Leadership Type: Management

David D. O’Keefe, PhD, is vice president of research development, joining Sanford Burnham Prebys in December 2024.

O’Keefe duties include working with scientists to maximize research funding and increase research capacity at the institute by nurturing a culture of grant writing and collaboration.

He oversees a team responsible for advancing the institute’s mission by identifying research trends, developing diverse and sustainable funding strategies, and helping faculty craft compelling grant proposals.

In addition, he spearheads development of large, complex projects and manages proposals for scientific efforts that span disciplines, including the institute’s four disease-focused centers and two enabling technology centers.

He also provides guidance and hands-on mentorship to graduate students and postdoctoral scholars at Sanford Burnham Prebys as they begin to secure funding for their own training and research.

Previous to Sanford Burnham Prebys, O’Keefe served as senior director of research development at the Salk Institute in La Jolla and did his postdoctoral work at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle.

O’Keefe received his doctorate in neurosciences from the University of California San Diego and Bachelor of Science degree in biological sciences from Stanford University.

Leona M. Flores, PhD, is Vice President of Research Operations at Sanford Burnham Prebys, which she joined in January 2025.

Her duties include elevating the research capacity of the institute by working with faculty and other scientists to ensure successful execution of research projects and reducing the increasingly complex administrative burden of research. 

Flores oversees a team responsible for advancing the institute’s mission by providing professional project management techniques, administrative support and research resources to Sanford Burnham Prebys laboratories, including the institute’s National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center.

Flores was previously at the Salk Institute where she served as executive director and deputy director for research administration, overseeing strategic initiatives and research programs at Salk’s NCI-designated basic research cancer center and inter-institutional research collaborations.

Prior to Salk, Flores was director of research development at San Diego State University Foundation (2018-20) and director of research development and collaboration for UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center (2012-18).

Flores received her Bachelor of Sciences degree in architectural engineering from California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo and a Bachelor of Sciences degree in biomedical sciences from California State University Fullerton.

She earned a doctorate in biomedical sciences at University of California San Diego and trained as a postdoctoral fellow at UC San Diego’s Institute of Engineering in Medicine under Shu Chien, MD, PhD.

Sandy Liarakos is vice president of philanthropy at Sanford Burnham Prebys, overseeing the strategic philanthropic plan for the institute, building strong relationships with donors, corporations and foundations and working collaboratively with President and CEO David Brenner, MD.

Liarakos joined Sanford Burnham Prebys in 2024, coming from the University of California, Riverside, where she served as Senior Director of Gift Planning, overseeing legacy philanthropy programs for the university and the UC Riverside School of Medicine.

Prior to UC Riverside, Liarakos was senior director, external relations at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies (2017-2022), where she managed the cancer center’s fundraising and  collaborated with national cancer foundations. She has also been part of leadership teams at UC Davis, UC San Diego, San Diego State University, Point Loma Nazarene University, Scripps Health Foundation and Sharp HealthCare. She is a second-generation San Diegan. She graduated from the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. She is a member of Certified Fund Raising Executive International and a Certified Specialist in Planned Giving.

Kurt Marek, PhD, is chief research development officer at Sanford Burnham Prebys. His duties will include supporting and strengthening the scientific competitiveness of the institute and advancing its mission by advising on funding portfolios, providing strategic direction for research administration and innovation initiatives, and overseeing grant proposal development for principal investigators, faculty, and others.

Marek joined Sanford Burnham Prebys in 2024, coming from Salk Institute for Biological Studies, where he served as executive director of grants development, overseeing grants and contracts, research development and research compliance at the La Jolla-based nonprofit basic research institution.

Prior to joining Salk in 2018, Marek worked for nearly seven years at the National Institutes of Health, first as program director and Small Business Innovation Research coordinator for the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) and then as deputy director in the Office of Translational Alliances and Coordination at NHLBI.

He was also an AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the NHLBI (2010-2011).

Marek earned undergraduate degrees in biology and humanities from the University of California San Diego and a doctorate in neuroscience from UC San Francisco, where he was a Howard Hughes predoctoral fellow.

He later studied spinal cord development as a Damon Runyon Cancer Research Fellow at UC San Diego. Working in the lab of Nicholas Spitzer, PhD, Marek used genomics to identify new roles for electrical activity in the nervous system and to characterize the underlying molecular mechanisms.

Gene Hasegawa is the Chief Operating Officer overseeing the Institute’s administrative functions. He is also a principal partner in organizational strategy and alignment.

Gene joins the Institute with over 30 years of experience at UC San Diego, where he was most recently COO for Health Sciences, serving as a primary advisor, operational implementation officer, and key strategic partner in major initiatives to the Vice Chancellor. He was also responsible for the operations of academic affairs, affiliate and industry affairs, basic biomedical research, clinical and translational research, business contracting, business resource management, planning and space management, professional schools’ shared services, and general administration.

On a national level, Gene served as the Principal Business Officer representing the UC San Diego School of Medicine to both the Group on Business Affairs and the Group on Institutional Planning of the American Association for Medical Colleges.

Born and raised in San Diego, Gene received his undergraduate degree from UC San Diego.

Dr. Diane Klotz is the Chief Learning Officer at Sanford Burnham Prebys, where she contributes to the educational strategy across all areas and levels of the organization. 

She oversees the Institute’s approach to designing a high-performing education and training function that is responsible for creating and delivering educational, career and professional development, and leadership development programs to equip all personnel to achieve, innovate, and grow. 

Diane also serves as the Institute’s Accreditation Liaison Officer, the Associate Dean of Administration and Professional Development in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and as the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) executive sponsor.

Diane received her PhD in molecular and cellular biology from Tulane University, and pursued  postdoctoral research training at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). 

Outside the lab, Diane has served as a member and chair of the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) Board of Directors, where she remains active as chair of the NPA Advisory Council. 

She has also served on NIH study sections for the Broadening Experience in Scientific Training (BEST) Award program and served as a member of the NIH BEST External Scientific Panel of advisors. 

She is a certified DiSC® facilitator, Influence Style Indicator™ facilitator, Leadership Process: Motivating Achievement facilitator and MBTI® practitioner, and has achieved comprehensive certification in Conflict Management and Change Management from Kilmann Diagnostics, along with a certificate for Negotiation and Leadership from the Harvard Program on Negotiation.