Mr. Mertz is Chief Investment Officer and President of Emerald Advisers, LLC and a member of the Small Cap Portfolio Management team. He is also a Co-Manager of the Emerald Finance & Banking Innovation Fund. Portfolio Manager, Emerald Financial Services Private Equity Fund I, LP.; past Trustee and Vice President of the Emerald Mutual Funds; Chief Investment Officer, PA State Employees’ Retirement System (1985-1992); Member, CFA Institute; past Member, Pennsylvania State University Research Foundation; past Trustee, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Board of Pensions; past Trustee, Pennsylvania State University Endowment Council (1998-2004); and past Chair, President, & Director of Central Pennsylvania Investment Managers. He is currently a board member and was formerly Chairman of Diakon Children, Family and Community Ministries, and the former Chairman of the Diakon Lutheran Fund, its endowment arm. Mr. Mertz has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal and in USA Today, and has served as speaker at various investment seminars and programs across the country. He has been a guest on CNBC’s Mutual Fund Investor, and has been interviewed several times on CNBC and Bloomberg TV. Mr. Mertz graduated from Millersville University with a BA in Economics. Mr. Mertz is a CFA charterholder.

Mr. Russell is an Assistant Vice President for Emerald and Assistant Vice President of Emerald Advisers, Inc. Prior to re-joining Emerald Advisers, Inc. in 2005, Mr. Russell founded a registered investment adviser and served as Managing Director of a private equity firm. Mr. Russell served as a portfolio manager and officer of Emerald Advisers, Inc. from 1998 to 2004. He has also served as a portfolio manager for the Pennsylvania Public School Employee’s Retirement System.