Ed Bachrach MC/MPA 2007 is the retired chairman and CEO of Bachrach Clothing, a national retailer of men’s fashions. Since selling the business in 2005, he has studied and practiced public policy. He is the founder of Build Cambodia, and he provides health care funding and services in Cambodia. He is also the founder of the Center for Pension Integrity in Chicago. Bachrach is the co-author of The New Chicago Way: Lessons from Other Big Cities, which will be published in 2019 by Southern Illinois University Press. A graduate of Northwestern University and Harvard Kennedy School, Bachrach lives in Chicago.
Octavio Camarena-Villaseñor MPP 1994 is a managing director at KIO Networks, which merged with MásNegocio, a company he founded that specializes in application management. He also supervises a business unit that focuses on artificial intelligence and big data services. MásNegocio was one the first software as a service companies in Latin America. Today, he works on predictive analytics using machine learning to help companies in their decision-making. Camarena-Villaseñor serves on several boards of directors, including those of the Mexican Red Cross and Pumas AC, a professional Mexican soccer team. He received his BA from Lawrence University and his MPP from Harvard Kennedy School.
Robert L. Culver MPA 1978 retired as a managing director at Sasaki Associates, Inc., where he worked on strategy, marketing, business development, project management, and project financing. Before joining Sasaki, Culver was president and chief executive officer of the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency, a quasi-public agency that provides tax-exempt financing for higher-education, health care, and nonprofit agencies throughout the state. He also has served in senior roles at Yale University, the Cabot Corporation, Northeastern University, and Coopers & Lybrand Management Consulting Services. He spent several years working in the Cambridge School Department to integrate two high schools. His MPA is from Harvard Kennedy School; he also holds a master’s from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Charles H. Grice MPP 1985 is managing director at Cornerstone Research, where he provides expert testimony on regulatory matters for financial institutions and serves as an expert witness in major consumer finance lawsuits. He trains and advises boards of directors and corporate executives on mortgage lending, credit risk management, compliance, and due diligence standards, has served as the board-appointed chief compliance officer and chief risk officer in special situations, and has negotiated enforcement actions with state and federal banking agencies. He worked previously with the International Finance Division of the U.S. Federal Reserve Board, where he was responsible for special projects for the chair related to interest rate management, risk management, and relationships with international financial institutions. He has also served as the assistant director of the California Bankers Association. Grice has conducted research on several continents, receiving fellowships as an ITT Scholar/Fulbright Scholar and as a Kellogg National Fellow.
Ana Paula Gerard Rivero MC/MPA 1995 has taught economics at Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM), worked as a credit analyst at Citibank, and served as an adviser to the chief of the National Institute of Statistics and Geography. She has also worked in various positions in the Ministry for Finance and Public Credit and served as the technical secretary of the Economic Cabinet. Gerard was also a part of the Mexican junior national equestrian jumping team. She is passionate about opera and is a member of the International Council of the Teatro Real and the Prado Museum in Madrid. In 2017, she co-edited the book Mexico: A Culinary Quest. She has her bachelor’s degree in economics from ITAM and her mid-career master’s of public administration from Harvard Kennedy School.
Ramin A. Isayev MC/MPA 2001 is general director at SOCAR-AQS. He has more than 20 years of experience in the international oil industry for companies such as BP, Statoil, and KCA DEUTAG. He also has lectured at various universities in Azerbaijan and has published articles and books on economy, oil, and gas. The founder of two nonprofits, the NATO Information Center in Baku and the U.S.-Educated Alumni Association of Azerbaijan, Isayev received a degree in physics from Baku State University in Azerbaijan, an MBA from MIT, and am MC/MPA from Harvard Kennedy School.
Frank F. Islam is an entrepreneur, philanthropist, civic leader, and thought leader. He has a special commitment to civic, educational, and artistic causes. He is chairman and CEO of FI Investment Group, a private investment holding company that he established in 2007 after he sold his information technology firm, the QSS Group, which he founded 1994 and built from one to more than 3,000 employees and approximately $300 million in revenue at the time of its sale. He devotes the majority of time to a wide variety of civic and philanthropic activities, and serves on numerous boards and advisory councils.
Paul J. Much MC/MPA 2009 enjoyed a career in corporate finance beginning with Chicago’s Harris Bank, continuing to Duff & Phelps, and later Houlihan Lokey, where he served as senior managing director and board member. His corporate career spanned 36 years across many industries and a wide variety of financial and valuation questions. He was a frequent speaker to professional groups, and authored many articles. He has served as a board member and president of the Culver Legion (the worldwide alumni association of Culver Academies) and as a Trustee of the Culver Educational Foundation. After his retirement from the corporate world, he returned to school, earning an MS in accounting from the University of Illinois, an MC/MPA from Harvard Kennedy School, and a Master’s of Studies in Law from Northwestern University School of Law. He is also a graduate of Culver Military Academy, has his bachelor’s from the University of Illinois, and his MBA from Northwestern University.
Jang-Han Rhee is chair of Chong Kun Dang Holdings (CKDH), a private holding company composed of three pharmaceutical companies and health care functional foods, venture capital, advertisement, construction and engineering, and real estate management companies. Rhee has also served as the vice chair of Korea Employers Federation, vice chair of the Federation of Korean Industries, and chair of the board of Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association. As a board member of both the CKD Kochon Foundation and the CKD Kochon Educational Foundation, Rhee works to improve social welfare. He received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Hanyang University, master’s degree from the School of Journalism at the University of Missouri, and his PhD in journalism and mass communication from Korea University.
Emil Tedeschi is the president and CEO of Atlantic Grupa, a food and beverages producer and distributor in Southeast Europe. He is the founder and majority shareholder in the company, which developed from a local Croatian distributor into one of the largest companies in the region. As a member of the Parliamentary Committee overseeing Croatia’s negotiations with the European Union, he worked to move Croatia toward EU membership. He served as the president of the Croatian Employers’ Association. He is a member of the Trilateral Commission, the INSEAD Alumni Association, the Program Council of the Zagreb School of Economics and Management, the Business Council at the Faculty of Economics at the University of Ljubljana, and the Board of Trustees of Moscow State Institute for International Relations. He was also awarded the president of the state’s medal for contribution to the economy. A supporter of economic, social, and cultural development in the region, Tedeschi received the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo for his longstanding support of the Sarajevo Film Festival.
Jesús Viejo Gonzalez MPP 1998 is chair of Trefilia Capital Investments, which has a portfolio of direct investments and investments in venture capital and private equity funds. He is also the technical secretary of Consejo Nuevo León, an advisory council to the governor of the state of Nuevo León in charge of the state’s long-term strategic planning. His philanthropic activities are focused on higher education. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Universidad de Monterrey, a member of the Advisory Board in Mexico of Harvard’s David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies, and president of Nuevo León’s Natural Sciences and Wildlife Museum. Viejo has also served as vice president of economic research for emerging markets at Goldman Sachs in New York and as the chief economist in Grupo Alfa in Monterrey. He holds an economics degree from ITESM, an MPP from Harvard Kennedy School, and a PhD in economics from Boston University. He enjoys the outdoors and is a veteran marathon runner.