Leadership Team:
Salmon Kadivar MBA, Chief Operating Officer (COO)
Salmon Kadivar is part of the Finance Rotation Development Program at Genentech and is currently rotating in the Investor Relations team in Basel, Switzerland. His previous two rotations were partnering and product development.
Prior to Genentech, Salmon worked in applied mathematical neurological research, co-founded a start-up, and worked in biotech Venture Capital. Salmon earned his MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management, and his undergraduate degree in Mathematics from The University of Pennsylvania. In his free time, you can find Salmon exploring the outdoors, playing soccer, planning his next adventure, and looking for the next great book to read. Salmon also likes to explore various cuisines and travel the world every chance he gets.
Eric Walter, Chief Scientific Officer (CSO), M.D./MBA spring 2019
Eric has long been passionate about finding healthcare solutions for the world’s most vulnerable patients both at home and around the world. He graduated from Columbia University with a degree in Economics in 2012, and since then has brought his dedication to social justice to diverse fields including education, politics, and healthcare. Since enrolling in a dual MD/MBA program at the University of Pennsylvania, he has explored ways to combine skills in medicine and management in order to make an impact through healthcare delivery improvement projects in Philadelphia, Tanzania, Peru, and Nepal. He is planning on pursuing a career in Critical Care medicine, where he can bring the latest innovations in care for the sickest patients to the places where it is most needed.
Antonio Hernandez, Director of Business Development
Antonio Hernandez has a passion for helping the under-served and empowering students. He is the Quality Improvement Coordinator at UCSF for Inpatient Pediatrics at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital. His passion for healthcare grew through his time as the National President for HOSA – Future Health Professionals an organization with over 200,000 members. Using this experience, Antonio has spoken in front of thousands of students all over the U.S. and continues to mentor student leaders on their own leadership journey.
Previously, Antonio was a Clinical Research Coordinator at the UCSF Institute for Health Policy Studies where he conducted research on early literacy development in children. These experiences have helped foster a passion for pediatrics and research.
He graduated from Stanford University in 2016 with a degree in economics with a focus on healthcare economics. As a current post-baccalaureate student at UC Berkeley Extension, Antonio hopes to pursue a career in medicine. In his spare time Antonio enjoys going to book signings and listening to notable speakers.
Victor Martinez, Director of Programs and Partnerships
Victor Martinez is a recent graduate from The University of Texas at Dallas. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in healthcare studies. He also graduated from Tarleton State University with an associates degree in Histology. He did his clinical rotations at a prestigious hospital in north Texas and in the country; UT Southwestern Medical Center. He has worked in the healthcare field for the past three years as a histology technician while continuing to further his education. For the past year he has been managing a histology core facility at The University of Texas at Dallas. His goal in life is to obtain his MS in Healthcare Management and an MBA , he also wants to pursue medical school and become a pathologist. Another of Victor’s ambitions is to become an entrepreneur, leader, and mentor. In his free time Victor likes to give his time to under-served communities and play with shelter animals. He is a cat fancier.
Ralph St. Luca, Director of Research and Development
Ralph graduated with a B.S. in Biochemistry from Temple University in May 2018 and is currently a first year medical student at the University of Pennsylvania. He is very passionate about healthcare innovation especially as it relates to healthcare start-ups. Ralph also has strong background in scientific research. He spent two and a half years working in two research labs that conducted research that applied the gene editing, CRISPR/Cas9 system, on zebrafish.
Ralph joined NF2 Biosolutions because he believes that he can make a positive impact within the NF2 research community. He understands there is so much work to be done but believes that NF2 Biosolutions has put together an extremely capable team.
Nishant Tyagi, Director of Strategy
Nishant Tyagi is a student at the University of Texas at Dallas pursuing a degree in Biology and Healthcare Management. He has two years of experience in designing and researching nanomedical and neurosurgical techniques at University of North Texas and Houston Methodist. Also, he helped implement a leading community advocate program to focus on the social comorbidities of unfunded, Medicare, and Medicaid patients in a large hospital system.
He is passionate about delivering high-quality healthcare solutions in a patient-focused manner. He hopes to improve the future of medicine through strategic healthcare management, effective healthcare policy, and scientific research. In his free time he likes to read books, golf, practice martial arts, swim, and explore the outdoors through biking and running. He hopes to participate a triathlon sometime in the future.
During his time at NF2 BioSolutions he hopes to help in developing a strategy to achieve organization objectives, maintain compliance, and raise awareness.
David Yue, Director of Community Engagement
David Yue’s primary interest lies at the intersection of scientific research and public policy. Prior to joining the team at NF2Biosolutions, he served as Executive Director of 501(c)(3) nonprofit Students for STEM, an organization dedicated to providing educational opportunities and resources for low- income communities. In addition to spreading awareness for NF2 and conducting research, David also plans to attend medical school and become an oncologist. He hopes to find a career in helping improve the lives of people around him. He will graduate from the University of North Texas with a triple degree in Mathematics, Chemistry, and Philosophy.
Parul Rai, Director of Individual Giving and Finance
I’m a Neuroscience student at the University of Texas at Dallas double-minoring in Spanish and Business Administration. I have worked in a neuroscience lab at UT Dallas studying place cell activity and in a chemistry lab at Georgia Tech studying the role intrinsic waters hydration play in initiating damage to DNA. I have traveled to Haiti on a medical mission trip with the Emory University School of Medicine, and I studied abroad in Spain working on a Medical Spanish internship while receiving training in prehospitalization trauma care.
After graduating from college in May 2020, I plan to attend medical school and earn an MBA, hoping to implement innovative healthcare solutions.
Amitoj Sandhu, Director of Individual Giving and Finance
Amitoj’s experiences in cognitive behavioural therapy, sales, clinical care, and management have led him to believe the brightest future emerges from the efforts of various backgrounds and disciplines coming together. In the past he had the privilege of serving as the President of HOSA-Future Health Professionals, an international health organisation comprising of over 200,000 members, collectively dedicated to enhancing healthcare delivery across the globe. He recently graduated from UCLA with a degree in Neuroscience with a focus on learning and memory. There he conducted research on neural circuitry engaged in spinal cord rehabilitation. Currently he is the Patient Care Coordinator for a Dermatology Office, where he is excited to be learning the behind-the-scenes of localised health systems. In his free time he can be found hiking, playing basketball, eating (more often than not), and perusing the subthreads of reddit.
Additional Volunteers:
Krizelle Alcantara, International NF2 Relations
Ursula DiGiovanni, BSN, R.N., Patient Support and Outreach
Margaret Reynolds, Patient Representative
Michael Serle, Director of Technology
YL Tan, International NF2 Relations