UCLA Investment Company

The UCLA Investment Company Board of Directors and Officers of the Corporation comprise investment, finance and business professionals and University leadership committed to the advancement of UCLA. The volunteers of the board are appointed by The UCLA Foundation Board of Directors.

Members of the Board of Directors

David A. Ackert ’77, JD/MBA ’82, Managing Member, Crystal Lake Capital
Andrea Auerbach, Partner and Global Head of Private Investments, Cambridge Associates
Allison Baird-James, Interim Vice Chancellor and Chief Financial Officer, UCLA
Justin E. Barton, President and Chief Investment Officer, UCLA Investment Company
Andrea Eisfeldt, Chair in Finance, UCLA Anderson School of Management
Philip Han ’91, Executive Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Saban Capital Group
Julio Herrera ’82, Managing Director, Oaktree Capital Management
Melvin Lindsey, Founder and Managing Partner, Nile Capital Group
John T. Mapes ’90, Chair, UCLA Investment Company; Partner, Aurora Capital Partners
Alicia Miñana de Lovelace, J.D. ’87 , Chair, The UCLA Foundation; CEO, Law Offices of Alicia Miñana
Julie Sina, Chief Operating Officer, The UCLA Foundation; Chief Financial Officer, UCLA Investment Company, Associate Vice Chancellor Alumni Affairs, UCLA
Drew Zager, Managing Director, Morgan Stanley

Officers of the Corporation

Justin E. Barton, President and Chief Investment Officer, UCLA Investment Company
John T. Mapes ’90, Chair, UCLA Investment Company; Partner, Aurora Capital Partners
Michael Marvelli, Corporate Secretary and Deputy Chief Investment Officer, UCLA Investment Company
Julie Sina, Chief Operating Officer, The UCLA Foundation; Chief Financial Officer, UCLA Investment Company, Associate Vice Chancellor Alumni Affairs, UCLA

Biographies

Alicia Miñana de Lovelace, J.D. ’87, Chair, The UCLA Foundation; CEO, Law Offices of Alicia Miñana. Alicia Miñana de Lovelace has spent the past 30 years as a transactional attorney in Los Angeles, as well as investing heavily and broadly of her time and resources in many facets of the local and national community. As a practicing attorney licensed in California, Alicia works in the formation and dissolution of corporations, limited liability corporations, partnerships and joint ventures, low-income housing, employment law, licensing, production, distribution and management agreements with artists, managers and recording labels. She has also worked with the National Labor Relations Board, as well as various national and international law firms.

Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Alicia graduated from Princeton University in 1984 with an AB degree in Biology. She received her JD degree from the UCLA School of Law in 1987. Alicia has continued to be involved with both universities. She serves and has served in a variety of capacities at UCLA, including: the Board of Governors; the Advisory Boards and Centennial Campaign Committees of both the Law School and the School of Education and Information Studies; the search committees for the Dean’s search for the Law School and for the School of Education and Information Studies several years ago; President of the Law School’s La Raza Law Alumni Association; and fundraising and selecting the recipients of the Cesar Chavez Summer Law Fellowship. Alicia was recognized as the Law School’s Alumni of the Year for Public and Community Service Award in 2013. She also serves as a member of the Campus Honorary Naming Advisory Committee which examines renaming policies and procedures for UCLA. In addition, she is a co-Chair of the Second Century Council at UCLA. For Princeton, she serves on the Annual Giving Vice Chair Group and on the Dean’s Advisory Council and previously served as co-Chair of the Capital Campaign Committee. She is also involved with Brown University as a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council.

In the community, Alicia is deeply and broadly involved as a volunteer. Among other activities, she is the founding chairperson of the Board of Directors and a volunteer attorney of The Learning Rights Law Center, a non-profit formed by UCLA Law graduates that assists low- income families advocate for their children with learning disabilities, as well as supporting children in the foster care and juvenile justice systems; and she is a Founding Family Trustee of Vistamar School in the South Bay of LA, an independent 9-12th grade high school. She is on the Board of Human Rights Watch, the Chair of The Nature Conservancy – Caribbean Program Board, the co-Chair of the Pacific Council’s Development Committee, and a Board Member of Learning Rights Law Center.

Alicia and her husband, Rob Lovelace, live in Hermosa Beach and have two daughters.

