The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC)

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC) (Jacqueline Heard, Chair; Lourdes Casanova, Paul Chomet, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Oliver Schulze, and David Stern) met on October 5th to review board recommendations and the results of the spring Board of Directors survey. 

The Executive Committee (EXE)

The Executive Committee (Greg Galvin, Chair;, Paul Chomet, Peter Cornelius, Roy Park Jr, Nancy Rawson, Oliver Schulze, Jane Silverthorne, David Stern, and Charlie Trautmann) met on October 7th to receive updates from BTI President, David Stern, and approve the November 2021  to approve the Fall 2021 Board of Directors meeting agenda. 

The External Relations Committee (ERC) 

The External Relations committee (Nancy Rawson, Chair; April Burke, Lourdes Casanova, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Melinda Oakes, Jane Silverthorne, and David Stern) met on October 13th to discuss staffing changes to Development and Communications, introduce Alliance for Science to the ERC, discuss the future of Technology Transfer, and how Education and Outreach can best support students.

The Investment and Finance Committee (IFC)

The Investment and Finance Committee (IFC) (Peter Cornelius, Chair; Rob Cañizares, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Melinda Oakes, and David Stern) met on October 27th for an update from Morgan Stanley Graystone on the endowment performance since September, and to review and approve the 2022 budget ahead of the Board of Directors meeting. 

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The Development Task Force Committee (DTFC)

The Development Task Force Committee (DTFC) (Oliver Schulze; Chair, April Burke, Paul Chomet, Greg Galvin (ex officio), David Stern, Charlie Trautmann) met on October 28th to discuss the board giving, and gift acceptance policies, and updates from BTI Development including staffing and fundraising plans. 

The Audit Committee (AUD)

The Audit Committee (Charlie Trautmann, Chair, Rob Cañizares, Greg Galvin (ex officio), and Kira Sheinerman) met on December 1st to review the 2021 Audit procedure  with BTI’s audit firm, Insero & Co. 

The Compensation Committee

The Compensation Committee (Greg Galvin, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Mary Lou Guerinot, Roy Park Jr, and Nancy Rawson) met on December 9th to discuss and approve the annual performance of the Vice President of Finance & Operations. 

The Investment and Finance Committee (IFC)

The Investment and Finance Committee (IFC) (Peter Cornelius, Chair; Rob Cañizares, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Melinda Oakes, and David Stern) met on June 14 with BTI’s new endowment manager to review their asset allocation.

 The IFC met on July 8 to continue the discussion on asset allocation and answer committee questions regarding the approach.

The IFC met on July 16 to discuss the next steps in the fund transition plan and an introduction to developing BTI’s environment, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investment policy.

The IFC met on September 15 to review the completed fund transition process, new fund managers, and next steps for the ESG investment policy.

The Executive Committee (EXE)

The Executive Committee (Greg Galvin, Chair;, Paul Chomet, Peter Cornelius, Roy Park Jr, Nancy Rawson, Oliver Schulze, Jane Silverthorne, David Stern, and Charlie Trautmann) met on July 14 to approve the Fall 2021 Board of Directors meeting adapt and expand to include a board retreat, and to review staffing changes at BTI.

The Compensation Committee

The Compensation Committee (Greg Galvin, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Mary Lou Guerinot, Roy Park Jr, and Nancy Rawson) met on July 20 to conduct the President’s annual performance review and conduct a 6-month check-in for the Vice President of Institutional Advancement, and the Vice President of Finance & Operations.

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC)

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC) (Jacqueline Heard, Chair; Lourdes Casanova, Paul Chomet, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Oliver Schulze, and David Stern) met on September 7 and September 13 to gain information about board recommendations submitted by board members.

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC)

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC) (Jacqueline Heard, Chair; Lourdes Casanova, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Oliver Schulze, and David Stern), along with Board Vice Chair, Paul Chomet, met on April 1. NCGC approved board of director and officer renewals, reviewed nominations and discussed the board assessment.

The Executive Committee (EXE)

The Executive Committee (Greg Galvin, Chair; Paul Chomet, Vice Chair; Peter Cornelius, Jacqueline Heard, Roy H. Park, Jr. (observer), Oliver Schulze, Kira Sheinerman, Jane Silverthorne, David Stern, Charlie Trautmann) met on April 8. The committee heard updates from BTI President, David Stern related to the COVID-19 pandemic and HR search, as well as updates from the Investment & Finance Committee and approval for the May 2021 Board Meeting agenda.

