Board of Governors

Jeff Cox, CTBS

Chairperson

United Tissue Resources

Jeff Cox brings over 38 years of experience in tissue banking and is a Certified Tissue Bank Specialist. He currently serves as Chair of the AATB Board of Governors and is a member of the AATB Executive Committee. Throughout his career, he has held various roles within AATB, including serving on the Certification, Ethics, Accreditation, Standards, Finance, and Program Committees. He also contributed as a coach to the AATB Emerging Leaders Program and served as the past Secretary-Treasurer of AATB, as well as the former Secretary of the Accredited Tissue Banks Council and the Donor Suitability Council.

In addition to his work with AATB, Jeff is an active member of several professional organizations, including the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Association of Healthcare Value Analysis Professionals, the Association for Death Education and Counseling, and the Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses. He holds a master's degree in biochemistry and a bachelor's degree in chemistry and biology.

Currently, Jeff Cox serves as the President and CEO of United Tissue Resources.

Ronda Horstman, CTBS

Immediate Past Chairperson

Solvita

Ronda Horstman has been in the organ and tissue donation field since 1996 and is currently the Chief Recovery Services Officer at Solvita. As a Certified Tissue Banking Specialist and an active member of AATB, she has served as the Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary of the Recovery and Donor Suitability Council, a Coach for the Emerging Leader’s Program, and a member of both the Communications and Accreditation Committees and is currently the Chair of the Nominating and Awards Committee. In 2000, she was awarded AATB’s Peer Recognition Award for Public and Professional Relations. She has served on the Advisory Council and is currently serving as Secretary for the Board of Donate Life America. Ronda is a graduate of the University of Texas at Arlington, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, focusing on Medical Management and a minor in Business Administration.

George Herrera

Chairperson-Elect

MTF Biologics

George Herrera is the Executive Vice President for MTF Biologics. His primary responsibility is to oversee the Donor Services Division, which focuses on ensuring that MTF Biologics has sufficient musculoskeletal, dermal, and birth tissues from donors to meet patient needs. Donor Services provides a broad variety of services to Recovery Partners (organ procurement organizations and tissue banks, both domestically and internationally) that work with MTF Biologics to provide allograft tissue services to their communities.

He is also responsible for the International Institute for the Advancement of Medicine (IIAM) and Statline, which are divisions of MTF Biologics. IIAM provides donated human organs and tissues for research into cures, treatments, and technologies for a wide variety of diseases and conditions. Statline screens potential organ, eye, and tissue donors for organ procurement organizations (OPOs), eye banks, and tissue banks and coordinates organ transplants for transplant centers around the country. 

In 2025, George begins his twenty-eighth year at MTF Biologics. He has over thirty-two years of experience in the field of organ and tissue donation, transplantation and non-profit management. He has held leadership positions in various organizations in the field, including the Association for Multicultural Affairs in Transplantation (AMAT), American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB), Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO), Donate Life America (DLA), and has served on the medical advisory board of many OPOs. George's education includes a BS in Marketing and Management from Tulane University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of New Orleans. George lives in New Jersey with his wife, Barbara. They have two adult children.

Alyssa Harrison

Secretary-Treasurer

LifeShare of Oklahoma

Alyssa Harrison has proudly been a part of the donation community for over a decade. She currently serves as the Senior Vice President of Strategy and Integration and previously held the position of Vice President of Tissue Operations at LifeShare Network. She has been with LifeShare of Oklahoma since March 2019. Prior to that, she served as the Executive Director of United Tissue Network, a non-transplant donation organization.

In her current role, she is responsible for driving innovation, growth, and efficiency within the LifeShare Network. She is responsible for establishing key performance indicators, conducting data analysis to inform strategic decisions, and serving as the primary point of contact for external partnerships. As well as being the main point of contact internally to lead strategic planning processes, and to lead cross-functional teams to ensure that projects align with organizational goals, meet budgetary constraints, and deliver expected results.

She earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Master of Adult Education from the University of Central Oklahoma, a Master of Business Administration from Washington State University, and a Doctorate of Education in Public Health Education from the American College of Education. She is also CTBS certified.

