Rachael Zufall
About Rachael Zufall
Rachael Zufall (year of birth: 1973) serves as Vice President and Assistant Secretary of Nuveen Mortgage and Income Fund (JLS), with service as a fund officer since 2022. Her principal occupation in the past five years includes Managing Director and Assistant Secretary of Nuveen Fund Advisors, LLC, and Managing Director, Associate General Counsel and Assistant Secretary across the College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF), TIAA Separate Account VA-1, TIAA‑CREF Funds and TIAA‑CREF Life Funds, as well as Teachers Advisors, LLC and TIAA‑CREF Investment Management, LLC; she is also a Managing Director of Nuveen, LLC and TIAA . Officers of the Fund, including Ms. Zufall, receive no compensation from the Fund (officers are elected by the Board on an annual basis to serve until successors are elected and qualified) .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role/Title | Years | Strategic Impact/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nuveen Fund Advisors, LLC | Managing Director and Assistant Secretary | Not disclosed | Fund complex legal/secretarial officer; principal occupation listed in JLS proxy . |
| College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF); TIAA Separate Account VA‑1; TIAA‑CREF Funds; TIAA‑CREF Life Funds | Managing Director (since 2017); Associate General Counsel and Assistant Secretary (since 2014) | 2017–present (MD); 2014–present (AGC/Asst. Sec.) | Senior legal and governance roles across TIAA/CREF fund complexes . |
| Teachers Advisors, LLC; TIAA‑CREF Investment Management, LLC | Managing Director (since 2017); Associate General Counsel and Assistant Secretary (since 2011) | 2011–present (AGC/Asst. Sec.); 2017–present (MD) | Adviser-level legal/secretarial leadership (Teachers Advisors and TIAA‑CREF IM) . |
| Nuveen, LLC; TIAA | Managing Director (since 2017) | 2017–present | Corporate-level Managing Director roles at Nuveen and TIAA . |
| Nuveen Mortgage & Income Fund (JLS) | Vice President and Assistant Secretary | Since 2022 | Officer of the Fund with indefinite term; elected annually by the Board . |
External Roles
No external public company directorships or committee roles for Ms. Zufall are disclosed in JLS proxy statements reviewed; officer biographies focus on internal Nuveen/TIAA roles .
Fixed Compensation
Fund officers receive no compensation from the Funds; compensation (if any) is paid by Nuveen/TIAA and is not disclosed in JLS filings .
Performance Compensation
Not disclosed at the Fund level. JLS does not report incentive metrics, targets, or payouts for fund officers; officers are compensated by Nuveen/TIAA, outside the Fund’s proxy disclosures .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Metric | 12/31/2023 | 12/31/2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Board Members and Officers as a Group – JLS (Mortgage & Income) shares owned | 499 | 499 |
- Individual officer share ownership (including Ms. Zufall) is not itemized in JLS proxies; ownership is disclosed only in aggregate for “Board Members/Nominees and Officers as a Group” by fund .
- For context, Nuveen funds disclose a governance principle that Board Members (trustees) are expected to invest at least one year of Board compensation across the Nuveen fund family; this principle applies to Board Members, not officers .
Employment Terms
| Term Element | Disclosure |
|---|---|
| Position at JLS | Vice President and Assistant Secretary |
| Length of Service | Since 2022 (officer of the Nuveen fund complex) |
| Term of Office | Indefinite; officers are elected by the Board on an annual basis to serve until successors are elected and qualified |
| Compensation Source | Officers receive no compensation from the Funds (compensated by Nuveen/TIAA; not disclosed in JLS proxy) |
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance linkage at the Fund level is not applicable: JLS does not compensate officers, so there are no fund-level salary/bonus/equity metrics, vesting schedules, or change‑in‑control economics to assess for Ms. Zufall in the proxy; any incentives would be at Nuveen/TIAA and are not disclosed in JLS filings .
- Alignment via share ownership appears limited at the Fund level: JLS reports only aggregate holdings of 499 shares for Board Members and officers as a group as of both 12/31/2023 and 12/31/2024, with no individual officer breakdown—providing little signal on personal “skin in the game” for Ms. Zufall specifically .
- Retention and governance risk reside at the adviser: Ms. Zufall’s tenure and role are anchored in Nuveen/TIAA legal and secretarial leadership across the fund complex (MD/Associate General Counsel/Assistant Secretary), implying retention drivers and compensation policies are determined by the adviser rather than by JLS; no contracts, severance or CoC terms are disclosed at the Fund level .