The External Relations Committee (ERC)

The External Relations Committee (ERC) (Kira Sheinerman; Chair, April Burke, Paul Chomet, Greg Galvin (ex officio), David Stern, Charlie Trautmann) met on April 14. Mr. Paul Debbie presented updates on Ascribe Bioscience and the BTI technology being used in agricultural practices. Dr. Julien Fey presented updates in Technology Transfer with a discussion focused on how to maximize marketing output. Ms. Delanie Sickler introduced two pilot programs to aid the post-graduate cohort at BTI transition through their programs. Ms. Stephanie Meyer previewed the plan leading up to the Centennial Celebrations in 2024.

The Development Task Force Committee (DTFC)

The Development Task Force Committee (DTFC) (Oliver Schulze; Chair, April Burke, Paul Chomet, Greg Galvin (ex officio), David Stern, Charlie Trautmann) met on April 22. The primary discussion regarded the 2024 Centennial Campaign and receiving committee feedback on how to move forward with the planning. 

The Audit Committee (AUD)

The Audit Committee (Charlie Trautmann, Chair, Rob Cañizares, Greg Galvin (ex officio), and Kira Sheinerman) met on May 4 with BTI’s audit firm, Insero & Co to review the 2020 audit report. Insero & Co reported a clean audit.

The Investment and Finance Committee (IFC)

The Investment and Finance Committee (IFC) (Peter Cornelius, Chair; Rob Cañizares, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Kira Sheinerman, and David Stern) met on May 6 to clarify information in the BTI budget and audit processes.

The Investment & Finance Committee (IFC)

The Investment & Finance Committee (IFC) (Peter Cornelius; Chair, Rob Cañizares, Greg Galvin, (ex officio), David Stern, and Kira Sheinerman) has been in the process of interviewing firms for a new endowment manager. A final decision is planned for the end of March, 2021. These meetings replaced the originally scheduled March IFC meeting, initially planned for March 4th. The remaining agenda items were addressed via email.

The Audit Committee (AUD)

The Audit Committee (AUD) (Charlie Trautmann; Chair, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Kira Sheinerman) met on November 18, 2020 for their first meeting with the new audit firm, Insero & Co and discussed the process of auditing BTI financials and compliance requirements.

The Development Task Force Committee (DTFC)

The Development Task Force Committee (DTFC) (Oliver Schulze; Chair, April Burke, Paul Chomet, Greg Galvin (ex officio), David Stern, Charlie Trautmann) met on October 29, 2020. DTFC discussed how the pandemic has shifted engagement to virtual platforms including the Breaking Ground series. 

Investment & Finance Committee (IFC): 

The Investment and Finance Committee (IFC) (Peter Cornelius; Chair, Rob Cañizares, Greg Galvin (ex officio), David Stern and Kira Sheinerman) met on July 14, 2020. Dr. Stern and Ms. Darling presented a COVID Phase II plan and LVW Advisors provided an update on the capital market environment and a review of the liquid portfolio results.

The IFC (Peter Cornelius; Chair, Rob Cañizares, Greg Galvin (ex officio), David Stern and Kira Sheinerman) met on September 3, 2020. LVW Advisors provided a detailed review of BTI’s endowment portfolio performance.

The IFC (Peter Cornelius; Chair, Rob Cañizares, Greg Galvin (ex officio), David Stern and Kira Sheinerman) met on September 24, 2020. The IFC reviewed BTI’s performance compared to other endowments of similar institutions.

The IFC (Peter Cornelius; Chair, Rob Cañizares, Greg Galvin (ex officio), David Stern and Kira Sheinerman) met on September 30, 2020. Dr. Stern and Ms. Darling presented the preliminary budget reviewing possible budget scenarios.

The IFC met on October 28, 2020 to review and approve the 2021 budget. LVW Advisors reviewed portfolio changes, updates, and recommendations.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee: 

The Nominating and Corporate Governance committee (NCGC) (Jacqueline Heard; Chair, Lourdes Casanova, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Oliver Schulze and David Stern) met on October 6, 2020. The committee along with Board Vice President Paul Chomet, reviewed the Board Assessment/Director evaluations and identified action items which will be discussed during the November board meeting. The committee reviewed and approved board member term renewals and the revised by-laws.

