About Us

Natalie is a 2022 graduate of the University of South Carolina, majoring in psychology with a minor in criminal justice. She was born and raised in Austin, TX, where she grew up with her parents and dog, Leo. While seeking her bachelor’s degree, she was involved in a criminal justice research project and interned at the South Carolina Attorney General’s office, working in both the VAWA/Human Trafficking Unit and the Medicaid Recipient Fraud Unit. She previously worked as a client representative and a corporate trainer for Redis Marketing Inc. Natalie lives in historic downtown Columbia with her cat, Lula.

Brian has over 25 years of experience working in pharmaceutical research and high performance computing, and 10 years of experience in strategic partnerships for U-I collaboration. Before joining University College London (UCL), Brian was corporate relations coordinator at the University of Cambridge. Brian focuses on the development of strategic partnerships between external organizations and UCL researchers in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors. He has a particular interest in work related to small molecule drug discovery, structural biology, and informatics. Brian earned his graduate and doctorate degrees from the University of Natal in South Africa.

Emma earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in marketing from Winthrop University. Originally from Blythewood, SC, Emma has over five years of experience in operational projects. Most rewarding to her is finding creative solutions to unique problems. Outside of work, Emma enjoys drawing, painting, and other creative endeavors as well as spending time with her fur babies.

Melissa is the principal of Clio & Associates, a consulting practice that delivers solutions for university-industry collaborations. She has 16 years of experience in university-industry relations, including leadership positions at both Tulane University and the Pennsylvania State University. Melissa has demonstrated experience in using data to make decisions on pursuing “big ideas” with the most strategic industry partners while working across academic and corporate silos to inform and support large-scale initiatives for impact. She holds a bachelor’s degree in international relations and Spanish studies from Tufts University as well as an MBA with a concentration in international marketing from the FW Olin School of Business at Babson College.

Caroline is a graduate of the University of South Carolina, where she majored in advertising and minored in retail. She has always had a passion for leveraging creativity to connect with audiences. Prior to joining UIDP, Caroline honed her skills through various internships and extracurricular activities, gaining valuable experience in the world of marketing. Caroline enjoys reading in her free time and treasures quality time with friends.

Natoshia has 15 years of professional experience in meeting planning and managing small- and large-scale meetings and conferences. Prior to joining UIDP, Natoshia worked as a meeting professional for a large corporation, a consulting firm, a university, and a nonprofit. She holds a bachelor’s degree in public health from the University of South Carolina and a master’s degree in executive leadership from Liberty University. In her spare time, Natoshia loves volunteering in the community through various local initiatives.

As the UIDP chief program officer, Morgan ensures that all UIDP event programming is curated to meet the needs of  members and practitioners in the university-industry partnership landscape. Morgan, a certified archivist, is a proud Tar Heel, as she earned both a master’s degree in library science and a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Before joining UIDP, Morgan worked for the South Carolina Department of Archives and History as the electronic records archivist. She resides in Columbia, SC with her husband, Benjamin, and their daughter.

Abishai is a graduate of international studies and religious studies from the University of South Carolina with experience in project management. He has successfully led and managed complex international projects in alignment with U.S. government objectives, specifically in the fields of nonproliferation and emerging technologies. At CRDF Global, Abishai executed over $4 million in international research and technology security projects on topics of research security, illicit technology transfer, export controls, due diligence/know-your customer best practices, and malign talent acquisition programs, leading teams and engaging diverse stakeholders across Africa, Europe, Latin America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.

Prior to this role, Abishai served in a project and programmatic support role at UIDP, managing the conception, development, and execution of UIDP webinars and  supporting the UIDP project portfolio. He has a love for travel and experiencing different cultures, particularly through their cuisine and a passion for music and drums. He currently resides in Washington, D.C.

Over the past eight years, Michelle has contributed to the UIDP mission through operational initiatives, career center facilitation, and coordinating member-focused events around the world. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Seton Hall University and a master’s degree in human resource management from Rutgers University. Her professional background includes 10 years as assistant director at the Rutgers Employment Center, three years as a faculty member at DeVry University, and four years as a test administrator for graduate law and medical school entrance examinations. Outside of the office, Michelle loves to travel to new places, read all types of books, and spend weekends on the lake with family and friends.