 

Allison Baird-James, Interim Vice Chancellor and Chief Financial Officer, UCLA. Allison Baird-James is the Associate Vice Chancellor for Business and Finance Solutions at the University of California, Los Angeles, a $9.9 billion public research university serving over 45,000 undergraduate and graduate students. She is responsible for the university’s financial management and reporting including all functions within the Controller’s Office, treasury, tax, procure to pay, insurance and risk management, and mail distribution and document services. In addition, she leads cross-organizational teams to ensure continuous improvement of financial services through system implementations and other strategic initiatives. In addition, as directed by the Provost, she created and chairs the Busting Bureaucracy Working Group designed to reduce administrative burden, increase efficiencies, and allow for a greater focus on fulfilling UCLA’s mission. Allison created the Treasury function at UCLA diversifying revenues and generating over $1 billion in new unrestricted revenue over the past 10 years.

Allison previously served as the Interim Controller for Stanford University after serving as the Associate Controller, and as the Associate Director of Internal Audit for the Stanford Medical Center. Prior to her career in higher education, Allison worked in finance at several medical centers where she specialized in reimbursement and receivables management. She began her career at PwC and is an inactive Certified Public Accountant.

Allison earned a BS degree in Business Administration, with an emphasis in accounting from California State University, Chico, and is a graduate of the Leadership at Stanford Program. In addition, through the UCLA Chancellor’s scholarship, she is a graduate of the Executive Program in Management at the UCLA Anderson School of Management. Allison is currently a NACUBO Fellow and recently completed the Women in Governance program also at UCLA Anderson. Allison serves on the Board of, and is co- treasurer of, the Organization of Women Executives.

As of April 4, 2022, Allison has been appointed by Chancellor Gene Block to serve as the interim vice chancellor and chief financial officer for UCLA.

 

Andrea Auerbach, Partner and Global Head of Private Investments Cambridge Associates. Andrea leads a 50-person global team sourcing and underwriting private equity, growth equity, distressed, and venture capital funds, as well as direct, co-investment, and secondary investment opportunities. She is the chair of the Co-investment and Secondaries Investment Committees and a member and former chair of the firm’s Private Investment Committee. Her career with CA spans nearly two decades. Andrea has co-authored a significant amount of in-depth private investment research, backed by over 40 years of CA’s proprietary data. Andrea is frequently asked to keynote at private investment industry conferences worldwide. She is also a faculty member at the Institutional Limited Partner Association (ILPA) Institute, where she has taught classes for over 10 years. In 2020, Andrea was recognized by Chief Investment Officer magazine as a “Knowledge Broker All-Star.” Andrea joined Cambridge Associates in 2001 as Head of International Private Equity and Venture Capital Research. Prior to that, she was a Senior Director in the Private Equity Group at Prudential Insurance and began her career in that firm’s Leverage Buyout Group where she led early efforts to benchmark Prudential’s $5 billion buyout portfolio, and domestic and European private equity and venture capital fund investment portfolios, among other investment responsibilities. Andrea earned her MBA from Harvard Business School and her BA in Economics from Smith College.

 

Andrea Eisfeldt, Chair in Finance, UCLA Anderson School of Management. Andrea Eisfeldt is the Laurence D. and Lori W. Fink Endowed Chair in Finance at the UCLA Anderson School of Management. In addition to her 22-year career in research and teaching in finance, Andrea has extensive experience in asset management. She was consultant to and then Chief Economist of Structured Portfolio Management, a fixed income hedge fund with over $3 billion in assets under management. Andrea also consulted for several years for AQR Capital Management, a large, diversified asset manager of over $140 billion. Currently, as well as serving on the board of the UCLA Investment Company, she is an academic advisor to Vise, a FinTech investment management firm. Andrea recently served on the board of directors of the American Finance Association, and has also served on the Board of Directors for the Gutmann Center for Portfolio Management, the Chicago Research Data Center of the US Census, and the Western Finance Association. She is a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. Her research on fixed income and equity market investing is cited worldwide, and she frequently speaks at conferences, universities, central banks, and asset-management institutions. Andrea has deep expertise in mortgage-backed securities and treasuries, as well as equities and real estate. Her ideas for incorporating intangible assets into investment strategies have influenced both academic research and the investment portfolios of several large asset managers.

Andrea earned a B.S. with highest honors from the College of Commerce at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1994, and received her M.A. and Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago in 2000.

