CNAS

 

Brent J. Gilhousen

Management Consultant, Environmental Attorney

Brent J. Gilhousen is an executive with extensive environmental expertise in law firm, corporate law departments and government. His consulting involves providing advice to public entities and the private sector. He served as Chief Environmental Counsel for Monsanto Company and its major subsidiaries G.D. Searle & Co. and The NutraSweet Company; Solutia Inc., and multinational corporate clients as Of Counsel with Husch Blackwell LLP. He consults on a myriad of environmental matters navigating complex business issues and provides advice in the context of environmental laws, regulations and regulatory environmental policy to achieve business goals.

 Brent's broad experience had been recognized by his appointment to several editorial boards. He is a member of the American Bar Association's Advisory Panel and served a five-year appointment at the National Chamber Litigation Center, U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He has been selected for inclusion in The American Lawyer’s and Corporate Counsel’s “Annual Guide of 2012 Top Rated Lawyers® to Energy, Environmental & Natural Resources Law.”

Giles Goodwin

Flite, Co-founder and CTO, ’96 BS Physics

Giles Goodwin has over 14 years experience building innovative software products. Prior to co-founding Flite (formerly Widgetbox), Giles Goodwin was Chief Portal Suite Architect and Director of Engineering at Vignette, a content management company, with responsibility for the management and development of composite application and web services technology.

Prior to his role at Vignette, Giles was Director of Engineering at Epicentric which was acquired by Vignette. Prior to this, Giles was lead developer and architect at Application Park, an online web application builder and portal company which was acquired by Epicentric.

Giles holds a BS in Physics from the University of California at Riverside.

Lynn Gref

Consultant, Jet Propulsion Lab
'63, '64, '66 BA, MA, PhD Mathematics

Lynn Gref received all his college degrees in mathematics from UCR (BA ‘63, MA ‘64, and PhD ‘66) and began his professional career at the University of Missouri, Columbia. Subsequently, he joined the Applied Mathematics Department of the Aerospace Corporation where he focused on computer-based modeling and simulation. He was the deputy manager for Systems Analysis and Costing when he left Aerospace to join R & D Associates where he continued to work in the areas of modeling, simulation, and systems analysis. Eventually, Lynn became involved in the design and implementation of advanced information systems applied to command and control systems for the Department of Defense. He held positions of Manager of the Mathematics and Computer Center, Project Manager, and Chief Engineer of the Information Systems Division. He next joined the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) as Manager of Information Systems where he continued to be involved with the design and implementation of advanced information systems. While at JPL he served for eight years as a member of the U.S. Army's Science Board. He also served on several study panels of the National Academy of Sciences Naval Studies Board. Although he retired from JPL as Manager of JPL's non-NASA government business, he continues today on a part-time relationship. He is a volunteer member of the L.A. Philharmonic Affiliates Speakers Bureau and serves on UCR's Gift Planning Committee.

Lynn maintains a website at www.stopamericasdecline.com.

Larry K. Grill

Director
Vaccine Development Institute
Pitzer College
'79 PhD Plant Pathology

Larry Grill is currently the Director of the Vaccine Development Institute at Pitzer College and a visiting professor at the Claremont Colleges Joint Science Department. The Vaccine Development Institute is working to enable developing African countries to self-produce low-cost vaccines. Prior to his current positions, Larry was the founding scientist at Large Scale Biology Corporation (LSBC), involved with the development and manufacture of plant-made pharmaceuticals and vaccines using a unique plant viral gene expression technology. LSBC garnered an international reputation as an innovator in biomanufacturing and has been able to produce multi-kilogram quantities of therapeutic proteins and vaccine candidates using outdoor field production sites in Kentucky. Using indoor greenhouse facilities in Vacaville, CA, the firm has had successful clinical trials producing patient-specific vaccines as a therapeutic treatment for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma cancer patients. Larry received his PhD from the Department of Plant Pathology at UCR in 1979. He has published over 25 scientific papers and is an inventor on more than 30 issued U.S. and world patents.

Robert C. Haddon

Distinguished Professor
Director, Center for Nanoscale Science and Engineering
University of California, Riverside

Robert Cort Haddon grew up in Longford, Tasmania. He obtained the B Sc(Hon) degree at Melbourne University in 1966 and an organic chemistry PhD degree from the Pennsylvania State University in 1971. He was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Texas during the period 1972-3, after which he took up a Queen Elizabeth II Fellowship at the Australian National University. In 1976 he joined Bell Telephone Laboratories; during the period 1978 to 1990 he was a member of the Chemical Physics Research Department, before assuming a position in the Materials Chemistry Research Department at AT & T (Lucent Technologies) Bell Laboratories as Distinguished Member of Technical Staff. In 1997 he was appointed Professor of Chemistry and Physics at the University of Kentucky, and in 1998 he became Director of the Advanced Carbon Materials Center (NSF Materials Research Science and Engineering Center). In 1998 he co-founded CarboLex, Inc, a company that produces and sells single-walled carbon nanotubes. In 1999, he founded Carbon Solutions, Inc., a company that is focused on the chemical processing and dissolution of carbon materials for advanced applications.

