Bolu Ajiboye, PhD Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Case Western Reserve University
Dr. Ajiboye’s main research interest is in the development and control of brain-computer-interface (BCI) neuroprosthetic technologies for restoring function to individuals who have experienced severely debilitating injuries to the nervous system, such as spinal cord injury and stroke. Currently, he is interested in understanding at a systems level the relationships between the firing patterns of multi-neuronal networks and the kinetic (muscle activity and force) and kinematic (limb position and velocity) outputs of these neural systems in the control of upper-limb movements. The end goal of his research is to develop BCI systems that allow for more natural interactions with one’s surrounding environment, and more natural control of assistive technologies, such as artificial limbs and functional electrical stimulation (FES) based systems. Dr. Ajiboye has received both a junior and senior level Career Development Award from the Department of Veteran’s Affairs.
Ran An, PhD Senior Research Associate, Dept. of Biomedical Engineering, Case Western Reserve University
Featured talk: "Microtechnologies enabled next generation point-of-care diagnosis and monitoring”
Dr. Ran An, PhD is a Senior Research Associate in the lab of Dr. Umut Gurkan in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Case Western Reserve University. Dr An recently received a grant from the Center for Advancing Point of Care Technologies in Heart Lung Blood and Sleep Disorders (CAPCaT). Dr An’s research focuses on non-invasive point-of-care diagnostics for sickle cell, anemia, and malaria.
Venkataramanan “Ragu” Balakrishnan, PhD Charles H. Phipps Dean of the Case Western Reserve University School of Engineering
Venkataramanan “Ragu” Balakrishnan, the Charles H. Phipps Dean of the Case School of Engineering, received his B.Tech degree in electronics and communication engineering and the President of India Gold Medal from The Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, India in 1985, graduating at the top of the university. He received an MS degree in statistics in 1992, and MS and PhD degrees in electrical engineering, in 1989 and 1992 respectively, all from Stanford University. Following post-doctoral stints at Stanford, Caltech and the University of Maryland, he joined the faculty of the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at Purdue University (West Lafayette, Ind.) in 1994, where he last served as the Michael and Katherine Birck Head of ECE and professor. Prior to assuming the leadership of ECE, he served in a variety of leadership positions at Purdue, most notably as associate dean of research of the College of Engineering. He was appointed dean of the Case School of Engineering at Case Western Reserve University in September 2018. Balakrishnan is also a professor in the Department of Electrical, Computer and Systems Engineering; his research interests are primarily in the areas of control, and the application of convex optimization to problems from systems, control, robotics, communication and signal processing. He is a coauthor of the research monograph Linear Matrix Inequalities in System and Control Theory, SIAM, 1994. Balakrishnan has held several volunteer and leadership positions in the systems and control community, including editorial positions at the IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control and the SIAM Journal on Control and Optimization. He was appointed to the IEEE Control Systems Society Board of Governors for 2014, currently serves on the IEEE CSS Executive Committee as the Director of Operations and will serve as an elected member of the CSS Board of Governors for 2019-21. Balakrishnan received an Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award (ONR-YI) in 1997. From the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue, he received the Ruth and Joel Spira Outstanding Teacher Award in 1997, and the Honeywell Award for excellence in teaching in 2001. He was named a Purdue University Scholar in 2008. Balakrishnan is a Fellow of the IEEE.
James Basilion, PhD Professor, Dept. of Biomedical Engineering and Radiology, Case Western Reserve University; Susann M. Brady-Kalnay, PhD Professor, Depts. of Molecular and Microbiology, Pathology, and Neurosciences, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
James P. Basilion completed his BA in Biochemistry at the University of Pennsylvania in 1984 and earned his Ph.D. from the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston in 1990. Following postdoctoral postdoctoral fellowship at the National Institutes of Health (NICHD) in the Cell Biology and Metabolism Dr. Basilion transitioned to a Senior Scientist position at a small genomics/ anti-cancer biotech company in Boston. In 1999, Dr. Basilion joined the Faculty of Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital-Center for Molecular Imaging Research and later was recruited to the CWRU Schools of Medicine and Engineering where he now is a tenured full professor of Radiology and Biomedical Engineering, the Director of the Case Center for Imaging Research, Vice Chair of Basic Sciences Research for the Department of Radiology, Co-Director of the Cancer Imaging Program at the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, and a Fellow of the National Foundation for Cancer Research.