 

David A. Ackert, Managing Member, Crystal Lake Capital. Mr. Ackert joined The Foundation Board of Directors in 2016. At UCLA, he is a founding member of The Laurence and Lori Fink Center for Finance & Investments Board. Since 2010, David has been the Managing Member of Crystal Lake Capital and was previously an Operating Director at Paine + Partners. From 1994 until 2007 he was an executive vice president at AIG Financial Products Corporation, where he served as head of corporate marketing for North America and global head of the transaction development group and the energy practice. From 1986 until 1994 he was a VP in the capital markets department at Goldman, Sachs & Co. From 1983 to 1986 he was an associate at Sullivan & Cromwell, a New York City law firm. Mr. Ackert earned his B.A. (summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa), MBA and J.D. (Law Review, Moot Court Honors) degrees from UCLA. He also attended Hong Kong University as a Rotary Foundation Fellow. He serves as Treasurer for the Archaeological Institute of America, is a founding member of the Harvard University National Advisory Board for Public Service and is also a founding and current board member of Off Broadway Angels. Mr. Ackert and his wife, Charlotte, have one son, Nicholas.

 

Drew J. Zager, Managing Director, Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management.  As a Senior Portfolio Management Director, Drew Zager leads a team of twelve professionals who manage $17.8 billion as of June 30, 2023 in high-grade, fixed income portfolios for institutional and private clients. A Morgan Stanley veteran since 1986, Drew was initially hired to provide fixed income coverage to middle market institutional clients. He had previously served as Senior Tax Consultant at KPMG and a Certified Public Accountant in the state of California. Drew was the chair and a founding director of the UCLA Investment Company, serves on the UCLA Investment Company & Foundation Board, chairs the UCLA Botanical Garden board and frequently lectures at the UCLA Anderson School of Management. He is also an advisory member to the UC Regents Investment Committee. Drew previously served on the boards of the University of California, Riverside, was on the Investment Committee, and the Young Eisner Scholars, a nonprofit organization that identifies and empowers academically promising children in underserved neighborhoods across the country. Drew created and chaired the Morgan Stanley Global Philanthropic Exchange in 2006 at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City. He graduated from California State University with a B.A. in finance and accounting.

 

Julie Sina, Chief Operating Officer, The UCLA Foundation; Chief Financial Officer, UCLA Investment Company, Associate Vice Chancellor Alumni Affairs, UCLA.  Her 30-year career in higher education spans from student affairs and financial aid to personnel and information services to strategic board, budgeting and facilities management. Previously, Ms. Sina was the Chief of Staff for UCLA’s College of Letters and Science and also served as the Chair of the UCLA Undergraduate Non-Resident Enrollment Task Force. Prior to UCLA, Ms. Sina served as University Vice President at the University of the Pacific where she managed the office of the President and served as Secretary of the Board of Regents.

 

Julio Herrera ’82, Managing Director, Oaktree Capital Management. Julio has served as the portfolio manager of Oaktree’s Emerging Markets Opportunities and Emerging Markets Debt Total Return strategies since their inception. In addition to overseeing a diverse team of investment professionals, he sits on Oaktree’s Senior Leadership Council and the Global Credit strategy’s investment committee.

Throughout his 30+-year career in asset management, Julio has played a leading role in many of the largest debt restructurings in the emerging markets. Prior to joining Oaktree in 2012, he was president of Fintech Advisory, Inc., a large family office focused on distressed situations in emerging economies. During his 15-year tenure, Fintech completed landmark deals in Latin America, Asia, Russia and Eastern Europe. Before this, he was the Head of Emerging Markets Corporate Fixed Income Research at Lehman Brothers Inc., vice president in emerging markets proprietary trading at ING Capital Holdings Inc., and an investment analyst RRH Capital Management.

Julio and his family have long supported arts, educational and social organizations in California, Connecticut and New York. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Latin American Studies from UCLA and attended Stanford University on a California Graduate Fellows.

 

John T. Mapes ’90, Chair, UCLA Investment Company; Partner, Aurora Capital Partners. John is a Partner of Aurora Capital Partners (“Aurora” or the “Firm”). Aside from two years in investment banking after college, John has spent his entire professional career in the private equity industry at Aurora where he has served as the Firm’s Managing Partner and Chairman of the Investment Committee.

Aurora was founded in 1991. With assets under management in excess of $4.5 billion, Aurora is a private equity investment firm that invests across a number of funds in middle market companies across the country. Aurora is currently investing out of its sixth fund. The Firm acquires controlling interests in companies in three sectors: engineered products, distribution and tech-enabled services. John’s corporate board experience spans numerous companies including: Roller Bearing Co of America, Coast Gas Industries, Western Nonwovens Inc., Impaxx Inc., Autocam Corporation, Douglas Dynamics, K&F Industries, Ames Taping Tools, Mitchell International, RecoverCare, National Technical Systems, Pace Analytical Services, and Restaurant Technologies.

