Team

Matt Shulman

CEO | V-Card

Matt Shulman is the CEO of The Ardent Companies (“Ardent”) and the CEO of each of the General Partner and the Advisor. Prior to forming Ardent, Matt Shulman was a Managing Director with Rialto Capital where he managed an origination platform for equity investments across Rialto’s strategies. In that role, Matt oversaw deployment of capital into deals varying from performing and non-performing loans, equity investments directly in real estate, and recapitalization of existing sponsors. Prior to Rialto, Matt was a founding partner at Fairway Capital Partners – a real estate investment firm founded in 2007.

He actively serves on the boards of the Atlanta Real Estate Collaborative in addition to serving as President of The Epstein School board. Matt formerly served on the boards of Open Doors Atlanta, Usher 1F Collaborative, Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta ELC board. Matt is a member of YPO and a graduate of the Wexner Institute. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Arizona and a Master of Science in Real Estate Finance from New York University. After graduate school, Matt served as an adjunct professor of Real Estate Finance at his Alma Mater NYU.

Dror Bezalel

CFO | V-Card

Dror Bezalel is the Chief Financial Officer of The Ardent Companies, as well as the CFO of each of the General Partner and the Advisor. Prior to forming Ardent, Dror was a principal and COO/CFO at Anthem Capital Partners, a Georgia-based distressed debt real estate fund. His primary responsibilities included asset management, investor relations, and financial oversight and reporting. Prior to Anthem, Dror worked as the COO at Fairway Capital Partners, a New York-based distressed debt real estate firm. While at Fairway Capital Partners, he oversaw the servicing, management, and disposition of a portfolio of non-performing loans and assets, in addition to investor relations and day-to-day operations of the firm. Prior to Fairway Capital Partners, Dror was a senior CMBS underwriter at Morgan Stanley, where he underwrote more than two billion dollars of commercial real estate loans. Dror has been working in commercial real estate for more than 15 years and his experience includes commercial appraisal, commercial leasing, asset management, and disposition. He received a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from The College of Management Academic Studies in Israel and a Master of Science in Real Estate Development and Finance from New York University.

Gregg Goldenberg

Vice Chairman | V-Card

Gregg Goldenberg is a Partner at The Ardent Companies. Prior to Ardent, Gregg was the former President and CEO of Acadia Homes & Neighborhoods, which was acquired by Taylor Morrison in January of 2016 for $85 million. Gregg has more than 25 years of experience in various leadership roles in the homebuilding and land development business. Acadia began operations in 2010, and by 2013 it was recognized as Atlanta’s 5th fastest growing privately-held company and ranked as the 10th largest homebuilder. Prior to Acadia, Gregg started his own development company that identified, entitled, purchased, and developed residential communities for regional builders and housing giants like Beazer Homes and the Ryland Group. Prior to starting his own venture, Gregg was Senior Vice President of the Southeast Region at Morrison Homes. He oversaw and managed all the land acquisition, homebuilding, and mortgage finance operations in Atlanta, Jacksonville, Orlando, Sarasota, and Tampa. Gregg and his management team closed over 2,100 homes for $510 million in revenue, and purchased over 4,000 residential lots in 2004. Gregg received a Bachelor of Science in Commerce from the University of Virginia and a Master of Business Administration in Real Estate Finance from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Todd Terwilliger

President | V-Card

Todd Terwilliger is a President at The Ardent Companies and the Head of Residential Real Estate. Prior to forming Ardent, Todd was a Managing Director at Rialto Capital where he and his team managed the Southeastern U.S. Real Estate portfolio. In addition to real estate operations, his team was also involved in all underwriting for non-performing loan acquisitions and direct real estate investments across Rialto’s platform. Prior to Rialto, Todd had a strategic partnership with Fairway Capital in a venture that acquired distressed loans from commercial banks secured by real estate throughout the Southeast. Before the venture with Fairway, he was Vice President of Land Acquisition and Development at Pulte Homes Corporation where he managed site selection, contract negotiation, and planning and forecasting for the Pulte and Del Webb branded communities. Todd received a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Technology from the University of Dayton Ohio and a Master of Business Administration from Georgia State University.

