Our Team
Many Backgrounds. Different Perspectives. Persistently Curious.
MEET THE TEAM
CLAIRE BOCHMAN
Capital Formation and Investor Relations Associate
GERALD SEWACK, PhD
Venture Partner
JAKE SIMSON, PhD
Partner
BRIAN BISSELL
Associate, HTS
EMILY ENGEL
Senior Manager, Clinical Operations
YASH CHALASANI, MD
Associate
CLAIRE BOCHMAN
Capital Formation and Investor Relations Associate
Claire is a Capital Formation and Investor Relations Associate. Claire's primary responsibility at RA Capital is to support the Investment Team by sourcing, researching and connecting with new investors. Previously, Claire worked at Monument Group as a Fundraising Analyst in the Boston office. Prior to this, she worked as a Financial Consultant at KPMG and interned at Innospark Ventures as a summer analyst. Claire has a BS in Economics with a Minor in Statistics from the College of the Holy Cross.
GERALD SEWACK, PhD
Venture Partner
Gerald is a Venture Partner at RA Ventures (Raven). In this role, Gerald is responsible for evaluating new technology and novel biology to originate and support the generation of new companies in collaboration with RAVen’s Venture Partners and EIRs. He also supports select RAVen portfolio companies in active strategic operating roles and serves as Board Director for GIVax, Summation Bio, and Astro Therapeutics. Prior to this, Gerald was Director of Scientific Operations for RA Capital. He worked previously at Global Prior Art, an intellectual property analysis firm, as a Partner and the Director of the Life Sciences Division. Gerald holds a PhD in Molecular and Cellular Biology from Harvard Medical School. His research investigated chromatin structure and transcription factor binding.
JAKE SIMSON, PhD
Partner
Jake Simson is a Partner at RA Capital Management. He works on both public and private investments and serves as a Board Director for Janux Therapeutics, Tyra Biosciences, Bicara Therapeutics, Convergent Therapeutics, Septerna, and Outpace Bio. Previously, he covered solid tumor oncology landscapes. Dr. Simson holds a SB in Materials Science and Engineering from MIT and a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University. In his doctoral research, he investigated clinically translatable treatments for musculoskeletal tissue repair using injectable hydrogels.
BRIAN BISSELL
Associate, HTS
Brian is an Associate with the TechAtlas division of RA Capital Management. Brian works on the Healthcare, Technology, and Services (HTS) Team collaborating with RA Capital’s Investment Team, evaluating companies and competitive landscapes to identify potential investment opportunities, as well as advising on program strategy for portfolio companies. Prior to RA Capital, Brian served as Director of Strategy and Operations at Mass Advantage, an early-stage Medicare Advantage plan built in partnership with UMass Memorial Health. He previously held roles as an Investment Associate at Great Hill Partners and an investment banking analyst in Goldman Sachs' healthcare coverage group. Brian holds a BA in Economics from Williams College.
EMILY ENGEL
Senior Manager, Clinical Operations
Emily Engel is a Senior Manager, Clinical Operations at RA Ventures (RAVen). Emily's primary responsibilities at RAVen are to support Clinical Operations and Patient Engagement efforts to identify and implement best practices in clinical trial operations in RA's newco's and portfolio companies. Emily was previously the Global Clinical Trial Manager at Amylyx where she managed Phase I-III clinical trials as well as Expanded Access Programs, providing new therapies for rare, neurodegenerative disorders at no cost to participants, including RELYVRIO®/ALBRIOZA™ for the treatment of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Before Amylyx, she was the Clinical Project Manager at Eledon Pharmaceuticals where she managed a team overseeing the operations of several early-stage clinical programs including kidney and islet cell transplantation. She has prior project management and clinical trial experience at IQVIA. Massachusetts General Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Emily has a BS in Public Health Services from the University of Massachusetts - Amherst.
YASH CHALASANI, MD
Associate
Yash Chalasani is an Associate with the TechAtlas division of RA Capital. Yash works closely with the investment team to understand competitive landscapes, evaluate investment opportunities, and advise portfolio companies on program and pipeline strategy. Prior to RA, Yash held various roles at Eventide Asset Management, Reata Pharmaceuticals, and Bios Partners. Yash has a BBA in Finance from Baylor University and an MD from Baylor College of Medicine.