Instructor Bios
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• Barve • • Burns • • Chau • • Collins • • Cronin • • Davis • • Eroshin •
• Gonzales • • Hsiao • • Kale • • La Blanc • • Maestas • • Masse •
• McDonald • • Sherman • • Smith • • Veitch • • Walden •
Nitin M. Barve, CFA
Instructor at Level III - Derivative Risk Management & GIPS
Nitin M. Barve is the founder and a Principal of Finnovative, Inc., a Palo Alto based consulting company that provides technology solutions for research, portfolio accounting, trading, and compliance groups of investment management firms. As a Principal at Finnovative, Nitin is responsible for applying emerging technology to solve operational, regulatory, and analytical issues challenging investment firms. Nitin’s specific areas of expertise include implementing portfolio analytics solutions, modeling of index-based & OTC derivatives, and devising solutions for automating investment firms’ workflows. Prior to founding Finnovative, Nitin has worked with Citibank (Luxembourg and India), Champion Securities, Charles Schwab, and Wells Fargo Bank. He holds a BSEE from IIT, Chennai and MSEE from IIT, Mumbai. He received his CFA charter in 1996 and has been a member of CFA Institute and CFASF since 1994. He also instructs a course in Financial Engineering and Risk Management at St. Mary's College.
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Kent Burns, CFA
Instructor at Level III - Debt
Kent Burns is a vice president and portfolio manager for Franklin Advisers, Inc. He specializes in U.S. government-related securities and multi-sector strategy. Mr. Burns joined Franklin in 1994. He received a bachelor-of-arts degree in quantitative economics and decision science from University of California at San Diego, and a masters degree in economics from University of California at Santa Barbara. He earned the CFA charter in 1997, and is a member of CFA Institute and CFA Society of San Francisco.
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Peter Chau, CFA
Instructor at Level II - Debt & Derivatives
Peter Chau was graduated from the California Institute of Technology and went on to do research work in physics before settling into a career in financial analysis. He has more than 20 years experience developing stochastic models for the valuation and analysis of financial instruments with interest rate, prepayment, and credit risk. He is currently an independent consultant in financial derivatives and risk management. He is also the principal for the website www.BondMath101.com.
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Patrick J. Collins, Ph.D., CLU, CFA
Instructor at Level III - Monitoring/Rebalancing
Patrick Collins is a principal of the independent investment counsel firm of Schultz Collins Lawson Chambers, Inc. Mr. Collins holds a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation from the Association for Investment Management and Research and a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley. He also holds a Professional Designation in Financial Planning from U.C. Berkeley as well as a Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) degree from the American College in Bryn Mawr, PA. He is a licensed Insurance Advisor and provides fee-based life insurance policy analysis for individuals, trusts, corporate directors and other fiduciaries. Additionally, Mr. Collins has provided litigation support services for disputes involving both insurance and investment issues. He is a member of CFA Institute, CFA Society of San Francisco, and the American Society of CLU.
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Gerard Cronin, CFA
Instructor at Level III - Ethics
Gerard Cronin is a research analyst at Charles Schwab Investment Advisory. At Schwab, Mr. Cronin performs manager due diligence for separately managed accounts and mutual funds. He covers alternative investment strategies, specialty sector strategies, and asset allocation investment strategies. Prior to his investment career, Gerard worked in the computer hardware and environmental services industries. Gerard holds a BS in Civil Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and an MBA from CMU’s Tepper School of Business. He has been awarded the Chartered Financial Analyst designation, and is a member of CFA Institute and CFA Society of San Francisco (CFASF).
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Donald L. Davis, CFA
Instructor at Levels I - Debt, Financial Markets, & Basic Valuation Concepts
Don is on the finance faculty at Santa Clara University. He has also been an independent consultant, with long term assignments at Visa International and PG&E Corp. He had previously been at Bank of America (and Banc of America Securities) for 15 years where he arranged transactions for clients that included public bond offerings, senior and subordinated private placements, ESOPs, direct and syndicated bank loans, asset backed financings and asset securitizations. Prior to joining BofA, Don was with International Paper Company in New York , where he had been Assistant Treasurer-Corporate Finance. Don has an M.B.A from Columbia University , and a B.A. from the City College of New York.
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Mariia Eroshin, CFA, CFP, CPA
Instructor at Level I & III- Derivatives & Alternative Investments
Mariia Eroshin is a Senior Portfolio Manager at Springcreek Advisors LLC, responsible for client and firm-wide asset allocation and portfolio management, investment due diligence, and investment strategy. Prior to joining Springcreek, Ms. Eroshin was a Senior Auditor in Global Asset Management Group at Ernst & Young LLP, and led teams in performing hedge funds and private equity audits, independent valuation of investment portfolios and derivatives modeling and valuation.
