Mayo Center - People

Rodney Sullivan 
Executive Director 
As executive director of the Richard A. Mayo Center for Asset Management, Rodney Sullivan has primary leadership and managerial responsibility for the administration and oversight of all of the center’s activities. Sullivan joins the Darden School from AQR Capital Management, the Greenwich, Connecticut, based investment management firm where he served as vice president and head of investment content. An investment industry publishing leader with an extensive track record of developing and communicating innovative research and ideas, Sullivan helped establish and led the firm’s editorial board and also was a founding member of the AQR Asset Management Institute at London Business School. Prior to joining AQR, Sullivan worked as head of publications and editor of the Financial Analysts Journal at the CFA Institute for more than 10 years, including oversight responsibilities for a suite of publication services aimed at the investment community. A Chartered Financial Analyst and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst, Sullivan holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in economics from Virginia Commonwealth University. Rodney also currently serves as an editor for the Journal of Alternative Investments published by CAIA Association. He lives in Charlottesville with his family.

Caitlin Boyer
Associate Director of Strategic Initiatives
Caitlin Boyer joined the Richard A. Mayo Center for Asset Management in September 2022. Prior to joining the Mayo Center, Caitlin worked as an Academic Operations Coordinator at Darden, starting in 2018. She provides ongoing support and leadership for the implementation and development of strategic initiatives with the goal of furthering Darden’s presence and stature in the venture capital, private equity, and real estate industries, as well as other areas across asset management. Caitlin graduated from James Madison University with a B.S. in Geographic Science.

Katie Christ
Program Manager
Katie Christ joined the Richard A. Mayo Center in August 2023 from her previous role as an Academic Operations Coordinator at Darden. Prior to Darden, she worked at Rise Together, where she was an Assistant Director. Katie provides program management support for the Mayo Center across all initiatives and student programming. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Education, Cognitive Science from UVA, and is a candidate for the Master of Education in Educational Psychology degree at UVA. In her free time, Katie enjoys walking her dog, collecting/polishing rocks, painting and puzzling.

Vaska Atta-Darkua
Vaska Atta-Darkua is a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Richard A. Mayo Center for Asset Management at the Darden School of Business. Prior to joining Darden, Vaska completed a Ph.D. in Finance at Judge Business School at the University of Cambridge where she was a member of King’s College, Cambridge. Vaska also holds an M.Phil. in Finance from the University of Cambridge and a B.Sc. in International Economics from the University of Essex in the UK. During her studies she was a visiting student at UCLA Anderson. Vaska’s research focuses on institutional investors, climate finance, and responsible investing.

Johannes Klausmann
Johannes Klausmann is a Research Associate at the Darden School of Business and the Mayo Center. Johannes conducts research on Climate Finance, Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) and Empirical Corporate Finance. More specifically, he investigates the benchmark greenium in the German government bond market and studies the impact of managerial myopia on corporate green investments. Other studies include an experimental examination of socially responsible investors in a competitive trading room regarding their stated ESG preferences and personal values. Going forward, Johannes is also interested in topics beyond climate change such as financial risks related to the protection of biodiversity or water scarcity. Previously, Johannes completed his PhD in Finance at ESSEC Business School in Paris and he also holds an MSc in Finance from UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School in Dublin. During his PhD training, Johannes visited the University of Texas in Austin for one year. In his free time, he likes to play tennis and volleyball. During winter, skiing is one of his passions.

The Mayo Center Advisory Group was convened in late 2012 to advise the Dean on Mayo Center objectives and activities, and to assist with generating support. The Advisory Group consists of founding Mayo Center supporters, faculty, staff and asset management professionals. The group supports the continued advancement of the Center.

Advisory Group Members:

Kyle Bass
Managing Partner
Hayman Capital Management, LP

Jim Cooper (MBA ’84)
Managing Partner
Thompson Street Capital Partners

Frank Edmonds (MBA ’94)
Co-Managing Partner
Panning Capital Management

Michael Gangemi (MBA ’94)
Principal
WNG Capital, LLC

Palmer P. Garson (MBA ’83)  
Managing Director
Silvercrest Asset Management

Christopher (Chris) Holden
General Partner
Court Square Ventures

Lawrence (Larry) E. Kochard
Chief Investment Officer
Makena Capital Management

John G. Macfarlane III (MBA ’79)
Managing Member
Arrochar Management LLC

Richard (Dick) A. Mayo (MBA ’68)
Chairman and Chief Strategist
Game Creek Capital

Michael A. Pausic
Founder
Foxhaven Asset Management

Frank Sands Sr. (MBA ’63)
Founder & Chairman
Sands Capital Inc.

Robert (Bob) Smith (MBA ’87)
Portfolio Manager
T. Rowe Price Foundation, Inc.

Ichiro Suzuki (MBA ’84)

Greg Turk (MBA ’01)
Director of Investments
Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois