Board of Directors

Observe an OPTN Board meeting

Upcoming Board meetings

April 16th, 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET
May 21st, 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET
June 18th, 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET

Find answers to FAQs about the OPTN Board of Directors.

Announcing the Dates for the 2026 OPTN Board Officer Election

The next election for Officers of the Board of Directors will take place in May 2026. The OPTN Board Officers include the President, Vice President, Vice President of Patient and Donor Affairs, Treasurer, and Secretary. During the April 3, 2026, Ad Hoc Board meeting, the OPTN Board of Directors approved a one-year term extension for President and Vice President to maintain leadership continuity during a period of significant organizational change. Therefore, the Vice President position will not appear on the 2026 OPTN Board Officer ballot. The ballot will include candidates for the Secretary and the Vice President of Patient and Donor Affairs, who, per the OPTN Bylaws are elected in even-numbered years. The next election for Treasurer will occur in an odd-numbered year, in Spring 2027.

All OPTN Board Directors are eligible to serve as Board Officers, regardless of background or committee affiliation, provided they are willing and able to fulfill the responsibilities of the role. The current Secretary and the current Vice President of Patient and Donor Affairs are eligible to seek another term. The OPTN Nominating Committee will review applications from sitting members of the Board of Directors and recommend to the Board candidates for both Officer positions. Board Officer candidates’ interest, biographical, and personal statements will be posted ahead of the election. The Board will approve the Board Officer slate at the Ad Hoc Board meeting on May 1.

OPTN members with voting privileges will be able to vote virtually for candidates from 9:00 a.m. ET on May 15, 2026, to 11:59 p.m. on May 22, 2026. These OPTN members will receive an email on May 15, 2026, with instructions on how to cast their vote.

Candidates who are elected by a majority of OPTN voting members will then be ratified by the Board of Directors. Individuals elected as Secretary and Vice President of Patient and Donor Affairs will begin their terms on July 1, 2026.

Please submit any questions to OPTNBoardSupport@air.org.

Submit a comment to the OPTN Board of Directors

Members of the public also have the opportunity to provide comments to the OPTN Board of Directors. Email the OPTN for further instructions on how to submit a comment. Submissions will be accepted up to two business days prior to the meeting date.

Current board membership

President
John Magee
Professor of Surgery, Section of Transplantation

Univ of Michigan Med Ctr
Ann Arbor, MI
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Vice President
Shelley Hall
Chief, Transplant Cardiology, Mechanical Circulatory Support and Advanced Heart Failure

Baylor University Medical Center
Dallas, TX
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

Vice President for Patient/Donor Affairs
William Ryan
President and Chief Executive Officer, Transplant Life Foundation

General Public Region 10
Rockville, MD
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

Secretary
Justin Wilkerson
Lieutenant Colonel, Illinois Army National Guard

General Public Region 7
Peoria, IL
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

Treasurer
Alan Reed
Professor & Chief, Transplant and HPB Surgery; Director, Organ Transplant Center

The University of Iowa Hospitals
Iowa City, IA
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

Region 1 Councillor
Nahel Elias
Surgical Director, Renal Transplantation; Medical Director for Quality, Transplant Surgery

Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston, MA
End Term Date June 30, 2027

Region 2 Councillor
Kenneth Chavin
Director, Abdominal Organ Transplant; Professor and Vice Chair of Research, Department of Surgery

Temple Univ Hospital
Philadelphia, PA
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Region 3 Councillor
Ari Cohen
Director, Transplant Institute

Ochsner Foundation Hospital
New Orleans, LA
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Region 4 Councillor
Ryan Davies
Clinical Director, Pediatric and Congenital Heart Surgery; Chief, Pediatric Solid Organ Transplant

Children's Med Ctr of Dallas
Dallas, TX
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Region 5 Councillor
Andrew Courtwright
Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary Medicine

Univ of Utah Medical Center
Salt Lake City, UT
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Region 6 Councillor
Gina-Marie Barletta
Medical Director, Pediatric Kidney Transplant

