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of California, San Diego, and a master’s degree, with honors, in public administration and intergovernmental management from the University of Southern California

JULIAN REGAN

Julian Regan is senior vice president and senior consultant for Segal Marco Advisors He joined the firm in 2009 Regan’s prior experience includes serving in leadership, investment oversight, risk management, and governance roles in the private and public sectors He is a 2008 recipient of the Commissioner’s Award from the IRS Tax-Exempt and Government Entities Division and a 2004 Plan Sponsor of the Year award recipient

Between 2001 and 2006, Regan served as executive director of the New York State Deferred Compensation Board,



where he ran the state’s then $8 billion, 165,000-member supplemental retirement plan and administered regulations that governed 250 local plans

He is a frequent author and speaker for leading labor/management and public benefit plan organizations Regan is co-author of NCPERS’ Best Governance Practices for Public Retirement Systems, a contributing author to the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) 2011 Trustee Handbook, and author of Is Your Pension Plan Measuring Up? He received his MBA and BSBA from Suffolk University

DARREN ROBBINS

Darren Robbins is a founding partner of Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd, LLP Over the last two decades, he has served as lead counsel in more than 100 securities class actions and has recovered billions of dollars for injured shareholders

Robbins has obtained significant recoveries in a number of actions arising out of wrongdoing related to the issuance of residential mortgage–backed securities, including the case against Goldman Sachs ($272 million recovery) Robbins served as co–lead counsel in connection with a $627 million recovery for investors in In re Wachovia Preferred Securities & Bond/Notes Litigation, one of the largest credit-crisis settlements involving Securities Act claims Robbins also recently served as lead counsel in Schuh v. HCA Holdings, Inc , resulting in a $215 million recovery

One of the hallmarks of Robbins’s practice has been his focus on corporate governance reform In UnitedHealth, a securities fraud class action arising out of an options backdating scandal, Robbins represented lead plaintiff California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS), obtaining the cancellation of more than 3 6 million stock options held by the company’s former CEO and securing a record $925 million cash recovery for shareholders Robbins also negotiated sweeping corporate governance reforms, including the election of a shareholder-nominated director to the company’s board of directors, a mandatory holding period for shares acquired via option exercise, and compensation reforms that tied executive pay to performance Recently, Robbins led a shareholder derivative action brought by several pension funds on behalf of Community Health Systems, Inc The case yielded


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

a $60 million payment to Community Health (the largest shareholder derivative recovery in the Sixth Circuit), as well as groundbreaking corporate governance reforms that included two shareholder-nominated directors, the appointment of a healthcare law compliance coordinator, the implementation of an automatic compensation clawback provision, and the adoption of a political expenditure disclosure policy

LAURENCE ROSEN

Laurence Rosen is a founding member of the Rosen Law Firm and has been representing investors in securities and corporate governance litigation for 28 years

The Rosen Law Firm represents investors exclusively, prosecuting securities fraud, protecting shareholder rights, and enforcing good corporate governance practices

Rosen has obtained significant recoveries in dozens of cases pressing shareholders’ rights and fiduciary duties, and has specific expertise in accounting fraud and the accounting and auditing standards on which such actions are based He has also tried several cases alleging breaches of fiduciary duty and violations of the securities laws against directors and officers, obtaining millions of dollars for aggrieved investors

Rosen entered private practice as an associate at the law firm of Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom in New York City, where he participated in a number of complex securities class action and corporate governance litigation matters He later served as an associate at McCarter & English in Newark, New Jersey, where he specialized in securities and business litigation Rosen clerked for the late US District Judge Stanley S Brotman, senior district judge for the District of New Jersey and acting chief judge of the US Virgin Islands

Rosen is a frequent speaker on the topics of corporate governance, financial reporting violations, and securities fraud Rosen holds a BA in economics from Emory University, an MBA in finance and accounting from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, and a JD from New York University School of Law He is admitted to the bar in New York, California, Florida, the District of Columbia, and New Jersey and has court admissions in numerous US District Courts throughout the country



RANDY SCHWIMMER

Randy Schwimmer is senior managing director and head of Origination and Capital Markets at Churchill Asset Management, LLC Churchill is a credit asset management firm affiliated with Nuveen (formerly TIAA-CREF Asset Management) that provides senior debt to middle-market companies

Schwimmer is also editor/publisher of The Lead Left, Churchill’s weekly newsletter reviewing deals and trends in the capital markets and read by many influential industry participants

In 2006, Schwimmer became a founding partner and head of Capital Markets at Churchill Financial, LLC, a middle-market finance company acquired by The Carlyle Group in 2011 At Carlyle, he was a managing director responsible for all middle-market loan capital markets activities, including loan structuring, syndications, and distribution within the Carlyle Global Market Strategies team

Prior to co-founding Churchill, Schwimmer was a managing director and head of Leveraged Finance Syndication for BNP Paribas, where he structured and syndicated leveraged transactions for the bank’s private equity clients Before that, he spent 15 years in several capacities at JPMorgan Chase in corporate banking and loan syndications, where he was responsible for originating, structuring, and syndicating leveraged loans

Schwimmer received his BA from Trinity College (cum laude) and his MA from the University of Chicago

RYAN SHELBY

Ryan Shelby is head of factor solutions at Analytic Investors, a subsidiary of Wells Fargo Asset Management In this role, he is responsible for the strategic direction of the firm’s Smart Beta product suite Shelby also serves as a product specialist and provides insight into the firm’s quantitative risk and return models as well as the research foundation behind each strategy

Shelby has more than 15 years of investment experience and has been at Analytic Investors since 2010 Previously, he was a portfolio manager at Northrop Grumman, where he


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

was responsible for managing the firm’s defined-benefit and defined-contribution equity investments Prior to that, he worked at Wilshire Associates, where he was responsible for conducting investment manager due diligence on behalf of the firm’s institutional clients

Shelby received his BA in law and society from the University of California, Santa Barbara

JEFF SHERAN

Jeff Sheran is a senior product specialist and a managing director at Allianz Global Investors, which he joined in 2000 He is responsible for articulating to investors the option- and volatility-based investment solutions managed by the Structured Products team, and has been doing so since the team’s inception in 2005 Sheran was previously the director of the Institutional Business Development team, the head of the Consultant Relations team, and a director of marketing and product management He has 24 years of investment-industry experience Earlier in his career, Sheran was a financial journalist He holds a BA from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the New York University Leonard N Stern School of Business Sheran is a CFA charterholder and a member of the New York Society of Security Analysts

BENJAMIN SHULDINER

Benjamin Shuldiner has worked in the field of education for more than 15 years as a teacher, principal, and professor Shuldiner was the founder and principal of the High School for Public Service (HSPS), in Brooklyn, New York Under his leadership, HSPS received numerous awards for its outstanding success HSPS was named one of the top 50 high schools in New York City by the Daily News and received a Bronze Medal from US News and World Report, putting it among the top schools in the country In 2010, HSPS was named the top Title I school in New York, the first time a high school has ever won this award Shuldiner also led innovative projects at HSPS that gained national notoriety, from the creation of a fully functioning 1-acre organic farm to a schoolwide grading curriculum focused on mastery and proficiency



