
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
-Aristotle-
ABOUT THE FOUNDATION
Board of Advisors
The Board of Advisors is comprised of several leading professionals both inside and outside Lebanon whose role is to advise the Trustees on appropriate gifts.
The Board of Advisors includes:

Mr Elias Aractingi
Florida-based author and consultant, self-employed as an equity options trader.
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Mr Aractingi earned a BBA from the American University of Beirut and an MBA from Columbia University in New York. He then worked for Interaudi Bank and BSI – Banca della Svizzera Italiana in New York before joining Booz Allen Hamilton in Asia where he was a principal and Thailand country manager. After almost 6 years in Asia, he went to Lebanon where he joined BLOM Bank as advisor to the chairman and rose through the ranks to the position of General Manager for retail banking. In addition to launching retail banking for the bank, he was instrumental to the bank’s expansion in Egypt where he was the bank’s CEO twice for a total period of three years. He left BLOM in early 2019 and moved to Miami Beach, Florida.
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Mr Aractingi is the author of two books: “Boosting You: The Book that Helps You Become a More Successful Executive”, and “Five Souls in a Dream.”

Mr Jamil Baz
Managing Director, PIMCO, London, UK. Mr. Baz holds degrees from HEC in Paris and London School of Economics as well as an SM from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a PhD from Harvard University. Mr. Baz has published a number of articles in economics and finance. He is also a Lecturer in Mathematical Finance at Oxford University. Mr. Baz is a Lebanese and French citizen currently resident in the UK.

Mrs Jocelyne Y. Chahwan
Mrs Jocelyne Chahwan started her banking career in 1990 at the Bank of Montreal in Montreal where she was promoted several times until she reached the title of Manager/Investment Services. In March 1996, she joined BLOM Bank S.A.L. in Beirut and became the Head of the Training & Development Department. In 1999, she moved to Retail Banking as Head of the Marketing Division. In 2009, she was promoted to the position of Deputy Head of Retail Banking. In October 2011, she became the first Lebanese Banker on VISA’s advisory council for the Levant, and is now part of the VISA CEMEA Business Council. In December 2011, she was promoted to Assistant General Manager and in July 2013, she was appointed as Head of Retail Banking. In 2017, she became a member of VISA CEMEA Security Summit and Risk Executive. In June 2018, she was promoted to Deputy General Manager and in April 2019 she became a Board Member of AROPE INSURANCE S.A.L. Mrs.Jocelyne Chahwan holds a Master of Business Administration from Ecole Supérieure des Affaires (ESA). Mrs Chahwan was awarded the Retail Financial Services Person of the Year in the Middle East and Africa – 2018 by The Asian Banker in recognition of her dynamic leadership in presiding over one of the fastest growing and strongest retail banks in the region.

Mrs Dominique Diab
Mrs Diab earned a Masters degree in Economics from Université Saint-Joseph in Beirut. She has been actively involved in educational and charitable work in Lebanon and has served as President of the Parents Committee of Collège Louise Wegmann.

Prof Roland Tomb
MD, PhD
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Prof Tomb earned a MD at Faculté de Médecine (Université Pierre-et-Marie-Curie) in Paris and a PhD in Philosophy and Ethics at Université Aix-Marseille. He specialized in Dermatology at Université de Strasbourg.
Prof Tomb currently heads the Dermatology Department at Hôtel-Dieu de France Hospital.
He was the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Université Saint-Joseph in Beirut, from 2011 to 2023..
Dr. Tomb, also a Professor of Dermatology and Bioethics, is a Board Member of the Lebanese Order of Physicians and Vice-President of the International Association of French-speaking Dermatologists.
He was appointed representative of Lebanon and Arab Countries in the Intergovernmental Bioethics Committee (IGBC) at the UNESCO, (Paris) then joined the International Bioethics Committee (IBC) at the UNESCO, (Paris) as vice-president for 8 years.
In 2023, he was appointed as Visiting Professor at Collège de France (Paris).
He currently heads the Université Pour Tous (University for All) at USJ, Beirut.
Prof. Tomb is also a specialist of theology and ancient Levantine languages; he is a co-founder of the Chair of Phoenician Studies at USJ.
He is a Lebanese and French citizen, currently residing in Lebanon.

Mr Dean Menegas
​General Counsel of Spinnaker Capital. Mr. Menegas acts as a Special Advisor to the Board of Trustees. Mr. Menegas holds a BA from Princeton University, and a JD and a Masters in Political Science from the University of Michigan. He is a member of the External Advisory Board of Princeton’s Center for Public Policy and Finance; and a vice-chair of the Emerging Markets Trade Association. He is the past president of the Scouting America division serving youth across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Mr. Menegas is a US and UK citizen currently residing in the UK.

Mrs Lara Hage
Mrs Hage acts as Secretary to the Board of Advisors and handles all administrative matters regarding the Foundation in Lebanon. Mrs Hage holds a BBA from the American University of Beirut. She has served on the Parents Committee of College Maristes-Champville in Beirut. Mrs Hage is a Lebanese and Canadian citizen currently resident in Lebanon.