To achieve our goals at The Nikolas Foundation, we have created a strong Executive Advisory Board. This board has several decades of experience both in working with not-for-profit organizations and fund raising. This Advisory Board works with the Board of Directors at the Foundation to make sure we are adhering to our Mission Statement and staying in our lane as a 501 (c)(3) as well as to help our Executives create and implement their strategic plan.
Paul C. Stewart
Mr. Stewart is the founder/director of Sundance Consultants, LLC serving the national security industry. Prior to his current positions he served 30 years in the U.S. Navy culminating his career as the Commander/Director of the Naval Research Laboratory from 2008 to 2012. From 2005 to 2008, Mr. Stewart was assigned to the Office of Naval Research as Deputy Director and Division Director; additionally he served as the U.S. National Officer to the NATO Undersea Research Center, in Italy.
Previously, Mr. Stewart served as the Director, National Ice Center in Washington, DC, a NOAA, USN and USCG agency and also as the Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Navy. Prior to 2000, Mr. Stewart served in numerous operational and at sea positions including: oceanographer to Commander, Cruiser-Destroyer Group Two aboard USS George Washington (CVN-73), the Naval Pacific Oceanography Center, USS Princeton (CG-59) and USS Constant (MSO-427). Mr Stewart was commissioned in Washington, DC under the Naval Nuclear Power Program.
Mr. Stewart currently serves on several not for profit boards including The Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, AZ, The Stokes Nature Center in Logan, UT and CAPSA, a non-profit domestic violence recovery center.
Mr. Stewart holds a BS in Mathematics, an MS in Physics, an MS in National Security and Strategy and is a certified member of the Acquisition Professional Community in Science and Technology Management (STM). Additionally, he is a certified Space Cadre officer and an Information Domination Corp qualified officer.
Mr. Stewart’s awards include: Legion of Merit with gold star, Meritorious Service Medal with gold star, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with gold stars in lieu of third award, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with gold stars in lieu of fourth award, and various other personal and campaign medals.
Mr. Stewart is married to the former Sunny Lewis of San Diego and they have four adult sons: Riggs,Grant, Noah and Wyatt. They split their time between their ranch in Northern Utah and Sundance. Additionally, they serve on several philanthropic and science boards in the Western US. Other interests include skiing, sailing, hiking, fly-fishing, pottery, woodworking, carpentry, birding and aging gracefully.
Brent Earl
Ever.Ag offers tech-enabled brokerage and insurance services for the dairy, livestock, and crop value chains.
With over 25 years of Automotive and Aerospace experience as he continues to embrace the axiom that while technology changes, relationships last a lifetime. He combines his industry knowledge and his commitment to client satisfaction to enrich the customers’ experience. . Previously, Brent served in various executive management roles for 23 years at IBM, Dassault Systèmes, and Rand Worldwide.
Brent is also head of Earl Farms Foundation (https://www.earlfarm.com) which raises and delivers healthy beef protein to local food banks in Michigan.
Brent also currently serves on two non-profit boards:
Vice Chairman of the board of directors for Oakland Livingston Health Service Agency (OLHSA), in Pontiac, Michigan. OLHSA services over 20,000 clients whose needs range from basic needs of senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and people suffering from economic hardship. OLHSA is a private non-profit agency with a $30 million annual budget.
Vice President of the board of directors for Howell Public Schools, in Howell, Michigan. The Howell school district provides education services to over 7,000 students from pre-kindergarten to 12th grade. The district manages an annual budget of $68 million with over 30% of the student population qualifying for free and reduced lunch.
Brent holds a B.A. in Business & Marketing from Hillsdale College in Michigan.
Awards and affiliations include: Cleary University Bob Lyons Leadership Award 2017, Citizen of the Year of Howell 2013, Citizen of the Year of Livingston County 2007, Big Brother of the Year 2006, President of the Livingston Arts Council (2002-2015), Rotary International member (2002-present)
Brent lives on his family farm in Howell, Michigan with his wife and 4 kids. They raise Black Angus cattle, turkeys, sheep, and chickens.
Steve Allen, M.D., MBA
Dr. Steve Allen is CEO Emeritus of Nationwide Children’s Hospital, which includes The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Nationwide Children’s Hospital Foundation and The Center for Family Safety and Healing at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. The hospital is nationally recognized as one of the best children’s hospitals by both U.S.News and World Report and Parents magazine.
Located in Columbus, Ohio, Nationwide Children’s Hospital is ranked as the fourth busiest and fourth largest children’s hospital in the country* (*data based on NACHRI-member pediatric hospitals). A medical staff of over 1,100 and a hospital staff of 8,000 provide state-of-the-art pediatric care for almost 1 million patient visits. As home to the Department of Pediatrics of The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Nationwide Children’s Hospital physicians train the next generation of pediatricians and pediatric specialists. The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of the top 10 National Institutes of Health-funded freestanding pediatric research facilities. Nationwide Children’s remains true to the original mission since its founding in 1892 of providing care regardless of a family’s ability to pay.
Steve joined Nationwide Children’s in July 2006 and brought with him a passion for population health and wellness. Under his direction, the hospital’s 2010-2015 strategic plan has a vision of creating optimal health for every child in the community. In addition to its comprehensive clinical, research and education services, the hospital has undertaken innovative new community partnerships including a broad-based neighborhood revitalization program next to its main campus and new collaborations to combat childhood obesity and prematurity.
With a focus on accountable care for children, the hospital’s Physician Hospital Organization, Partners for Kids, has grown in the past five years to become the largest of its kind in the nation, responsible for managing the care of more than 280,000 at-risk children in 38 counties across central and Southeast Ohio. Results from this coordinated care effort include dramatically improved immunization rates, reduced prematurity rates, decreased readmission rates and vastly increased access to pediatric care.
To meet a growing demand for services, Steve is also overseeing the nation’s largest pediatric expansion to date (based on new, non-replacement facilities), including a new, 12-story main hospital building and a third research building. The new campus totals over 2.1 million square feet, for the overall expansion, creating more than 2,000 new jobs and generating a projected $1.3 billion in new regional economic activity.
Steve serves on the board of the National Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions and as a member of Child Health Corporation of America. Within Ohio, he is board chair of the Central Ohio Hospitals Council and TechColumbus, vice chair of the Ohio Children’s Hospital Association and co-chair of the Ohio Business Roundtable Childhood Obesity Task Force. He also serves on the board of the Ohio Hospital Association, OSU Health Plans, the Central Ohio YMCA, as a member of the Columbus Partnership, and holds the title of professor at the OSU College of Medicine.
Steve obtained his undergraduate education at Rice University, and his M.D. from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas. Before coming to Columbus, for 24 years, Steve was a physician, scientist, teacher and executive at the Texas Medical Center in Houston. He published almost 100 articles and over 20 book chapters on a variety of medical topics. He is board-certified in Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine and was awarded an MBA. Steve retired from the CEO’s position in June of 2019 but continues in an Emeritus status and still serves on multiple boards.
He is married to Dr. Jamie Allen and has five children.