In 2005, Shuldiner was selected to receive the prestigious Jefferson Award for Public Service for an Individual 35 Years of Age and Under He has also been an adjunct lecturer at the Baruch College School of Public Affairs His most recent endeavor has been to join City University of New York (CUNY), full-time, where he is serving as the distinguished lecturer of education leadership and program coordinator of the School and District Leadership Program at Hunter College In 2015, he was appointed to the New York City Board of Education and became a trustee of the Board of Education Retirement System In 2016, he was elected president of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, an education professional organization comprising more than 125,000 members – superintendents, principals, teachers, and advocates from more than 138 countries – including 52 affiliate organizations Shuldiner received his undergraduate degree from Harvard College, graduating magna cum laude, and his MSEd from Baruch College

WILLIAM SOKOL

William Sokol joined Weinberg, Roger & Rosenfeld in 1976 He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin, receiving Phi Beta Kappa honors After a year at Yale Law School, Sokol pursued a master’s degree in modern American history at the University of California, which he received in 1972 Sokol received his juris doctor from The University of California, Berkeley, School of Law in 1976 While there, Sokol was an editor of Ecology Law Quarterly

Sokol currently practices primarily in the ERISA and benefits area, representing pension funds, health and welfare funds, and apprenticeship and training funds He serves as both sole counsel and co-counsel on these funds, in a wide array of industries, serving employees from engineers to healthcare workers to teamsters, in both the private and public sectors In addition, he devotes considerable time to negotiating project labor agreements in the construction industry And he continues to represent unions in their labor relations with employers and members

Sokol teaches labor law at San Francisco State University, in the Labor Studies Department He has also taught at the University of California, Berkeley; the University of San Francisco; Laney College; and San Francisco City College He also lectures widely on labor law and related topics


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

RONALD TEMPLE

Ronald Temple is a managing director, co-head of Multi Asset, and head of US Equity at Lazard, where he is responsible for oversight of the firm’s multi-asset and US equity strategies as well as several global equity strategies He is also a portfolio manager / analyst on various US and global equity teams He joined Lazard in 2001 with 10 years of global experience, including fixed-income derivative trading, risk management, corporate finance, and corporate strategy in roles at Deutsche Bank AG; Bank of America National Trust and Savings Association; and Fleet Financial Group in London, New York, Singapore, San Francisco, and Boston Temple has an MPP from Harvard University and graduated magna cum laude with a BA in economics and public policy from Duke University He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Economic Club of New York, Duke University’s Graduate School Board of Visitors, and the New York Society of Security Analysts He also served as a trustee of the Link Community School in Newark, New Jersey, from 2006 to 2014; as a member of the Trinity Board of Visitors at Duke University from 2006 to 2012; and as a member of the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council from 2013 to 2015

GRETA TINAGLIA

Greta Tinaglia is a graduate of the University of Georgia with a degree in accounting She is a certified public accountant and holds various treasury designations She began her career with the Gwinnett County Georgia School District, where she served in various financial roles, including financial manager for the Gwinnett Retirement Plan She served as chief financial officer for the City Schools of Decatur Georgia, treasurer for the Fulton County (Georgia) School District, and then executive director of the Fulton County Schools Employees’ Pension Fund She is now the executive director of accounting and retirement services for the Fulton school district Her professional interests include process improvement, investments, teaching and training, and retirement planning



CHET WALDMAN

Chet B Waldman is a senior partner at Wolf Popper, LLP, and sits on the firm’s Executive Committee Waldman has extensive experience in litigating federal and state securities class actions and derivative litigation He has also litigated health care and consumer fraud cases Born in the Bronx, New York, Waldman is a graduate of Cornell University (AB, 1982) and Boston University School of Law (JD, 1985), where he was both a G Joseph Tauro Scholar and a Paul J Liacos Scholar as well as a member of the American Journal of Law and Medicine Following law school, he joined the New York office of Weil, Gotshal & Manges, where he was predominantly involved in antitrust litigation Waldman has been at Wolf Popper since 1988 He has been a member of the Securities Litigation Committee and the Mergers and Acquisitions Committee of the New York City Bar Association He has been named as a top-rated securities litigation attorney by Super Lawyers (New York–Metro Edition) from 2009 to 2016 He has been involved in litigating numerous multidistrict and consolidated actions, including some of the more prominent cases in which Wolf Popper has been involved

Waldman is a frequent lecturer on securities litigation matters and the fiduciary duties of pension system trustees throughout the United States, Latin America, and Canada, including speaking engagements at conferences of NCPERS, the Council of Institutional Investors, Mid-Atlantic Pension Systems, the National Association of Police Organizations, and the Illinois Public Pension Fund Association, among others


SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

RONIT WALNY

Ronit Walny is a portfolio manager across multiple fixed-income and inflation strategies, and a member of the senior investment team that sets overall portfolio strategy for global investment-grade fixed income at Neuberger Berman Prior to joining the firm, Walny was a senior vice president and global fixed-income product manager at PIMCO Previously, she held various portfolio management and client-facing roles at firms including MacroMarkets, MSCI Barra, and Kellogg Capital Group Earlier in her career, Walny worked as a portfolio manager and trader at the Northern Trust Company She began her career in finance in 1994 in the Eurodollar and bond option trading pits She earned her BBA degree in finance from Loyola University and has been awarded the Chartered Financial Analyst designation

PAUL WOOD

Paul Wood is a consulting actuary at Gabriel, Roeder, Smith & Company in Denver, Colorado With more than 15 years’ experience in the actuarial and consulting fields, Wood has worked with municipalities, large statewide cases, and state prepaid tuition plans Throughout his career, he has consulted extensively on plan design, funding, accounting, and pricing for defined-benefit pension plans, postretirement healthcare programs, and §529 prepaid tuition programs

Wood is an Associate of the Society of Actuaries (ASA), a Fellow in the Conference of Consulting Actuaries (FCA), and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries He regularly presents in front of boards of trustees, plan sponsor staff, and professional associations In 2015, he spoke at the National Association of State Treasurers (NAST) Treasury Management Training Symposium on the actuarial implications of prepaid tuition plans

Wood holds a bachelor of science degree in mathematics and a bachelor of science degree in business administration from Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan



RICHARD YASENCHAK

Richard Yasenchak is senior vice president and client portfolio manager at INTECH Yasenchak, who joined INTECH in 2014, is responsible for serving as a proxy for the portfolio management team for sales presentations, client reviews, and other campaigns by communicating INTECH’s investment process and strategies

Prior to joining INTECH, Yasenchak spent almost nine years at Russell Investments, where he served as a portfolio manager of $5 billion in US equity defensive funds, quantitative funds, mid-cap funds, separate accounts, and beta strategies for institutions and individuals; US equity associate portfolio manager; associate portfolio manager of the Hedge Fund of Funds; and portfolio analyst of the Investment Strategist team

Yasenchak has presented on various investment topics such as portfolio rebalancing, active versus passive investing, dynamic risk reduction, and other investment themes at numerous conferences Yasenchak received his master of science in financial analysis from the College for Financial Planning and a certificate in personal financial planning, financial planning, and services from Metropolitan State College of Denver; he has also met the CFP Board’s certification standards and is a Certified Financial Planner He is a Chartered Financial Analyst He received a bachelor of science in business administration from the University of Colorado at Boulder