External Relations (ERC): 

The External Relations Committee (Kira Sheinerman; Chair, Lourdes Casanova, Nancy Rawson, Jane Silverthorne and David Stern) met on October 14, 2020. Mr. Debbie provided updates on Ascribe Inc.  and the committee discussed what BTI’s expectations should be for a successful project. Dr. Fey presented updates in Technology Transfer. Dr. Fey highlighted recent negotiations and the committee discussed how BTI should handle the discussions and next steps. Ms. Sickler presented on Education and Outreach highlighting the 2020 virtual Summer Internship program, program take-aways, and scenarios for 2021 programming. Ms. Meyer provided communications and alumni engagement updates. Ms. Meyer presented budget implications and activities in a pandemic world. The committee discussed experiences with printed annual reports, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion implications, and potential Plant Science Research Network opportunities.  

Compensation Committee:

The Compensation Committee (Greg Galvin; Chair, Paul Chomet, Mary Lou Guerinot, Roy H. Park, Jr., Nancy Rawson, and John Townsend) met on August 7, 2019 to conduct the President’s annual performance review.

Investment & Finance Committee (IFC): 

The IFC (John Townsend; Chair, Peter Cornelius, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Kira Sheinerman) met on July 16, 2019 to receive financial overview updates, and a report from external investment advisors, LVW.

External Relations (ERC): 

The External Relations Committee (Kira Sheinerman; Chair, April Burke, Lourdes Casanova, Greg Galvin, John Townsend) met on April 17 to receive updates from Education and Outreach, New Business Development, and Communication and Alumni Relations.

Development Task Force (DTF): 

The Development Task Force Committee (Laura Philips; Chair, April Burke, Paula Mueller, Oliver Schulze) met on April 25 to review the Development report, review the committee charter for approval, and discuss a possible new model for Board giving in 2019. Dr. Philips resigned her seat as Chair of the DTFC and we thank her for her time and service.

Investment & Finance Committee (IFC): 

The IFC (John Townsend; Chair, Peter Cornelius, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Oliver Schulze, Kira Sheinerman) met on April 23 to receive updates on the budget, faculty cluster hire, and a report from LVW.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee (Peter Cornelius, Chair; Paula Mueller, Kira Sheinerman) met on May 1 to review the 2018 Audit Report, Cyber Security and Safety reports, as well as to receive the 2019 Conflict of Interest statements.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC): 

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (Jacqueline Heard; Chair, Lourdes Casanova, Greg Galvin (ex officio), John Townsend) met on April 30 to review and discuss Board recruitment, , review committee membership assignments and the Board handbook.

Investment & Finance Committee (IFC): 

The IFC (John Townsend, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Oliver Schulze, Kira Sheinerman, and David Stern) met on November 1, 2018 to review and approve the 2019 Budget proposal and receive an overview of the investment portfolio from external investment advisors, LVW.

The IFC (John Townsend, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Kira Sheinerman, David Stern) met on March 4, 2019 to receive quarterly updates of the financial statements and receive a financial overview and performance review of the investment portfolio from external investment advisors, LVW.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee (Peter Cornelius, Chair; Paula Mueller, Kira Sheinerman) met on December 5 to plan for the upcoming audit conducted by external auditors, The Bonadio Group.

Compensation Committee:

The Compensation Committee (Nancy Rawson; Chair, Paul Chomet, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Mary Lou Guerinot, Roy H. Park Jr.) met on December 13 to discuss and approve annual performances of the Executive team.

Investment & Finance Committee (IFC): 

The IFC (John Townsend, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Oliver Schulze, Kira Sheinerman, and David Stern) met on September 20  to receive financial overview updates and a review of the investment portfolio from external investment advisors, LVW.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC): 

The NCGC (Jacqueline Heard, Chair; Lourdes Casanova, Greg Galvin (ex officio), David Stern, and John Townsend) met on October 9 to discuss board development and metrics and review the preliminary draft of the Board of Directors Handbook.

Executive Committee: 

The Executive Committee (Greg Galvin, Chair; Paul Chomet, Peter Cornelius, Mary Lou Guerinot, Jacqueline Heard, Roy H. Park Jr., Nancy Rawson, Kira Sheinerman, David Stern, and John Townsend) met on October 10 to receive various updates from President, and approve the November Board agenda.

External Relations (ERC): 

The ERC (Kira Sheinerman, Chair; April Bruke, Lourdes Casanova, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Nancy Rawson, David Stern, and John Townsend) met on October 17 to receive updates from Tech Transfer, Communications, and Education and Outreach.

