Advancement Committee
The Advancement Committee works closely with the Chief Advancement Officer to establish a clear fundraising strategy, set achievable targets, and evaluate ongoing fundraising efforts. The Committee ensures that fundraising activities align with the Bulletin’s overall strategic priorities and advocates for an informed and healthy fundraising culture among Board members.
Members of the Advancement Committee
John Balkcom (Co-Chair)
Balkcom has been a longtime adviser to management and boards. He retired in 2000 after 25 years as a management consultant and since then has served as a corporate director and advisory board member for a number of public and private enterprises. He served on the Bulletin’s Governing Board from 2012 - 2013 and from 2016 - 2021; previous leadership roles have included president of St. John’s College and chairman of a NYSE company.
Ania Labno (Co-Chair)
Labno is a Director at KKR Capstone where she works with the group’s health care industry team. She was previously Managing Director and Partner at the Boston Consulting Group’s Chicago office. She has worked across all health care sectors with a strong focus on innovation including data analytics/AI, digital-driven innovation, and novel treatment modalities such as gene/cell therapy. She has supported both commercial and public sector healthcare innovation and is passionate about responsible use of new technologies to enhance health and wellness. Labno serves as an advisor to the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Chicago and MATTER incubator. She holds a BS degree in biology and physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and PhD in biophysics from UC Berkeley.
Virginia Berkeley
Berkeley served as Executive Vice President of CoBiz Bank from 2009-2012 after performing numerous other leadership roles at the organization. She previously served as Senior Vice President and Manager of Business Banking of Bank One, Denver and held several positions with Colorado National Bank. Berkeley’s extensive community involvement includes work with numerous Boards of Trustees, most recently with Colorado Public Radio, where she served as board chair, and the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless. Berkeley holds a BS degree in economics from Purdue University and an MBA from the University of Oklahoma.
Rachel Bronson (Ex Officio)
Bronson is the president and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, where she oversees the publishing programs, management of the Doomsday Clock, and a growing set of activities around nuclear weapons, nuclear energy, climate change, and disruptive technologies. Before joining the Bulletin, she served for eight years at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs in a number of capacities including: vice president of studies, vice president of programs and studies, and senior fellow, global energy. She also taught “Global Energy” as an adjunct professor at the Kellogg School of Management.
Lee Francis
An internist and the CEO of Erie Family Health Center, Francis is assistant clinical professor of internal medicine at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine. He is a past president of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR), a national organization dedicated to the prevention of violence and nuclear war, and continues to serve on its Board of Directors.
David Kuhlman (Ex Officio)
Kuhlman is senior partner and chair at Lotis Blue Consulting (formerly Axiom Consulting Partners), a consulting firm that helps clients identify pathways to profitable growth and align their organizations for long-term success. For over 30 years, he has worked with people-intensive/asset-light businesses including accounting and law firms to establish and realize transformative strategies. Previously, Kuhlman was managing partner of Sibson Consulting, a leading HR consultancy and global head of Human Resources for Russell Reynolds Associates, a premier executive recruiting firm. As chair of the Governing Board, Kuhlman is a member of the Science and Security Board, ex officio.
April Arnold (Board Fellow)
Arnold is a senior communications adviser supporting the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Smuggling Detection & Deterrence. She has advised the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Department of the Navy, and the Department of the Army on various arms-control agreements. She is co-chair for the Foreign Policy for America’s Next Generation Defense & Intelligence Working Group and a 2021 PONI Nuclear Scholar and Pacific Forum Young Leader. She has a degree in international relations from the University of Delaware and is pursuing a master’s in Sustainable Energy at Johns Hopkins University.