Investment Committee

The North Carolina State Investment Fund Investment Committee is responsible for setting NCSIF Investment Fund’s asset allocation policies, approve investment manager selection, and recommend changes in the Investment Policy Statement. Management of the day-to-day investment decisions relating to the Fund shall be delegated to the Chief Investment Officer of NC State University (“the Manager”). The Manager shall have the full and exclusive authority to direct funds to existing and new investment managers and fiscal agents on behalf of the Fund in accordance with the Investment Policy Statement.

The number of Investment Committee Members shall not be less than five nor more than nine as fixed by the Members Board. They are elected to serve one four-year term, beginning the calendar year after the annual meeting in which they are elected. Committee Members may be elected for two terms, and at no point should have served for more than eight years as a member. Despite the expiration of a member’s term, the member may be asked to serve until a successor is elected. Investment Committee members shall be elected primarily for professional knowledge and experience in investments and consideration shall be given to a demonstrated interest in the University and its mission. The chair of the Investment Committee shall be appointed by the Members Board and will serve a (2) two-year term or (4) one year terms.

2025 Investment Committee Bios

Investment Committee Org Chart [PDF]

Mr. Alex Wallace, Chair | Committee Member, 2020
Term expires 2027
Alex Wallace, Managing Director at Loop Capital Markets, is a 30-year veteran of the municipal securities industry with broad experience across many aspects of municipal finance. Mr. Wallace spent 11 years at U.S. Bank, where he started the U.S. Bancorp Municipal Products Group and served as the Head of the Public Finance Group. Previously, Mr. Wallace was Co-Head of the Municipal Securities Group at Wachovia Securities (1996-2008). He began his career working for the Department of Revenue and then with the State Treasurer’s Office of the State of North Carolina. Mr. Wallace currently serves on the Board of Advisors for the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy Center for Municipal Finance and the Board of Advisors of the University of Texas Lyndon B. Johnson’s School of Public Affairs’ Center on Municipal Capital Markets. He is also a member of the Board of Directors for the Bond Dealers of America (BDA). Mr. Wallace has BA degrees in Economics and Business Management from North Carolina State University and a Master of Public Administration (MPA) with a concentration in Public Finance from North Carolina State University.

Mr. Craig Demko | Committee Member, 2018
Term expires 2026
Mr. Demko has extensive experience in institutional investment management and research. He has been the Director of Private Equity for the North Carolina Department of State Treasurer Investment Management Division since 2010, having initially joined in 2005 as the Portfolio Manager of Alternative Investments.

Mr. Demko has participated in expanding the portfolio with more than 100 fund transactions across Venture Capital, Growth Equity, Buyout, Secondary and Co-Investment strategies.

Prior to joining North Carolina, he developed an extensive background in institutional equity research with Oppenheimer & Company Inc., HC Wainwright & Co. and Josephthal and Co. Mr. Demko attended the University of Massachusetts, Amherst where he received a BA in Economics.

Mr. Randall Dishmon | Committee Member, 2023
Term expires 2026
Mr. Randall Dishmon was a Senior Portfolio Manager at Invesco. Mr. Dishmon launched the Global Focus Strategy and managed the fund for 18 years, growing the assets from $2 million to over $7 Billion in retail and institutional assets during his tenure. Mr. Dishmon won 4 Lipper awards and 5 IBD awards for Best Fund on a 1, 3, 5 and 10 year return basis. His previous positions at Invesco/ Oppenheimer Funds include serving as co-manager of other global funds and as a senior research analyst for the global equity strategy. Prior to Oppenheimer Funds, Mr. Dishmon worked for Booz Allen and Hamilton as a management consultant. He also served four years as the Environmental Affairs manager with UtiliCorp and for 7 years as a Vice President and Division Chief with KCI Technologies, an engineering firm. Mr. Dishmon earned a BS degree in Engineering from North Carolina State University, an MS in Engineering from Johns Hopkins University and an MBA from the University of Michigan.

Mr. Ty Huggins | Committee Member, 2023
Term expires 2026
Mr. Huggins is a vice president in the Private Wealth Management Group of Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he advises institutions, wealthy individuals, family groups and foundations. For the last 18 years, Mr. Huggins and his team have been advising clients located throughout the United States; concentrated in the Southeast. Prior to Goldman Sachs, Mr. Huggins was responsible for business development and technical sales with Ciba Specialty Chemicals, a Swiss conglomerate where he served large manufacturing clients. Mr. Huggins joined Goldman Sachsafter earning his MBA from Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management in 2000. He also has a BS in Textile Chemistry from the Wilson College of Textiles. Mr. Huggins has demonstrated his personal commitment to philanthropy and service to the NC Textile Foundation and the Wilson College by serving on the Investment Committee and building an endowed scholarship – The Huggins Family Endowed Scholarship Fund.

Ms. Rhonda Smith | Committee Member, 2024
Term expires 2027
Ms. Smith is a graduate of North Carolina State University (College of Humanities and Social Sciences) and is currently employed with the North Carolina Department of State Treasurer within the Investment Management Division where she has served since 2002. With over 20 years of institutional investment experience, as Director of Public Equity, Ms. Smith has a proven track record in designing, implementing and managing investment portfolios, as well as performing manager search and selection, investment and operational due diligence and portfolio risk and asset allocation analysis for the more than $40 billion in internal and external equity assets within her oversight. Ms. Smith also serves as Treasurer and member of the Investment Committee for the Board of Trustees of FHI Foundation.

Mr. Richard Speers | Committee Member, 2024
Term expires 2027
Mr. Speers is a co-founder and an Investment Advisor Representative with Private Wealth Management of NC. Prior to working with Private Wealth Management of NC, he was an independent contractor with Raymond James Financial Services from 1999-2009. Mr. Speers graduated with a B.A. in History from North Carolina State University and earned his Juris Doctorate degree from the University Of North Carolina School Of Law. Mr. Speers is former President of the North Carolina Services for Dentists Board of Directors and former Chairman of the North Carolina Heart Association planned giving program. Mr. Speers currently holds his series 65 license and in his free time, he enjoys bowling.

Investment Committee

Call for Nominations

The Office of Investments is pleased to issue a Call for Nomination for the NCSIF Board of Directors. We invite you to submit names of persons with investment experience for consideration. Submissions will be accepted and reviewed annually from April – June.