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NCPERS LEADERSHIP

NCPERS OFFICERS. Daniel Fortuna

President

. Kathy Harrell First Vice President

. Dale Chase Second Vice President

. Tina Fazendine Secretary

. Richard Wachsman Treasurer

. Mel Aaronson Immediate Past President

NCPERS EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBERS

. Stacy Birdwell

. Peter Carozza, Jr

. Dale Chase

. Kelly L Fox

. Dan Givens

. Aaron Hanson

. Kenneth A Hauser

. Sharon Hendricks

. Emmit Kane

. Bill Lundy

. Robert McCarthy

. Rick Miller

. Sherry Mose

. John R Niemiec

. Will Pryor

. Patricia Reilly

. Carol G Stukes-Baylor

ADVISORS TO THE NCPERS EXECUTIVE BOARD

. Jack Gastler Acadian Asset

Management

. Douglas W Moseley NEPC, LLC

. William Norris Permal Group

. Andrew Pataky Mesirow Financial

. Richard G Protasewich State Street Corporation

. George Sands Lazard Asset

Management

. Stephen Weeks William Blair

. Kelly Weller Great Lakes Advisors

NCPERS STAFF. Hank H Kim Executive Director and

Counsel

. Cassandra Smoot Senior Director of

Operations

. Amanda Rok Manager of

Communications and Social Media

. Alyssa Carlson Membership &

Conference Coordinator


NCPERS 2016–2017 NATIONAL COMMITTEE MEMBERS

ALABAMAWendy S Hester

ARKANSASJohn NealBill Lundy

CALIFORNIAKen BuzzellTony Gamboa

CANADARick Miller

COLORADOPamela FeelyVictoria Hale

CONNECTICUTPeter Carozza, Jr

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIAEdward SmithWilliam Taylor

FLORIDADan GivensBrian Fenske

HAWAIIThomas Williams

ILLINOISMary Sharon ReillyBrian Wright

LOUISIANAStacy BirdwellMartin Gaal

MARYLANDPaul DeSimoneGlen Middleton

MASSACHUSETTSChet RileyJohn Brown

MICHIGANJohn FisherTina Turner

MINNESOTADavid Metusalem

NEBRASKAJim SklenarMike Henrich

NEVADARaymond McAllisterScott Gorgon

NEW JERSEYMichael ZanyorJames Nuzzi

NEW MEXICOPatricia FrenchPaula Fisher

NEW YORKThomas BrownMilagros Rodriguez

OHIOBarb PhillipsCatherine Moss

OKLAHOMATina Fazendine

PENNSYLVANIAVeronica PankeyCarol Stukes-Baylor

TENNESSEEPhillip McClainCraig Joel

TEXASJohn MaysRoy Sanchez

UTAHDavid BannerMarty Peterson

VERMONTJeff Briggs

VIRGIN ISLANDSCarol Callwood

VIRGINIAKadira ColeyThomas Simcoe

WISCONSINCarmelo Patti

WYOMINGJoe Fender


NCPERS LEADERSHIP BIOGRAPHIES

MEL AARONSON

Mel Aaronson serves on the NCPERS executive board as the immediate past president He is chair of the legislative committee and is a member of the advisors; credentials; executive; and bylaws, policy, and resolutions committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 1997

Aaronson has served as a trustee on the Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of New York, the retirement plan for teacher employees serving the citizens of New York The Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of New York provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to more than 80,000 beneficiaries and has more than 100,000 in-service members The system has more than $71 billion in assets under management Aaronson served as chairman of the board from 2011 through 2015 and was a member of the investment and budget committees He was first elected to the system’s board of trustees in 1980

Aaronson has served as a teacher for 58 years He is the treasurer of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) Local 2, American Federation of Teachers (AFT) He has served as a pension consultant of UFT for more than 40 years

In 1981, Aaronson was a delegate to the New York and White House conferences on aging In 1995, he served as a delegate to the New York State conference on aging and as an alternate delegate to the White House conference In 1998, he served as a delegate to the White House conference on Social Security, and in 2002 he was a delegate to the National Summit on Retirement Savings

STACY BIRDWELL

Stacy Birdwell serves on the NCPERS executive board, is chair of the audit committee, and is a member of the by-laws, policy and resolutions, insurance, and investment committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2008

Birdwell currently serves as


NCPERS LEADERSHIP BIOGRAPHIES NCPERS LEADERSHIP BIOGRAPHIES

a trustee on the Louisiana Firefighters Retirement System, the retirement plan for firefighter employees serving the citizens of Louisiana The Louisiana Firefighters Retirement System provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to 4,700 beneficiaries and has $1 4 billion in assets under management He serves as vice-chairman and is a member of the investment, personnel, and policy committees Birdwell was first elected to the Louisiana Firefighters Retirement System board of trustees in 2002

Birdwell has served as a firefighter for 33 years He is vice president of Shreveport Fire Fighters Association Local 514, having served in every elected position in the more than 28 years he has held office in his local union

Birdwell is secretary-treasurer of the Professional Fire Fighters Association of Louisiana and past secretary-treasurer and trustee of the Southern Federation of Professional Fire Fighters As a registered state lobbyist, he has spent more than two decades promoting firefighter interests in Louisiana For more than 25 years he has been the administrator of the Shreveport Fire Fighters Benevolent Fund He is also a trustee for the Fire Fighter Cancer Foundation

PETER S. CAROZZA, JR.

Peter Carozza is a 33-year veteran of the Waterbury (Connecticut) Fire Department and currently serves as president of the Uniformed Professional Fire Fighters Association of Connecticut, representing 60 local affiliates and 4,000 career firefighters in Connecticut He has extensive experience in labor relations and lobbying for firefighters on the local, state, and national levels He serves on several national committees of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) and received the organization’s 2010 Local Leadership Award He currently serves as chairman of the Federation of State and Provincial Fire Fighters, IAFF, which is composed of the leadership of each state and provincial association in the United States and Canada

Carozza currently serves as chairman of the State of Connecticut Commission on Fire Prevention and Control; he was originally appointed by Governor William O’Neill and was reappointed by Governors John Rowland, Jodi Rell, and Dannel Malloy



He serves as firefighter chairman of the Muscular Dystrophy Association of Connecticut and vice president of the Connecticut State AFL-CIO, from which he received a Public Sector Leadership Award for his tireless efforts and passionate commitment to Connecticut’s workers In 2010 he was elected to the board of directors of The Hundred Club of Connecticut, and in 2011 he was inducted into the Connecticut State Firefighters Association Hall of Fame for his work on firefighter issues on the local, state, and national levels

He has served on the senior steering committees of many political campaigns on the state and national levels, the governor’s public safety committee, the governor’s Two Storm Panel, the Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield advisory board, and the University of Connecticut Labor Education Center advisory board In 2012 he was elected to the NCPERS executive board, where he serves on the audit, budget, education, and marketing and membership committees