As UIDP’s chief partnerships officer, Sandy is responsible for development, membership services, and marketing and communications strategy across the organization. She brings more than 20 years of experience in strategy, project development and execution, and multi-channel communication to the UIDP team. Sandy has bylined hundreds of articles and reports, specializing in making complex topics accessible to a broad audience. She is a proud alumna of the University of California, San Diego.

Chandrasekhar “Spike” Narayan is a seasoned Silicon Valley executive. Most recently, he managed IBM’s California Research Lab, which focused on innovative research in AI, semiconductor technology, and quantum computing. He was responsible for driving science and technology at the lab, leading fundamental and applied research. Narayan also managed innovation for the division and was responsible for research partnerships.

Spike has held several research and management positions in IBM at the Almaden and Watson Research Laboratories and has received many awards for his technical contributions. He was a master inventor in IBM Research and has more than 150 global patents to his credit. He was also a member of IBM’s Academy of Technology.

Spike earned a doctorate in metallurgy and materials engineering from Lehigh University.

As the membership data coordinator, Lily works with UIDP members and staff to ensure all member information is both up to date and confidential. This ensures the maximum experience for UIDP membership organizations. Before joining UIDP, Lily served in both the public service and corporate sectors in team development and collaboration. She holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing and sales from Western Carolina University. Lily is a dedicated military spouse and a proud mom of twins.

Chris Ramming is a technology and research management strategist with a passion for working at the intersection of theory and practice. Before joining UIDP as senior strategic advisor, he served as VMware’s senior director of research and innovation, with responsibility for several innovation programs, including the company’s global academic research program, its company-wide Innovation Council, and an internal incubator that opened opportunities in security, data platforms, containerization, IOT, and blockchain. Many of these projects and programs were grounded in partnerships that span industry, academia, and/or government. Chris served UIDP in voluntary roles, including as its board chair, and has also served in voluntary leadership positions with DARPA’s Information Science and Technology Study Group (ISAT) and CRA.org/industry. Chris has a background in computer science with degrees from Yale and UNC Chapel Hill.

Ashley Richardson is an entrepreneur and product development specialist with an economics degree from Georgia State University. Fueled by a love for social impact, she has earned recognition as an award-winning serial entrepreneur, embodying a commitment to excellence and innovation.

Kelsey Sadlier brings her 7 years of membership experience from the South Carolina State Museum to her role as membership engagement manager. She earned a bachelor’s degree in history and business law at Western Carolina University. Kelsey is a native to Columbia, and lives with her two dogs. She enjoys motorsports and reading in her free time.

Mohammed Salehin recently moved to the Columbia area from Virginia. He served in the U.S. Army, graduated from the University of Virginia, and brings over 10 years of experience, including non-profit and government finance administration. Away from the office, you will find him at the gym, enjoying a soccer game, or spending time with his family.

Emily is a Certified Nonprofit Professional (CNP) who has worked with organizations nationwide and brings administrative expertise in general operations, events, compliance, and board governance. Most recently, Emily served as the director of operations for Volunteers of America Michigan where she focused on enhancing and streamlining processes across service lines. Emily completed her master’s degree in nonprofit leadership and management from Arizona State University in 2023. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Central Michigan University where she dual majored in public and nonprofit administration and community development,  minored in event management, and received a certificate in international non-governmental organization administration. Emily was born and raised in Michigan and enjoys traveling, volunteering, and spending time with her dog, Ella.

Rebecca, our chief administrative officer, has more than 20 years’ experience in corporate and non-profit relations. Her expertise covers a wide range of areas, including public relations, human resources and employee relations, event planning, and business and program management. She earned a master’s degree in leadership from Nova Southeastern University and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Florida Atlantic University. Rebecca resides in Irmo, SC with her husband, a retired Marine Corps helicopter pilot, and their two daughters.

