Dr. Akinlolu Ojo is the Executive Dean of the University of Kansas School of Medicine. Dr. Ojo received his medical education from the University of Lagos, Nigeria and residency training in internal medicine at the University of Kentucky. He completed a nephrology fellowship, PhD in Epidemiologic Science and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the University of Michigan. Dr. Ojo's research interests include clinical transplantation and chronic kidney disease with a particular focus on African Americans and developing countries. He has authored over 120 peer-reviewed publications and has served on the editorial boards of several journals and on NIH study sections.

Dr. Ojo maintains an active clinical and translational research program with a portfolio of both NIH and industry funding. He is member of the American Society of Clinical Investigation. Dr. Ojo maintains active research collaboration with investigators in Austria, Brazil, Ghana, Jamaica, Nigeria, South Africa, Spain and Taiwan. Dr. Ojo currently works with the Ministries of Health of several Caribbean countries to improve access to kidney disease care, including dialysis treatment and kidney transplantation. Dr. Ojo was previously the Associate Vice President for Clinical Research and Global Health Initiatives at the University of Arizona Health Sciences in the Office of the Senior Vice President for Health Sciences. Dr. Ojo came to that position from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where he served as Professor of Medicine and the Inaugural Florence E. Bingham Research Professor in Nephrology. Dr. Ojo is an internationally recognized physician-scientist with expertise in chronic kidney disease kidney and kidney-pancreas transplantation and Global Health Research. He is the Program Director for the HRSA/DOT-funded National Living Donor Assistance Center (NLDAC), which provides reimbursement to financially needy live organ donors for non-medical expenses incurred in the process of donating an organ.

Dr. Merion is President of Arbor Research Collaborative For Health and Professor Emeritus of Surgery at the University of Michigan. He has more than 20 years’ experience as a transplant surgeon and has served as project director on a variety of important federally funded organ transplantation research projects. He is internationally renowned for his seminal research initiatives in both therapeutic and public policy aspects of transplantation. Dr. Merion is widely published in peer-reviewed publications. He is an Associate Editor for the American Journal of Transplantation, Chair of the Adult-to-Adult Living Donor Liver Transplantation Cohort Study Steering Committee, Clinical Transplant Director of the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR) and Secretary of the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.

Dr. Merion will serve as the NLDAC Program Deputy Director. In this capacity he will deputize for all the duties and responsibilities of the Program Director as necessary. Dr. Merion will serve as the lead research scientist responsible for directing the operations of the research/statistical analysis core. He will also serve as the key liaison between the National Living Donor Assistance Center and the SRTR in any collaborative effort that HRSA may direct the two projects to undertake.

Barry Hong is a Professor of Psychiatry and Internal Medicine at the Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO. Dr. Hong has a Master in Divinity Degree from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis and received his PhD in Psychology from St. Louis University. He is board certified in clinical psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology. He serves as the Vice-Chairman for Clinical Affairs in the Department of Psychiatry and the Chief Psychologist at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. He has had numerous appointments in the area of organ transplantation. He has served as a Psychological Consultant to Mid-America Transplant Services since 1992 and has been a member of the Advisory Council and is the present Chairman of the Missouri Kidney Program. In addition, he has worked with the liver and renal divisions at Washington University and has been an active member of the kidney and liver transplant services.

Dr. Hong is currently an Associate Editor for the Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings and has previously served as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology and PsycCRITIQUES. Both are journals of the American Psychological Association. He has authored 50 peer-reviewed publications and has received Honors from the American Psychopathological Association, Missouri Psychological Association and Divisions of Health Psychology and Clinical Psychology of the American Psychological Association.

Dr. Hong will provide content expertise to the development of data collection instruments. He will serve as the lead scientist for methodologic issues. He will lead the effort in refining research hypotheses to be tested. He will work closely with the staff in Research/Statistical Analysis Core to ensure integrity of the data collection and evaluation.

Dr. Mathur is an Assistant Professor of Surgery in the Division of Transplant Surgery at Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona. His clinical practice includes living donor and deceased donor transplant of the liver, kidneys, and pancreas. Dr. Mathur completed his his undergraduate and medical degrees at the University of Florida, and his internship, residency and transplant surgery fellowship in the the University of Michigan Health System. Dr. Mathur also completed a Master of Science in Health and Health Care Research through the University of Michigan School of Public Health in 2010. Dr. Mathur is board-certified in general surgery and has completed an ASTS multi-organ abdominal transplant fellowship. He was awarded research funding from the National Institute of Health and the Center for Integrative Approaches to Health Disparities in 2008 and 2012. Dr. Mathur has published over 30 peer-reviewed articles, books and book chapters. His academic interests span several areas of health services research in end organ failure, organ donation, and transplantation.

Dr. Mathur is the Program Evaluation Specialist for the National Living Donor Assistance Center. He is responsible for the development and reporting of program metrics under the direction of the Project Director and Deputy Director. Dr. Mathur is also responsible for identifying broader program implications on transplantation via dataset linkages with relevant demographic and transplant databases.