DALE ROBERT CHASE

Dale Chase serves on the NCPERS executive board as the second vice president; is chair of the healthcare committee; and is a member of the advisors, credentials, executive, insurance, legislative, and publications and research committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2012

Chase currently serves as a trustee on the Howard County Retirement Board, the retirement plan for 386 different employment classifications serving the citizens of Howard County, Maryland The Howard County Retirement Board provides retirement, disability, survivor, and healthcare benefits to 2,524 beneficiaries, of whom 1,692 are active employees, and has more than $770 million in assets under management in a master trust together with Howard County police and fire employees He was the labor representative appointed to serve on the Howard County GASB 45 Task Force He serves on numerous subcommittees as appointed Chase was first appointed a trustee on the Howard County Retirement Board in 1995 He also serves on the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) International Pension Advisory Board



Chase has served as a master electrician since 1985 Since 1994, Chase has served as the president of

AFSCME Local 3085, Howard County, Maryland, Public Service Employees He is currently the statewide president of AFSCME Council 67, representing well over 30,000 members in 21 separate political jurisdictions, including Baltimore City, throughout the state of Maryland

TINA FAZENDINE

Tina Fazendine serves on the NCPERS executive board as secretary and is a member of the advisors, budget, credentials, executive, education, and healthcare committees She was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2001

Fazendine has served in an executive role on the Municipal Employees’ Retirement Plan (MERP), the retirement plan for municipal employees serving the citizens of Tulsa, Oklahoma MERP provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to 4,000 beneficiaries and has $500 million in assets under management She also administered the city’s deferred compensation and insurance programs She began working with the MERP board of trustees in 1988

Fazendine was the insurance and retirement services manager of the City of Tulsa She has more than 30 years of service as a Tulsa public employee, with 21 of those years concentrating on retirement and insurance management

DANIEL FORTUNA

Daniel Fortuna, NCPERS president, is an elected trustee on the retirement board of the Firemen’s Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago In addition, he is the current First District vice president of the Associated Firefighters of Illinois; he has served in this capacity since 2006 During his 30 years of service with the Chicago Fire Department, he served three terms on the Chicago Fire Fighters Union Local 2 executive board, resulting



in two decades of union leadership He continues to serve the Chicago Fire Fighters Union as senior member and co-chair of the legislative / political action committee, in conjunction with the Associated Firefighters of Illinois, dealing with union legislation and pensions and benefits issues in the state capital of Illinois He currently serves as chair of the marketing and membership committee and is a member of the advisors; bylaws, policy, and resolutions; credentials; executive; and legislative committees of NCPERS Most recently, Fortuna has once again been appointed by the governor of Illinois to the Fire Fighting Medal of Honor committee and Illinois Firefighter Memorial Foundation

KELLY L. FOX

Kelly Fox serves on the NCPERS executive board; is chair of the publications and research committee; and is a member of the budget, education, and legislative committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2004

Fox currently serves as a trustee on the Law Enforcement Officers’ and Fire Fighters’ Plan 2 Retirement Board, the retirement plan for fire employees serving the citizens of Washington state The plan provides retirement, disability, and benefits to 18,000 beneficiaries and has more than $10 billion in assets under management He has served as chair since the board’s inception He was first appointed a trustee of the Law Enforcement Officers’ and Fire Fighters’ Plan 2 Retirement Board in 2003

Fox has served as a firefighter for 34 years He serves his community as a fire lieutenant and continues to represent the local union in collective bargaining and labor-management relations

Fox was appointed to the Washington State Investment Board by Governor Jay Inslee in 2013 and currently serves as board chair Fox was elected to the executive board of the International Association of Fire Fighters in 2016, representing the states of Washington, Idaho, Montana, and Alaska Previously, he served the Washington State Council of Fire Fighters (WSCFF), joining its executive board in 1990 and becoming president in 1996



DAN GIVENS

Dan Givens serves on the NCPERS executive board and is a member of the education; healthcare; investment; and bylaws, policy, and resolutions committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2001

Givens currently serves as a trustee of the Miami Fire Fighters’ Relief and Pension Fund, a retirement plan for firefighter employees serving the citizens of Miami The fund provides retirement benefits to roughly 750 active and 200 retired beneficiaries The fund started 2016 with roughly $130 million in assets under management Givens began his service on this fund in 1980 and was chairman from 1981 to 2006 From 2006 to 2013 he served as the administrator of the fund Subsequent to his retirement, he was reappointed to the board, where he continues to serve

Givens served as a firefighter for 35 years with the City of Miami Fire Department

Givens continues to serve with the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) and the Florida Professional Firefighters, dealing with pension matters such as legislative changes to Florida public pension law and federal tax law changes He is a member of the Florida Public Pension Trustees Association (FPPTA) and has completed the Certified Public Pension Trustee program He was a trustee during the creation of the Miami Association of Firefighters Retiree Health Trust He also serves as a regional representative for the IAFF Financial Corporation



AARON HANSON

Aaron Hanson serves on the NCPERS executive board; is chair of the communications committee; and is a member of the legislative, marketing and membership, and publications and research committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2012

Hanson currently serves as a trustee of the Omaha Police and Fire Retirement System, the retirement plan for police and firefighter employees serving the citizens of Omaha, Nebraska The Omaha Police and Fire Retirement System provides retirement, disability, survivor, and healthcare benefits to 2,600 beneficiaries and has $620 million in assets under management Hanson was first elected to the Omaha Police and Fire Retirement System board of trustees in 2011

Hanson has served as a peace officer with the Omaha Police Department for 20 years He served in the Canine Squad from 2000 until 2014 In 2014, he was promoted to the rank of sergeant He currently is assigned to the Special Operations Section, supervising the North Gang Suppression Squad

Hanson served as president of the Omaha Police Officers Association from 2005 to 2011 During his tenure, an agreement was secured that reformed the pension plan, eliminated the highly politically charged practice of “pension spiking,” and increased the employer’s contribution with a long-term goal of eliminating the 40 percent–funded pension plan’s nearly $600 million shortfall A 2015 actuarial report determined that the reform had eliminated the previous actuarial contribution rate deficit of 28 percent of payroll Today, the full actuarial contribution rate is being paid, putting the plan on track for fully funded status in 22 years

KATHY HARRELL

Kathy Harrell serves on the NCPERS executive board as first vice president; is chair of the bylaws, policy, and resolution committee; and is a member of the advisors, credentials, executive, and insurance committees She was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2007



Harrell served as a trustee of the Ohio Police and Fire Pension Fund from 2006 to 2011 The fund provides retirement, disability, and survivor and healthcare benefits to 50,000 beneficiaries and has $14 billion in assets under management She also currently serves as National Fraternal Order of Police pension chairman

Harrell has served as a member of the Cincinnati Police Department since 1987 She served as a community beat cop on the west side of Cincinnati and as an undercover drug and major crime investigator

Prior to joining the Cincinnati Police Department, she served four years as a military police officer in the US Army Reserve She was the first woman president of her union, FOP Queen City Lodge No 69, from 2005 through 2015

