Board of Directors

Meet Our Board of Directors

Dr. Jane Mahakian, Founder/President

Dr. Jane is a gerontologist and author who has worked and advocated for 30 years in the “realm of forgetfulness.” She specializes in helping adults (and their families) with cognitive impairment, caused primarily by Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. She was previously an adjunct faculty member at the University of California San Francisco Institute for Health & Aging.

John D. Boyajian, Vice-President

John D. Boyajian, P.E. assisted in creating the Alzheimers’s Care Armenia Inc. model and is Vice President. John ensures that the plans, policies and objectives of ACA maintains its values and meets established goals. John has made significant contributions to unique and complex businesses throughout the past 40 years. John has received numerous accolades form industry groups, and the State of California and Federal Legislatures. This experience includes business modeling, finance, human resources, marketing, product/service development, new ventures, operations, organization, and quality.

 

Dr. Tatjana Novakovic-Agopian, Secretary

Dr. Tatjana Novakovic-Agopian is a Rehabilitation Neuropsychologist at the San Francisco Veteran Administration Health Care System (SFVAHCS) where she also directs Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) – Polytrauma Rehabilitation Neuropsychology Post-Doctoral Fellowship. She is also an Associate Clinical Professor at the Department of Psychiatry University of California San Francisco (UCSF). Dr.  Novakovic-Agopian has received her graduate education from the Johns Hopkins University and California School of Professional Psychology, and her postdoctoral training at UCSF. Her clinical interests and expertise include assessment and cognitive rehabilitation/reintegration of individuals recovering from brain injury. She served as chair of the Brain Injury Research Committee of the California Pacific Regional Rehabilitation Center, and is a past president of the Northern California Neuropsychology Forum.

 

Cynthia Tusan, MBA

Cynthia Tusan is the Founder and CEO of Strategic Global Advisors (SGA), LLC, a woman and employee-owned registered investment advisor based in Newport Beach, California. SGA, which began in 2005, manages close to $5 billion in international, global and domestic equity strategies, primarily for institutional investors and has earned numerous awards over the years for excellence in asset management and performance, in 2012, 2016, and 2018. Ms.Tusan’s investment career spans more than 30 years, including 16 years with Wells Fargo where she began in 1989 as a Senior Portfolio Manager. She is a CFA charter holder and is a member of the CFA Society of Los Angeles and the CFA Society of Orange County. Ms. Tusan is a graduate of Bryn Mawr College and the Anderson School at UCLA. She currently serves on the Career Services Advisory Council at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo where she leads their $30 million capital campaign to build their Career Services, Diversity and Interfaith Center.

 

Dr. Gregory Nikogosyan

Dr. Gregory Nikogosyan is a current Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of New Mexico SOM. Focus areas include surgical and non-surgical neuropsychiatric management of patients with epilepsy and movement disorders. Before his current role, he completed general psychiatry training at the University of Hawai’i, JABSOM, followed by a fellowship in consultation-liaison psychiatry at Yale University SOM. He remains active in multiple societies, including the American Academy of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry, the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, and the American Academy of Neuropsychiatry. Dr. Nikogosyan recently joined the Armenian American Medical Society to further mental health care in Armenia. Currently, he is a part of the initiative for the ECHO Armenia initiative.

Sona Hovsepian, LCSW

Sona Hovsepian is a Senior Clinical Project Director with the Veterans Emergency Management Evaluation Center (VEMEC) at the Greater Los Angeles VA Healthcare System. Currently, her research efforts focus on promoting the health and social welfare of Veterans and the nation before, during, and after national emergencies and disasters through research and evaluation. She serves on the safety committee at the GLA Community Engagement and Reintegration Services (CERS) department. Ms. Hovsepian’s role as a family therapist at the Glendale Adventist Alcohol and Drug Services includes working with individuals and families faced with the challenges of addiction in residential, day, and intensive outpatient program. She has held leadership roles in several non-profit community organizations. Ms. Hovsepian received her undergraduate degree at UCLA and her MSW.

Dr. Harold Takooshian, Advisor

Harold Takooshian, PhD, is on the faculty of Fordham University since 1975, where he is Professor of Psychology, Urban Studies, and Organizational Leadership.  He completed his PhD in Psychology in 1979 at CUNY with Stanley Milgram. He is a researcher, teacher, consultant, whose work is described in Marquis’ Who’s Who in the World. He has taught at 12 universities in 6 nations. As a co-founder and past-President of the APA Division of International Psychology, he served with the United Nations, and chaired its NGO Habitat Committee on Human Settlements (2008-2010). A second-generation New Yorker, Harold serves as an officer and past-President of the Manhattan Psychological Association.