Development Task Force (DTF): 

The DTF (Laura Philips, Oliver Schulze, April Burke, David Stern, Paula Mueller, and Ron Cooper) met on October 22 to receive updates and have a planning discussion about Development.

Investment & Finance Committee (IFC): 

The IFC (John Townsend, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Greg Galvin (ex officio), Oliver Schulze, Kira Sheinerman and David Stern) met on July 17, 2018 at the Altman Foundation in New York City to receive endowment performance updates and review second quarter financial statements.

Compensation Committee:

The Compensation Committee (Nancy Rawson, Chair; Paul Chomet, Mary Lou Guerinot, Roy H. Park, Jr., and Greg Galvin (ex officio) met on July 26, 2018 to conduct the President’s annual performance review.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC):

The NCGC (April Burke, Chair; Lourdes Casanova, Jacqueline Heard, Paula Mueller, Laura Philips (ex officio), and David Stern) met on May 1, 2018 to review and discuss Board recruitment, approve Cornell Directors nominated by the Cornell Provost, review proposed committee membership and nominate new Board members.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee (Peter Cornelius, Chair; Paula Mueller, Laura Philips (ex officio) and Kira Sheinerman) met on May 2, 2018 to review the 2017 Audit Report and related tax returns, as well as to receive the 2018 Conflict of Interest statements.

Investment & Finance Committee (IFC)

The IFC (John Townsend, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Greg Galvin, Laura Philips (ex officio), Kira Sheinerman and David Stern) met on May 3, 2018 to receive endowment performance updates and review first quarter financial statements

Development Task Force Working Group (DTF):

The Development Task Force Working Group (Greg Galvin, Laura Philips, Oliver Schulze, Stephanie Meyer and David Stern) met on April 23, 2018 for a planning session to discuss proposed membership, roles and duties of members, a meeting schedule and 2018 activities.

External Relations Committee:

The External Relations Committee (Kira Sheinerman, Chair; April Burke, Lourdes Casanova, Greg Galvin, Laura Philips (ex officio), Nancy Rawson, David Stern and John Townsend) met on April 18, 2018 to receive updates from Technology Transfer, Education and Outreach and Communications and Alumni Affairs.

Executive Committee:

The Executive Committee (Laura Philips, Chair; Greg Galvin, April Burke, Peer Cornelius, Mary Lou Guerinot, Roy H. Park, Jr. Kira Sheinerman, David Stern and John Townsend) met on April 11, 2018 to receive various updates from the President and to approve the May Board of Directors agenda.

Investment & Finance Committee (IFC):

The IFC (John Townsend, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Greg Galvin, Laura Philips (ex officio), Kira Sheinerman and David Stern) met on March 1, 2018 to receive endowment performance updates and review 2017 Budget versus Actual statements.

Audit Committee:

The Audit Committee (Peter Cornelius, Chair; Paula Muller, Laura Philips (ex officio), and Kira Sheinerman) met on December 7, 2017 to plan for the 2017 Audit. Preliminary fieldwork was completed in November and end of year fieldwork and single Audit are slated to begin in the early part of March 2018.  Results will be conveyed to the Audit Committee, then the Board of Directors in May.

Compensation Committee:

The Compensation Committee (Greg Galvin, Chair; Paul Chomet, Mary Lou Guerinot, Roy H. Park, Jr., Laura Philips (ex officio) and Nancy Rawson) met on December 13, 2017 to conduct Annual Reviews and discuss aspirational goals of the Senior Leadership Team.

Investment and Finance Committee (IFC):

The IFC (John Townsend, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Greg Galvin, Laura Philips (ex officio), Kira Sheinerman, David Stern) met on November 6, 2017 to receive updates regarding the endowment portfolio from external consultants, LVW Advisors and to discuss the FY 2018 proposed budget.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC):

The NCGC (April Burke, Chair; Lourdes Casanova, Jacqueline Heard, Paula Mueller, Laura Philips (ex officio), David Stern) met on October 3, 2017 to discuss recruitment of new Board members, onboarding protocol, development of a formalized Board handbook, and consideration of the ERD committee structure.

Executive Committee

The Executive Committee (Laura Philips, Chair; Greg Galvin, April Burke, Peter Cornelius, Mary Lou Guerinot, Roy Park, Jr., Kira Sheinerman, David Stern, John Townsend) met on October 5, 2017 to approve the President’s 457(b) contribution and the November Board meeting agenda.  The committee also received various updates from the President which included initiatives of the FY2018 budget.