KENNETH A. HAUSER

Kenneth Hauser, trustee and chairman of the board of the Chicago Police Pension Fund, is a retired Chicago police detective who served for 37 years and retired from the major accident investigation section He is a trustee of the Fraternal Order of Police and has been elected to numerous terms as trustee of the state and city lodges Hauser was also on the team that negotiated the first four contracts for Chicago police officers in the 1980s He is an elected trustee on the board of the Chicago Patrolman’s Federal Credit Union and president of the Chicago Police Pension Fund, having been first elected as a trustee in 1993 He was also elected president of the Retired Chicago Police Association and is a member of numerous other police organizations In addition, he is a former member of the advisory board of the S&P Dow Jones Indices Hauser is a member of the NCPERS executive board, and he chairs the investment committee and is a member of the budget, healthcare, and legislative committees



SHARON HENDRICKS

Sharon Hendricks serves on the NCPERS executive board and is a member of the education, legislative, and publications and research committees She was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2012

Hendricks currently serves as vice chair of the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) Teachers’ Retirement Board, which had a portfolio valued at $192 billion as of October 2016 and is the largest educator-only pension fund in the world CalSTRS serves 896,000 public school educators and their families from California’s 1,700 school districts and community college districts

Hendricks has been teaching communication studies at Los Angeles City College for the past 10 years She currently serves as president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Local 1521 chapter at City College and as retirement liaison for the Los Angeles College Faculty Guild

Hendricks is active in the Community College Council of the California Federation of Teachers and serves on the working group of the Trustee Leadership Forum for Retirement Security and the AFT Trustee Council

EMMIT A. KANE

Emmit Kane serves on the NCPERS executive board and is a member of the education, legislative, and marketing and membership committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2015

Kane currently serves as a trustee of the State of Hawaii Employees’ Retirement System, the retirement plan for protective employees serving the citizens of Hawaii The plan provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to 132,000 participants and beneficiaries with multibillion-dollar assets under management He serves as vice chair, chairs the investment committee, and is a member of the compensation and audit committees Kane began his service on the plan’s board of trustees in 2010



Kane served as a firefighter in the Honolulu Fire Department for 27 years He retired as deputy fire chief He served as the secretary-treasurer of the Hawaii Fire Fighters Association, where he was one of the principals charged with negotiating statewide contracts for nearly 1,800 active firefighters

Kane is currently the director of labor relations at Hawaiian Telcom, where he oversees and directs all labor employee relations matters and activities, focusing on adherence to the collective bargaining agreement, employee welfare, health care, pensions, union-management practices, and dispute resolution

BILL LUNDY

Bill Lundy serves on the NCPERS executive board and is a member of the education, insurance, and investment committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2003

Lundy currently serves as a member of the Arkansas Fire and Police Pension Review Board, a state regulatory board giving oversight to 117 closed local fire and police pension and relief funds He was first appointed to the board 35 years ago and has been appointed or reappointed by five governors Lundy was also instrumental in the design and implementation of the current Arkansas Local Police and Fire Retirement System (LOPFI), which provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to more than 13,000 active and retired members and has $1 65 billion in assets under management

Lundy served as a firefighter for 35 years He retired with the rank of captain and represented the Little Rock Fire Department on the city’s health insurance task force He was the administrator of the Little Rock Fire Department Health Fund Inc , a hospitalization supplement

Lundy is a past president of International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 34 and is president emeritus of the Arkansas Professional Fire Fighters (APFF) As president of the local, he negotiated the first collective bargaining agreement entered into by an Arkansas municipality and any employee group He served 27 years as a lobbyist for the APFF and has played a major role in obtaining many benefit enhancements for the firefighters and police officers of Arkansas



ROBERT MCCARTHY

Robert McCarthy serves on the NCPERS executive board and is a member of the audit, budget, communications, and legislative committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2013

He is a retired (since 2001) fire captain of the Watertown (Massachusetts) Fire Department and a third-generation firefighter who served proudly for 34 years He was elected president of the Watertown Firefighters IAFF Local 1347 and served from 1981 to 1987 He served as chairman of the Watertown Contributory Retirement Board from 1980 to 1987 and as a member of the executive board of the Massachusetts Association of Contributory Retirement Systems from 1984 to 1987

McCarthy served in the US Navy (R) from 1964 to 1970 He served his active duty on USS Blenny (SS-324) from 1966 to 1968

In 1985, McCarthy was elected as a legislative agent of the Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts (PFFM) From 1987 to 2011 he served as the elected president of the PFFM, and he was honored with the title president emeritus in 2011 He also served for 16 years as chairman of the Federation of State and Provincial Professional Fire Fighters (part of the IAFF)

He is the chief executive officer of Unity Solutions, Inc , a family corporation that provides union consulting, mediation, and counseling as well as lobbying and motivational presentations to a variety of corporations, educational institutions, and unions Unity Solutions was incorporated in Massachusetts in 2011

Since 2009, McCarthy has served as commissioner of the Public Employee Retirement Administration Commission of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts He currently serves as an appointed district field service representative of the IAFF McCarthy is a certified notary public and a licensed registered lobbyist of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

He received an associate’s degree in fire science from Massachusetts Bay Community College in 1974 and a certificate of completion for his labor-related studies at the Harvard Business School Trade Union Program in 1980



RICK MILLER

Rick Miller serves on the NCPERS executive board and is a member of the communications, education, investment, and legislative committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2012

Miller served as a director on the board of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS), the retirement plan for employees serving the citizens of Ontario, Canada OMERS provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to 430,000 beneficiaries and has more than $80 billion in assets under management He served as chairman of the OMERS Administration Corporation board, and chairman and vice chair of the investment and human resources committees He was a member of the governance, audit, and pension committees Miller was first elected to the OMERS board of directors in 1997

Miller served as a district fire chief in Windsor, Ontario, for 30 years He was a member of the Ontario Professional Fire Fighters Association (OPFFA) pension committee for 20 years and served several years as chairman He also served on the board of directors of the Windsor City Centre Credit Union He is a director on other private corporate boards as well

Miller received his Chartered Director designation from the Directors College in Ontario in 2004 and graduated from the Human Resources Executive Compensation program at the Directors College in 2009

SHERRY MOSE

Sherry Mose serves on the NCPERS executive board and is a member of the healthcare, insurance, publications and research, and legislative committees She was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2016

Mose currently serves as a chairman of the Houston Municipal Employees Pension Plan, the retirement plan for county employees serving the citizens of Houston, Texas The Houston Municipal Employees Pension Plan provides retirement, disability, and survivor



benefits to 25,052 beneficiaries and has $2 4 billion in assets under management She serves as chairman of the external affairs and investment committees and is vice chairman of the personnel and procedures committee Mose was first elected to the Houston Municipal Employees Pension Plan board of trustees in 1998

Mose currently serves as plan administrator of the City of Houston Deferred Compensation Plan

Mose served as president of the National Association of Government Defined Contribution Administrators (NAGDCA) and is a frequent speaker at deferred-compensation and pension conferences She received her Chartered Trustee (CT) and Chartered Pension Executive (CPE) designations from the National Society of Pension Professionals, as well as Certified Retirement Administrator (CRA) and Certified Retirement Counselor (CRC) certifications from the International Foundation for Retirement Education (InFRE) She received her Certified Trustee Training (CTT) certification from TEXPERS She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette

