Melissa Gilliam and Gaurav Kapadia Join Mellon Foundation’s Board
The Mellon Foundation today announced the election of scholar, physician, educator, and academic leader Dr. Melissa Gilliam and investor, business leader, civic leader, and philanthropist, Gaurav Kapadia to its Board of Trustees.
Dr. Gilliam serves as the Executive Vice President and Provost of The Ohio State University, one of the largest and most comprehensive universities in the country. Mr. Kapadia is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of XN, a prominent long-term focused investment firm that invests across public and private markets. Both longtime advocates for the arts and humanities, Dr. Gilliam and Mr. Kapadia join the Mellon Board of Trustees effective immediately.
“With their shared commitment to justice and love for the arts and humanities, Melissa and Gaurav together make an extraordinary addition to our Board,” said Elizabeth Alexander, Mellon Foundation President. “Their remarkable leadership experience and breadth of knowledge will further strengthen our work, and we look forward to welcoming them to the Mellon community.”
“I am thrilled to be joining the Mellon Foundation’s Board of Trustees. As a champion of the arts and humanities, Mellon sparks imagination, inspires new ways of thinking, and enriches communities,” said Dr. Melissa Gilliam, Executive Vice President and Provost of The Ohio State University. “I am eager to support the foundation and its leadership team as part of this endeavor.”
“I am humbled and delighted to join the Board of the Mellon Foundation. I have long admired the Foundation’s impact, and have been particularly inspired by the precision, focus, and breadth of ambition under Elizabeth Alexander’s leadership,” said Gaurav Kapadia, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of XN. “I believe strongly in the power of art and the humanities to propel positive change, and I know that Mellon will continue to be a trailblazer in supporting and transforming communities. I could not be more excited to put in the work with Elizabeth, my fellow trustees, and staff in our collective work to fulfill the mission of the Foundation.”
“Both Melissa and Gaurav possess the global perspective, deeply informed expertise, and exceptional instincts for sound management that stewardship of the nation’s largest funder of the arts and humanities requires,” said Kathryn A. Hall, Board Chair. “It is a pleasure to welcome them to the Mellon Board, and we look forward to working with them in support of the Foundation’s transformative mission.”
As Executive Vice President and Provost at Ohio State—a position she has held since 2021 —Dr. Gilliam serves as the chief academic officer, overseeing an institution that includes 15 colleges, more than 7,500 faculty members, and over 67,000 students across the state's campuses. She joined Ohio State from the University of Chicago, where she served as vice provost, the Ellen H. Block Distinguished Service Professor of Health Justice, and professor of obstetrics and gynecology and pediatrics.
During her time at the University of Chicago, Dr. Gilliam founded and led the university’s Center for Interdisciplinary Inquiry and Innovation in Sexual and Reproductive Health, held the position of Dean of Diversity and Inclusion for the Biological Sciences Division at the University of Chicago Medicine, and spearheaded the Program in Gynecology for Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults.
Dr. Gilliam attained a medical degree from Harvard Medical School, a master’s degree in public health from the University of Illinois at Chicago, a master’s degree in philosophy and politics from Oxford University, and a bachelor’s degree in English from Yale University. Dr. Gilliam is also a member of the National Academy of Medicine.
Mr. Kapadia, a veteran investor and business leader with nearly 20 years of experience investing across public and private markets, founded the long-term-focused investment firm XN in 2018. Before founding XN—a name inspired by the power of long-term compounding—Mr. Kapadia served as Co-Founder and Co-Managing Partner at Soroban Capital Partners. His leadership in the sector began during his time as a Partner at TPG-Axon Capital in both New York and London. Mr. Kapadia earned his BSc in Economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Mr. Kapadia is a passionate advocate for the arts, civic engagement, education, equality, and opportunity. He is deeply involved in numerous philanthropic and civic causes and serves on the Boards of Trustees of The Whitney Museum of American Art, The Trust for Governors Island, Uncommon Schools, and The Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection at Georgetown University Law Center.
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About The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation
The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation is the nation’s largest supporter of the arts and humanities. Since 1969, the Foundation has been guided by its core belief that the humanities and arts are essential to human understanding. The Foundation believes that the arts and humanities are where we express our complex humanity, and that everyone deserves the beauty and empowerment that can be found there. Through our grants, we seek to build just communities enriched by meaning and guided by critical thinking, where ideas and imagination can thrive. Learn more at mellon.org.