Robert H. Bradner, JD Partner, Holland & Knight LLP, Washington DC
Robert Bradner is an attorney in Holland & Knight's Federal Practice. He joined the firm in 2000 following 13 years in government service. His congressional career included seven years as chief of staff and counsel to Rep. John Edward Porter, former chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies. With more than 30 years of background working in the legislative and regulatory arena, Mr. Bradner provides counseling, strategy development, drafting and advocacy services on a range of complex and difficult federal matters. He has a long track record of effectively impacting policy and funding outcomes on behalf of firm clients.
Mr. Bradner has broad experience in healthcare policy and funding. He works through Congress, the Administration and the regulatory process to shape developments in areas such as Medicare reimbursement, Medicaid, the regulation of healthcare providers, health insurance markets, biomedical research and public health programs. He also works on initiatives related to the Veterans Health Administration and U.S. Department of Defense health programs. Another focus area for Mr. Bradner is higher education policy, program, compliance and funding issues. Additionally, he often utilizes his extensive background in the federal budget and appropriations process to assist academic institutions, medical centers and a range of nonprofit entities on federal funding matters related to infrastructure, program support, research and development and other matters.
Susann M. Brady-Kalnay, PhD Professor, Depts. of Molecular and Microbiology, Pathology, and Neurosciences, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Dr. Brady-Kalnay has been a faculty member at Case Western Reserve University for 25 years in the Department of Molecular Biology & Microbiology. She is also a Professor of Neurosciences, Pathology and member of the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center. She trained in the fields of cell adhesion and signaling. Her research focuses on development and cancer-related signaling via Receptor Tyrosine Phosphatases. Her most recent studies have established the existence of a key change in proteolysis of the cell-cell adhesion molecule and receptor protein tyrosine phosphatase, PTPmu, in human cancer. Dr. Brady-Kalnay's tumor research has been supported by many National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants including a prestigious R01 Provocative Questions grant and an Academic Industrial Partnership grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI).
Following her observation of the proteolytic change in PTPmu in tumors, she then exploited this for development of novel molecular diagnostic and imaging agents as well as theranostic targeting agents for tumors. The PTPmu agents target virtually all tumor cells regardless of their distance from the main tumor mass thus improving tumor detection, imaging and targeted therapeutics. She is developing a platform technology to image and target primary and invasive tumors using fluorescence, magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography, and theranostic approaches with these PTPmu agents. She has used cutting edge approaches such as cryo-imaging to track tumor cells 3-dimensionally in tumor models to characterize tumor growth patterns. She has also used various magnetic resonance imaging approaches, including magnetic resonance fingerprinting, to detect and track brain tumors with more precision and higher specificity than conventional techniques.
Mark Chance PhD Symposium Chair and Charles W. and Iona A. Mathias Professor of Cancer Research, Depts. of Nutrition and Genetics and Genome Sciences, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Dr. Mark Chance is an internationally recognized expert in proteomics and structural biology who has built multiple internationally recognized science and training programs over a 30-year career in academia. He has published over 300 papers with over 18,000 citations with an H-index of 72 (Google scholar). He has been named a Distinguished University Professor and has Professor appointments in the Departments of Nutrition, Genetics & Genome Sciences, and General Medical Sciences at the School of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University (CWRU). At CWRU, he directs the Center for Proteomics and Bioinformatics, the Center for Synchrotron Biosciences, and the Systems Biology Graduate Program. He is also holder of the Charles W. and Iona A. Mathias Chair in Cancer Research. Dr. Chance has led dozens of Federally funded research projects over his career is a member of many national and international advisory panels in a wide range of research and training areas. He has multiple patents and patent filings and has launched a successful startup company, NeoProteomics, Inc.
