New Jersey SEEDS Board of Trustees Welcomes Five New Members

Newark, NJ—September 24, 2013—New Jersey SEEDS, an educational nonprofit organization that has been transforming the lives of motivated, high-achieving students for more than 20 years, announced that five new members have been added to its Board of Trustees. Joining SEEDS’ Board are: Emmanuel Bello (SEEDS Scholar, Class of 2000), Associate, High Yield Credit Research, Goldman Sachs Asset Management; Elliot Berndt; Angelo J. Genova, co-founding Partner, Genova Burns Giantomasi Webster; Mark S. Nurse, Director of Investments, New Jersey Market, PNC Wealth Management; and Stephen Van Besien, Managing Director and Senior Banker, Tri-State Region, J.P. Morgan Private Bank.

“We are enormously fortunate to welcome Emmanuel, Elliot, Angelo, Mark and Steve to NJ SEEDS’ Board of Trustees,” says Ronni Denes, president of SEEDS. “Each of our new Trustees brings a unique perspective, along with exceptional talent and a deep commitment to SEEDS’ mission. They will be excellent additions to a group of active and engaged trustees with a long history of providing educational access to New Jersey students.”

Emmanuel Bello joined New Jersey SEEDS’ Board of Trustees as its newest alumni representative. Having graduated from SEEDS’ Scholars Program in 2000, he then graduated from Blair Academy and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he earned a BA in Economics as a Morehead-Cain Scholar. Today, Mr. Bello is an Associate at Goldman Sachs Asset Management. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Mr. Bello spent two years as an investment banking analyst within UBS Investment Bank’s Financial Institutions Group, where he was involved in the evaluation and execution of M&A and capital raising transactions for depository institutions, specialty financial companies and financial technology firms. He is an active member of SEEDS’ Alumni Alliance.

Elliot Berndt became involved with New Jersey SEEDS through Friends of SEEDS, a committee of volunteers whose activities support and enhance many of the social, cultural and academic experiences that SEEDS makes available to students. Ms. Berndt serves as Chair of Friends of SEEDS, a position she has held since 2011. In addition to her work with SEEDS, Ms. Berndt has served The Pingry School Parents’ Association as a member of its Advisory Board and currently sits on its Executive Board. In the spring of 2013, she co-chaired the annual benefit for DreamYard, a nonprofit that focuses on bringing the arts to underserved students in the Bronx. Earlier, Ms. Berndt worked as a designer for National Geographic Magazine, and has experience in multimedia publishing and interior design. She received a BA in English from Duke University.

Angelo J. Genova, co-founding Partner of the firm Genova Burns Giantomasi Webster, is a leading member of the New Jersey Bar in the practice areas of Complex Litigation and Appeals, Election Law, Labor Law, and Employment Law & Litigation. Mr. Genova’s career spans three decades of representing the region’s most influential public entities, private corporations, and political figures. His representation in election law matters has included appearances on behalf of candidates for public office for the offices of State Assembly, City Council, Mayor, County Executive, State Senate, United States Congress, U.S. Senate, Governor, and President of the United States. As a labor lawyer, Mr. Genova has served four New Jersey Governors as the State’s labor negotiator. As an appellate advocate, he has successfully argued numerous matters before the New Jersey Supreme Court and Appellate Courts, resulting in several reported decisions and contributing to the case law on topics ranging from defamatory and extortionate speech to voting rights. Since 1987, Mr. Genova has been listed in Best Lawyers in the areas of Commercial Litigation and Labor and Employment Law; he has also consistently appeared on many lists of leading attorneys including New Jersey Super Lawyers every year since 2005, and Chambers USA. He is rated AV by Martindale Hubbell, a rating given to less than 14 percent of U.S. attorneys. Mr. Genova holds a JD from Rutgers University School of Law, Newark; an MA in Industrial & Labor Relations from Rutgers University; and a BA cum laude from Montclair State University.

Mark S. Nurse joined PNC Wealth Management in 2009 and was recently appointed as the Director of Investments for New Jersey markets. Prior to joining PNC Wealth Management, Mr. Nurse spent 12 years as a Senior Portfolio Manager at J.P. Morgan Chase, where he worked within the Private Client Services Division. Before his time at J.P. Morgan Chase, Mr. Nurse was with the Bank of New York, where we worked as an Investment Associate in the Personal Asset Management Division for nine years. Mr. Nurse graduated cum laude with a BS in Business Management and a concentration in finance from St. Francis College. He received his MBA in finance from Fordham University. Mr. Nurse has done voluntary work for Big Brothers/Big Sisters of New York and the Children’s Aid Society.

Stephen Van Besien is a Managing Director and Senior Banker for the Tri-State Region of the J.P. Morgan Private Bank, where he is responsible for developing wealth management strategies for select families, senior executives, private companies, endowments and foundations. Prior to joining J.P. Morgan, Mr. Van Besien held leadership positions at QFS Asset Management, a global macro and currency fund, and Credit Suisse First Boston. Earlier, Mr. Van Besien was co-founder of Volaris Advisors, a specialized asset and risk management firm which was subsequently acquired by Credit Suisse. He began his career in corporate finance at the Chase Manhattan Bank. Mr. Van Besien is a member of the National Advisory Board of the Jefferson Scholars Foundation of the University of Virginia and serves as the Chairman of the Selection Committee for the New Jersey Chapter of the Jefferson Scholars Foundation. He received his MBA in finance from Columbia Business School and his BA in Economics from the University of Virginia.

Each Trustee will begin a three-year term with the organization.

For additional information, or to receive high-resolution headshots, please contact Theresa Murray at tmurray@njseeds.org or at (862) 227-9145.

 

About New Jersey SEEDS
Since its inception more than 20 years ago, New Jersey SEEDS has provided educational access for highly motivated, low-income students and created a viable path for them to achieve their full potential. SEEDS strives for a world in which young people’s initiative, creativity and intellect can flourish without regard to socioeconomic status. To date, nearly 2,000 scholars have benefited from its programs. For more information, visit www.njseeds.org.