 

Dr. Dana Walrath, Ph.D., MFA, Advisor

A writer, artist, and anthropologist, Dana Walrath likes to cross borders and disciplines with her work. After years of using stories to teach medical students at University of Vermont’s College of Medicine, she turned to writing her own. Her award winning verse novel, Like Water on Stone, was completed during the year she spent as a Fulbright Scholar in Armenia. Her graphic memoir series Aliceheimer’s has brought her throughout North America and Eurasia to speak about the role of comics in healing including talks at TEDx Battenkill and TEDx Yerevan. Her recent essays have appeared in Slate, Foreign Policy, Irish Times, Somatosphere, The Lancet, on Public Radio, and in numerous edited volumes including Menopause: A Comic Treatment — a New York Times Best of 2020 Graphic Novel.

 

Nancy Barsamian, MPH, BSN, RN

Nancy Barsamian is a candidate for her Doctor of Nursing practice this coming May 2023. She has practiced acute care nursing for over 10 years and public health nursing and education for over 20 years. Nancy worked on a public health surveillance system with the Centers for Disease Control and Armenia National Institute of Health beginning in 1993 and on the Boston University Medical Partnership Program training doctors and nurses post-earthquake. She has lectured at Boston University School of Business, Boston College School of Nursing and currently a teaching associate at the University of Massachusetts graduate school of nursing.

 

Dr. Armen Moughamian

Dr. Moughamian joined the Ray Dolby Brain Health Center at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco in January 2020 and currently serves as its medical director. In this role,
Dr. Moughamian leads a multi-disciplinary team of physicians, neuropsychologists and social workers to evaluate and treat patients with cognitive impairment and neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease. The team at the Dolby Center has pioneered a novel dyad care model which integrates a social worker into the treatment of the patient, providing support for the families and care-partners of the patient.

 

Dr Herag Hamboyan

Dr. Herag Hamboyan is the medical director of 20 senior homes in the greater Toronto area in Canada. For the past 15 years, his main focus has been caring for medically complex elderly patients, many of whom suffer from dementia. He is also passionate about providing end of life care for those who have been deemed palliative. He is a proud Armenian-Canadian who speaks Armenian (western dialect) in addition to English and French. In 2019, he fulfilled a dream by climbing to the summit of Mount Ararat.

 

Carmen Arom, MBA

Carmen is a Broker Associate at Dilbeck Real Estate specializing in sales and acquisition of Residential, Commercial and Investment properties in the Greater Los Angeles areas. Currently, Carmen is the President of the Glendale Association of Realtors (GAOR) with over 1,800 members. She is also a Director at California Association of Realtors (CAR), and a member of National Association of Relators (NAR). She holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from San Francisco State University and an MBA from Pepperdine University. She has always been an active member of the PTA at La Canada Unified School District and a supporter of La Canada Educational foundation.

Dr. Johannes Michaelian

Dr. Johannes Michaelian is a Kennards Research Fellow at the University of Sydney’s Brain and Mind Centre and Charles Perkins Centre, where he leads biofluids research in the Healthy Brain Ageing Program. His work focuses on blood-based biomarkers for the early diagnosis of dementia. Dr. Michaelian played a key role in developing Australia’s first National Service Guidelines for Memory and Cognition Clinics, and he developed and manages the Australian Dementia Network’s National Memory and Cognition Clinic Finder Tool to improve service access, particularly in regional and rural areas.

Dr. Garni Barkhoudarian

Garni Barkhoudarian, M.D., is associate professor of neuroscience and neurosurgery at the Pacific Neuroscience Institute, Chief of Neurosurgery at Providence Saint John’s Health Center and Director of Neuroscience at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center. Born outside Detroit, Michigan, Dr. Barkhoudarian grew up in Los Angeles, where he attended college at the University of California, Los Angeles, graduating with honors. He then attended the University of Michigan Medical School, graduating in 2005. He completed his neurosurgical residency at UCLA Health Center and fellowship in Endoscopic and Pituitary Surgery at Brigham and Women’s hospital with Dr. Edward Laws.

