Members of The Advisory Group at Huron

The following experts are members of The Advisory Group at Huron:

Erich Bloch is a founding member of the Advisory Group and a Senior Fellow at the Council on Competitiveness. Erich served as director of the National Science Foundation from 1984–1990,where he oversaw the foundation’s $3 billion annual budget and the award of 12,000–14,000 research grants in natural, physical, and social sciences, education, and engineering. Prior to this role, Erich was the corporate vice president for technical development at IBM. His work with the Advisory Group has included a wide of range of strategic planning and organizational development engagements with university, policy and research institution clients.

John “Jack” Breese has been active with the Advisory Group since 2006. He was a director of Microsoft Research (1993-2005) where he both performed and supervised research and development in intelligent systems including data management, machine learning, natural language processing, community technologies, and user interfaces. Prior to that, he was a founder of Knowledge Industries and a senior member of the technical staff at Rockwell Science Center. Jack’s work with the Advisory Group has been focused primarily on university-enabled technology-based economic development.

Jordan J. Cohen, M.D., has been active with the Advisory Group since 2006, when he concluded a 12-year tenure as president of the Association of American Medical Colleges. Prior to this role, Jordan was dean of the medical school and professor of medicine at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. He also served as president of the medical staff at University Hospital, professor and associate chairman of medicine at the University of Chicago-Pritzker School of Medicine, and physician-in-chief and chairman of the department of medicine at the Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center. Jordan’s work at the Advisory Group has focused on strategy and management of medical schools and teaching hospitals.

Peter A. Freeman has been active with the Advisory Group since 2007. He was an assistant director at the National Science Foundation (2002-2007), leading the Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE). He was the founding dean of computing at the Georgia Institute of Technology (1990-2002), where he is currently emeritus dean and professor. Peter's work with the Advisory Group focuses on university strategy and management, program evaluation, and new program development.

Karen A. Holbrook has been active with the Advisory Group since 2007, when she stepped down as president of Ohio State University. While Karen was president, annual research funding at Ohio State increased from $426 million to $720 million, placing Ohio State seventh among public universities and second in industry funding. Prior to arriving at Ohio State in 2002, she served as Senior Vice President and Provost at the University of Georgia, Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate School at the University of Florida, and Associate Dean for Scientific Affairs at the University of Washington School of Medicine. She is currently the senior vice president for research and innovation at the University of South Florida. Karen’s work at the Advisory Group has focused on management, leadership and program development for universities in addition to technology-based economic development for communities.

James E. “Jay” Morley, Jr. has been active with the Advisory Group since 2006, when he concluded his tenure as president and chief executive officer of the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), a Washington-based organization dedicated to higher education administrative and financial issues. Prior to joining NACUBO, Jay was the senior vice president and, earlier, treasurer of Cornell University. He was previously the vice president for finance and administration of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Rider College, as well as comptroller for Syracuse University. He also has extensive experience as a director and trustee of for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. Jay’s work at the Advisory Group has involved providing financial, administrative and organizational analysis, planning and management support to colleges, universities, and nonprofits.

Gilbert S. Omenn, M.D., Ph.D., has been active with the Advisory Group since 2006. Gil was Executive Vice-President for Medical Affairs at the University of Michigan, and Chief Executive Officer of the UM Health System. He is a professor of internal medicine, human genetics, and public health at the University of Michigan, and director of the university-wide Center for Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics. He was dean of the school of public health and professor of medicine and environmental health at the University of Washington, Seattle. He has conducted extensive research in cancer proteomics, chemoprevention of cancers, public health genetics, science-based risk analysis, and health policy. He was president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in 2006; he served as Associate Director of the Office of Science & Technology Policy and the Office of Management & Budget in the Jimmy Carter Administration. Gil's work at the Advisory Group has been focused on biomedical research and academic health center projects in the public and private sectors.

Charles T. Owens has been active with the Advisory Group since 2007. He has more than 40 years experience in foreign affairs and international science and technology cooperation, with service in the U.S. Foreign Service, and as a member of the Senior Executive Service (1986-95) at the U.S. National Science Foundation. He helped to establish the Civilian Research & Development Foundation (CRDF), and served as its President and Chief Executive Officer (2003-2006). Tom's work with the Advisory Group has been focused on international science and technology issues, and on the development and management of effective research funding programs.

Frank Press was a founding member of the Advisory Group, when he was a Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Institution of Washington. Frank served as president of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and chairman of the National Research Council from 1981 to 1993 and as Science and Technology Advisor to President Jimmy Carter from 1977 to 1981. Before joining the government he was on the faculties of Columbia University, California Institute of Technology, and MIT as a Professor of Geophysics for 25 years. In his work with the Advisory Group, Frank has led or co-led both research strategy and organizational development projects for university and corporate clients both in the US and abroad.

Mitchell T. Rabkin, M.D., has been active with the Advisory Group since 1999. Mitchell led Boston’s Beth Israel Hospital for three decades. In 1996, Beth Israel and neighboring Deaconess Hospitals merged to form the nucleus of the second major delivery system in the area, CareGroup. Mitchell became chief executive officer of this parent corporation (1996-1998). He joined with the then-medical school dean, Daniel C. Tosteson, to establish the Carl J. Shapiro Institute for Education and Research at Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and remains involved there today. He is a professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Mitchell’s work with the Advisory Group focuses on systems issues in health care delivery, strategy, governance, and management of academic medical enterprises.

Frank H. T. Rhodes was a founding member of the Advisory Group, shortly after concluding his tenure as president of Cornell University. Before assuming the presidency at Cornell, he was vice president of academic affairs at the University of Michigan, after having served as dean of the College of Literature, Science and the Arts. Frank was previously a professor and head of the Geology Department and dean of the faculty of Science at the University of Wales, Swansea.  He has also been a faculty member at the University of Illinois, where he was also director of the University of Illinois Field Station in Sheridan, Wyoming, and the University of Durham. Frank’s work with the Advisory Group has focused on academic management and program analysis for colleges and universities.

Huntington (“Hunt”) Williams, III has been active with the Advisory Group since 2005. Hunt is the former president of Merit Network, the research and education network in Michigan that managed the NSFNET, America’s first high-speed Internet backbone. He conceived the strategy for Merit to acquire 2,300 miles of fiber optic infrastructure and helped develop the Michigan Information Technology Center as a hub for Merit and Internet2. He previously served as the CEO of Community of Science Inc., an Internet publishing and Johns Hopkins spin-off company. Hunt has worked as a consultant for startup companies in the fields of information technology and biotechnology, and at American Broadcasting Companies and the Gannett Center for Media Studies. His work with the Advisory Group focuses on academic and research program development, innovation strategies, and venture-backed enterprises.



All members of The Advisory Group at Huron are Independent Contractor Directors