JOHN R. NIEMIEC

John Niemiec serves on the NCPERS executive board and is a member of the investment, legislative, and membership and marketing committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2010

Niemiec currently serves as a trustee of the Fairfax County Uniformed Retirement System, the retirement plan for fire and public safety employees serving the citizens of Fairfax, Virginia The Fairfax County Uniformed Retirement System provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits and has more than $1 billion in assets under management Niemiec was first elected to the Fairfax County Uniformed Retirement System board of trustees in 2004

Niemiec has served as a firefighter and paramedic with the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department for 30 years He is currently president of the Fairfax County Professional Fire Fighters and Paramedics – International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 2068



His recent work on behalf of Local 2068 has targeted the preservation and enhancement of the well-deserved and hard-won benefits of career firefighters He has worked diligently with union members, fire and rescue personnel, and other county managers to achieve the reduction of the Social Security disability offset To date, these efforts have reduced the offset from 64 percent to 10 percent; the goal is to eliminate it altogether Additionally, Niemiec was instrumental in safeguarding the deferred retirement option plan (DROP) for all county employees

WILL PRYOR

Will Pryor serves on the NCPERS executive board, is chair of the budget committee, and is a member of the audit and healthcare committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2001

Pryor currently serves as a trustee on the board of the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association (LACERA), the retirement plan for county employees serving the citizens of Los Angeles LACERA provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to 100,000 beneficiaries and has $39 billion in assets under management He serves as chair of the board of investments and is a member of several board committees Pryor was first elected to the LACERA board of trustees in 2000

Pryor currently serves as a battalion chief in the Los Angeles County Fire Department



PATRICIA REILLY

Patricia Reilly serves on the NCPERS executive board and is a member of the audit; budget; and bylaws, policy, and resolutions committees She was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2015

In 2013, Reilly was named executive director of the Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of New York, one of the largest pension systems in the United States, serving more than 200,000 members

Born and raised on Staten Island, New York, Reilly grew up with a passion for technology and public service She relocated from New York to work for the Town of Palm Beach, Florida, in the mid-1980s, where she pioneered leading-edge technologies to automate the town’s critical business processes Her successful deployment of a police, fire, and EMS dispatch system and her efficient introduction of office automation brought her to the attention of the Office of the Mayor of New York City

From the late 1980s to the mid-1990s, Reilly served as the director of information technology for the New York City mayor’s office Her accomplishments there included an infrastructure redesign and deployment that allowed the mayor’s office to establish satellite locations throughout the city, and the timely delivery of innovative applications using newly introduced Internet-based development tools

In 1994 Reilly accepted the position of deputy director of information technology with the Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of New York (NYCTRS) Responsible for replacing the agency’s outdated external computer system with a year 2000–compliant in-house application, Reilly exercised all her managerial skills to ensure that the new system was in production and supporting the pension agency’s business units well before the year 2000 deadline

After being promoted to director and charged with creating a new division in NYCTRS, the Business Solutions Group, she established a highly effective unit focused on managing projects that encompass the implementation of comprehensive solutions addressing all aspects of NYCTRS’ business needs, including workflow redesign, system enhancement, training coordination, data correction and creation, stakeholder communications, and organizational restructuring



In 2010, Reilly was named deputy executive director and has brought her unique perspective and ideas to bear as a tireless champion of streamlining, efficiency, and delivery of higher-value services to NYCTRS’ members Her thorough grounding in the agency’s priorities, operations, and systems positioned her well to lead NYCTRS through the recent Hurricane Sandy disaster

CAROL G. STUKES-BAYLOR

Carol Stukes-Baylor serves on the NCPERS executive board She is chair of the insurance committee and is a member of the audit; bylaws, policy, and resolutions; communications; and investment committees She was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 2005

Stukes-Baylor currently serves as a trustee on the City of Philadelphia Board of Pensions and Retirement, the retirement plan for local employees serving the citizens of Philadelphia The plan provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to more than 65,896 active and retired members and has $4 3 billion in assets under management She serves as chairperson of the medical panel; is a member of the personnel, deferred compensation, proxy, and travel policy committees; and is a member of the real estate and diversity subcommittees She was first elected to the City of Philadelphia Board of Pensions and Retirement board of trustees in 1994

Stukes-Baylor has served as a local employee for 41 years She worked for the City of Philadelphia in several positions, including as a budget analyst in the Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual Disability Services during her last 20 years of service During her employment with the city, she was elected to several union positions with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) District Council 33 Local 1637 and AFSCME District Council 47 Local 2187

Stukes-Baylor is the recipient of the Trustee of the Year Award (1998), Pathfinder Award (2003), and Joyce Johnson Award (2008) from the National Association of Security Professionals; the inaugural Distinguished Partners Award (2014) from the Philadelphia Chapter of the National Association of Security Professionals; the Trailblazer Award



(2003) from MAPS; and an honored member of Who’s Who (1998) and of Cambridge Who’s Who (2008) She received a certificate in trustee education from the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (2001 and 2002) and Wharton School of Business (2002) She is the vice chairperson of Mid-Atlantic Plan Sponsors

Stukes-Baylor serves on the Usher Board and National Black Catholic Congress Committee of Our Lady of Hope Catholic Church She also serves on the board of the Mayor’s Office of Community Services’ Foster Grandparent Program and Mercy Neighborhood Ministries of Philadelphia, Inc She holds a BS in accounting from LaSalle University and an MSA in human resources management from Lincoln University She is a member of Sigma Beta Delta Honor Society

RICHARD WACHSMAN

Richard Wachsman serves on the NCPERS executive board as treasurer and is a member of the advisors, budget, credentials, and executive committees He was first elected to the NCPERS executive board in 1988

For 35 years, Wachsman has served as a trustee of the Dallas Police and Fire Pension System, the retirement plan for police and fire employees serving the citizens of Dallas, Texas The Dallas Police and Fire Pension System provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to 9,700 beneficiaries and has $3 billion in assets under management Wachsman was a member of the investment advisory committee He was first elected to the Dallas Police and Fire Pension System board of trustees in 1980

Wachsman served as a firefighter for 41 years When he retired, he was battalion chief During his career, he held offices on the board of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 58

He has been an officer on the Dallas Museum’s board since its formation in 1972

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NCPERS RESOLUTIONS

NCPERS RESOLUTION 1Title: Retirement Benefits

Submitted by: NCPERS Executive Board

Whereas, the constitutional and statutory protections afforded to retirement benefits are under attack by state and local government; and

Whereas, public-sector retirees are losing their retirement benefits to the spiraling healthcare costs that are increasing faster than any cost-of-living adjustments or the Consumer Price Index; and

Whereas, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems has fought for more than 65 years to protect the pension benefits and plans of public-sector employees and retirees, and opposed all attempts by employers to raid these funds or delay making mandatory contributions; and

