The TSC Alliance® announces several staff updates.
On January 1, 2026, Dean J. Aguiar, PhD, was promoted to Executive Vice President, Translational Research. Dean Aguiar, PhD, joined the TSC Alliance in November 2018 with more than 17 years of research and development (R&D) leadership in biopharmaceutical and medical device industries, leading teams and technologies from discovery to investigational new drug (IND) and investigational device exemption (IDE), a pre-requisite for clinical trial evaluation. Under his leadership, the TSC Preclinical Consortium has continued to cultivate relationships with both academia and industry to test compounds in TSC mouse models. To date, more than thirty companies have participated in the consortium. Two of these companies have begun, or will soon initiate, clinical trials for TSC, and the consortium continues to build a robust pipeline of new therapies for the future. Dean has also advanced clinical care through his work with Anya’s Accelerator and the Reproductive and Perinatal Health Taskforce. In January 2027, following the retirement of Steven L. Roberds, PhD, Dean will assume the role of TSC Alliance Chief Scientific Officer.
On March 23, 2026, Jessica Hughson-Andrade joined the team as our Director of Philanthropy. Jessica most recently served as Senior Director, Strategic Alliances at the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance where she drove new models of revenue generation, managed corporate partnerships through the entire gift life cycle, and helped in strategic project management. Prior to that role she worked at Kellen, a full-service association management company, as a Senior Account Executive where she worked specifically with rare disease organizations; and four New York based nonprofits prior to that with progressive leadership positions. Jessica holds a Master of Public Administration in Nonprofit Management from Baruch College, a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from Manhattanville College, and is a certified patient navigator. She is thrilled to join the TSC Alliance team and support the critical work of building a better future for the TSC community.
Finally, as of April 1, 2026, Rachel Wojnilower has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer and Sam Metzger has been promoted to Senior Manager, Scientific Projects.
Rachel Wojnilower joined the TSC Alliance in March 2022 first as Executive Assistant and then Chief of Staff. During her four years on staff, she has brought incredible organizational efficiency to our operations. This past year, she assumed leadership of our new COR (Communications, Operations, Relationships) Team. Rachel is a critically important liaison to the Governance Committee and has revolutionized our Board communications, board meeting planning, and all logistics for conferences of the organization. This year she has also taken on the lead role for the TSC World Conference. In her role as Chief Operating Officer, she will be responsible for managing the organization’s day‑to‑day operations and ensuring the entire organization moves cohesively toward achieving our strategic plan.
Sam Metzger joined the TSC Alliance in July 2023 as Scientific Project Manager. In her role she monitors progress of multiple research collaborations, manages both the grant and clinic application process, and schedules and helps plan meetings and conferences, including the 2025 TSC International Research Conference and 2026 Consensus Conference. She played a critical role working with the Clinics Committee to launch the new clinic application and review process and to expand access to TSC care with the creation of the Affiliated Provider designation in 2025. In her new role as Senior Manager, Scientific Projects, Sam will oversee project plans, timelines, milestones, and deliverables for all TSC Alliance scientific projects and continue to serve as a liaison to the TSC clinical and research community.