In 2000, Robert was appointed Distinguished Professor in the Departments of Chemistry and Chemical and Environmental Engineering and Director of the Center for Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) at the University of California at Riverside; in 2002, the scope of CNSE was expanded to include the Center for Nanoscale Innovation for Defense which was formed as a multicampus initiative with UCR, UCSB, and UCLA.

Siva Hari

President/CEO
Jarrow Industries, Inc.
'96 PhD Chemistry

Siva Hari was offered a partnership to plan, build, and operate a brand-new contract manufacturing and packaging facility for vitamins and nutritional supplements in 2001. Jarrow Industries, Inc. (JII) started its operations in April 2002 and has since expanded to a 90,000 square-foot cGMP facility in 2008 employing 80 people. Prior to JII, Siva worked at Soft Gel Technologies, Inc., Los Angeles, as a technical services manager and at Baxter Health Care in Irwindale and at Allergan Pharmaceuticals in Irvine. Siva earned his B.S. in Biology and M.S. in Neurobiology from the University of Oregon and his Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from the University of California, Riverside.

Leslie Hickle

Vice President Business Management
BioAtla, LLC
'74 BS Biology, ‘81 PhD Entomology

Leslie Hickle joined BioAtla, a nextgen protein engineering company, in January 2008. For the two years prior, she was one of the first employees of Synthetic Genomics and set up the company's facilities in San Diego while leading the business development activities for the company's first renewable energy collaborations. Prior to Synthetic Genomics, Leslie created and led the corporate strategic alliance program for Diversa and developed the bio-ag strategy and foundation platform for the company's Syngenta collaboration. She was founder and head of Diversa's animal health business which developed and launched with Bayer Animal Health, the first commercial subunit recombinant vaccine for farmed salmon. She has held various executive and research management positions at AgriLynx, Mycogen and Stauffer Chemical Company and has served as a biotech business and technical consultant to Bayer, Schering-Plough, Pioneer Hi-Bred, DuPont, Lilly, and Dow Chemical. Leslie received California IPM Innovator of the Year award in 2000 for creating a legacy IPM program for the California poultry industry. She also serves as Chairman of the Board for Intrinsic LifeSciences, a startup biotech company engaged in biomarker diagnostics and therapeutics for iron disorders. Leslie received both her BS (Honors, Biology) and PhD (Entomology) from the University of California, Riverside.

Michael E. Irwin

Schlinger Research Emeritus Professor of Arthropod Biodiversity
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
'71 PhD Entomology

Michael Irwin received a BS from the University of California, Davis (1963) and a PhD from the University of California, Riverside (1971). He was senior professional officer at the Natal Museum in South Africa (1971-1974); joined the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) in 1974; served as head of the Office of Agricultural Entomology, UIUC, and director of the Center of Economic Entomology, Illinois Natural History Survey, from 1990 to 1993.

Mike is currently Schlinger Research Emeritus Professor of Arthropod Biodiversity, UIUC; visiting professor at the University of Arizona; and research associate with the Illinois Natural History Survey, the California Academy of Sciences, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, and the California State Collection of Arthropods. He conducted research in international IPM, plant virus epidemiology, aphid migration, arthropod biodiversity, and stiletto fly (Diptera: Therevidae) systematics. He undertook 47 international consultancies, received numerous international and national competitive grants and awards, and authored 200+ publications

Jeffrey Klein

Dermatologic and Cosmetic Surgeon
Owner, Capistrano Surgicenter
'67 BS Math

Jeff Klein received his BS in math from UCR, attended medical school at UCSF, and obtained training and board certification in internal medicine at UCLA and dermatology at UCI. Additional studies included a master's degree in biostatistics epidemiology at UC Berkeley, and a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Research Fellowship in Clinical Pharmacology. In 1987, Jeff revolutionized the procedure for liposuction. His technique of tumescent liposuction allowed liposuction to be performed using only local anesthetics and vasoconstrictors, markedly reducing blood loss and bruising when compared to previous methods. Since this surgical breakthrough, many further refinements in tumescent liposuction have made the procedure safer and cosmetically more successful. He is an Associate Clinical Professor of Dermatology at UCI, author of numerous journal articles, and member of several professional societies, including the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery, the American Society for Mohs Surgery, and the International Anesthesiology Research Society.

David Kohn

Partner
Lewis Kohn LLC
’96 BS Biology

David Kohn is a registered patent attorney and one of the founding partners of Lewis Kohn LLP.He has experience advising corporate and academic institutions with regards to intellectual property and licensing strategies, as well as prosecuting the extensive patent estates of various organizations. He counsels clients in the technology, pharmaceutical and medical device fields, mainly handling patent prosecution and regulatory strategies.

David first began his career in science working for Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. For more than six years at Neurocrine, he was part of the Pharmacology Department responsible for identifying novel small molecules at a variety of receptors on cell surfaces. After Neurocrine, while pursuing graduate studies at UC San Diego, he was exposed to a variety of academic laboratories conducting research ranging from studies involving laser ablations of C. elegans neurons to measuring the effects of calcium transients in the developing Xenopus embryo.