As UIDP’s senior marketing communications manager, Nancy leads strategic initiatives to strengthen the organization’s reputation among members, non-members, and potential partners. Through integrated, multi-channel communications, she drives engagement, builds awareness, and reinforces UIDP’s position as a trusted leader in collaboration and innovation.

With more than two decades of experience in the aerospace, defense, and high-tech manufacturing industries, Nancy has a proven track record of enhancing brand visibility, fostering stakeholder trust, and crafting compelling messaging that supports business growth. Her expertise spans media relations, public affairs, crisis communications, and government relations, allowing her to navigate complex challenges and deliver impactful messaging that supports business growth. She holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in marketing from the University at Buffalo.

Madison is a designer and illustrator from Columbia, SC. She graduated from the University of South Carolina Honors College and received her bachelor of fine arts degree in graphic design and illustration. In her free time, Madison enjoys creating art, Braves baseball, and listening to true crime podcasts.

As UIDP’s senior project advisor, Kristina manages UIDP’s project portfolio. The portfolio covers a wide array of topics relating to contracting, strategic partnerships, workforce development, and government engagement. For more than seven years, Kristina has worked at the intersection of university, industry, and government. She seeks to identify barriers to cross-sector collaboration and use crowd-sourcing techniques to create solutions and opportunities for lowering barriers and creating a stronger innovation ecosystem. Previously, Kristina held positions with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the National Academy of Sciences. She earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Purdue University and a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Maryland. She also regularly attends association management, project management, and meeting facilitation training. Kristina resides in Vienna, VA with her husband, Ben, and her dog, Vsepr.

Padma Raghavan is the chancellor’s executive director for science and technology strategy and distinguished professor of computer science at Vanderbilt University, where she previously served as vice provost for research and innovation and chief research officer.

Padma’s roles have encompassed the advancement of the university’s research and innovation portfolio, including technology transfer and commercialization spanning the university and medical center as well as the development of strategic partnerships. Such partnerships include Ancora Innovation, with Deerfield Management to accelerate the development and delivery of life-changing therapeutics from bench to patient, as well as Army Pathfinder, a program to rapidly advance mission-critical science and technology.

In her faculty role, Padma specializes in high-performance computing (aka supercomputing), focusing on developing algorithms for scalable, fault-tolerant, and energy-efficient computing. She has authored over one hundred peer-reviewed publications and supervised nearly fifty master’s degree and Ph.D. theses. Padma has received several recognitions including the National Science Foundation’s CAREER award, and elevation to fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). She is also active in the profession, currently serving on the advisory committees Office of International Science and Engineering at the National Science Foundation, and on the Board of Governors of UT-Battelle, which operates the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory.  In 2022, Padma was appointed to a two-year term on the President’s Committee on the National Medal of Science.

Prior to joining Vanderbilt in 2016 from the Pennsylvania State University, Padma served as the associate vice president for research and strategic initiatives, the founding director of the university-wide institute for computational and data sciences, and as distinguished professor of computer science and engineering.

Karen Chandross serves as head of External Innovation, North America R&D at Sanofi. She and her team are responsible for leading R&D partnering initiatives (iAwards, iDEA-iTECH) and strategic collaborations (Stanford Immunology) with internal and external stakeholders to accelerate portfolio progression, enable the implementation of new technologies, and enhance Sanofi’s reputation as a leading biomedical organization in the region.

She has been at the forefront of innovating through collaboration throughout her 20+ years of R&D experience. She has a consistent track record of bringing scientists together from different disciplines to de-risk and advance cutting-edge solutions for impact across R&D. At Sanofi, she has led new therapeutic strategies, advanced novel targets through the value chain, and served as translational medicine lead to early development projects. Among her accomplishments is establishing the Sanofi iDEA Awards, which bring cutting-edge AI tools to R&D projects and led the charge to establish the Open Innovation Lab, a new partnering model that brings external innovators into the Cambridge Crossing labs to strengthen cross-training and collaboration impact.

