Kirk Belsby
Vice President for Endowment
Kamehameha Schools

Kirk Belsby is Vice-President of the Endowment for Kamehameha Schools (KS) and manages its investment portfolio. The portfolio includes allocations to equities, fixed income, venture capital, private equity, and real estate. With over 360,000 acres and $2 billion in real estate holdings, KS is the largest private land owner in Hawaii.

His responsibilities within the real estate portfolio include supervising the management of its existing operating properties, as well as the redevelopment of key assets such as the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center in Waikiki, master planning the 52 acre Kakaako urban district, and furthering the development of the 2,200 acre Keauhou resort on the Big Island.

Kirk is also tasked with prudently investing the portion of the trust invested in public and private securities. His responsibilities include determining the proper allocation between asset classes, and to select top Wall Street money managers to provide KS with superior asset returns.

Past experience includes over 20 years in combined real estate and financial securities analysis. Immediately prior to his employment with Kamehameha Schools he served as Regional Managing Partner for Arthur Andersen’s real estate consulting practice. He also worked for a national developer as an asset manager and analyzed proposed development projects. Finally, Kirk was also a financial consultant with Shearson Lehman Brothers.

Kirk is a Board Member for Enterprise Honolulu and the Hawaii Science & Technology Council.

Roberta Bixhorn

Head of Retirement Benefits VP, Compensation & Benefits
Owens-Illinois, Inc. Master Retirement Trust

Roberta Bixhorn is the Vice President, Compensation and Benefits at Owens-Illinois, Inc. located in Perrysburg, OH, providing worldwide leadership for O-I’s compensation and benefits programs and processes.

In this role, Roberta is responsible for global pension governance, including chairing the UK Trustee board, acting as an ‘expert advisor’ to the Netherlands defined benefit plan, developing and recommending strategies for limiting risk and exposure of worldwide pension plans and liabilities, and ensuring consistent application of strategic direction of such plans.

Roberta has over 20 years experience as a compensation and benefits professional working at companies such as Tower Automotive and TRW. In addition, she has more than 10 years experience in the industrial sector, working at large multi-national manufacturing companies with sizeable, collectively bargained employee populations. She also worked in the government contracting and service sectors. Roberta received her BA in International Affairs from George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

Nathan Fischer
Chief Investment Officer
Lumina Foundation for Education

Nathan E. Fischer, Chief Investment Officer, directs the investment program for the $1.4 billion foundation. Fischer brings 22 years of experience in investment and financial management. Prior to joining the foundation he served as an institutional client service representative for Nicholas-Applegate Capital Management, which managed in excess of $45 billion dollars for institutional investors in multiple equity and fixed income strategies.

From 1995 to 1999, he worked as Chief Investment Officer for the State of Hawaii Employees’ Retirement System and the San Bernardino County Employees Retirement Association, managing multi-billion dollar portfolios to support the benefits for more than 100,000 employees. Prior to 1995, Fischer was a financial services representative for a national investment management firm. He also served as investment Operations Manager for a division of ABN AMRO and as a senior financial analyst for First Alliance Corporation, a private equity general partnership.

Fischer earned a master degree in business administration from San Diego State University and a bachelor's degree in finance from the University of Hawaii. He is a Certified Employee Benefit Specialist, a Certified Financial Planner and a candidate for Chartered Financial Analyst. Fischer also served in the U.S. Navy.

He belongs to several professional associations, including the Institutional Limited Partners Association, Association for Investment Management and Research, International Foundation for Employee Benefit Plans, Financial Planning Association and Foundation Financial Officers Group.

Geoffrey Gerber, Ph.D.

Chair of Investment Committee and Member of Board of Directors

Burroughs Wellcome Foundation

Dr. Gerber founded TWIN in 1990 and is the President and Chief Investment Officer overseeing the entire quantitative investment process and general management of the firm. Recognized as a specialist in institutional quantitative investment management, he is often quoted in the financial press. Two of his publications appear in Market Neutral: State-of- the-Art Strategies for Every Market Environment as a chapter entitled “Using a Nonparametric Approach to Market Neutral Investing” and in Global Asset Allocation as a chapter entitled “Equity Style Allocations: Timing Between Growth & Value”.

