Looking Forward: Leadership Transition
As president and CEO of the Lupus Foundation of America for the past 17 years, Sandra C. Raymond has provided visionary leadership to advance the mission of the Foundation. She has worked tirelessly on behalf of people with lupus, identifying and tackling the barriers that have stymied progress in lupus research and initiating aggressive efforts to support the development of new, targeted and tolerable treatments.
Sandra’s impact on the field of lupus has been transformative, securing $100+ million in new funding for lupus research and education initiatives, rallying the biotech and pharmaceutical industries to increase their investment in lupus drug development, and raising the profile of lupus on the nation’s health agenda. Yet much more work remains to be done.
The Lupus Foundation of America has accomplished much under Sandra's leadership and is now poised for even greater success in lupus research, education and advocacy. Over the past 15 months, Sandra and the Board of Directors implemented a plan to ensure a seamless leadership transition for the coming decades.
As of October 1, Sandra will take on a new role developing and leading innovative initiatives to advance research on lupus and help fulfill the Foundation’s mission. Stevan W. Gibson, who for the past year has worked closely with Sandra and the Foundation’s senior management team as president, now becomes the organization’s new president and chief executive officer. Gibson brings to the Foundation a sound background in executive management experience from the private, public and social sectors. During his nearly 20 years with The ALS Association, he led efforts resulting in increased funding for ALS research, improved access to care for those living with ALS, and expanded benefits for veterans with the disease.
I am also pleased to announce that Susan Manzi, M.D., M.P.H., has been named chair of the Foundation's Board of Directors. Dr. Manzi has been a member of our Medical-Scientific Advisory Council for the past 15 years and has served as our medical director since 2016. She is co-director of the Lupus Center of Excellence and serves as the chair of the Medicine Institute at Allegheny Health System. She is also a professor of medicine at Temple University. Dr. Manzi was named one of the "Best Doctors in America" and is recognized nationally and internationally as a leader in lupus patient care and research, and a pioneer in the scientific investigation of cardiovascular disease in people with lupus.
I am confident that the Lupus Foundation of America’s next leaders will work with the skilled and dedicated staff, brilliant researchers and clinician scientists, partners, advocates and supporters to continue making significant progress in solving the cruel mystery of lupus and providing the best possible quality of life for everyone affected by the disease. As I look ahead, I am excited about the future.
Sincerely,
Conrad H. Gehrmann
Outgoing Chair of the Lupus Foundation of America Board of Director
Read our press release, announcing the appointment of Stevan W. Gibson as president and chief executive officer of our Foundation and Susan Manzi, M.D., M.P.H., as board chair.