Victoria E. Coyle, PhD Lead Scientist, Airman Systems Directorate, 711 Human Performance Wing, Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, OH
Featured talk: "Electrochemical sensors for monitoring Warfighter readiness and performance"
Dr. Victoria Coyle, PhD is a research scientist at UES, Inc and lead scientist at the Air Force lab, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Dr Coyle received her BS and Phd at RMIT and completed a post-doctoral fellowship at RMIT in Electrochemistry. In 2018, Dr. Coyle received the RSV Young Scientist Research Prize for Physical Sciences.
Lisa Damato, PhD Associate Professor, Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing and the Dept. of Physiology and Biophysics, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Featured talk: "Cognitive Fatigue: an outcome of tactical aviation-induced systemic inflammation"
Dr. Elizabeth Damato received her undergraduate degree at Vanderbilt University and holds graduate degrees from University of Pennsylvania and Boston College. She is a clinical scientist with postdoctoral funding from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, where she developed expertise and knowledge in interventional neurostimulation in preclinical models. Her training in bench research and neuroscience included a focus on neuroimaging and electroencephalography. Her research interests include the effects of sleep loss, hypoxia, and hyperoxia on executive functioning. Her current research efforts involve studies of brain structure and function, using functional near infrared spectroscopy, high-density electroencephalography, and magnetic resonance imaging. She is licensed as a nurse practitioner in the state of Ohio and is faculty at Case Western Reserve University in the School of Nursing, the Case Center for Imaging Research, and holds secondary appointments in the Department of Physiology & Biophysics, and the Department of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine at the Case School of Medicine. Dr. Damato maintains a civilian Department of Defense appointment as a Senior Research Physiologist at the Naval Aerospace Medical Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, OH via the Intergovernmental Personnel Act Mobility Program.
Larry Drummy, PhD Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, OH
Dr. Lawrence Drummy is a Materials Scientist with the Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. He is currently the lead for Materials Characterization within the AFRL Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, responsible for the characterization laboratories that meet the needs of the Directorate’s 600+ scientists and our academic, industrial and government partners, as well as advancing the state of the art in technique development. He received his PhD from the University of Michigan Department of Materials Science and Engineering and BS from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Department of Physics. Dr. Drummy’s background and research interests lie in polymeric and nanostructured materials, biological materials, protein characterization, nanocomposites, organic electronics, sensors and devices, microscopy, and image and signal processing.
Stanton L. Gerson, MD Dean and Senior Vice President for Medical Affairs, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University
Stanton Gerson, MD, is the Dean and Senior Vice President for Medical Affairs, School of Medicine, and Acting Director of the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center and the National Center for Regenerative Medicine at Case Western Reserve University, where he is the Asa and Patricia Shiverick–Jane Shiverick (Tripp) Professor of Hematological Oncology and Case Western Reserve University Distinguished University Professor. In 2012, he was the recipient of the Case Western Reserve Medal for Excellence in Health Science Innovation, the highest honor bestowed by the School of Medicine to those advancing research, education and health care. He is past president of the Association of American Cancer Institutes (2016-2018) and a member of the American Association of Physicians since 1997 and has been member and Chair of numerous NIH study sections including the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Board of Scientific Advisors. He serves on the Executive Advisory Board of 11 NCI designated cancer centers. He has earned multiple National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants and published more than 258 journal articles, 275 abstracts and 37 book chapters and 18 patents. Dr. Gerson has distinguished himself in several realms including his research in DNA repair and stem cell therapy, which has resulted in numerous publications and patents. Three of his discoveries are in clinical trials as new cancer therapies. He is also the co-editor of the internationally recognized textbook, "Gene Therapy of Cancer Translational Approaches from Preclinical Studies to Clinical Implementation 3" (Elsevier Limited, Oxford, United Kingdom) and the textbook "Clinical Hematology." Dr. Gerson is foremost, a mentor and educator for the next generation of compassionate cancer research scientists and clinicians.