His first job relating to patent law was with the Office of Patent Counsel at the Scripps Research Institute as a registered patent agent. He later clerked for the Honorable Jeffrey T. Miller in the United States District Court, Southern District of California. David earned his Bachelor of Science degree at UCR and holds a Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law. While a student at California Western, he was a member of the Student Intellectual Property Law Association.

 

John Kozarich

Chairman and President
ActivX Biosciences, Inc.
La Jolla, CA

John Kozarich was an NSF Predoctoral Fellow in Chemistry at MIT (PhD, 1975) and an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow in Biochemistry at Harvard. He began his independent career in academia, holding tenured professorships and an American Cancer Society Faculty Research Award at Yale University School of Medicine in pharmacology and at the University of Maryland in chemistry and biochemistry. A sabbatical in 1990 as CSO of a start-up biotech company Alkermes, in Cambridge, MA motivated him to explore other venues for his chemical interests. He entered the pharmaceutical sector in 1992, becoming Vice President of Biochemistry at Merck Research labs, Rahway, NJ. There he assumed broad responsibilities for a number of Merck drug discovery programs and biotech ventures, and led the development of Merck's Boston Research Center. In 2001, John joined the San Diego biotech scene with his ongoing role at ActivX, focusing on novel chemoproteomics platform development based on his research interests over the years. Internationally known for his work on enzyme mechanisms and on the chemistry of DNA-cleaving antitumor drugs, John continues to apply basic chemical ideas to problems at the interface of drug discovery and medicine. He has received numerous awards and served on many committees in the academic, government and business sectors. In addition to his role at ActivX, he is Chairman of the Board at Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Chief Scientific Advisor at Kyorin Pharmaceutical Co. (Tokyo) and Adjunct Professor of Chemical Physiology at TSRI.

 

Werner G. Kuhr

Strategic Technical Counsel
Esionic Corp.

Werner Kuhr, former vice president of research at ZettaCore in Colorado, is a former professor of chemistry at the University of California, Riverside. He earned his BS and MS degrees in chemistry from Stevens Institute of Technology (1980 and 1982), and worked as a research chemist in analytical development at Merck. He received his PhD in chemistry from Indiana University (1986), then spent one year as a NATO Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Groningen, The Netherlands, followed by one year as an Ames Lab Postdoctoral Fellow at Iowa State University. He joined the chemistry faculty at the University of California, Riverside as an assistant professor (1988), and was promoted to associate professor (1993) and to full professor (1998). He founded and served as the director of the UCR Microfabrication Facility (1999-2002) and was a founding member of the UCR Genomics Institute. Werner has published more than 90 scientific papers, has delivered over 100 invited lectures at conferences and universities across the world, and has been issued 10 U.S. and international patents. He is currently serving on the board of directors of the Society of Electroanalytical Chemistry. He has been the recipient of a number of awards including a Presidential Young Investigator Award from the National Science Foundation (1989); a Young Investigator Award from the Society of Electroanalytical Chemistry (1993); and the Jubilee Silver Medal from the Chromatographic Society, England (1994). He was named a Tour Speaker for the Society of Analytical Spectroscopy (1994). ZettaCore is working to revolutionize the microelectronics industry by developing ultra-dense, low-power, lower-cost memory chips.

Harry Kurani

Owner
Magnolia Pool and Spa

Harry Kurani is a 16-year resident of Riverside. He and his wife, Deepa, arrived in the United States from India in 1988 with $37 in their possession. After only a few short years, they purchased Magnolia Pool and Spa Supplies, building it into the largest pool and spa retailer in the Riverside area. Now with seven very profitable stores, Harry plans to open 100 new stores in the southern California region in the coming years. Since 2004, Harry has served on the City of Riverside Planning Commission and is very involved in local government relations.   

John Leonard

Pharmaceutical Consultant
'78 PhD Biochemistry

John Leonard earned his BS and MS degrees in chemistry, in 1969 and 1972, respectively, from California State University Long Beach and his PhD in biochemistry from the University of California, Riverside in 1978. From 1977 through 1983 John held postdoctoral fellowships in the Department of Biology and, subsequently, the School of Medicine at the University of California, San Diego. From 1983 through 1986 he was an Assistant Research Biochemist in the Cancer Center, School of Medicine, U.C. San Diego and was a New Investigator Research Award recipient. In 1988 John joined IDEC Pharmaceuticals where over the next several years he held various positions of increasing responsibility. During the period between 1997 and 2005 John served as Vice President for Quality and Vice President for Product Development. In these positions he led various product development teams and his responsibilities included partner management and due diligence evaluation of potential in-licensing opportunities. In 2003 IDEC merged with Biogen to form Biogen Idec and he served from 2003 through 2005 as Vice President and Program Executive for the Tysabri development team. John has authored various sections of several investigational new drug applications and has participated in the launch of three biologic products. These are Rituxan^TM and Zevalin^TM, for the treatment of patients with B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and Tysabri^TM, for the treatment of patients with multiple sclerosis. Presently John serves on the Scientific Advisory Board of Vaccinex, Inc., and is Principal, John Leonard Consulting, LLC, serving biotechnology companies as a consultant in the areas of nonclinical pharmacology and toxicology, quality, manufacturing, and regulatory affairs.

