Board of Directors

Matt Davidson, Ph.D., is co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Azora. Prior to Azora, he founded and served as Chief Executive Officer of Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VRCA), a biotech company developing novel therapies for dermatological conditions including molluscum contagiosum and common warts. At Verrica, he developed the core technology and led the company through Phase 3 trials and an IPO to FDA approval of YCANTH® (cantharidin), the first approved treatment for molluscum contagiosum. He holds numerous patents spanning cantharidin chemistry and aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) agonist therapeutics and was named a 2019 Biocom Catalyst Award recipient. Matt received his B.A. in molecular and cellular biology from UC Berkeley and his Ph.D. in Immunology at Stanford University’s School of Medicine.

Wendy Young, Ph.D., is an independent director of Azora Therapeutics. A medicinal chemist and biotech leader with more than 30 years in drug discovery, she built and led Genentech’s Small Molecule Drug Discovery organization, rising to Senior Vice President after serving as Vice President of Discovery Chemistry. Under her leadership the group advanced more than 25 small-molecule clinical candidates across oncology, immunology, neuroscience, and infectious disease; she led the BTK-inhibitor program and co-invented fenebrutinib. Previously, she had scientific leadership roles at J&J and Axys/Celera Genomics. She currently works in venture creation and advises early-stage biotechs, including as an advisor at GV (Google Ventures) and is an independent board member at Rapport Therapeutics and several private biotechs. She was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cencer Center and earned her Ph.D. from Princeton University and holds B.S. and M.S. degrees from Wake Forest University.

Kevin Schuyler has served as Chairman of the Board since August 2022 and as a director since April 2016. Since 2006 he has served as a senior managing director at CornerStone Partners LLC, a full service CIO and investment office located in Charlottesville, VA. Prior to joining CornerStone Partners in 2006, he was chief investment officer, vice president, and director of finance and investments for The Nature Conservancy, the world’s largest not-for-profit conservation organization. Before The Nature Conservancy, he was a commodity trader and manager for Louis Dreyfus Corporation, a management consultant with McKinsey & Company, and an entrepreneur. Kevin serves on various boards and committees of Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital and Stone Barns Center. He is a member of the investment committee of the Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies. Kevin graduated with honors from Harvard College and received his MBA from The Darden Graduate School of Business at the University of Virginia. He is a member of the Chartered Financial Analyst Society of Washington, DC.

Kermit Anderson has served as a director since February 2015. He has served as the VP and Chief Financial Officer at Cumberland Development Co. Cumberland is a privately held company evaluating and overseeing investments in life sciences, minerals exploration and real estate for a family office. Mr. Anderson has over forty years of experience in financial and development roles for a number of companies. He holds widely diversified experience in financial planning and reporting, accounting, forecasting, pricing, GAAP reporting and contract negotiations including benefits and compensation. His career is split almost equally between public and private companies including major sales and acquisitions. He has held various positions in businesses, including Massey Energy, AMVEST and Cumberland Resources Corporation, working on the sale of the companies for the last two roles. Mr. Anderson has also worked extensively on startups for Massey and AMVEST . He holds a BS-BA from West Virginia University.

Family office advisor and formerly CFO of Keller Enterprises; Director of Brunswick Group (advised on Pfizer- Wyeth, Celgene-Pharmion, & Mylan- Merck KGaA deals)

Mr. Gilliland has served as a director since September 2014. He is a Principal at Keller Enterprises, LLC, a family office that invests and manages private capital. As a principal, Mr. Gilliland is responsible for sourcing, vetting and managing a variety of private direct investments and spearheading internal initiatives. Prior to joining Keller Enterprises, Mr. Gilliland attended business school beginning in 2011 and was previously a Director at the Brunswick Group, where he specialized in strategic communications and investor relations around mergers and acquisitions. During his tenure at Brunswick, Mr. Gilliland worked on over 35 multi-billion dollar M&A transactions, including Pfizer’s acquisition of Wyreth, Celgene’s acquisition pf Pharmion, and Mylan’s acquisition of Merck Kga’s generic business. He has his MBA from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business, where he graduated with honors.