Thomas Olson

Partner | V-Card

Thomas Olson is a Partner at The Ardent Companies. Thomas focuses on platform partnerships, innovative strategies and capital markets. Prior to Ardent, Thomas was a Partner and CFO of Acadia Homes & Neighborhoods, a sister company of Ardent, where he directed the company’s financial strategies, corporate policies, risk management, and investments. Thomas has over two decades of experience in both building businesses and real estate investment. He has held leadership roles at notable firms such as Hines, Resource Real Estate Partners, and Warren-Hanks. Thomas serves on the Board of Directors of an Atlanta based homebuilding company, Direct Residential and niche medical technology company, ViveBio Scientific. Thomas is a Board Member of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s Sports Network Advisory Board and an active contributor to the “Carter Samuel Martin Developmental Therapeutics Research Fund”. Thomas is a native of Apple Valley, Minnesota and a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Corporate Finance.

Michael DeGance

Managing Director | V-Card

Michael DeGance is a Managing Director at Ardent. Michael is responsible for investor relations, financial reporting, and fundraising. Prior to joining Ardent in November 2012, Michael worked at Morgan Stanley Real Estate Advisors, where he worked on a $10 billion open-end core real estate fund. In his role, he managed a team of associates on the financial and investor reporting for the fund. Prior to Morgan Stanley, Michael worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers in the assurance and advisory practice. Michael is graduate of the Terry School of Business at the University of Georgia where he received a Bachelor of Business Administration in both Real Estate and Accounting.

Suzie Cooper

Managing Director | V-Card

Suzie Cooper is a Managing Director and the Head of Accounting at The Ardent Companies. Prior to joining Ardent in November 2021, Suzie worked for Henley Investments – a boutique private equity firm based in London – and spent over 15 years at Grosvenor Estates in a variety of finance roles focused on treasury and the investment portfolio. Suzie is an associate member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and holds a degree in Politics.

Shawnia Silva Da Cruz

Executive Director | V-Card

Shawnia Silva Da Cruz an Executive Director at The Ardent Companies. Prior to joining Ardent in January 2011, Shawnia worked as an Assistant Controller with Acadia Homes & Neighborhoods, a sister company of Ardent. Shawnia was the first employee at The Ardent Companies and has been with the company for twelve years. Shawnia has over two decades of accounting experience including construction, job cost, general ledger, and full accounting cycle management.

Joe Swindells

Development Director | V-Card

Joe Swindells is a Development Director at The Ardent Companies in the London office. Joe is responsible for development and asset management activities in support of Ardent’s investment strategies. Prior to joining Ardent in November 2022, Joe was part of the senior management team at Battersea Power Station Development Company (BPSDC). In his role he was responsible for all development and asset management activities for The Power Station project. Prior to BPSDC, Joe worked in development & asset management roles for UK based private and listed property companies including Capital & Regional PLC, Ballymore & Hammerson PLC. Joe has a BSc (Hons) in Real Estate Valuation & Management from UWE Bristol.

Gary McNamara

Investment Director | V-Card

Gary is Investment Director at The Ardent Companies in the London office. He is responsible for capital raising, deal origination and execution. Before joining Ardent, Gary was Land & Strategic Partnerships Director at Inspired Villages, a developer and operator of later living communities across the UK. There he led acquisitions, partnerships and was influential in the £500m equity JV between Legal & General and Natwest Bank to enter the market. Gary started his career at DTZ (now Cushman & Wakefield) in Auckland New Zealand, before moving to London where worked in the Investment & Corporate Finance teams. Prior to this he was business development consultant to Barings Real Estate Advisors, property consultant to BGC Partners, the co-founder of “Indirex” the Secure Information Exchange and co-founder of Arca Property Risk Management.
Gary is a Member of the RICS and holds an MSc in International Real Estate and a BEng in Engineering from the University of Reading and also sits on the charity committee for the Worshipful Company of Chartered Surveyors livery and also on the events committee for the Reading Real Estate Foundation charity.

Emma Grillo

Executive Director | V-Card

Emma Grillo is an Executive Director at The Ardent Companies. Emma is on the Investor Relations team. Prior to joining Ardent in January 2017, Emma worked at Prichard & Jerden in commercial insurance lines. Emma has a Series 7 certification as well as a Property and Casualty Insurance license. Emma is a graduate of the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance.