Eric Mathur

Vice President & Chief Technologist
SG Biofuels
'77 BS Biology

Eric Mathur currently holds the position of Vice President Genomic Research for the nonprofit J. Craig Venter Institute. He is responsible for helping establish the La Jolla research facilities for both J. Craig Venter and Synthetic Genomics, Inc. In 2009 he became a founding delegate of the E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation. Prior to these recent appointments, he served as Vice President of Scientific Affairs and Molecular Diversity at Diversa Corporation. Eric also performed research at Scripps Research Foundation and at the University of California, Riverside, where he received his BS degree in Biology with Highest Honors in 1977.

Eric was awarded an adjunct faculty appointment at the University of Hawaii Institute of Marine Biotechnology, and also holds Visiting Distinguished Scientist positions at both the Institute of Thermal Biology at Montana State University and the International Center for Insect Physiology and Ecology in Kenya. He is a Biosciences Fellow for South Africa's Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR); sits on the Queensland North America Biotechnology Council and Cal State San Marcos Biotechnology Advisory Council; sits on the Board of Advisors for the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at UC Riverside; and is an editor of the journal Extremophiles. Eric has published over 60 scientific papers, is named inventor on more than 50 issued U.S. and world patents, and has been invited to present over 100 scientific lectures.

Mike Mellano, Sr.

Senior Vice President
Mellano and Co.
'69 PhD Plant Pathology

Mike Mellano was the Senior Vice President of Mellano and Company, a third-generation family-owned floral business, which has growing operations in San Luis Rey and Carlsbad, CA. Initially established in Los Angeles in 1925, Mellano and Company has not only expanded its wholesale division in the Los Angeles Flower Market, but also has locations in Carlsbad, and Las Vegas. Mellano and Co. is a company of firsts. It was one of the first operations to implement integrated pest management and scouting, and to utilize irrigation systems to minimize runoff and water flow. Mellano and Co. was one of the first to utilize a pre-cooling system ¬which allows flowers to be shipped at their optimal level, and to recognize and develop the usage of smaller boxes for packaging flowers, allowing for improved quality control and handling.

Mike Sr. graduated from Cal Poly Pomona in 1960 with a Bachelor of Science in Horticulture, and from UC Riverside in 1969 with a PhD in Plant Pathology. He is a member of many organizations and boards including Alpha Zeta Agricultural Honor Society and the American Phytopathological Society, and was President of the California Floral Council.

Corky Mizer

President and CEO

Corky's Pest Control

Corky Mizer started his pest control career on his family's small farm at the early age of nine. With the exception of five years working for General Motors, he has spent the vast majority of his life dealing with insects and their control.

He's pioneered many things in the pest control industry, the latest being photo termite inspection reports that are emailed to his customers, setting a new standard in modern pest control customer service. In addition, one of his first innovations was the addition of pumps and hoses on the back of pest control trucks, which weren't available when he needed them in 1967.

He has worked with many of the industry pharmaceutical companies to develop products that work effectively in the field. He tests these and all products on small areas prior to adding them onto his entire fleet of pest control trucks.

Corky is considered an innovator, a leader, and a published author in the pest control field, having written eleven books on pest control and pest control techniques. He has also received countless awards throughout the years for his involvement in his industry as well as his generous investment in community projects.

Corky recently received his 4th degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.

Brian W. Noland

Principal Scientist
Biosite, Inc., an Inverness Medical Innovations Company
San Diego, CA

Brian Noland is a Principal Scientist with the Product Development Group at Biosite Inc., recently acquired by Inverness Medical Innovations, where he has contributed to several of Biosite's quantitative diagnostic assay products. Most recently, Brian was the lead development scientist on the Triage NGAL Test (Neutrophil Gelatinase-Associated Lipocalin), which was commercialized in the EU and other countries in early 2009. NGAL is a novel biomarker for the early detection of kidney dysfunction. Prior to his work at Biosite, Brian established an in vitro biochemistry group at SGX Pharmaceuticals, a San Diego- based crystallography-driven pharmaceutical company, to help manage their rational drug design programs. He also led the SGX Lead Discovery group during the FAST^TM (Fragments of Active Structures) proof-of-concept phase. Brian received a bachelor's degree in creative studies biology from the University of California, Santa Barbara, where he studied the ethylene forming enzyme from avocados. He worked for two years at Boehringer Mannheim in Concord, CA, doing large-scale protein purification and conjugation chemistry before attending graduate school. Brian received a PhD in Biochemistry and Biophysics from Texas A&M University in the laboratory of Professor Thomas O. Baldwin, where he studied the biophysics of protein folding in a bacterial luciferase model system.