Oregon Health and Science University
Portland, OR
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Region 7 Councillor
Reynold Lopez-Soler
Director, Renal Transplant Program; Professor of Surgery, Section of Intra-Abdominal Transplantation

Loyola Univ Med Center
Maywood, IL
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Region 8 Councillor
Mark Wakefield
Professor of Surgery/Urology

Univ of Missouri Hosp and Clinic
Columbia, MO
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Region 9 Councillor
Meelie DebRoy
Chief of Kidney Transplantation

Westchester Medical Center
Valhalla, NY
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Region 10 Councillor
Austin Schenk
Quality and Patient Safety Officer, Comprehensive Transplant Center; Associate Professor of Surgery

Ohio State Univ Med Ctr
Atlanta, GA
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Region 11 Councillor
Vincent Casingal
Chief, Division of Abdominal Transplant; Surgical Director, Adult and Pediatric Kidney Transplant

Carolinas Medical Center
Charlotte, NC
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Histocompatibility Representative
Cathi Murphey
Director, Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics Laboratory

Southwest Immunodiagnostics
San Antonio, TX
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

Medical/Scientific Organization Representative
Annette Needham
Transplant Quality Manager

UC Davis Medical Center
Sacramento, CA
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

At Large
George Bayliss
Medical Director, Kidney Transplantation, Division of Organ Transplantation

Rhode Island Hospital
Providence, RI
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

At Large
Jen Benson
Chief Executive Officer and Founder, The Transplant Journey

General Public Region 1
Wilton, CT
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

At Large
James Cason

General Public Region 3
Rockville, MD
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

At Large
Samantha Endicott
Senior Director, Organ Optimization

New England Organ Bank
Waltham, MA
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

At Large
Gitthaline Gagne

General Public Region 2
Rockville, MD
End Term Date: June 30, 2029

At Large
Joshua Gossett
Director, Pediatric Transplant Center

Lucile Salter Packard Children's Hosp
Palo Alto, CA
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

At Large
John Hodges
Living Unrelated Kidney Donor; Moderator, Living Donors Online

General Public Region 1
Cambridge, MA
End Term Date: June 30, 2029

At Large
Mary Homan
VP, Theology & Ethics, Commonspirit Health

General Public Region 7
Rockville, MD
End Term Date: June 30, 2029

At Large
Darren Lahrman
Executive Director

LifeLink of Florida
Tampa, FL
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

At Large
Kevin Lee
President and Chief Executive Officer

Mid-America Transplant Svcs
St. Louis, MO
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

At Large
Joseph Magliocca
Professor of Surgery and Pediatrics; Executive Medical Director, Vanderbilt Transplant Center

Vanderbilt Univ Med Ctr
Nashville, TN
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

At Large
Jerold Mande
Non-Resident Senior Fellow, Tisch College of Civic Life, Tufts University

General Public Region 2
Rockville, MD
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

At Large
Dan Meyer
Chair, Department of Cardiovascular Surgery

Baylor University Medical Center
Dallas, TX
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

At Large
Steven Weitzen

General Public Region 2
Randolph, NJ
End Term Date: June 30, 2029

At Large
Cody Reynolds

General Public Region 4
Tishomingo, OK
End Term Date: June 30, 2029

At Large
John Sperzel, III
Chief Executive Officer

General Public Region 1
North Attleborough, MA
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

At Large
Kymberly Watt
Professor of Medicine

Mayo Clinic Hospital Minnesota
Rochester, MN
End Term Date: June 30, 2028

Ex Officio (non voting)
Stephanie Grosser
Senior Advisor

Division of Transplantation, HHS
Rockville, MD
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Ex Officio (non voting)
Raymond Lynch
Organ Transplantation Branch Chief

Division of Transplantation, HHS
Rockville, MD
End Term Date: June 30, 2027

Board meeting executive summaries

Board-approved correspondence and comments

Board leadership communication

OPTN Code of Conduct

All OPTN volunteers must agree to abide by the OPTN Code of Conduct.

Learn more about the OPTN Code of Conduct.

Fecha de la última revisión:

April 2026

Padres: no batallen solos