Compliance

David C Wells Jr – Founder and CEO – Family Capital Strategy

With over 15 years of experience conducting strategic and investment analysis, David founded Family Capital Strategy in 2019. Previously, David was a Partner at Woodmont Investment Counsel in Nashville where he worked closely with families and institutions at the intersection of investment, strategy and governance. David has and continues to serve in a broad range of governance roles. David is the Chairman of the Board and Chairman of the Investment Committee for a privately held business. He was recognized in 2017 as one of Nashville’s Forty under Forty and in 2019 as a recipient of a Nashville Emerging Leader Award – Financial Services Industry. In 2020, he was recognized by the Nashville Post as part of their All Star Board.

Andrew Maxwell – Senior Vice President, Foundry Commercial

Andrew Maxwell is a Senior Vice President at Foundry Commercial in Nashville, who represents some of the firm’s largest clients in the firm’s agency leasing, tenant representation, and acquisition/disposition practices.

Prior to Foundry Commercial, Andrew managed over 750,000 SF of transactions for his clients during his tenure at OakPoint Real Estate. Previously, he served as a Director of Dispositions for USI Real Estate, and as Assistant Director, Consulting Services, for Savills Studley, both in New York City.

Andrew holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Vanderbilt University and a Masters degree in Real Estate Finance from New York University. In addition to his service on the board of Nashville Classical Charter School, Andrew volunteers with The Phoenix Club of Nashville, plays tennis, and finds as much time as he can to travel the world.

Mark Cate

Mark Cate is the Founder and President of Stones River Group, a Nashville-based public affairs firm serving both Tennessee, regional and national clients. He formerly served as Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam’s chief of staff, where he was his top advisor, strategist and negotiator. 

Prior to serving in state government, Mark successfully managed Governor Haslam’s first gubernatorial campaign in 2010. He previously worked as an executive in real estate management and development and served for 16 years as a higher education leader. Over the course of his career, Mark has served as a chief development officer, chief planning officer, chief marketing officer, and as a chief financial officer.

Cate received a B.S from Carson-Newman College, an M.S from the University of Tennessee, and Harvard University’s Institute for Educational Management certificate program. He’s served on a wide variety of non-profit boards and was an elected member of the Maryville City Schools Board of Education.

Laura Encalade – Senior Vice President of Strategy and Innovation, National Institute of Excellence in Teaching (NIET)

Laura Encalade currently serves as the senior vice president of strategy and innovation for NIET. In this role she supports strategic planning efforts, partnership opportunities and the development of new services and technologies for the organization. Prior to joining NIET in 2019, Laura served as the chief of staff for the Tennessee Department of Education, where she served as a top aide to former Commissioner Dr. Candice McQueen. As chief of staff, Laura also led strategic plan integration and monitoring across the department and supported key initiatives like the creation of the state’s Office of School Improvement.

Previously, Laura served as director of policy and research for the Tennessee State Board of Education, leading projects including the state’s academic standards review process and the redesign of Tennessee’s teacher preparation report card. Laura’s focus on state-level education work also included roles as the deputy director of Tennessee’s $500 million “Race to the Top” grant and the department’s director of educator talent, where she supported district and statewide design and implementation of strategic compensation policies.

Laura began her career as a seventh- and eighth-grade social studies teacher in St. Louis where she was nominated for the Pettus Award of Excellence in 2010. A Memphis native, Laura earned her Bachelor of Arts in political science and economics at the University of Tennessee, a master’s in secondary education from the University of Missouri and a master’s in public policy from Vanderbilt University.

Javier Solano

Javier Solano has 20 years of experience managing strategic communications campaigns, including award-winning efforts on behalf of Nissan North America, the U.S. Marine Corps, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Department of Labor, Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage and the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority. He is one of MP&F’s top speech writers, working with leaders from the public and private sectors. While at MP&F, Javier has received the staff-selected Best Writer award four times and the MVP award twice.

Javier is a frequent presenter on communications strategies, including media relations and Latino outreach. He is also one of the staff’s media trainers, leaning on his 10 years of experience as a reporter. Before his arrival at MP&F in 2001, Javier worked for two Chicago Tribune-owned newspapers, most recently the Orlando Sentinel, where he covered sports and general assignments for six years. He currently serves on the board of directors for the YWCA of Nashville and Middle Tennessee and Nashville Classical Charter School.

Born in Santa Marta, Colombia, and raised in metropolitan Washington, D.C., Javier graduated from Columbia University in 1989 with a bachelor’s degree in English.

Christian Paro

Elizabeth Palmer Brundige – Clarendon Creek Partners

Liz returned to Nashville in 2017 and consults for investment firms focused on real estate investments in Nashville and its surrounding communities. Prior to Nashville, Liz was a Vice President for Acquisitions and Development with Fisher Brothers in New York and a member of the Lionheart Strategic Management mezzanine investment team. Liz received a BA in Mathematics from Vanderbilt University and an MBA in Finance from The Stern School of Business at New York University.

Devin Carty

Devin is the CEO of Martin Ventures, a healthcare-focused venture capital firm, where he leads the investment committee, builds and scales de novo companies, and provides oversight for 17 portfolio companies. Devin cofounded Wellvana Health, Trilliant Health, and Clariture Health. Devin began his career as a scientist — a biologist and biochemist with NASA. His research centered around the effects of vibration on bacterial growth and antibiotic resistance. While working with NASA, Devin served as a medical missionary in the Congo and, as he traveled through jungles building clinics, he discovered his passion for providing medical care to those in need.