Tina S. Nova

President, CEO, and Co-Founder
Genoptix, Inc.
'82 PhD Biochemistry

Tina Nova is President, Chief Executive Officer, Co-Founder, and a Director of Genoptix, Inc. Over the past several years she has been involved in the co-founding of three life science companies in the San Diego biotechnology community. Her current company, Genoptix, Inc., is a venture-backed biotechnology company developing advanced cellular isolation characterization techniques applicable in the post-genomics era. She received a BSc degree in biological sciences at UCI, where she graduated with honors, and she received her PhD in biochemistry from UCR. Tina serves on the Advisory Boards of the UCSD Division of Biological Sciences, the Keck Graduate Institute of Applied Life Sciences Advisory Council, and UCI Division of Biological Sciences. Additionally, she is on the Board of Trustees of the University of San Diego. Tina was the winner of the 2004 BIOCOM James McGraw Distinguished Contribution Award, the 2004 Distinguished Alumnus Award from UCR, the 2003 Distinguished Alumnus Award from UCI, the 2002 Outstanding Executive Award from UCSD Jacobs School of Engineering, and the 2001 Athena Pinnacle Award.

Terry W. Osborn

Founder/CEO
AbaStar MDx^TM Inc.
'69 BS, '74 MS, '76 PhD Biochemistry

Terry Osborn holds a PhD in biochemistry from UCR and an M.B.A. with honors in marketing and finance from Pepperdine University. He joined Gene Express, Inc. in 2002 as President and CEO and is a Director of Advanced Life Sciences^TM (ADLS). Prior to this position, he was President and CEO of Pharmaceutical Development Center, a contract formulation, development, and cGMP manufacturer of sterile and nonsterile biopharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical drugs. Under his leadership the management team rebuilt, validated, and made operational a new cGMP facility, which was sold to AAIPharma, Inc. Previously, Terry was the Founder, President, and CEO of Health Advance Institute, a national clinical research organization providing clinical research services to pharmaceutical and biotech companies. He has also held key senior positions at the Nichols Institute, IVAC Corporation (a division of Eli Lilly), and McGaw (a division of American Hospital Supply). Terry began his career as a bench scientist; he has extensive experience in analysis, analytical development, stability evaluations, preformulation development, technical transfer to pilot plant scale-up and clinical supply preparation. His product development experience includes work on 10 marketed products.

John Perchorowicz

President, Triage Masters, LLC
'71 BA, '73 MA Biology

John Perchorowicz, President, Triage Masters, LLC, is using his extensive experience in technology transfer in university environments to provide guidance to university technology transer offices in fuffilling their mission.  These services are aimed at improving internal decision-making criteria, management processes and performance metrics and include aiding in the identification of those invention disclosures that offer ttechnologies with true commercial promise, developing comprehenwsive commercialization plans and patenting strategies, assisting in the direction and management of patent prosecution, implementing technology marketing, negotiating commercialization temrs and agreements, and managing the on-going diligence oversight once transfer of the technology has been effected.

John currently serves on a number of advisory boards including the Johns Hopkins Alliance for Science and Technology Development, the University of Maryland Baltimore Commercialization Advisory Board, Medical College of Wisconsin Technology Innovation Council, BioDiscovery Toronto, University of Arizona OTT Community Advisory Committee, and was a past member of the Florida Institute for Commercialization of Public Research and the Technology Transfer Advisory Board, University of Minnesota.

Prior to Triage Masters, John directed Research Corporation Technologies/RCT BioVenture's new and continuing business-development relationships for over 20 years. He was a board member of Milestone Medica, Inc., a Canadian venture fund. He has lectured on various aspects of technology commercialization in North America, Japan and Taiwan. He joined RCT in 1988. Prior to RCT he was a Managing Principal Scientist at Calgene, Inc. where he was the primary liaison between science and business, responsible for scientific review of projects emanating from either R&D or marketing.

Stephen Pentoney, Jr.

Director of Technology Management and Scientific Affairs
Beckman Coulter, Inc.
'87 PhD Chemistry

Steve Pentoney earned his BS in Chemistry in 1983 from California State University Long Beach and his PhD in Analytical Chemistry from the University of California, Riverside in 1987, working under the mentorship of Professor Peter Griffiths in the area of hyphenated techniques. Steve then took a postdoctoral research position with Richard Zare at Stanford University working in the area of capillary electrophoresis-based biochemical analysis. In 1989 he joined the Palo Alto-based research and development group of Beckman Instruments, now known as Beckman Coulter. Over the years, Steve has held various positions of increasing responsibility within Beckman Coulter's Research and Development Groups and Product Development Centers. He is currently the Director of Technology Management and Scientific Affairs within Beckman Coulter's High Sensitivity Testing Group, which is the business center responsible for the company's molecular diagnostic and immunoassay businesses.

Steve holds a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt from San Diego State University, has been awarded 19 U.S. patents, is a member of the Beckman Coulter Inventor's Hall of Fame, and has authored or coauthored 30 scientific publications. In 2003 Steve received the Distinguished Alumnus award from the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at California State University Long Beach and is a member of CSULB's Chemistry/Biochemistry Department Advisory Board. In 2006 Steve was elected to the Grants Advisory Council of the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation's Beckman Young Investigator Program.

Most importantly, Steve holds his United States Coast Guard Captain's License, which enables him to run fishing charters in his spare time.

