

Mission



About
Established in 2018, the Greater Los Angeles Veterans Research and Education Foundation (GLAVREF) results from a merger between two long-standing nonprofit corporations that served Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Health System (VAGLAHS). GLAVREF builds partnerships that strengthen the power of scientific discovery and education to improve the lives of Veterans.
Our organization believes that excellence in administration and capacity building will contribute to a more robust, responsive, and agile research operation at VAGLAHS. All research studies and educational programs supported by VA NPCs benefit the VA’s research mission, including patients and their families.
DonateServices Include:
- Grants Management
- Clinical Trial Management
- Financial Administration
- Staffing and Procurement
- Programs

History
Our Veterans have given a selfless gift through their service to our country, and they deserve the best health opportunities available. For more than 90 years, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has managed or sponsored research that has led to health care breakthroughs and improved the lives of Veterans and the public. It has been instrumental in medical advancements such as therapies for tuberculosis following World War II, the implantable cardiac pacemaker, the first successful liver transplants, and the first powered ankle-foot prosthesis.
In 1988, Congress authorized the Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers to establish nonprofit research and education foundations that allowed VA investigators to access non-VA-funded research opportunities. Each VA NPC is an independent, state-chartered organization exempt from Federal taxation under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Service Code. Approximately 81 NPCs operate in service to VA across the United States.

Board of Directors
David Beenhouwer, MD, Chair
Carl Castro, PhD, Treasurer and Secretary
Mary Baker, MSc, Community Director
Robert Baker, PhD, Community Director
Steven Braverman, MD, Medical Center Director
Linda Godleski, MD, ACOS Education
Michael Ong, MD, PhD, ACOS Research
Marcia M. Russell, MD, FACS, Community Director
Steven Simon, MD, MPH, Chief of Staff
Dean Yamaguchi, MD, PhD, Community Director

David Beenhouwer, MD, Chair
Infectious Disease Specialist, Department of Medicine
Professor of Medicine, UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine

Carl Castro, PhD, Treasurer and Secretary
Professor and Director of the Military and Veteran Programs,
Susan Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, USC

Mary Baker, MSC
(Ret) Health Systems Specialist for the Chief of Staff

Robert Baker, PhD
Emeritus Professor of Molecular Biology, USC

Steven Braverman, MD
Medical Center Director

Linda Godleski, MD
Associate Chief of Staff for Education

Michael Ong MD, PhD
Associate Chief of Staff for Research

Marcia M. Russell, MD, FACS
Staff Surgeon in Colon and Rectal Surgery
Associate Professor of Surgery,
Vice Chair for Quality and Patient Safety,
Department of Surgery, UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine

Steven Simon, MD, MPH
Chief of Staff
Dean Yamaguchi, MD, PhD
(Ret) Research Director, GRECC
(Ret) Associate Chief of Staff for Research
Dean Yamaguchi, MD, PhD held positions as Research Director of the Geriatrics Research, Education, and Clinical Center at the VA prior to becoming Associate Chief of Staff, Research & Development at the VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System. Dr. Yamaguchi received his MD and PhD from Tulane University. Dr. Yamaguchi’s clinical training was done in Obstetrics/Gynecology at the Charity Hospital of Louisiana, Internal Medicine at Tulane University Affiliated Hospitals. Subspecialty in Nephrology at the VA/UCLA Combined Nephrology Fellowship Program with Board Certifications in Internal Medicine and Nephrology. Now retired from the VA and an Emeritus Professor of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He continues to serve the VA as a reviewer for the Career Development program.
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Contact

Healthcare System at 11301 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90073.