Whereas, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems believes it is vital to protect pension benefits by finding ways to help retirees and in-service employees pay for their healthcare costs and to guarantee these benefits during their retirement years;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems supports retirement benefits composed of a defined-benefit plan, an add-on defined-contribution plan, retiree healthcare benefits, and life insurance coverage to ensure that public-sector retirees can maintain their standard of living in their retirement years; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems takes the lead in fighting to protect and ensure the retirement and health benefits of all retirees and in-service employees through education of its membership and education of elected government officials; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems offers its member funds group life insurance and group long-term care insurance to help them fulfill the retirement needs of their public employees

CONFERENCE ACTION:


NCPERS RESOLUTIONSNCPERS RESOLUTIONS

NCPERS RESOLUTION 2Title: Support for Sound Actuarial Valuation Practices to Valuing Public Pensions


Whereas, sound actuarial valuation practices better reflect the underlying nature of the governments that sponsor the plans as well as the goals of governmental accounting; and

Whereas, sound actuarial valuation practices have succeeded in funding most public plans; and

Whereas, sound actuarial valuation practices better reflect the underlying dynamics of public pension plans; and

Whereas, sound actuarial valuation practices are more likely to provide for stable contribution rates; and

Whereas, sound actuarial valuation practices are more likely to allocate pension costs evenly across current and future taxpayers; and

Whereas, sound actuarial valuation practices are more likely to support better decisions related to public plan funding; and

Whereas, broad participation among pension funds, plan sponsors, and the Governmental Accounting Standards Board will ensure stability in funding methodologies;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems supports sound actuarial valuation practices for valuing public pensions; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems will oppose using financial economics or market valuation of liabilities for public pensions

CONFERENCE ACTION:


NCPERS RESOLUTIONS

NCPERS RESOLUTION 3Title: Oppose Mandatory Social Security Coverage


Whereas, the Social Security program provides coverage for virtually all segments of American society, including most, but not all, government employees; and

Whereas, all state and local government employees were initially excluded from Social Security; and

Whereas, some subsequently made a decision not to be included, instead developing their own retirement and benefit programs that, in many instances, predate the Social Security system and are advance funded; and

Whereas, there have been numerous attempts over the years to force all state and local government employees into Social Security against their wishes; and

Whereas, there are serious jurisdictional questions concerning such contemplated mandatory coverage of state and local employees; and

Whereas, those state and local government employees who have chosen to participate, and continue to participate, in the Social Security system do not want their participation or their benefits to be jeopardized in any way by “quick-fix” inclusion of previously excluded employees, thus exacerbating the future unfunded liability of the Social Security system;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems reaffirms its opposition to all present efforts to require mandatory Social Security coverage of noncovered state and local government employees; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems continues to be authorized to publicly oppose all attempts on the part of the US Congress or federal administrative agencies to mandate Social Security coverage for all state and local government employees

CONFERENCE ACTION:



NCPERS RESOLUTION 4Title: Supporting Social Security


Whereas, With Social Security celebrating its 81st anniversary, private retirement accounts in Social Security place in jeopardy the guaranteed benefits promised to those covered by the Social Security system; and

Whereas, diverting funds from the Social Security Trust Fund places the entire Social Security system in jeopardy by utilizing funds for transition costs that should be used for benefits; and

Whereas, private retirement accounts cannot guarantee benefits to participants, and thus place their retirement income at the mercy of the fluctuations in the stock market and participants’ ability to make investment decisions; and

Whereas, an accurate comparison of all the costs and returns of private savings plans with the costs and returns of the existing Social Security system shows that a mandated savings plan, in which retirees invest their money individually, would simply not generate higher retirement income than the present Social Security system; and

Whereas, Social Security pays the low-income worker an annual income equal to 56 7 percent of his or her final wage, the middle-income worker 43 9 percent, and the high-income worker 31 4 percent; and

Whereas, Social Security provides payout in the form of a real valued annuity, a payment that continues for the life of the worker and is not diminished by inflation;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems goes on record in opposition to the establishment of private retirement accounts within the Social Security system; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems publicly supports the continuation and stabilization of the Social Security system and reaffirms its support for improving the financial security of the Social Security system without the establishment of private retirement accounts

CONFERENCE ACTION:


NCPERS RESOLUTIONS

NCPERS RESOLUTION 5Title: Support of Defined-Benefit Pensions


Whereas, all workers want retirement security, with a reliable income that enables them to maintain their standard of living and not fall into poverty in old age; and

Whereas, Social Security provides a modest retirement income for most Americans, but it was never meant to be more than an income floor that would be complemented by an employer-sponsored pension and personal savings; and

Whereas, National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems members can expect to receive a public pension when they retire; and

Whereas, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems supports retirement security for all workers; and

Whereas, these public pension plans are professionally managed in order to get maximum return on investment, are highly diversified–with investments in everything from stocks and bonds to alternative investments–in order to balance gains and losses, and place all financial risk on the employer rather than on workers and retirees; and

Whereas, opponents of pensions are attacking public pensions across the country to mandate 401(k)–style defined-contribution (DC) private accounts to replace traditional defined-benefit (DB) plans for public servants; and

Whereas, claims that DB plans are severely underfunded are also untrue, with asset growth outpacing growth in liabilities for most plans, and DB plans that do show a large unfunded liability are generally in that predicament because the sponsoring government failed to fund them consistently and not because workers failed to make contributions;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems endeavors to promote DB plans for all workers

CONFERENCE ACTION:



NCPERS RESOLUTION 6Title: Require Contributions from Employers and Employees


Whereas, full actuarially determined contributions (ADCs) by both employers and employees are necessary to help ensure adequate funding of public pensions; and

Whereas, contributions by employees have consistently been made, regardless of economic or budgetary conditions; and

Whereas, there are employers that have not made their ADCs, some for a number of years; and

Whereas, employer contributions would help plans weather market volatility;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems calls on plan sponsors to make their ADCs; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems will work with plans and plan sponsors during this economic crisis to ensure that public plans are well funded and will continue to thrive well into the future

CONFERENCE ACTION:


NCPERS RESOLUTIONS

NCPERS RESOLUTION 7Title: Support for the Secure Choice Pension


Whereas, it is estimated that the private sector has a retirement savings underfunding of upward of $8 5 trillion due to lack of a defined-benefit pension and sole reliance on Social Security and personal savings, such as 401(k)s; and

Whereas, approximately 75 million baby boomers are at retirement age currently or will reach retirement age over the next 15 years; and

Whereas, taken together, the first two whereas statements will most likely lead to seniors’ living in poverty and/or experiencing greater dependence on social safety net programs rather than being productive and taxpaying seniors; and

Whereas, from a national perspective, retirement is a workforce management tool so that our nation can have an orderly and predictable workforce transition, thereby ensuring continued productivity and creating job opportunities for the younger generations; and Whereas, public pensions have been providing retirement security to the currently estimated 22 million retired public employees and have been doing so for more than 100 years; and

Whereas, eight states enacted Secure Choice Pension (SCP) legislation, and more such proposals are forthcoming;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems will work to introduce and enact legislation to establish SCPs The SCP is a proposal designed to provide retirement security for workers in the private sector through access to a defined-benefit pension It is envisioned as a public–private partnership to provide retirement security for American workers, particularly those who work for small businesses and who do not currently have a defined-benefit pension The plan draws on the documented performance and efficiencies of public-sector pension management and extends them to those in the private sector who face what is becoming a national retirement crisis