Linda Millsaps Pullan

Biotech Consultant
'83 PhD Biochemistry

Linda Pullan earned her BS in chemistry from the University of Utah and PhD in Biochemistry from UCR in 1983. Linda has more than 20 years of pharmaceutical and biotechnology experience, previously serving as Vice President, Business Development at Kosan Biosciences. Previously she held licensing positions at Amgen as Director of Oncology and Hematology Licensing and at Zeneca Pharmaceuticals, where she headed the lab focused on excitatory amino acids in stroke and pain. She also held various research positions with ICI/Zeneca Pharmaceuticals and Monsanto/Searle. Linda has authored more than 50 publications and contributed to two drugs that made it to the clinic, including Seroquel, now on the market. While at UCR she worked on enzymology and protein chemistry under the guidance of Ernst Noltmann.

John G. Rau

President/CEO
Ultra-Research, Inc.
'59 BA Mathematics

John Rau is president of Anaheim-based Ultra-Research, Inc., a 20-year-old market research firm that specializes in data and information services relative to new ideas, products, processes, and technologies. More specifically, the firm's major focus is to provide data and information research services in the areas of market research, market planning, market assessment, and overall strategic business planning. Specialized types of services performed for inventors include market research and evaluation for ideas and patents, identifying companies that may have an interest in licensing or purchasing a patent, assistance in the preparation of marketing plans as part of an overall business plan, and general consulting as to what to do with an idea or invention. John earned his BA in mathematics at the University of California, Riverside in 1959.

Gerald Robinson

Chief Executive Manager
The Peregrine Company 
'66 BA Chemistry

Dr. Robinson is Chief Executive Manager of The Peregrine Company, a firm that is engaged in incubating and managing several newly formed businesses. He has recently retired as principal project manager at Centella Therapeutics, Inc., where he led efforts to find ways to enhance the effectiveness of radiation therapy by using targeted molecular therapies (drugs) that augment the therapeutic effect of radiation.

He was previously with Perspectives, Inc. as Projects Director and S&T Counsel, acting as the S&T advisor for the firm as well as managing projects for National Laboratory clients. Dr. Robinson has over 20 years’ experience as a research & teaching faculty member in top-ranked universities and nearly 10 years in global business development and management. He has extensive experience in chemical, biochemical and biomedical sciences and engineering; and formal training in intellectual property valuation and licensing. Gerald has over 60 published research papers and book chapters on biomedical and diagnostic applications of radioactive molecules and radiopharmaceuticals, and possesses a broad background in science, technology, engineering and marketing.

Dr. Robinson started his professional career in 1970, as a cancer researcher at Roswell Park Memorial Institute in Buffalo, NY, where he pursued an interest in the use of radioisotopes in diagnostic medicine. Beginning in 1971, he continued to develop his expertise in this area during his decade long tenure as head of the Nuclear Medicine chemistry group at the UCLA School of Medicine. After moving to the University of Pennsylvania in 1981, Gerald led development of Penn’s Biomedical Cyclotron Facility where he was the founding director. He brought his interest and expertise in PET applications and technology to GE Medical Systems in 1989, where he was manager of that new business venture’s Cyclotron Program. After returning to California in 2001, Gerald assumed a position in the Technology Applications Group at Sandia National Laboratories, where he managed Conventional Demilitarization projects and led several business development initiatives.

Gerald received a BA in Chemistry at the University of California, Riverside, in 1966, a PhD in Chemistry from SUNY Buffalo, in 1970, and an MBA in finance from Eastern University, in 1988.
 

Oliver Ryder

Kleberg Genetics Chair
Conservation and Research for Endangered Species
Zoological Society of San Diego
'68 BA Biology

Oliver Ryder holds the Kleberg Genetics Chair at the Center for Reproduction of Endangered Species, Zoological Society of San Diego, where he heads the Genetics Division and is an Adjunct Professor of Biology at the University of California, San Diego. Active research interests include mammalian molecular evolution and comparative primate genomics. He participates in conservation efforts for mammalian, reptilian, and avian species. He directs the development and utilization of the "Frozen Zoo," a unique genetic resource bank incorporating more than 5,000 specimens representing approximately 400 species and subspecies. He is currently the President of the American Genetic Association and an Associate Editor for the Journal of Heredity and Conservation Genetics. Oliver is a member of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Recovery Team for the endangered peninsular bighorn sheep, the Przewalski's Horse Global Management Working Group, the American Zoo and Aquarium Association Small Population Management Advisory Group, the IUCN-World Conservation Unions Equid Specialist Group, Reintroduction Specialist Group, and Tapir Specialist Group.

Pedram Salimpour

President
Plymouth Health
'90 BS Biology

Pedram Salimpour earned his BS in biology at UCR and a master's in public health from UCLA. Following a position at Ketchum Advertising as an account executive for pharmaceuticals, he completed MA and MD degrees from Boston University School of Medicine. During his years at Boston, Pedram was active in clinical and research projects on male and female sexual dysfunction, contributing to the development of new pharmacological agents like sildenefil citrate (marketed by Pfizer as Viagra) and groundbreaking urological research-becoming the university's spokesperson on this work for print, radio, and news reports. Pedram received the American College of Physicians' Research Award, the only person to have received this prestigious award twice (1997 and 1998). He has lectured internationally, is widely published in academic journals, and remains a media contact today on a variety of medical questions. He was associate producer of "Michelle," an AIDS documentary, and is currently working on an antismoking television campaign. A practicing pediatrician, Pedram most recently co-authored major grant awards from the National Institutes of Health-National Library of Medicine and the Unihealth Foundation on behalf of NexCare Collaborative, a nonprofit he co-founded that helps Latino parents obtain healthcare insurance for their children.