As Co-director of the Pituitary Disorders Center and chief of radiosurgery, Dr. Barkhoudarian has particular expertise in skull base, pituitary and brain tumors, trigeminal neuralgia, hemifacial spasm and other vascular compression syndromes. For many conditions, he applies the keyhole concept of minimizing collateral damage to the brain using advanced neuroimaging and neuro-navigation techniques along with endoscopy to improve targeting and lesion visualization.

Dr. Barkhoudarian’s research interests include evaluating outcomes of pituitary and brain tumor surgery, and biomarker research for pituitary adenomas, meningiomas and metastatic brain tumors. He is the principle investigator of clinical trials evaluating brain and pituitary tumor treatment options. As director of the PNI Multidisciplinary Neuroanatomy and Surgical Skills Laboratory, he conducts skull base and anatomic research to help innovate minimally invasive approaches to intracranial tumors. This laboratory is also central to the education and training of Pacific Neuroscience Institute’s clinical and international fellows.

Dr. Barkhoudarian has been engaged in Armenian non-profits since his childhood, helping his father, Sarkis, with his work as the Armenian Engineers and Scientists of America (AESA) President in 1994. During his residency, he was President of the Armenian International Medical Fund (AIMFund) and was very active in the Armenian Bone Marrow Donor Registry (ABMDR) and the Armenian American Medical Society (AAMS). After his wife, Dr. Evelyn Barkhoudarian completed her terms as board member for the AAMS, Garni joined the AAMS board as Treasurer and, more recently, as President from 2021-2025. During the COVID-19 pandemic and the 44-day war, the AAMS was very active in garnering support (medical expertise, equipment and supplies) for Armenia as well as working with the Armenian Medical International Committees (AMIC) to collaborate on larger projects (such as the Oxygen Generator Project). Through such collaborations, the AAMS joined many other multidisciplinary Armenian organizations as a founding member of United AIO to encourage collaboration and communication across all organizations, especially in times of need.

Dr. Barkhoudarian joined the executive committee of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS) in 2017, where he chaired the Self Assessment of Neurological Surgery (SANS) team. He expanded his passion of neurosurgical education as vice-chair of the education division, helping develop live and virtual education courses for the CNS membership and helping foster collaboration with the AANS/CNS sections and the Society of Neuro-oncology. As head of the ACCME program, Dr. Barkhoudarian has helped with CME accreditation and adjudication for the CNS. Dr. Barkhoudarian was the Scientific Program Chair for the 2023 CNS Annual meeting in Washington D.C. and the Annual Meeting Chair for the 2024 CNS Annual meeting in Houston, TX. He was elected Vice President of the CNS in 2025. Dr. Barkhoudarian focuses on advancing innovation in neurosurgery as well as education for future generations to the highest levels of the discipline. He is a loving husband to Dr. Evelyn Barkhoudarian and a proud father of two boys, Sevan and Aren. On his “off” times, he enjoys chess, skiing, mountain biking and Formula One racing.

Emma Arakelyan

Emma Arakelyan is a world-class management consulting executive, angel investor, author, speaker, entrepreneur, philanthropist, coach and professor. Emma brings more than 20 years of experience in leadership across business strategy, IT Architecture & Transformation, M&A, governance and compliance credentialed by global professional services and technology companies as a Partner at EY (Ernst & Young) and Managing Director at Accenture. Emma has first-hand experience in business transformation and technology solutions implementation for Fortune 500 companies.

Emma is a Venture Partner and LP at Covenant Venture Capital and General Partner at Mount Global Syndicate. She is a Founder of Orion Worldwide Innovations, LLC offering IP Management & Acquisition solutions to the innovators and investors market globally. She is a Co-Founder of Orion Score which transforms startups scoring process with expert insights and proprietary algorithms. Since 2020 Emma is the Co-founding Partner of New York based startups funding and growth BAJ Accelerator. She was an adjunct professor at New York University, Featured Speaker at Columbia Business School and a mentor at the Singularity University. Emma operates her multimedia company Open Mind Productions, LLC and published her book on leadership and how to navigate, succeed and make an impact in the world of international business: “The Business Caring Formula. Building Your New Leadership Lifestyle.”

Emma is a board of director and strategic advisor to multiple startups, cultural organizations and educational programs. Recognized both as a seasoned business professional and accomplished speaker, she is often requested to judge startup competitions, present at private meetings and public events. Emma earned a Master’s Degree in Political Economy from Academy of Sciences, Armenia and a Bachelor of Sciences in Economics from the Armenian State University of Economics. Fluent in English, Armenian and Russian. She lives in New York City with her husband and two daughters.