Ms. Eroshin serves on the Board of Directors of the CFA Society of San Francisco. She teaches Derivatives and Alternative Investments as an Adjunct Faculty member at the University of San Francisco, in their Master of Science in Financial Analysis Program, and in the CFA Review Program. She is a member of CFA Institute, AICPA, California Society of CPAs, and Financial Planning Association. Ms. Eroshin graduated from University of Minnesota Duluth as a valedictorian summa cum laude with three Bachelors degrees: Bachelor of Accounting; Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance; and Bachelor of Arts in International Studies.
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John Gonzales, Ph.D.
Instructor at Level I & II - Economics, Portfolio Management & Corporate Finance
John Gonzales teaches finance and economics (undergraduate and graduate) at the University of San Francisco, and in the International Diploma Programs at UC Berkeley Extension. He is also a Visiting Professor at the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. His teaching interests include corporate finance, international economics and finance, applied monetary economics and emerging markets. His most recent previous experience includes investment consulting at Callan Associates, preparing research reports for two San Francisco investment firms and as a Principal Economist at the OECD in Paris. John received a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Wisconsin, Madison in 1983.
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Catherine Hsiao, CFA
Instructor at Level I - Equities Valuation
Catherine Hsiao is a Senior Research Analyst for Fiduciary Research and Consulting. At Fiduciary Research, she specializes in quantitative analysis and due diligence on absolute return strategies. Catherine joined Fiduciary Research in 2009. Previously she was in portfolio management at Algert Coldiron Investors, a fund focused on quantitative market neutral strategies. Ms. Hsiao has a BS in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and a minor in Business Administration from UC Berkeley.
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Jivendra Kale, Ph.D., CFA, CFP
Instructor at all Levels - Quantitative Methods and Equity Portfolio Management
Dr. Kale is a finance professor in the Graduate Business Programs of Saint Mary’s College. He created the downtown San Francisco MS in Financial Analysis and Investment Management program for Saint Mary’s College; the program is built around the CFA curriculum. He enjoys teaching and research, and has taught CFA review classes for the CFASF for several years. After finishing his Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley, he worked with BARRA and Gifford Fong Associates before returning to academia. In addition to his teaching and research work, he develops cutting edge portfolio optimization software for Financiometrics Inc.; the software has been licensed by Bank of America, Bankers Trust, Merrill Lynch, Toronto Dominion Bank (Montreal), Ibbotson Associates, Aeltus Investment Management, Rockport Capital Management (London), Cyrnel International (Rio de Janeiro), and other firms. Dr. Kale has a B. Tech. (Honors) degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, an M.S. in Industrial Engineering & Operations Research and an MBA from Syracuse University, and a Ph.D. in Finance from the University of California, Berkeley. He also holds the CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) and CFP (Certified Financial Planner) designations, and is member of the CFA Society of San Francisco, the American Finance Association and the Decision Sciences Institute.
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Gregory La Blanc
Instructor at Level III - Behavioral Finance
Gregory LaBlanc has been a lecturer at UC Berkeley since 2004, teaching courses in Finance, Accounting, Law, and Strategy in the Haas School, the Law School (Boalt Hall) and the department of Economics. Prior to joining the Berkeley faculty, he studied Economics, Business, and Law at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, George Mason University Law School, Duke Law School, and Berkeley Law (Boalt Hall). He has previously taught Finance, Management, Law and Economics at the Wharton School, Duke University and the University of Virginia and has been a consultant in the fields of IP litigation and competitive intelligence. His research focuses on the role of information in firms and markets. He has received several teaching awards including the Cheit Award for Best Instructor in the Haas MBA program.