Michael E. Goldberg, MA, MBA Executive Director, Veale Institute for Entrepreneurship and Associate Professor, Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University
Michael Goldberg is the inaugural Executive Director of the Veale Institute for Entrepreneurship. Goldberg is also an Associate Professor of Design and Innovation at the Weatherhead School of Management at CWRU where he teaches courses on entrepreneurship. Goldberg created a massive open online course (MOOC) for CWRU called Beyond Silicon Valley: Growing Entrepreneurship in Transitioning Economies, which has attracted over 175,000 students from 190 countries with subtitles in 16 languages (most on Coursera platform). Before joining CWRU, Goldberg was the co-founder of the Bridge Investment Fund, a venture capital fund focused on investing in Israeli medical device companies that have synergies with the leading health care industries and institutions in Cleveland and the Director of International Business Development for America Online, responsible for structuring and negotiating international partnerships in Asia. Goldberg holds a BA from Princeton University, MA in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University and MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Umut Gurkan, PhD Professor, Case School of Engineering, Director, Case Biomanufacturing and Microfabrication Laboratory, Case Western Reserve University
Dr. Gurkan holds a Ph.D. degree in Biomedical Engineering from Purdue University and completed his postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Gurkan’s group aims to improve global equitable access to diagnostics and personalized health. Dr. Gurkan is a leader in cellular biomechanics, clinical microfluidics, biosensors, and in the translation of point-of-care and in vitro diagnostics for blood disorders and cancer. Dr. Gurkan is a member of the Global Gene Therapy Initiative (GGTI), American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES), and American Society of Hematology (ASH). Dr. Gurkan is a Senior Member of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI), a member of the New Voices in Science, Engineering and Medicine Program by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), and a fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE).
Michael Haag, MBA was named the Executive Director of Technology Management for Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) in 2013 and oversees the Technology Transfer Office (TTO) of 13 licensing and administrative professionals. The TTO is responsible for the protection and commercialization of inventions that arise from nearly $400 million in external research funding. Since his appointment in 2013, the TTO has executed an average of 60+ transactions per year. Under his leadership, the TTO re-established CWRU Technology Ventures (CTV), an evergreen fund which was actively investing from 2003-2010. Michael is passionate about start-ups and new venture formation. In his time at CWRU he has been directly involved in the creation of 70+ start-up companies and has served as an active board member or board observer for several companies. In his time as Executive Director, CWRU has near doubled its output of start-up companies per year growing from an average of four per year to almost eight. Building on his experience, Michael became the acting CEO of ReXceptor in 2011, a company created to commercialize Alzheimer’s disease therapeutics, based on the research of Dr. Gary Landreth Ph.D. ReXceptor announced the closing of $1.4M in financing in April of 2013 and they completed a proof of mechanism human clinical trial in 1H2015.
Michael is dedicated to translational research at CWRU and holds leadership roles in a number of programs, including: Managing Director of CWRU Technology Ventures, Advisory Council for the Committee for Advancing Human Health, Case Coulter Translational Research Partnership, Executive Steering Committee for the Advanced Platform Technology Center, Co-founder and advisor Case Venture Mentoring Service, member of the Office of Translation and Innovation committee, member of the Clinical and Translational Science Collaborative committee, member of the leadership team for the CWRU Translational Fellows Program, and Principle Investigator for the CWRU TVSF Program.
Bob Kirsch, PhD, Allen H. and Constance T. Ford Professor and Chair of Biomedical Engineering at Case Western Reserve University, Executive Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs Rehabilitation Research and the Cleveland Functional Electrical Stimulation Center
Dr. Robert F. Kirsch, is the Allen H. and Constance T. Ford Professor and Chair of Biomedical Engineering at Case Western Reserve University and the Executive Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs Rehabilitation Research and Development Service “Center for Functional Electrical Stimulation”. He is the Principal Investigator of the Case-Coulter Translational Research partnership, a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), the Chair of the national BME Council of Chairs (2017), the Director of a NIBIB T32 training grant, and a member of advisory boards for a number of biomedical engineering departments, research centers, and training grants across the US and internationally. His research focuses on the restoration of arm movements to individuals with complete paralysis of arm muscles due to spinal cord injury or other neurological disorders using functional electrical stimulation (FES), as well as high performance user command interfaces such as brain computer interfaces and advanced prosthetic user interfaces.
