Board of Directors

Dr. James Adams
David Humphrey
Chris Willhite
Justin Jones
Kenneth Smith
Marilyn Falkenhagen
Craig Fischer
Matt Boswell

Dr. James Adams
Dr. James B. Adams (Ph.D.) is a father of a daughter with autism, diagnosed in 1994, and that is what led him to eventually shift much of his research emphasis to neurological illness in children, focusing on biological causes and treatments. He is currently a President's Professor at Arizona State University, where he directs the ASU Autism/Asperger's Research Program. Dr Adams is a sought after speaker and researcher on the subject of preventing neurological illness in children and has been featured on NBC's Dateline.

NBC Dateline show featuring Dr. Adams, Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHkr4l12veI

NBC Dateline featuring Dr. Adams, Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eyJb-izu6M

Dr. Adams will serve as the primary point of contact for the Foundation to craft a strategy to prevent neurological illness in children and to recruit talented doctors and researchers to join in our efforts.

Autism-Related Service and Awards
Director and Founder, Arizona State University Autism/Asperger's Research Program, 2000-present
President, Autism Society of Greater Phoenix, 2000 - present
President and founder, Autism Conferences of America, 2005 - present
Evening of Champions Award (for research and service) from national Autism Society of America, 2007
Autism Service Award, Greater Phoenix Chapter of the Autism Society of America, 2008
Daniel Jankowski Legacy Award 2009 for teaching, research, and service to ASU
Board of Directors, Autism Research Institute, 2007 - 2009
Co-Leader, Science Advisory Committee, Autism Research Institute, 2008 - present
Board of Directors, Autism Society of America, 2009 - 2010
President's Professor, Arizona State University, 2010 - present

David Humphrey
David Humphrey is an attorney, and CEO of a number of companies,

He is a National Board Member of the Northwest Autism Foundation, Autism Forum, and the Autism Research Institute, and a co-founder of Autism Treatment Network, a joint project with 20 top tier-treating hospitals.

He was also executive vice chairman and Board Member of the Autism Society of America.

He is the co-founder and Director of the physician training group, Medical Academy of Pediatric Special Needs (MAPS).

He is also the President and owner of Kirkman Group, Inc., a group of companies including a pharmaceutical/nutraceutical company, and an environmental laboratory. Mr. Humphrey environmental laboratory focuses on Mass Spectrometry (MS) that specializes in analytical technique that measures the mass-to-charge ratio of charged particles and for elucidating the chemical structures of molecules.

For the past 11 years, Mr. Humphrey has devoted much of his time to the research and study of autism. He is a successful entrepreneur and an attorney who has founded several large companies.

After graduating near the top of his class at the University of Washington School of Law, Mr. Humphrey (who is a member of MENSA International), went on to form The Humphrey Corporation, a business manufacturing "Frisbees" with printed logos on the saucer top for use as promotions. It became the largest "flyer" manufacture in the world. One of his other companies was named for four consecutive years to Inc. magazine's prestigious list of "500 Fastest Growing Companies in the Nation." His jewelry company in Hawaii, Maui Gold, became the States largest jewelry manufacturer and one of the 30 largest companies in Hawaii. His current company, Kirkman Group, Inc., was named by Oregon Business magazine as one of the "Top 100 Companies to Work for in Oregon." and "Top 100 Green Companies in Oregon." He has been a partner and "of counsel" in several law firms in Oregon and Hawaii.

Specialties:Autism Non Profit strategic planning, International Law, New Venture Start-ups, Operator of privately owned companies,

Chris Willhite
Chris Willhite is a Certified Public Accountant and graduated with honors from Baylor University in 1991 with a BBA in Accounting. He started his career in public accounting in Houston where he did tax work for Arthur Andersen and audit work for Ernst and Young. He was placed by Robert Half Finance and Accounting in the 1990s to be the controller for a division of a public company where he was responsible for the financial reporting of three operating companies. Chris joined Robert Half in 2000 as a Recruiting Manager where he specializes in full time accounting and finance searches.

Justin Jones
Justin Jones is a member of the founding family of The Neurological Health Foundation. He is a graduate of Southern Methodist University and has a Masters in Business Administration from Rice University. Justin began his career as a Strategy Consultant with Deloitte Consulting and is now the President of Espree Animal Products, a privately held manufacturer and distributor of premium organic animal health care products.

Kenneth W. Smith
Kenneth W. Smith is a Managing Director with Hayman Capital Management in Dallas, Texas. Prior to joining Hayman Capital Management Mr. Smith spent over five years with Smith Group Asset Management, an institutional asset manager focusing on traditional and alternative investment strategies, based in Dallas, Texas. At Smith Group, he was a Partner, Director of Marketing and responsible for investor relations. Prior to joining Smith Group, Mr. Smith was the Director of Marketing for Ranger Capital Group, an alternative investment advisor located in Dallas, Texas, from 2002 until 2004. While at Ranger Mr. Smith was responsible for the marketing efforts of the firm in addition to investor relations. From 1999 until 2002, he was a Principal and the Director of Marketing for John McStay Investment Counsel (JMIC), an institutional asset manager. From 1993 until 1999, he was a Vice President for Smith Barney and focused on institutional and corporate clients. Mr. Smith was a member of the 401(k) Advisory Board and the Blue Chip Council. Mr. Smith earned a BBA in Finance from Dallas Baptist University and an MBA from Southern Methodist University, graduating with Honors (Beta Gamma Sigma).

Marilyn Falkenhagen
Marilyn Falkenhagen is a Director in the Private Company Services practice and leads the PCS practice in Deloitte's Dallas office. Ms. Falkenhagen has over twenty years of experience delivering tax and financial services to her high profile clientele. She has extensive experience with high net-worth individuals, business executives and closely-held business owners. She began her career in Deloitte's Houston office. In September of 2008, she moved to Hyderabad, India to begin a two year expatriate assignment as the leader of the PCS group in Hyderabad as well as Mid-America's Business Tax Services group. She repatriated to the US in August of 2010 and relocated to Dallas. Ms. Falkenhagen is a Certified Public Accountant, Certified Financial Planner® and Personal Financial Specialist. She graduated with honors from the University of Houston with a BBA, Concentration in Accounting.

Craig Fischer
Mr. Craig Fischer is a Partner with KPMG LLP. He joined KPMG in 1995, and specializes in audit and risk advisory services for companies in the industrial, electronics, software, and healthcare industries. Mr. Fischer also serves as a national and international instructor at KPMG, having taught accounting and auditing classes for KPMG in several countries throughout Europe and Asia. Mr. Fischer holds a B.S. and M.S. in Accounting from The University of North Texas.

Matt Boswell
Matt Boswell graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University in 1994 with a degree in Marketing. Mr. Boswell has founded a number of successful franchise based companies, including Pet Butler. He is a sought after expert in the realm of marketing and franchise development for closely held, entrepreneurial based companies. Prior to getting into entrepreneurial ventures, he worked in various marketing and sales roles with several large companies in the Dallas Ft. Worth area.