Michael J. Schlehuber

Chief Executive Officer
Greenstone Resource Partners
'87 MS Geological Sciences

Michael Schlehuber, CFA, is Chief Executive Officer of Greenstone Resource Partners, an investment company focused on the acquisition and development of water assets in the western U.S.  A trained hydrogeologist and experienced financial executive, Mike previously developed water resources for sale to municipal water providers throughout the western United States as Managing Partner of Summit Global Management and Chief Financial of Vidler Water Company, a division of PICO Holdings (Nasdaq: PICO). 

Mike began his career in water as a hydrogeologist with Eastern Municipal Water District, a member agency of Southern California’s Metropolitan Water District (MWD).  He also served as Chief Financial Officer of ASM Marketing Services Group, where he managed revenue growth from $17 million to $230 million during a six-year tenure.  Mike holds a BS in geology from the University of Notre Dame and an MS in geological sciences with a specialty in hydrogeology from the University of California, Riverside.  He also earned an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, and holds both CFA and CPA (inactive) designations.

Richard R. Schrock

Frederick G. Keyes Professor of Chemistry
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
'67 BA Chemistry

Richard Schrock received a BA degree from UCR in 1967 and PhD from Harvard in 1971. He joined the MIT faculty in 1975. His interests include the inorganic and organometallic chemistry of high oxidation state early metal complexes, catalytic reactions, and reactions involving alkyl or alkylidene complexes. He is perhaps best known for his discovery of "high oxidation state carbene" by alpha hydrogen abstraction in high oxidation state metal alkyl complexes. Richard has received many awards, including the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2005 (with R. H. Grubbs and Y. Chauvin). He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Sciences, and the Royal Society (London).

David K. Shuh

Senior Scientist and Principal Investigator
Chemical Sciences Division
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
’83 BS Chemistry

David K. Shuh is a Senior Scientist and Principal Investigator in the Actinide Chemistry Group of the Chemical Sciences Division at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) in Berkeley, CA. He is the Associate Director of the Glenn T. Seaborg Center and the Principal Scientist for the Molecular Environmental Sciences Beamline 11.0.2 of the Advanced Light Source at LBNL. His research focuses on the science of the actinide elements with an emphasis on the transuranic elements. He is an expert in the development of synchrotron radiation techniques to explore the fundamental chemistry and physics of the actinides. His current interests include elucidating the behavior of 5f electrons to understand the electronic structure and coordination chemistry of the transuranic elements. David has authored more than 175 publications and has edited 4 books. He has been recognized twice for outstanding performance at LBNL.

David received a B.S. in chemistry from UCR in 1983 and a Ph.D in physical chemistry from UCLA in 1990. From 1982 to 1985, He was a world-ranked professional tennis player. He is UCR’s only three-time NCAA All-American. He is the first tennis player inducted into UCR’s Athletic Hall of Fame, and is a member of the City of Riverside Sports Hall of Fame.

Christopher Thurin

President
Benefits Resource
'90 BS Psychobiology

Christopher Thurin is President and founder of Benefits Resource, an employee benefits and healthcare consulting practice. He completed his BS degree at UCR in Psychobiology in 1990. He subsequently founded Benefits Resource with the goal of providing a methodological approach to controlling healthcare costs. Benefits Resource's technical strategies are implemented for the purpose of reducing healthcare costs for employees. Chris leverages his employer contacts to help distribute subsidized health insurance for uninsured children. As part of Benefits Resource's ongoing support of the community, he also provides marketing support for nonprofit organizations dedicated to providing health coverage to uninsured children. He serves as a board member for Southland Opera dedicated to the children's education and outreach program.

Tumay O. Tumer

President
Nova Rand D, Inc.

Tumay Tumer founded NOVA R & D, Inc., in 1984 with the vision of transforming the tools of x-ray and gamma ray astrophysics into instruments serving the needs of medicine, homeland security, and industry. A researcher at the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, Riverside, for more than 20 years, he recently retired to devote himself full time to the company. Drawing strength from an international team of seasoned experimental physicists and electronics engineers, NOVA, located in Riverside, specializes in the development of innovative radiation detector technologies. Its principal focus is on the design and production of novel mixed-signal, multichannel microchips, electronics boards, firmware, and software for the readout of state-of-the-art radiation detectors.

Gary A. Van Nest

'72 BA Biology

Gary Van Nest received his BA in biology from UCR and his PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Arizona.  He has been Vice President, Vaccine Research and Development at MedImmune, LLC since September 2008. From 2000 to 2008 he was Vice President, Preclinical Research at Dynavax Technologies and from 1997 to 2000 was Senior Director of Preclinical Research at Dynavax.  From 1985 to 1997, Gary was with Chiron Corporation, serving in several positions of increasing responsibility culminating in a position as Acting Head of Vaccine Research.  He has directed the development of novel adjuvants and vaccines against a variety of targets including herpes simplex virus, HIV, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus and cytomegalovirus.         Gary has authored over 50 journal articles and 14 book chapters.