Following his graduation with a BA degree in Economics/Business in 1990 from UCLA, where John played varsity tennis for the Bruins, he spent two years with Salomon Brothers, Inc. in both New York and Los Angeles, in their Corporate Finance Group. He left Salomon Brothers to join Aurora in 1992 and then rejoined the Firm after graduating from Harvard Business School in 1995.

At UCLA, in addition to serving on The UCLA Foundation Board (as Board Chair from 2018-2020), the UCLA Investment Company Board as the current Chair, and on the UCLA Technology Development Corp Board, the Mapes’ endowed five student-athlete scholarships — two in men’s tennis, men’s basketball, football, and women’s beach volleyball. Additionally, the Mapes funded a gift to support the construction of new beach volleyball facility at UCLA which is known on campus as Mapes Beach. John formerly served as Chairman of the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame Committee and on the UCLA Centennial Campaign Executive Committee.

John has been involved in the Los Angeles community with the Special Olympics and the St. Matthew’s Vestry, which oversees the Church and Episcopal Day School at St. Matthew’s Church. He is also active on behalf of Harvard Business School.

John’s wife Carrie earned a BA in History from UCLA in 1990 and a Master’s in Education and Multiple Subject Instruction Credential from UCLA in 1991 and is a co-founder of Hello Again Products, a women’s wellness product company. Carrie belongs to UCLA Women & Philanthropy and is a lifetime member of the Alumni Association. John and Carrie have a son who graduated from UCLA in 2020 and a daughter who graduated from Duke in 2022.

 

Justin E. Barton, President and Chief Investment Officer, UCLA Investment Company. Mr. Barton is the President and Chief Investment Officer at the UCLA Investment Company. The Investment Company is responsible for the UCLA Foundation endowment, a global, multi-asset portfolio. Along with the Investment Company team, Mr. Barton oversees all aspects of the endowment including executing investment strategy, portfolio construction, and governance. Mr. Barton began his investment career in Brown University’s investment office before joining Old Square Capital, a New York-based investment firm. He moved to London in 2011, where he worked for Investec Asset Management, an institutional investment manager. Mr. Barton has a BA degree from Princeton University and an MA in International Relations from the University of Cape Town. Mr. Barton holds an Investment Management Certificate from the CFA Society of the UK and the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation.

 

Philip Han ’91, Executive Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Saban Capital Group.  Saban Capital Group is a private investment firm based in Los Angeles specializing in the media, entertainment, and communication industries.  Mr. Han oversees a globally diversified portfolio of investments across equities, fixed income, and alternative investments.  He also leads Saban Real Estate Group, which owns a portfolio of office, self-storage, student housing and manufactured housing properties across 23 states.  Prior to joining Saban Capital Group, Mr. Han was with PricewaterhouseCoopers and EYM Technologies, a venture-backed email infrastructure start-up.  Mr. Han was formerly a Commissioner with the California Commission for Economic Development and is currently on the Board of Trustees with the Orthopedic Institute for Children. Mr. Han attended UCLA where he earned both his BA in Economics/Business and MBA in Finance.

 

Melvin Lindsey, CFA, Founder and Managing Partner of Nile Capital Group. Nile Capital Group is a private equity firm that invests in GP stakes of innovative performance-driven asset management companies. Mr. Lindsey serves on the boards of Nile’s portfolio holding companies including Welton Investment Partners LLC, Prytania Asset Management, Kvasir Technologies, Wilshire Lane Capital LLC, Strategic Global Advisors LLC, Denali Advisors LLC, and Convergence Investment Partners LLC. Prior to founding Nile, Mel co-managed Julius Bär Investment Management (JBIM) as Managing Director of Global Distribution. During his tenure at JBIM, assets under management grew from $800 million to a peak of $78 billion, ultimately resulting in an IPO and listing on the NYSE in 2009. Mel previously worked at Investec Asset Management as Director in the Institutional North America division. He was also Managing Director and portfolio manager at Wells Capital Management and a Vice President at Shearson Lehman Brothers. Mel holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation and received his MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management. Mel also attended IMD Global Leadership Program in Lausanne, Switzerland. He is a member of the Los Angeles Society of Financial Analysts. Mel serves on the Board of Trustees and the Investment Committee for the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF), the UCLA Foundation Board, UCLA Anderson School of Management Board of Advisors, and Saint John’s Health Center Foundation.