CONFERENCE ACTION:



NCPERS RESOLUTION 8Title: Appropriate Role of Defined- Contribution Plans


Whereas, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems has been aware of the introduction of defined-contribution plans in the public sector over the past few years; and

Whereas, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems through its legislative monitoring is familiar with the variations of such plans either implemented or proposed at the state or local jurisdictional levels; and

Whereas, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems is also aware of the different reasons for which these defined-contribution plans have been fashioned; and

Whereas, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems notes that defined-benefit plans are the best way to ensure retirement security for all employees; and

Whereas, the recent decline in the capital markets and resulting losses experienced by individual investment accounts have demonstrated the unreliable nature of defined-contribution plans as the primary source of retirement income; and

Whereas, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems also takes note that the popularity of new defined-contribution plans has waned in recent months because of the downward fluctuations of the market and the uncertainty of the global marketplace as a whole; and

Whereas, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems takes the position that defined-contribution plans add value in certain instances but do not in others;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems supports only those efforts whereby a defined-contribution plan is an optional additional supplement to a defined-benefit plan; and


NCPERS RESOLUTIONS

NCPERS RESOLUTION 8 (cont’d)

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems strongly opposes efforts to use a defined-contribution plan as a replacement for a defined-benefit plan for any reason and further opposes defined-contribution plans that erode the assets of a defined-benefit plan trust fund through conversions; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems continues its efforts toward strengthening defined-benefit plans, adequate and timely funding of such plans, the maintenance and improvement of benefit levels of defined-benefit plans, and support of such defined-contribution plans on a limited basis where used as a supplement to a defined-benefit arrangement

CONFERENCE ACTION:



NCPERS RESOLUTION 9Title: Corporate Responsibility and Governance


Whereas, the US Department of Labor has issued a letter to plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) suggesting that support for social issues may not be consistent with fiduciary responsibility; and

Whereas, an essential part of good corporate governance is the maintenance of corporate policies consistent with the public welfare; and

Whereas, public employee retirement systems hold nearly $3 9 trillion in capital assets; and

Whereas, that asset ownership creates a responsibility to make corporate governance consistent with the needs of our membership; and

Whereas, proxies are a valuable plan asset to be managed on the same basis as any other asset;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems encourages its member funds to exercise their proxy voting in a manner that is consistent with fiduciary responsibility, including the welfare of all Americans affected by corporate performance

CONFERENCE ACTION:


NCPERS RESOLUTIONS

NCPERS RESOLUTION 10Title: Independence of State and Local Governments to Determine the Terms of Their Retirement Plans


Whereas, the Internal Revenue Service has issued public announcements and regulations applying private-sector tax provisions to public employee plans; and

Whereas, many of those regulations and announcements will interfere with the constitutionally protected property rights of public employee plan participants; and

Whereas, the US Constitution preserves the rights of state and local governments to enact legislation in matters of local concern, including the nature and structure of retirement benefits; and

Whereas, Congress expressly recognized that the application of Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) principles to state and local government plans was inconsistent with the principles of federalism; and

Whereas, federal courts have, without exception, affirmed that independence; and

Whereas, due to job requirements and mandatory retirement regulations, many public employees are forced to retire prior to eligibility for Medicare;

Now therefore be it resolved, by the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems, that member funds and their participants urge their members of Congress to approve corrective legislation to eliminate undue tax regulation and the application of ERISA principles that threaten constitutionally protected pension rights; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems affirms its support for the right of state and local governments to self-determination in the design and administration of their retirement systems; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems encourages all public plans to make available to their participants information on their benefit and investment portfolios on a regular basis

CONFERENCE ACTION:



NCPERS RESOLUTION 11Title: Assurance of Health Care for All Americans


Whereas, Medicare is the primary health insurance provider for 99 percent of workers over age 65, including the vast majority of retired public employees, and additionally covers 5 2 million disabled Americans; and

Whereas, federal fiscal policies, combined with the economic downturn and demands of our nation’s war on terror, have drained the national treasury; and

Whereas, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare, that was enacted in 2010 is the first major reform of the American healthcare system since the enactment of Medicare; and

Whereas, the healthcare reform law provided a good first step, but the American healthcare system still needs additional measures to provide universal and affordable healthcare coverage for all Americans;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems supports additional improvements to the healthcare system that encompass the following principles: health coverage for all citizens, cost containment, quality-of-care improvement, equitable financing, and simplified administration; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems works with the National Coalition on Health Care and other organizations to achieve these principles through legislation; and

Be it further resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems supports Medicare, which has successfully provided health care to millions of seniors for more than 50 years, to remain fundamentally unchanged

CONFERENCE ACTION:


NCPERS RESOLUTIONS

NCPERS RESOLUTION 12Title: Funding for Retiree Medical Trusts


Whereas, healthcare costs for retirees continue to erode the pension benefits of our retired public employees; and

Whereas, employers and current employee groups across the nation have taken steps to develop prefunding vehicles for the ever-expanding healthcare costs; and

Whereas, retirees and employees near retirement have little or no time to establish a meaningful savings vehicle for retiree health care; and

Whereas, the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 authorized increased limits, portability, and efficiency through consolidating pension assets through transfers and rollovers between plans; and

Whereas, the Pension Protection Act of 2006 provides for pretax payment of a portion of healthcare premiums for public safety officers; and

Whereas, dedicating a portion of a retiree’s savings for the sole purpose of health care in retirement is a fiscally and socially responsible position;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems supports allowing retirees and employees near retirement to roll over assets from a governmental plan, such as a 401(a), 403(b), or 457(b) plan, into a qualified medical trust or voluntary employees’ beneficiary association, for the sole purpose of purchasing health care in retirement

CONFERENCE ACTION:



NCPERS RESOLUTION 13Title: Appreciation of Members, Speakers, Attendees, Sponsors, and Exhibitors


Whereas, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems is greatly indebted to its members for their financial commitment and support, and appreciates the participation and support received from its exhibitors at the 2017 NCPERS Annual Conference and Exhibition; and

Whereas, the members, speakers, and exhibitors have been loyal supporters of the NCPERS; and

Whereas, many NCPERS corporate members have generously contributed to the NCPERS Charitable Foundation, enabling NCPERS to improve the lives of the communities in which our members live and work;

Now therefore be it resolved, that the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems publicly thanks all attendees, sponsors, speakers, and exhibitors for their role in making this year’s Annual Conference and Exhibition a success

CONFERENCE ACTION:

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2018

NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON PUBLIC EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT SYSTEMSThe Voice for Public Pensions

444 North Capitol Street, NW | Suite 630 | Washington, DC 20001

Phone: 202-624-1456 | Fax: 202-624-1439 | e-mail: [email protected]

Website: www.NCPERS.org

Trustee Educational Seminar (TEDS)May 12 – 13

NCPERS Accredited Fiduciary Program (NAF)May 12 – 13

Annual Conference and ExhibitionMay 13 – 16

national conference on public employee … docs/annual conference/2017/final...2017 annual...

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