Andrew Eisen

Director | V-Card

Andrew has been in the financial services industry for nearly twenty-five years with experience in multiple areas including equity trading, institutional sales, and raising capital. He has over fifteen years of experience raising capital in alternative investments, most recently serving as a Senior VP at StratCap Securities. During his career, Andrew has raised over $1B in oil and gas, real estate, and infrastructure funds. Before joining the financial sector, he began his professional career in the advertising industry where he developed his passion for sales and marketing. Andrew earned his BA from Cornell University and currently holds FINRA Series 7 and Series 63 registrations. He resides in Weston, Florida with his wife, son, and daughter.

Monica Ortego

Director | V-Card

Monica Ortego is a Director at The Ardent Companies on the Investor Relations team. Prior to joining Ardent, Monica worked as VP of Operations at a technology startup and was responsible for all aspects of the business operations including development of processes and leveraging technologies to scale the business including the CRM, project management and expense reporting systems, management of strategic partnerships and client relations. In her role at Stan Johnson Company, a net-lease commercial real estate investment firm, she served as an Investment Analyst where she oversaw the client experience process from brokerage agreement through contract close for one of the company’s top producing teams. She previously worked at CNN where she managed global operations and multi-million dollar operating budgets for the international newsgathering teams. Monica is a graduate of the University of Florida.

Jennifer Childers

Senior Associate | V-Card

Jennifer Childers is a Senior Associate in Investor Relations. Jennifer has over 7 years of commercial real estate experience with a background in brokerage, portfolio management and finance. Prior to joining Ardent, she worked at CBRE in a high-volume transaction role specializing in office tenant representation. Jennifer is a graduate from the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia.

Izzy Russell

Associate | V-Card

Izzy Russell is an Associate at The Ardent Companies. Izzy is on the Investor Relations team. Before joining Ardent, Izzy worked for the American Cancer Society focusing her time on donor relationship management, corporate prospecting, and event logistics. Izzy received her Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Oregon State University.

 

Kristin Canine

Executive Assistant | V-Card

Kristin is the Executive Assistant at The Ardent Companies.  She has worked as an Executive Assistant in Atlanta area for the past 15 years with Morgan Keegan, Raymond James and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods.  She is a graduate of the University of Georgia.

David Lorino

Fund Controller | V-Card

David is a Fund Controller at Ardent focused on development and commercial real estate assets. Prior to Ardent, David had experience with a regional public accounting firm, multi-family, commercial and a public REIT. David received his bachelor’s and master’s degree in accounting from The University of Alabama and obtained his CPA in 2015.

Gerry Moschopoulos

Treasury Manager | V-Card

Gerry is a Treasury Manager for The Ardent Companies. Gerry is a treasury and banking professional with experience in cash management, corporate credit, equity financing, and corporate finance projects. Before joining Ardent, he was the Treasurer of TERNA ENERGY USA – a renewable energy company – and a Senior Banker at NBG – a commercial bank in Europe – where he managed corporate portfolios across industries, including real estate. Gerry has an MBA from Georgia State University, an M.Sc. in International Banking and Financial Studies from the University of Southampton, UK., and a B.Sc. in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting and Finance. He is also certified with Lean Six Sigma Green Belt.

Melody Popravak

Senior Associate | V-Card

Melody Popravak is a Senior Associate at The Ardent Companies. Melody has 20 years of experience in management accounting, and for 6 of those years she owned her own financial systems consulting service in New York City. Prior to employment with Ardent, she had pivoted to an Investor Relations Management role with a private equity investment firm, while obtaining her Georgia Real Estate Sales License. Melody attended both Boston University and Florida Gulf Coast University. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in accounting.

Michele Simmons

Senior Associate | V-Card

Michele Simmons is a Senior Associate at The Ardent Companies.  She has almost two decades of experience with accounts payable.  Prior to joining Ardent Michele was AP Manager for Portman Holdings.  She handled timely payments of corporate, property, and development invoices.  Michele also held two separate positions at Avison Young Atlanta Management Services, first as an AR/AP Specialist and then as an Assistant Property Manager where she was responsible for managing over 700,000 square feet of properties.  Michele attended The College of Staten Island in New York where she majored in Business Administration and minored in Accounting.  Michele Simmons has recently passed a real estate course with American Real Estate University and is currently working on obtaining her Georgia real estate license.

Caleb Knight

Staff Accountant | V-Card

Before joining Ardent, Caleb worked at a construction-focused public accounting firm. He got his bachelor’s and master’s degree in accounting from the University of Mississippi’s Patterson School of Accountancy in 2021 and 2022, respectively. He soon plans to take the CPA exam.