Gladstone president hopes to spin science into fundraising gold

With an Alzheimer’s disease spinout company and as many as a dozen research collaborations on the horizon, the J. David Gladstone Institutes could remake how it supports its science — and how the world sees it — under President R. Sanders “Sandy” Williams.
Nearly 14 months into his tenure, Williams is not only bringing on new scientists and support staff, but also creating a network of high-profile executives, financiers and scientists who can spread the Gladstone gospel to an increasingly sophisticated philanthropic community.
How the San Francisco-based organization is viewed is especially important, Williams said, to continue cutting-edge research in areas like HIV, stem cells and neurological diseases. The more people know about Gladstone and connect their gifts to its initiatives, the less Gladstone must rely largely on its roughly $200 million endowment to plug funding gaps.