Mark DeFilippis

New England Donor Services, Inc.

Mark is the Vice President of Tissue Operations at New England Donor Services and has been an active member of the AATB community for the past 21 years. Mark's career progression at New England Donor Services has resulted in a broad and deep knowledge base, including quality systems, donor eligibility, authorization, continuous improvement, and operational and executive leadership. 

Mark's contributions to the AATB community have been many, and he is a tissue recipient. Mark is an active member of the RADE Council, serving as the Secretary from 2018-2022 and Vice-Chair from 2022-2023. Mark is currently an At-Large Member of the AATB Board of Governors and is Chair of the Ad-Hoc DEI Committee. Mark served as Co-Chair of the Membership Committee from 2018-2023 and has driven significant changes for the betterment of all members and the Association. Mark was an inaugural member of the Uniform DARI Task Force, beginning in 2008 and continuing through completion in 2014.  

Mark is committed to sharing his experiences and transferring knowledge throughout the tissue community. He is often a featured speaker at AATB, AOPO, and member organizations. Mark is a resource for leaders in other organizations and encourages new members to get involved at all levels of the Association. 

Mark earned a Bachelor's Degree from Salem State University, an MBA from Endicott College, and is a Certified Tissue Banking Specialist. 

Melissa O'Connor

StimLabs, LLC

Melissa O'Connor, MS, FRAPS, RAC, CTBS, serves as the Chief Quality and Regulatory Officer for StimLabs, LLC, a birth tissue processor and medical device manufacturer in Roswell, Georgia. Since the company's inception in 2015, Melissa has been responsible for developing and growing all aspects of Quality and Regulatory Affairs for StimLabs. She has more than 20 years of experience in medical device, tissue, and combination products, new product development, research, engineering, commercialization, and Quality Management. Throughout her career, she has held Quality and Regulatory leadership positions, serving as the Management Representative, Head of Quality, and official FDA correspondent for various medical device companies. She is a member of the Regulatory Affairs Professional Society (RAPS), holds an active RAC certification, a BS in Biological Sciences, and an MS in Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Regulatory Affairs. Melissa is a Certified Tissue Banking Specialist (2017), an ISO13485:2016 certified Lead Auditor, and was awarded the distinction of RAPS Fellow in 2022.

As a member of the AATB Quality Council from 2016 to 2022, she co-led the authoring of the CAPA Best Practice Guidance document. From 2021-2023, Melissa served as the Chair of the AATB Program Committee and was responsible for the development of the theme and educational content for the AATB Annual Meeting. Today, Melissa is very active with the Association as a member of the Birth Tissue Council, head of the Birth Tissue Regulatory Legislative Workgroup, AATB Board of Governor's Member-at-Large, and as the appointed Chair of the AATB's Ad-Hoc Regulatory Affairs Committee. As an active member of the AATB's Tissue Policy Group, Melissa provides input into current regulatory and legislative issues and advocates on behalf of the entire tissue banking community to save and improve lives by promoting the safety, quality, and availability of donated human tissue. Melissa is most passionate about bringing new and innovative medical products to patients, leadership, mentoring, and Regulatory and Government affairs. She is proud to be the author of the industry's first human birth tissue-derived FDA-cleared medical device for wound management. Melissa appreciates the opportunities the Association provides to allow individual members to develop their leadership skills while having such a profound impact on the broader tissue banking community, including our industry partners, donors, donor families, and patients. 

Dean Elliott, Esq.

AlloSource 

For more than 30 years, Dean Elliott has worked in the healthcare industry managing products, sales and distribution channels, regulatory matters, personnel and general business practices to maximize the P&L of corporations. He most recently served at AlloSource as Chief Operating and Legal Officer, leading initiatives such as regulatory policy, corporate compliance, litigation, contract management and a variety of business transactions requiring review or assessment of risk.

Dean has also served AlloSource as its Associate General Counsel and Vice President of Operations. Before joining the AlloSource team, Dean’s positions included Director of Client Services for Reglera, LLC and Acting General Manager of Staodyn, Inc.