External Relations & Development Committee (ERD)

The ERD Committee (Kira Sheinerman, Chair; April Burke, Lourdes Casanova, Greg Galvin, Nancy Rawson, David Stern, John Townsend) met on October 18, 2017 to receive updates from Technology Transfer, Education and Outreach, Development and Communications.  The Committee discussed its portfolio as Development decouples from the ERD to report to the newly formed Development Task Force.

Scientific Advisory Board (SAB)

The Scientific Advisory Board (Mary Lou Guerinot, Chair; David Baulcombe [unable to attend]), Paul Chomet, Machi Dilworth, Arthur Grossman, Jacqueline Heard, Eric Lyons, Chris Smart) met on October 12 and 13, 2017.  The SAB received research highlights from BTI faculty members Lukas Mueller, Zhangjun Fei, Fay-Wei Li and Joyce Van Eck, as well as an update on the BTI Computation Biology Center.  Members of the Post Graduate Society (PGS) presented on the new mentorship program.

Investment and Finance Committee (IFC)

The IFC (John Townsend, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Greg Galvin, Laura Philips (ex officio), Kira Sheinerman, David Stern) met on July 20, 2017 and received updates on mid-year financial statements, the pension plan termination and the endowment fund transfer.  All is moving along according to plans and projections.

Compensation Committee

The Compensation Committee (Greg Galvin, Chair; Paul Chomet, Mary Lou Guerinot, Roy Park, Laura Philips (ex officio), Nancy Rawson) met on July 26 to conduct the President’s Annual Review and 457(b) recommendation as well as conduct a review the most recent member of SLT, Stephanie Meyer, VP for Institutional Advancement.

Investment and Finance Committee (IFC)  

On June 22, 2017, a subcommittee of the IFC (John Townsend, Chair; Peter Cornelius, Kira Sheinerman) met with external advisors Jeff Wagner and Rick Van Kuren of LVW Associates to interview three proposed alternative asset managers and make recommendations to the full Committee.  The recommendations were approved by the remaining members of the Committee via email.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC)

The NCGC (April Burke, Chair, Jacqueline Heard, Laura Philips (ex officio), David Stern, John Townsend) met on May 2, 2017 to discuss Board Committee membership renewals and Board development to fill gaps in scientific and local representation.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee (Peter Cornelius, Chair, Greg Galvin, Paula Mueller, Laura Philips (ex officio), Kira Sheinerman) met May 4, 2017 to review the 2016 Audit Reports with external auditors, The Bonadio Group.  A clean audit was reported and internal management was commended on improvements from the previous year’s audit.

Executive Committee

The Executive Committee (Laura Philips, Chair, Greg Galvin, Vice Chair, April Burke, Paul Chomet, Mary Lou Guerinot, Peter Cornelius, Kira Sheinerman and David Stern) met April 7, 2017 to approve the Board agenda for May 10, 2017, ratify the Investment and Finance Committee’s decision to move the BTI endowment fund from Cornell LTIP to LVW Investment Advisors and receive various updates from the President including Cornell Directors nominated by the Cornell Provost

External Relations and Development Committee (ERD)

The ERD (Kira Sheinerman, Chair, April Burke, Lourdes Casanova, Greg Galvin, David Stern, John Townsend) met April 25, 2017. Technology Transfer provided a progress update on the BTI/Caltech start-up company, Holoclara.  Education/Outreach provided updates since the hire of Education Outreach Coordinator Delanie Sickler.  These include a maintained focus on REU, development of internal and external partnerships, and a new model to increase K-12 impact with a pilot program working with the Yonkers school district.  Development updates include a new focus on expanding corporate and foundational gifts, planned giving programs, in kind gifts, and the introduction of an incentive challenge for Board members to create matching opportunities.  Communications discussed challenges of communicating BTI science to a larger audience while being sensitive of political and emotional boundaries.

Investment and Finance Committee (IFC)

Compensation Committee

External Relations & Development Committee (ERD)

The ERD Committee (Kira Sheinerman, Chair; April Burke, Lourdes Casanova; Greg Galvin; Nancy Rawson; David Stern; John Townsend) will meet Wednesday, November 2 at 2:00 PM to receive updates from Tech Transfer, Communications, Development and Education.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (NCGC)

Executive Committee

Investment & Finance Committee

Compensation Committee

Benefits Plan Committee (BPC)