MADISON, Wis.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BioForward, a member-driven state association and the independent voice of Wisconsin’s bio-health industry, today announced several new additions to its Board of Directors as well as commenting on an enthusiastic annual meeting this week.
“It’s an exciting time of growth and collaborative potential in health care and the biosciences in Wisconsin,” said BioForward CEO Lisa Johnson. “As an organization, we’re committed to our vision of growing Wisconsin bio-health companies that are making the future of healthcare. Our new Board members, coupled with our re-energized efforts across the state, set the stage for a very positive and collaborative 2016.”
New Board members, voted on and approved by BioForward membership for the 2016-18 term at this week’s annual meeting, include:
- James Dias, CEO of healthcare tech company Wellbe
- Kaz Hirao, Chairman & CEO of life sciences company FujiFilm-Cellular Dynamics
- Marsha Mailick, Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Nicolas Paris, CEO of life sciences instrumentation company Gilson
- Randy Spaulding, CEO of healthcare company Spaulding Clinical
“Our State is at a critical inflection point. There is tremendous untapped potential to collaborate and tell our story to stakeholders around the world. BioForward will continue to actively advocate, partner, and deliver programming to support heath care and biotechnology growth across Wisconsin,” said Joe Hammer, Chairman of BioForward and Managing Director at Capital One Healthcare. “I am excited to start working with our distinguished new Directors, and thank them for their commitment to our industry.”
Held at the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery at UW-Madison, this year’s BioForward membership meeting also featured a keynote presentation by Dr. James Thomson, Director of Regenerative Biology at the Morgridge Institute for Research, Kress Chair and Professor of Cell and Regenerative Biology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Thomson discussed "Human Pluripotent Stem Cells as Tools for Safety Toxicology,” as well as his neural research currently funded by the NIH, DARPA and FDA.
BioForward continues to expand membership statewide and is the leading independent industry association in the state. Earlier in 2015, BioForward released a Economic Development Report, highlighted by the fact that Wisconsin’s bioscience industry represents $27 billion in total economic output, 36,000 jobs statewide, and nearly $1 Billion in NIH and other funding sources. More information can be found on the BioForward website here.
