Statewide Biotech Roundtable

Speakers: John Newby (Virginia Bio) , Nikki Hastings (CvilleBioHub), Jim Pannucci (Activation Capital), Erin Burcham (RBIA), Amy Adams (George Mason University), Kevin Leslie (Old Dominion University), Joy Polefrone (Alliance for Building Better Medicine), Joe Benevento (VIPC)

CEO at Virginia Bio, the statewide non-profit trade association for the life science industry. Approximately 300 companies spanning biopharmaceuticals, medical device, med tech, diagnostics, digital health, bioinformatics, agriculture and industrial bio and related fields are based in Virginia, mainly clustered around research universities and medical institutions. Virginia Bio is the sole state affiliate and works closely with key national industry organizations BIO, AdvaMed, MDMA, PhRMA and We Work for Health.

Newby was formerly the Commissioner of the Virginia Department of Veterans Services (VDVS), where he led an 850-member Agency located across 50 Virginia locations, delivering employment, education, benefits, behavioral health and long term health care services to Virginia’s Reservists, Guardsmen, transitioning service members and 725,000 veterans. Prior to leading VDVS Newby practiced corporate, intellectual property and Hatch-Waxman biopharmaceutical law at international law firms in Richmond and Washington DC, and at a multinational company. Newby previously commanded an Air Force special operations unit supporting the U.S. Army’s 3rd and 7th Special Forces Groups (Airborne), and served in Iraq as an aviator aboard the Boeing B-1B Lancer strategic bomber. Newby received a B.S. from the United States Air Force Academy, with Military Distinction, and his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Professor Hastings is an operations biotech executive and entrepreneurial ecosystem builder with over 15 years of experience with early-stage biotech/medtech and medical device companies, specifically with expertise in working with academic and first-time founders. She has led operations in executive management roles at companies including HemoShear Therapeutics, Contraline, and Cerillo. Professor Hastings co-founded and led a private nonprofit organization, CvilleBioHub, supporting growth of the regional biotech industry in Central Virginia and was the organization’s first executive director. Professor Hastings is an adjunct faculty member in the UVA McIntire School of Commerce and holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Virginia.

As Executive Director of George Mason University’s Institute for Biohealth Innovation, Amy Adams is responsible for nurturing and advancing biohealth research and innovation interests of more than 300 faculty and thousands of students who represent a broad range of academic disciplines. Her role includes fostering partnerships with industry, healthcare, government, and academic partners; overseeing core laboratory facilities; advancing research development; supporting growth of Innovation Park; and establishing the Northern Virginia BioHub. Valuing the importance of creating a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts, Amy is committed to working with partners across the state and region to grow the biohealth ecosystem.

Prior to leading the development of the Institute for Biohealth Innovation in 2017, Amy served in several different capacities since 2002 at Mason. Amy brings experience as a scientific researcher using genomic and proteomic technologies to study signaling pathway networks in cancer. She led outreach efforts and created programs to engage high school and undergraduate students in research across STEM disciplines, communicate science to the public, and foster internal and external collaborations. Amy earned a M.S. in Chemistry, B.S. in Biology, and is an author on one patent and fifteen peer reviewed articles.

Kevin Leslie is the Associate Vice President for Innovation and Commercialization at Old Dominion University, where he is responsible for advancing university technologies, increasing research-driven economic development, and strengthening collaborations with regional and state ecosystem partners. He recently served as the inaugural Executive Director of the Hampton Roads Biomedical Research Consortium (HRBRC), a partnership between ODU, NSU, and Sentara Healthcare that aims to reduce health disparities and strengthen the region’s biohealth innovation pipeline. Prior to his role at the HRBRC, Kevin was the Associate Director of VCU Ventures and provided scientific leadership for Richmond’s Health Innovation Consortium (HIC). He earned his Ph.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University and his B.S. and M.S. from the College of William & Mary.

Joy Polefrone, PhD is the Regional Innovation Officer for the Advanced Pharmaceutical Manufacturing (APM) Tech Hub, a coalition led by the Alliance for Building Better Medicine in the Richmond–Petersburg, Virginia region. She facilitates strategy, partnerships, and innovation initiatives to co-create a resilient biopharmaceutical ecosystem, bringing more than two decades of experience in academia, global nonprofits and companies to this work.

Joe Benevento leads VIPC as President and CEO and previously served as Deputy Secretary of Commerce and Trade for the Commonwealth of Virginia. Benevento began his career at Goldman Sachs and THL Partners and brings 20 years of business strategy and investment management experience across direct equity investing, business operations growth, and executive board advisory spanning early-stage startups, small-/mid-size businesses, and Fortune 500 companies. 

Prior to serving the Commonwealth of Virginia, Benevento was Managing Director of a Richmond-based family-office investment firm and has advised, invested, managed or monitored over $10 billion in enterprise value and contributed to the successful raising of newly closed investment funds ranging from $250 million to $20 billion in size.

Benevento earned his B.S. in applied economics and management at Cornell University and his MBA from Harvard Business School.