Barbara MacLeod, CFA
President
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Chair, Department of Economics, Ohio Wesleyan University. After a career in banking and investments, Barbara now teaches courses in finance, international business and strategic planning. She also does freelance consulting, is highly involved with curriculum development for the CFA program and has been a grader of the CFA exam for several years. Previously a board member of the Mississippi society, Barbara joined the CFA Society of Columbus in 1999 and was elected to the Board in 2004. She earned her CFA charter in 1991 and a Masters of Management in Finance from Northwestern (with Honors) in 1986.
Stephen E. Stuckwisch, CFA
Secretary
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Portfolio Manager for the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System (OPERS). Currently he is a member of the Private Real Estate team, which makes equity real estate investment via separate accounts, open-end core funds and closed-end opportunity funds. From October 1995 to November 2007, Stephen was responsible for OPERS actively managed REIT portfolio, outperforming the stated benchmark an average of 100+ bps per year. Prior to joining PERS, Stephen was an officer with Chemical Mortgage Company responsible for the asset management of one third of a $3.2 billion commercial mortgage servicing portfolio and a staff appraiser for a Midwest real estate appraisal firm. He received his BA in Economics from Hanover College and his MBA in Finance from The Ohio State University. Stephen was awarded the CFA Charter in 2000. He serves on the Board of Directors and as the Secretary for the CFA Society of Columbus. Stephen also is a member of Urban Land Institute and has served in past years on the Editorial Board for the Institutional Real Estate Letter, a real estate industry publication.
Royce West, CFA
Treasurer
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Equity Portfolio Manager at the State Teachers Retirement System (STRS). Additionally, Royce is an adjunct professor at Ohio State where he has teaches the Student Investment Management class. Royce earned a BSBA from Ohio State University, an MBA from Case Western Reserve, and is a CFA charter holder (2002). He is currently the Tresurer for the CFA Society of Columbus.
R. Travis Upton, CFA
Vice President and Program Chair
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Vice President and Director of Portfolio Management for The Joseph Group, Inc., a wealth advisory firm specializing in investment management. Travis also serves on the faculty for the Schweser Study Program, a leading global provider of financial education resources. He has been a Columbus Society Board member since 2006, and is also a past President and Board Member of the CFA Society of Toledo (CFAST). Travis earned his CFA Charter in 2002, Financial Risk Manager (FRM) certificate in 2004, Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designation in 2007, and BSBA in Finance with Honors from the University of Toledo in 1998.
Douglas Gilmore, CFA
Publicity Chair
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Director, Red Capital Markets. Doug’s responsibilities at Red Capital Markets, Inc. include distribution of both taxable and tax-exempt products to institutional investors. He also manages the firm’s day-to-day cash needs, including funding the trading desk’s positions through the repo market. Doug joined Banc One Securities Corporation in 1988 where he traded an extensive range of fixed income securities, including mortgage products. Later, he was responsible for funding the taxable trading desk and managing a $1.5 billion matched book portfolio for Banc One Capital Markets. He acquired his CFA designation in 2002 and is currently the Publicity Chair for the CFA Society of Columbus. Doug earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from The Ohio State University
Raj Menon, CFA
Membership Chair
Raj has nearly a decade of investment experience including domestic and emerging markets at State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio. Raj is currently a Consulting Analyst on their emerging markets team. Raj supports two emerging market equity funds with $1.2 billion in assets and specializes in the Korean and Indian equity markets. Previously, he was a Manager at US Bancorp. Raj has an MBA with Honors from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business with concentrations in Economics, Finance, Strategy and Entrepreneurship. Raj received his B.Sc. in Mathematics from Loyola College, Madras, India. Raj became a member of CFA Society of Columbus in 1999 and received his CFA charter in 2000.
Jason Downey, CFA
Volunteer Coordinator
Research Analyst – Equities. Jason joined Diamond Hill Investments in 2002 and currently monitors and evaluates equities in the transportation sector. Jason graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University in 2002 with a B.A. in economics (concentration management) and a B.A. in history. He joined the CFA Society of Columbus as an affiliate in 2004 and received his Chartered Financial Analyst designation in 2005. He was elected to the society's Board of Directors in 2008 and currently serves as the volunteer coordinator.