Michael W. Konstan, MD Gertrude Lee Chandler Tucker Professor of Pediatrics and Professor of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences; Vice Dean for Translational Research, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Michael W. Konstan, MD is the Vice Dean for Translational Research and the Gertrude Lee Chandler Tucker Professor of Pediatrics at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, where he directs The Clinical and Translational Science Collaborative of Cleveland as the PI of the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine’s NIH NCATS Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA). Dr. Konstan has spent his entire professional career in the care and research of patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). He and his team are among the world’s most innovative researchers in pediatric pulmonology, developing new treatments and leading the search for a cure for CF. He has led numerous national and international clinical trials of potentially new therapies for CF, and his seminal work has led to several therapies that are in use today, including the only recommended therapy for treating the lung inflammation in CF using high doses of ibuprofen. Dr. Konstan is the Austin Ricci Chair in Pediatric Pulmonary Care and Research at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital. Dr. Konstan’s research has resulted in more than 200 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters. He serves on multiple advisory boards and committees of the CF Foundation, the NIH and the FDA, all related to advancing the treatment of cystic fibrosis. Dr. Konstan was the 2013 recipient of the Case Western Reserve Medical for Excellence in Health Science Innovation, the School of Medicine’s highest honor, for bringing new therapies to patients with CF. In addition, Dr. Konstan has received several national awards for his accomplishments, including the Richard C. Talamo Distinguished Clinical Achievement Award from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, and the “All Stars Among Us” award for community service from Major League Baseball and PEOPLE magazine. He is regularly named in “Best Doctors in America” and “America’s Top Doctors.”
Grace McComsey, MD, FIDSA Professor, Depts. of Pediatrics and Medicine, Case Western Reserve School of Medicine; Vice President of Research and Associate Chief Scientific Officer at University Hospitals Medical Center Cleveland
Grace McComsey, MD, FIDSA, is the Vice President of Research and Associate Chief Scientific Officer at University Hospitals (UH) Health System in Cleveland, Ohio. She is also Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine at the Case Western Reserve University. A board-certified physician with training in Adult and Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Dr. McComsey leads the Clinical Research Center at UH, the central infrastructure for clinical research within the health system. She is also the Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital. Dr. McComsey is an internationally known researcher in the field of HIV. She is the author of over 250 peer-reviewed publications in the area of metabolic and cardiovascular complications of HIV infection and its treatment. Dr. McComsey has served as principal investigator on more than 15 grants from the National Institute of Health (NIH), in addition to several Foundation and Industry grants. Dr. McComsey has received several awards as the result of her research, including a Research Award from the HIV Medical Association of the Infectious Diseases Society of America recognizing her work in HIV metabolic complications and the YWCA Women of Professional Excellence Award. Dr. McComsey has earned recognition by her peers and regularly voted among the Best Doctors in America and Best Doctors in Cleveland. Additionally she has repeatedly been named one of America’s Top Physicians and among the Exceptional Women in Medicine.
J. Michael Oakes, PhD Senior Vice President for Research and Technology Management, Case Western Reserve University
Recently named Case Western Reserve University’s inaugural senior vice president for research and technology management, Dr. Michael Oakes served as the University of Minnesota’s interim vice president for research, leading a $1.1B research enterprise. From 2019 to 2021, Oakes served as associate vice president for research, shepherding a 31% increase in research funding fueled by COVID-19 related grants. Oakes is also founder and director of the Interdisciplinary Research Leaders, a national Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-supported program. Oakes’ research has been highly collaborative, interdisciplinary, and focused on three main areas: applied methodology, social epidemiology, and research ethics. Collaborations include biomanufacturing sciences, computer, material and aeronautic engineering, health care and health sciences, climate change prevention, and social and behavioral research.