Wayne R. Wecksler

Owner
Golf Pro Partners
'73 BA Biology, '74 MS, '78 PhD Biochemistry

Wayne Wecksler attended UC Riverside as an undergraduate where he was a pre-med Biology major and played baseball and football. He received his undergraduate degree from UCR in 1973 and his doctorate in Biochemistry in 1978. After a one-year postdoc with the Institute Nationale de Sante et de la Recherche Medicale in Paris, he joined Bio-Science Laboratories in Van Nuys, CA, as a Research Scientist. During his time in R & D, he worked on developing medical diagnostic tests in the areas of immunochemistry and therapeutic drug monitoring. In 1981, he left research and development and moved into laboratory operations management, holding a variety of positions including Site Director-San Francisco, Chemistry Department Manager, Technical Director, and General Manager. Through a series of industry consolidations and mergers, Bio-Science Laboratories became part of SmithKline Clinical Laboratories and was ultimately acquired by Quest Diagnostics in 1999.

In 1989, Wayne received his MBA in Finance and Marketing from UCLA's Anderson School. While General Manager of SmithKline Beecham's National Esoteric Testing Center he oversaw the construction of a state-of-the-art molecular genetics testing laboratory and had overall responsibility for Research and Development.

In 2000, Wayne retired from the medical laboratory business to pursue a second career in the golf industry. He graduated from the San Diego Golf Academy in 2003 and took a position as Assistant Golf Professional at Coto de Caza Golf and Racquet Club in south Orange County. In 2005, he accepted his current position as Second Assistant at Big Canyon Country Club in Newport Beach. He obtained membership in the PGA of America in 2006 and completed all six of the PGA's certification programs in 2007, becoming only one of a handful of the 28,000 PGA members who have done so. In June, 2008 he left Big Canyon Country Club to start his own consulting business providing educational, training, and operations consulting services to golf professionals.

Sharon P. Wilczynski

Director, Anatomic Pathology
City of Hope National Medical Center
'69, '70 BA Zoology, MA Microbiology

Sharon Wilczynski is currently the Director of Anatomic Pathology at City of Hope and specializes in gynecologic pathology. Throughout her career, she has been involved in multiple investigations studying genetic causes and potential treatments for cervical and ovarian cancers, with particular emphasis on the role of human papillomaviruses (HPVs) in the etiology of cervical and other cancers. Currently Sharon is involved in several group clinical trials testing new therapies for patients with ovarian, endometrial, and breast cancers. Her studies have been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the California Cancer Research Program, and the Southwest Oncology Group.
In addition to her research, Sharon is active in national and local medical and scientific bodies. She currently serves as chair of the Gynecologic Pathology subcommittee for the Southwest Oncology Group, and is a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Committee for Determining Practice Guidelines for Cervical Cancer Screening.
Sharon graduated from University of California at Riverside then completed a PhD in Microbiology and Immunology from the University of California, Los Angeles. She then received her medical degree from the Medical College of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and did her residency in pathology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. She also served as an American Cancer Society Fellow in Pathology at the University of Pennsylvania. Sharon has authored more than 120 peer-reviewed publications as well as multiple book chapters and delivered lectures and presentations at medical conferences around the world.

 

Minutes from Last Meeting

The Board of Advisors met April 2, 2009, in 205/206 Engineering Building II.

Marketing Study

Members and guests participated in a marketing study and communications platform session presented by Margen Mastin-Schepps, UCR Marketing Director, and Linda Petersen, consultant. After meeting in three separate break-out sessions, the group reconvened and reported their findings. Two "expression" options were discussed:

1.    Extraordinary Science. Global Impact.

• Extraordinary Science. From California to the World.
• Extraordinary Science. Entrepreneurial Results.

2.   California Science. Global Power.

• Science from California. Answers for the World.
• Global Challenges. California Solutions

Board Priority #1 - The Faculty as Economic Engines

Discussed how to create pathways to commercialization and how best to help faculty convert their intellectual capital to benefit the college, the university, and the public at large. Board members include two CNAS faculty members who have been successful entrepreneurs: Robert Haddon in Chemistry, and Bill Frankenberger in Environmental Science.

Board Priority #2 - The Business of Science

Discussed programs where science students could earn a certificate in business. An article from Science, 27 March 2009, Vol. 323, "Professional Science Master's Programs Merit Wider Support" was reviewed. The article reviewed a recent study showing the potential of offering an alternative career path in building a scientific work force.

Board Priority #3 - Scientific Literacy and the Public

The Dean reported that the Science Circle has been created. Founding Chair Gary Lee was present and gave an overview of the group. The goals of the Science Circle are:

1. To sponsor seminars and public lectures
2. To support student academic awards - the UCR Science Student Awards in Excellence
3. To fund Faculty Fellows
4. To hold Science Circle Lectures, Science Circle Dinner, Scholars Luncheon, Fellows Reception