Outside of TWIN, Geoff is also a faculty member for the Aresty Institute’s Wharton Executive Education Program on Investment Strategies and Portfolio Management. He also serves as Chair of the Pittsburgh UJF Foundation Investment Committee. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors of the Burroughs Wellcome Foundation (BWF), Geoff also chairs the BWF Investment Committee.

Geoff holds a Ph.D. in Finance and Economics from the University of Pennsylvania, and a B.A. in Economics from the State University of New York at Buffalo where he graduated summa cum laude and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

William D. Lee
VP, Pensions & Foundation Investments & Chief Investment Officer
Kaiser Permanente

William D. Lee has been Chair of Kaiser Permanente Investment Committee since 2005.
His Chief Investment Officer responsibilities include oversight for approximately $34 billion in defined contribution, pension and foundation assets. Bill managed interest rate and foreign exchange risk for Bank of America's global proprietary desks in the 80's, then left for 9 years to work as a police detective, returning to Bank of America in 1994 where he helped develop equity risk models before becoming Senior Vice President and Chief Investment Officer for Bank of America's retirement plans.  Bill managed the Levi Strauss Foundation and Red Tab Foundation assets as well as the Levi Strauss domestic and international retirement plans and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

Jeff Pippin
Senior Vice President for Investments & Chief Investment Officer
Pepperdine University

Jeff served for 6 years as Vice President for Finance and Administration before being appointed Senior Vice President and Chief Investment Officer in 2006. In this position he is responsible for management of University investment assets, including endowment, general reserves, treasury, trust and annuities, and real estate. He also serves as President of the University’s three affiliated management and holding entities; Wave Enterprises, Wave Properties, and Wave Services.

The Senior Vice President and Chief Investment Officer serves as a member of the President’s cabinet, the University Planning Committee, and as liaison to the Board of Regents’ Investment Committee.

Jeff earned a bachelor's degree from Abilene Christian University (magna cum laude) and an MBA from Pepperdine. A CPA, Pippin began his career with Arthur Andersen & Co. and came to the University in 1981. He also currently serves on the board of Commonfund, a non-profit registered investment advisor, and leading provider of investment management services to the endowment community, with assets totaling over $35 billion.

In addition, Jeff has served on the California State Treasurer’s Investment Advisory Committee, the Investment Committee of the West Coast Athletic Conference, and the Board of Alliance for the Arts.

Russell Read, Ph.D., C.F.A.
Former Chief Investment Officer
CalPERS- California Public Employees' Retirement System

Russell Read is the Chief Investment Officer for the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS). He oversees all asset classes in which CalPERS invests, including domestic and international equity, Treasury and agency debt, high yield bonds, mortgage backed securities, CDOs, real estate, corporate governance, currency overlay, securities lending, venture capital, leveraged buyouts, and hedge funds.

Mr. Read is responsible for the strategic plan for CalPERS’ Investment Office including tactical asset allocation, risk management, business development, budget authority, new investment programs, trading technology, staffing, and back office operations.

Mr. Read joined CalPERS on June 1, 2006 after previously serving as Deputy Chief Investment Officer for Deutsche Asset Management and Scudder Investments. He was responsible for more than $250 billion of retail and institutional investments in equity, fixed income, and commodity-based products. He also was Chairman of the Deutsche’s Americas Investment Committee and principal investment representative to the firm’s retail mutual fund board of trustees. He previously served as Global Head of Quantitative Investing and Research at Zurich Scudder and has held senior investment positions with the OppenhiemerFunds, CNA Insurance, Prudential Insurance, and First Chicago.

Mr. Read held academic positions at the University of Maine and Stanford University, and has taught courses in financial risk management and statistical methodology. He holds a doctorate in political economy, a master’s in economics, and a master’s in political science, all from Stanford University. Mr. Read also received a master’s in business administration in finance and international business, and a bachelor’s in economic statistics, both from the University of Chicago. Early in his career, he was an actuary at CNA Insurance.

He is a Chartered Financial Analyst, Chartered Financial Consultant and a Chartered Life Underwriter.

Mr. Read has served as the socio-economic advisor for the Forest BioProducts Research Project at the University of Maine and as Chair of the Finance Committee for Maine’s Fractionation Development Center, which is dedicated to the transformation of wood into energy and materials currently provided by crude oil.