Reshmi Parameswaran MS, PhD Assistant Professor, CWRU Depts. of Medicine, Pathology and Pediatrics, Case Western Reserve School of Medicine
Featured talk: "Immunotherapy for B cell cancers"
Reshmi Parameswaran received her master’s degree in Biochemistry from Mahatma Gandhi University, India. She moved to Israel for her Ph.D. studies and obtained a Ph.D. degree in Cell Biology from the Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel in 2006. She studied the role of a cytokine Activin A in B cell development and developed cell therapy approaches for Multiple Myeloma using mesenchymal cells over-expressing Activin A. She did her post-doctoral fellowship at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (2009-2013), where she explored the role of B cell activating factor (BAFF) in pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and she was the first to identify the expression of BAFF receptor in ALL cells. Dr. Parameswaran joined Case Western Reserve University as a faculty member in September 2013. Currently, she is a tenure-track Assistant Professor in Department of Hematology/Oncology. Her lab focuses on developing cell therapy methods for treating various hematological malignancies using Natural Killer (NK) cells. Dr. Parameswaran’s lab is also trying to elucidate the mechanism of drug resistance in ALL patients.
Jennifer Ruggles, MA serves as the Assistant Vice President of Government Relations at Case Western Reserve University. Ruggles oversees federal, and state government relations activities for the university. Prior to joining the CWRU Government Relations team, Ruggles served as the Regional Economic Development Director for the Ohio Department of Development’s Cleveland region. She was responsible for directing economic development efforts and establishing an agenda for continued growth for the Cuyahoga, Lorain, Geauga, and Lake Counties in northeastern Ohio. From 2003 to 2007, Ruggles was Director of the Ohio Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) and Project Administrator for the ODOD Technology Division. Before joining the Department of Development, Ruggles was Performance Audit Manager for the Auditor of State, where she managed multiple projects measuring the efficiency and effectiveness of organizations; and Federal and State Relations Project Manager for the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), where she developed strategies to gain better alignment with state agency and university stakeholders and promoted the importance of technology-based economic development and the role MEP centers play in improving the economy. Ruggles holds a Master’s of Public Administration with a specialty in economic development from Cleveland State University and a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies from the College of Wooster.
Daniel Sennott, JD Partner, Holland & Knight LLP, Washington DC
Dan Sennott is an attorney in Holland & Knight's Washington, D.C., office, where he is a member of the firm's National Security, Defense and Intelligence Team. Mr. Sennott has substantial experience with defense issues, having held senior leadership positions in both the U.S. military and the federal government, including most recently serving as the minority staff director for the House Armed Services Committee. Mr. Sennott focuses his practice on representing clients in an array of public policy, government oversight and regulatory issues, particularly those related to the defense industry. He handles a variety of matters related to acquisition policy, emerging technology, satellite and space technology, and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). In doing so, he regularly appears before the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), each of the U.S. armed forces (Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force and Coast Guard), as well as the congressional defense committees.
Prior to joining Holland & Knight, Mr. Sennott served as the minority staff director for the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Armed Services (HASC), where he was responsible for the development, negotiation and passage of the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that authorizes the annual defense budget and establishes policy for the DoD. Prior to that position, he served as the minority general counsel for the committee, providing legal advice on all aspects of national security and congressional process. He began his time with the committee as a counsel and staff lead for the Military Personnel subcommittee, where he was responsible for a wide range of issues, including the Military Health System (MHS), military housing, education, and military pay and benefits.
Mei Zhang, PhD Assistant Professor Dept. of Biomedical Engineering, Case Western Reserve School of Medicine
Dr. Mei Zhang, PhD is an assistant professor in the department of biomedical engineering at Case Western Reserve University. She received her PhD in Polymer Physics and Chemistry from Wuhan University in China, and an MBA from CWRU Weatherhead School of Management. Dr Zhang’s studies focus on cancer immunology and nanomedicine. With over 20 years of experience as a biomaterial scientist with diverse expertise in nanotechnology and immunology, Dr. Zhang’s current research explores biomolecules modulating tumor microenvironment via priming innate immune cells. Her studies aim to identify novel biomolecules mediating specific modulation to macrophages and DCs. Dr. Zhang also explores multifunctional nanoparticle platform with the aim to deliver a high load of drug to tumor and improve endogenous antitumor immune responses.