Ms. Kebler Bullock is the Executive Director/CEO of the American Society of Transplant Surgeons. She joined ASTS in 2011 and since joining, has served in several roles focused initially on fellowship training and education. In 2015, she turned her efforts towards grants and fundraising and served as ASTS’s Director of Development in 2019, before transitioning to the ASTS Executive Director in January 2021. She drives strategy, implements board directives, and ensures ongoing success of the Society and its affiliated Foundation. She has secured high-level, multi-year commitments from key corporate partners to secure grant funding for programs in research and education. She is a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE), a 500-hr yoga teacher and spends the remainder of her time with her husband and 3 kids.  

Ms. Kebler-Bullock will provide managerial leadership in overall administration of the project and will prepare financial reports as well as ensure quality controls.

Marie-Claire Walters joined NLDAC in August 2017. Ms. Walters graduated summa cum laude from Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 2013 with a dual BA in Philosophy and Spanish. At Clark University, she was awarded the David Saltman Prize for excellence in philosophy. Ms. Walters was an English teacher in the Chilean public school system for two years prior to joining NLDAC. She is fluent in Spanish, Italian and Catalan.

Ms. Walters oversees the day-to-day operational activities of the program and implements program improvements, ensuring compliance with the policies and procedures and federal guidelines. She monitors program spending and creates administrative invoices, oversees the website content, and writes the newsletter. Ms. Walters also provides support to Spanish-speaking donors, transplant professionals, and members of the public.

Catherine Kuo joined NLDAC as a Program Assistant in August 2020. She graduated from the University of California, Davis with BAs in History and Chinese. She is proficient in Mandarin Chinese and Japanese.

As the Assistant Coordinator, Ms. Kuo manages the NLDAC Advisory Group, maintains the program data report, and supervises the processing of applications. With other members of the operations team, she educates the public about the program, processes applications, disburses financial assistance, and supports applicants throughout the donation process.

Ms. Walz leads outreach efforts at NLDAC, engaging the transplant community to improve awareness and utilization of the program. She is responsible for NLDAC’s educational materials, gives talks about the program, and advises transplant centers on how to increase their NLDAC usage. She also participates in the processing of applications and provides funding to living donors.

Before joining NLDAC in 2022, Ms. Walz worked as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute. In that role, she implemented an effective system for optimizing NLDAC utilization and filed hundreds of NLDAC applications. She presented alongside NLDAC at the 2021 STSW conference and was a participant in the NLDAC Best Practices Workshop in 2018. Ms. Walz has been a member of the STSW Living Donation Committee since 2019 and obtained her CCTSW credentialing in 2020. Ms. Walz earned her Bachelor's in Social Work from Mercyhurst University in Erie, PA and her Master’s in Social Work from the University of Pittsburgh.

April Bruce joined NLDAC as the Senior Program Assistant in 2021. As a member of the operations team, she processes applications and provides service to donors, recipients, and transplant professionals. She also leads an outreach program for centers with multicultural waitlist populations.

Previously, Ms. Bruce was a transplant social worker at the University of Kentucky Transplant Center, working with living kidney donors for 4 years and with kidney recipients for 5 years.  She has a passion for transplant, especially living donation. April graduated from the University of Kentucky College of Social Work with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Work in 1989 and a Master of Social Work in 1992. Besides transplant, April also has experience with community agencies, geriatrics, hospice and supervising social work students. 

Joanna Giddens joined NLDAC as a Program Assistant in August 2020, with a background in community engagement and administrative support. She has a Master of Social Work degree from Washington University in Saint Louis and an undergraduate degree in Art Practice from the University of California, Berkeley.  Before joining NLDAC, she worked at Grace Meridian Hill church as the Community Life Coordinator.  Ms. Giddens has worked with diverse populations through Americorps, social and economic development programs and other altruistic nonprofits.

As a Program Assistant, Ms. Giddens provides administrative support to NLDAC, educating the public about the program, processing applications, disbursing financial assistance, and supporting applicants throughout the donation process. She manages NLDAC's social media accounts, records financial donations, and prepares invoices.

Jean Hwang, MA, joined NLDAC as a Program Assistant in December 2021. Prior to joining NLDAC, she worked with non-profits in the Washington, D.C. area supporting research and program management. She also spent time abroad implementing women’s reproductive health and post-traumatic stress disorder relief education programs in countries like Nepal and Tanzania. She has a master’s degree in International Relations.  

As a Program Assistant, Ms. Hwang provides administrative support to NLDAC, educating the public about the program, processing applications, administering financial assistance, and supporting applicants throughout the donation process.

Jared Stern joined NLDAC as a Program Assistant in November 2022. Prior to joining NLDAC, he worked as the Assistent Administrator of a long term care facility facility as well as in marketing for assisted living communities. More recently he worked as the Business Development Executive of a Digital Media Agency in Orange County, California.  

As a Program Assistant, Mr. Stern provides administrative support to NLDAC, educating the public about the program, processing applications, administering financial assistance, and supporting applicants throughout the donation process.