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Michael Maestas, CPA, CFA
Instructor at Level I & II - Financial Statement Analysis, Equities, & Industry Analysis
Mr. Maestas is an equities analyst at Avalon Global Asset Management and is also the firm’s Chief Compliance Officer. Prior to joining Avalon, Mr. Maestas was a Research Analyst at Merrill Lynch covering the Computer Services sector, and previously was an Equity Research Associate at Thomas Weisel Partners and Banc of America Securities. Mr. Maestas began his career as a Credit Analyst at Bank of America and a Consultant at Arthur Andersen. Mr. Maestas has an MBA from Columbia University with concentrations in Finance and Taxation, and a BSBA in Accounting from Bucknell University. He holds the Certified Public Accountant designation and the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
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Jonathan Masse, CFA
Instructor at Level III - Global Investments
Jonathan Masse is the Senior Portfolio Manager at AlphaShares, an investment management firm located in Walnut Creek, CA. Dr. Burton Malkiel, of Random Walk Down Wall Street fame, serves as the Chief Investment officer. The firm is dedicated to providing investors with strategies and products that focus on direct and indirect China investment (including derivatives trading, options overlays, and customized solutions) to help investors manage their risk exposure to the world’s fastest growing nation. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and the InvestmentNews, and has been interviewed on CNBC World and Bloomberg TV. Prior to joining AlphaShares, Mr. Masse served as an Institutional Portfolio Manager and Strategist for Barclays Global Investors where his team managed over $300 billion of assets. He has managed equity portfolios benchmarked to nearly all emerging markets including over $8.9 billion in Chinese equities. Prior to joining Barclays Global Investors, he was an options trader and market maker on the PSE, CBOE, and CBOT with Stafford Trading, the Timber Hill Group, and Cooper Neff/BNP respectively. He earned his CFA charter in 2005, has an MBA degree from the University of Santa Clara, and received a BS in Finance from Boston College.
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Brock McDonald, CFA
Instructor at Level II - Equities & Alternative Assets
Mr. McDonald is a Director at Thomas Weisel Partners where he works in the office of the CEO. In addition to certain operational duties he researches and implements alternative investment portfolios. Prior to joining Thomas Weisel Partners, Brock was Director of Finance at Montgomery Asset Management. Before starting his career in financial services Brock was Director of Real Estate at Kinko's Copies and an entrepreneur in private business. Brock holds a BS in Mathematics from University of California at Los Angeles, and an MBA from the University of Southern California and is a CFA Charterholder, and member of the CFA Institute and of the CFA Society of San Francisco.
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Mark A. Sherman, CFA
Instructor at Level I - Financial Statement Analysis
Mr. Sherman is a Principal and Portfolio Manager with Van Strum & Towne, Inc. Mark received a Bachelor of Science degree from Bridgewater College, Virginia and was awarded a Master of Business Administration from the College of William and Mary. Prior to joining Van Strum & Towne in February 1998, Mark was employed as a research associate with NationsBanc Montgomery Securities and as a Certified Public Accountant with McGladrey & Pullen, LLP. Mark holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the CFA Society of San Francisco and CFA Institute. Mark serves as the firm’s Chief Compliance Officer.
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Curt Smith, CFA
Instructor at Level II - Ethics
Curt Smith, CFA, has a BA in Economics from Beloit College and an MBA in Finance from the University of San Francisco. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a Past President of the Security Analysts of San Francisco (now known as CFASF). Mr. Smith presently serves as Treasurer and a Board Member of the Bay Area Financial Education Foundation. He has worked in the private equity area for Strategic Investment Solutions since 1997 and currently works directly with public and corporate pension plans, as well as high net worth clients. Prior to joining SIS, he was employed at Union Bank of California, where he managed a portfolio of closely-held businesses and illiquid assets.
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Prof. John M. Veitch, Ph.D., CFA
Instructor at all Levels - Economics, Equity Valuation and Risk Management
Prof. Veitch received his Ph.D. in Economics from Northwestern University, 1985. He has been a faculty member at the University of San Francisco since 1992 and is currently the Chair of the Economics Department and the Director of the MS in Financial Analysis program. Prior to coming to USF he was in the Economics Department at the University of Southern California. He is also an instructor in the Berkeley-Columbia Executive MBA Program at the Haas School of Business. He received his CFA designation in 1999. Prof Veitch has been the Education Director for the CFASF CFA Review programs since 2001.
Prof. Veitch has published several econometric studies of the effect of currency crises on stock market in emerging market economies. His most recent work focuses on the recent currency crises of Brazil and Argentina. When not involved in economics, he can be found messing around with old American muscle cars.
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Loren Walden, CFA
Instructor at Level I - Ethics and Professional Standards
Loren, a co-founder of Blue Oak Capital, has over 20 years of experience with private client portfolio management and investment analysis. Prior to Blue Oak Capital, Loren was a principal at a San Francisco advisory firm with over $350 million in private client assets, where he served as a portfolio manager and analyst. Loren holds a B.A. degree in Communications from Menlo College. He is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society of San Francisco (CFASF). He is an ethics and professional standards instructor to CFA candidates and is an adjunct instructor of Business Ethics in the Masters of Finance program at the University of San Francisco.
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