Dean holds his law degree from the Sturm College of Law and his bachelor’s degree in health from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

AlloSource recognizes the importance of Corporate Compliance and considers it a key position with Dean ensuring the company is operating in line with regulatory and legal processes to honor the gift of donation.

Dean is inspired by the gift of donation because it enables the lives of patients and their families to be forever changed.

Ryan Cormier

Accredited Tissue Banks Council

Gift of Life Michigan

Ryan Cormier began his journey in tissue banking in 2011, performing tissue recovery at Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates (KODA). In 2012, he transitioned to a comparable role at New England Donor Services (NEDS), before assuming the position of Tissue Recovery Manager at Gift of Life Michigan in 2015. In mid-2020, he was promoted to Director of Tissue Services, overseeing both tissue recovery and the Donor Operations Center. At Gift of Life, Ryan orchestrated the implementation of novel staffing models for both departments, resulting in the doubling of tissue volume over six years and sustained annual growth. Renowned for his success in leadership development and fostering employee engagement, Ryan has consistently propelled departmental outcomes to new heights as a director. He continues to expand on previous work at Gift of Life to create standard recovery packs that were adopted by all processors Gift of Life works with to include all tissue types (Dermis, MS, CV, and BT). He has also led efforts to introduce and validate standard Gift of Life Musculoskeletal shippers, resulting in streamlined processes and supply chain efficiencies across the board. Noteworthy affiliations include CTBS since 2014, active membership in the American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB), serving as a member of both RADE and ATBC since 2015. Ryan received his bachelor’s degree in healthcare administration and a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership from Southern New Hampshire University.

Bill Cassarly

Birth Tissue Council

Regenerative Biologics, Inc.

Bill Cassarly is the Director of Operations with Regenerative Biologics (RBI). With over 25 years of experience in the tissue bank landscape, Bill has managed all facets of tissue bank productions with strong project management and decision-making skills. Before joining RBI, he spent many years in Recovery Operations at RTI Donor Services and Southeast Tissue Alliance, supervising large teams and increasing donation rates. Bill has also collaborated with medical examiners on the development of new and improved best practices for donation.

Bill holds his CTBS designation and is an active member of the AATB Birth Tissue Council.

Debbie Hutt

Donor Family Services Council

LifeNet Health

Debbie Hutt is the Senior Manager of LifeNet Health’s National Donor Family Services, bringing 14 years of dedicated experience in supporting donor families. In her role, she is committed to providing support to donor families and those who work with them. Debbie has played a pivotal role in expanding LifeNet Health’s bereavement support program, continually creating healing opportunities and activities for donor families.

Debbie has facilitated educational classes on Grief & Loss and Compassion Fatigue, tailored for medical caregivers and LifeNet Health staff. She has also been a presenter at conferences and webinars, sharing best practices and strategies for navigating difficult conversations with donor families. Debbie contributed to the creation and authorship of the Grief certificate program for the American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB) and currently serves as the Chair for the AATB Donor Family Services Council.

Debbie earned her Master of Science in Education and holds a Certification in Thanatology. Prior to her tenure at LifeNet Health, she served as a Director of Children’s Ministries and Family Ministries and led a team of consultants in direct sales as an Advanced Director. Earlier in her career, Debbie was an elementary guidance counselor with Norfolk Public Schools, where she implemented guidance programs, developed curriculum, and secured grants to enhance student services.

Sally Alrabaa, MD

Physicians Council

LifeLink Tissue Bank

Dr. Sally Alrabaa is the regional Medical Director of LifeLink Tissue Bank of Florida, Georgia, and Puerto Rico. She's an infectious disease specialist and an associate professor of medicine at the University of South Florida College of Medicine. Dr. Alrabaa has been a clinician for the past 20 years with expertise in internal medicine and infectious diseases ranging from sepsis, Tuberculosis, and other bacterial, viral, atypical, and emerging infections, as well as, infections in the organ and tissue transplant populations. 

