Rachael Zufall
About Rachael Zufall
Rachael Zufall serves as Vice President and Assistant Secretary of the Nuveen New York Quality Municipal Income Fund (NAN), with an indefinite term and service since 2022; she is a Managing Director and Assistant Secretary across Nuveen/TIAA registered investment companies, including Nuveen Fund Advisors, LLC, the College Retirement Equities Fund, TIAA Separate Account VA-1, TIAA-CREF Funds and TIAA-CREF Life Funds, Teachers Advisors, LLC, and TIAA-CREF Investment Management, LLC . Officers of the Funds receive no compensation from the Funds, and officers are elected annually to serve until successors are elected and qualified .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nuveen Fund Advisors, LLC | Managing Director and Assistant Secretary | Since 2023 | Legal and governance responsibilities across the fund complex |
| College Retirement Equities Fund; TIAA Separate Account VA-1; TIAA-CREF Funds; TIAA-CREF Life Funds | Managing Director, Associate General Counsel and Assistant Secretary | Since 2014 | Registered investment company legal and secretary functions |
| Teachers Advisors, LLC; TIAA-CREF Investment Management, LLC | Managing Director, Associate General Counsel and Assistant Secretary | Since 2011 | Asset management legal and governance support |
| Nuveen, LLC and TIAA | Managing Director | Since 2017 | Enterprise-level leadership within Nuveen/TIAA |
| Nuveen New York Quality Municipal Income Fund (NAN) | Vice President and Assistant Secretary | Since 2022 | Fund officer (legal/administrative) |
Fixed Compensation
- Officers of the Funds receive no compensation from the Funds; the Funds’ CCO is paid by the Adviser, with the Funds reimbursing an allocable portion of the CCO’s incentive compensation .
- Officers are elected by the Board on an annual basis and serve until successors are elected and qualified; term of office is indefinite .
Performance Compensation
- No Fund-level incentive compensation (bonus, RSUs, PSUs, options) is disclosed for fund officers; officers serve without compensation from the Funds .
- No performance metrics (e.g., revenue growth, EBITDA, TSR, ESG targets) are tied to fund officer compensation in Fund filings .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
Note: NAN proxy statements disclose beneficial ownership for Board Members/Nominees and officers as a group, not at the individual officer level.
| Metric | FY 2023 | FY 2024 | FY 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group holdings of “New York Quality Income” (shares) | 1,216 | 21,415 | 35,764 |
- Individual officer ownership (including Rachael Zufall’s specific holdings), pledging, or hedging are not disclosed in NAN filings .
- Stock ownership guidelines and compliance status for officers are not disclosed in NAN filings .
Employment Terms
- Position: Vice President and Assistant Secretary; service since 2022; term of office is indefinite; officers are elected annually to serve until successors are elected and qualified .
- Compensation arrangements, severance provisions, change-of-control terms, non-compete/non-solicit, clawbacks, and tax gross-ups for fund officers are not disclosed in NAN filings .
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance alignment cannot be assessed at the Fund level: officers receive no compensation from the Funds, and there are no disclosed equity grants, metrics, or vesting schedules in NAN filings, limiting compensation-derived trading signals .
- Insider selling pressure from Fund-level awards appears negligible given the absence of disclosed options/RSUs/PSUs for officers at the Fund level; individual Form 4 activity is not presented in the proxies (ownership is reported only for the group) .
- Retention risk indicators are limited: officers have indefinite terms with annual elections, but no employment contract economics (severance, change-of-control) are disclosed at the Fund level; retention analysis depends on Nuveen/TIAA enterprise policies outside NAN filings .
- Governance oversight evolved with Board consolidation (effective January 1, 2024), but this 8-K change pertains to board composition/efficiency rather than officer incentives, and does not provide officer-level compensation levers for trading signals .