Richard Beswick, Raphael Gonzalez, and Lynn Scarlett are the newest members of the Santa Barbara Foundation (SBF) Board of Trustees.
They join colleagues Stephen Hicks, board chair; Matt Rowe, vice chair; Danna McGrew, treasurer; Ginger Salazar, secretary; and Phil Alvarado, Randall Day, Pamela Gann, Angel Iscovich, Pamela Macal, Robert Nakasone, Ernesto Paredes, Michael Pfau, Susan Richards, James Rogers, Alexander Simas, Tracy Stouffer, and Zohar Ziv.
“Richard, Lynn and Rafael are welcome additions to our Board of Trustees,” said Jackie Carrera, president/CEO of the Santa Barbara Foundation.
“Their experience in healthcare, federal policy, and legal counseling, respectively, will only add to the rich pool of knowledge that supports the foundation as we work to make a positive impact in the community,” she said.
The foundation also thanks outgoing trustees Michael Young, and Niki Sandoval for their nine years of dedication and service to the board.
Beswick, who was born in Montego Bay, Jamaica, and grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota, earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from Morehouse College, Atlanta, Georgia; master’s in cardiovascular physiology from Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant, Michigan; MBA with focus on management from Crummer Business School in Orlando, Florida; Ph.D in molecular renal physiology from University of Michigan School of Medicine; and did post-doctoral training at Case Western Research University and the Cleveland Clinic.
He currently serves as vice president for research and chief research officer for Cottage Health Research Institute. His expertise is in the areas of hypertension and kidney disease in minority populations.
Beswick moved to the Central Coast with his wife Grace in 2016.
His career has spanned academic and industry spheres. He has been involved with the development of multiple research institutes within the U.S. and Canada, and previously served as the senior vice president and associate dean for research at Baylor Scott & White Healthcare Texas A&M College of Medicine Health Sciences Center in Central Texas (TAMU).
Internationally, Beswick has served as a consultant for the development of the Advanced Medical Research Institute of Canada, where he was charged with the build-out of four new research core facilities.
Beswick is involved with national and regional county boards, including the White House initiative to increase minority involvement in clinical trials, National Alliance to Improve Aging, Central Coast Alzheimer’s Association, REACH Central Coast Resiliency Roadmap Steering Committee, Sustainable Change Alliance of Santa Barbara, Freedom for Youth; and the Central Coast Black Leaders Roundtable, where he currently serves as president.
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Gonzalez is a partner at Mullen & Henzell LLP. His practice is focused exclusively on representation of employers in employment and complex litigation matters. He advises and represents clients in wage and hour actions, administrative investigations, sexual harassment, discrimination, wrongful termination, and collective bargaining.
He serves as legal counsel for the Grower Shipper Association of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, representing growers, farm labor contractors, and shippers throughout California. Other major clients include those in hospitality, education, financial services, food and beverage, and healthcare.
Gonzalez joined Mullen & Henzell after serving as an attorney and hearing officer with the U.S. National Labor Relations Board, Region 21, in Los Angeles. He provides a preemptive approach to litigation by educating clients and offering practical, cost-effective solutions to legal problems.
Gonzalez serves on the boards of the Sanctuary Centers of Santa Barbara, Channel Islands/Ventura YMCA, and the Santa Barbara Human Resources Association.
Scarlett retired in December 2021 from The Nature Conservancy (TNC), the largest conservation organization in the world, where she served as global chief external affairs officer.
In that role, she influenced climate and conservation policy in the U.S. and the 70-plus countries and territories in which TNC operates; and advanced private-sector partnerships to support sustainability and enhance ambitious actions to address climate change.
Previously (2001-09), she served at the U.S. Department of the Interior, which manages 500 million acres of U.S. public lands. She was deputy secretary/COO of Interior from 2005-09, and in 2006 she served as acting secretary of the Interior.
Scarlett, who lives in Santa Barbara, earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in political science and political economy from UCSB, where she also completed her Ph.D. coursework and exams.
She serves on the advisory board of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the Dean’s Advisory Council of the UCSB Bren School of Environmental Science and Management.
She also serves on the boards of the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, National Wildlife Refuge Association, Sand County Foundation, and Yellowstone to Yukon Initiative.
Learn more about the Santa Barbara Foundation at SBFoundation.org.
<img src="https://www.noozhawk.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/013123-AScarlet-225.gif" title="Three New Trustees Join Santa Barbara Foundation Board