Dr. Alrabaa's career in tissue banking started in 2018 as an associate medical director. She became involved with various AATB committees and functions soon after. In 2020, as an active member of the Physicians Council, she aided in drafting guidance for the tissue banking community during the COVID-19 epidemic based on the best available scientific knowledge at the time and her real-life experience with COVID-19 patients. She assisted with drafting recommendations regarding monkeypox screening upon the emergence of yet another virus. Dr. Alrabaa has been involved with the Tuberculosis working group since its beginning in 2021 and has assisted in drafting multiple bulletins on the subject and recommendations regarding donor screening. 

Dr. Alrabaa was the Physicians Council track session organizer for the AATB Annual Meeting in 2022, presented on Tuberculosis and risk factors, and moderated multiple sessions during the 2022 and 2023 AATB Annual Meetings. Dr. Alrabaa's leadership expertise includes her positions as Medical Director of the Complex Medicine Unit in a large tertiary center hospital, as well as, Director of the Transplant Infectious Services. Dr. Alrabaa is very familiar with what it takes to be an effective leader and how to empower and motivate others to share their opinions, expertise, and wisdom. Dr. Alrabaa served as the Physicians Council secretary between 2022 and 2024 and was recently elected to lead the Physicians Council as Chair for the 2024 to 2026 term.

Sarah Lopez

Processing and Distribution Council

United Tissue Resources

With over twenty years of tissue banking experience, Sarah began her career as a musculoskeletal tissue processing technician and advanced through managing quality and distribution systems. She is now the Senior Vice President of Tissue Operations for United Tissue Resources, working with both Donor and Distribution Services divisions serving the Central Texas donation communities. 

In 2020, Sarah was elected and served as the Vice-Chair of the Processing and Distribution Council, supporting and assisting the Chair in efforts that best serve the Council and advocate for membership participation. Recently re-elected as Chair of the PADC for a second term, she also supports the Supply Chain Subgroup and the related initiatives of the Council. She has also participated in the AATB Standards Committee and was part of the inaugural Emerging Leaders Program. She continues to engage with the program, including the most recent cohort.

Christy Martinelli

Quality Council

Precision Allograft Solutions

Christy Martinelli has over twenty years of leadership experience in the tissue banking industry in a variety of roles, most recently as the Vice President of Tissue Bank Operations at Precision Allograft Solutions. Her long career extends across multiple divisions including quality, regulatory affairs, change control, supplier management, processing, validations, product development, distribution, and inventory management in small to larger corporate and international settings. 

As the current Vice-Chair of the Quality Council (2022-2024) and a long-time Certified Tissue Bank Specialist, she has been an active member of the American Association of Tissue Banks since 2003. Most recently serving as a member of the Accreditation Committee (2019-2024), and in the Quality Council subgroups for the Annual Meeting Quality Track Planning (2022-2024), Supplier Quality Agreement Tool (2022-2023), and Change Control Best Practices Tool (2024).

Ryan Nelson

Recovery and Donor Eligibility Council

Donor Network of Arizona

Ryan Nelson is a seasoned professional with over 16 years of experience in the tissue donation industry. As the Tissue Services Manager and Medical Examiner Liaison at the Donor Network of Arizona, he has played a pivotal role in the organization's growth through his dedication to process improvement and operational efficiency.

With more than 13 years as a Medical Examiner Liaison, Ryan has built solid and respectful partnerships with county medical examiners, ensuring the integrity of death investigations while promoting higher tissue donation rates. He has also led initiatives that have significantly increased donation rates, particularly in Musculoskeletal and Pediatric Heart Valves, demonstrating his commitment to advancing best practices in the field.

Ryan holds a Bachelor of Science in Human Biology and is a Certified Tissue Bank Specialist. He has actively contributed to AATB in various roles, including on the Program Committee. Notably, he participated in the revision of Appendix III of the Tissue Donor Physical Assessment Form Requirements and has shared his expertise at numerous AATB conferences and webinars, highlighting his efforts to enhance the tissue donation landscape in Arizona.