Chandross earned her doctorate in molecular neuroscience at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, then completed her postdoctoral training and served as a senior staff fellow at the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke before joining Sanofi. She remains active in the scientific community and is a strong advocate for early career scientists.

Pete Ellingson has more than 30 years of experience developing technologies, leading innovation teams, and managing open innovation programs at The Procter & Gamble Co. His P&G career spanned two business units and five product categories before he began his current role nearly seven years ago in Corporate R&D, Connect & Develop.

As R&D director for open innovation, Pete champions numerous academic partnerships and supports open innovation strategy for projects spanning polymer science, surfactant science, life science, and AI/ML. For more than 15 years, he has also played a leading role in Ph.D. recruiting, co-developing the P&G PhD Career Workshop, which is now used across the company’s North American Ph.D. recruiting program.

Pete has 24 years of experience developing technologies for consumer packaged goods, with a focus on surface science, polymer formulations, adhesion, and skin science, resulting in 57 granted patents. Internally, he led the Polymer Community of Practice for more than 10 years and currently contributes to the Materials & Chemistry Community of Practice Leadership Team and the PhD Internship Review Panel.

He has served on the advisory board for the Michigan Materials Research Institute at the University of Michigan, is a member of the American Chemical Society (more than 33 years), and supports both the UIDP Finance Committee and the UIDP Midwest Planning Committee.

Pete earned a doctorate in physical chemistry from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he received multiple industry-sponsored awards, an outstanding teaching assistant award, and completed a five-month graduate student internship at Dow. He holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse.

Outside of work, he enjoys a range of sports and outdoor activities, including ice hockey, skiing, curling, upland hunting, canoeing, camping, and backpacking.

Jarrett Ellis serves as associate director of corporate and international contracting at the Georgia Institute of Technology. In this role, he is responsible for managing day-to-day contracting activities and related matters for enterprise-level collaborations, project administration activities and related matters, implementing policies and procedures in support of the research collaboration process, and developing and deploying strategic initiatives for continued growth in corporate and international engagement. Jarrett is also an active supporter and collaborator for educational leadership initiatives on campus, such as Georgia Tech’s Commission on Research Next, the Inclusive Leaders Academy, and the Leadership Forward Emerging Leaders Development Program.

Before joining Georgia Tech, Jarrett practiced law at a multinational firm in Atlanta, where he represented and advised corporate clients in strategic matters, including governance, securities transactions, mergers and acquisitions, technology sales and licensing, and data privacy and security. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Oral Roberts University, a master’s degree in English education from Georgia State University, and a Juris Doctor degree from Georgia State University.

Jarrett has been a consistent participant and leader in educational meetings at UIDP. He serves on the UIDP membership committee, having previously served on the finance and communications committees.

Kathy serves as the university executive director of corporate strategy & engagement at Yale University. She brings more than 20 years of experience in industry partnerships, university-based research, cross-cultural project management, training and development, and fundraising. Her professional experience has been largely spent in academia building and sustaining effective multi-sector partnerships with lasting impact on the development of corporate policy, curriculum, research, and public policy.

Kathy collaborates with faculty and other campus stakeholders to grow and sustain substantial, mutually beneficial corporate partnerships that support Yale’s mission to improve the world through exceptional research and scholarship. Her team’s activities center around three strategies: business development, strategy and policy alignment, and communication and collaboration.

Previously, as director of global partnerships for the Shared Value Initiative, a multi-stakeholder effort that aims to drive adoption and improve implementation of shared value strategies among leading companies, civil society, and government organizations, Kathy launched the Shared Value in Perspective series to explore the ‘living adaption’ of the shared value strategy around the world. Lead partners included Nestle, Novartis, Enel, and G.E.

Kathy is married with three adult children. She and her husband enjoy traveling, spending time cooking with family, and Bikram Yoga. Kathy earned her bachelor’s degree in marketing from the University of Massachusetts and her master’s degree in business administration from Bentley University.

Phil serves as the director of community ecosystem development for Crop Science at Bayer, based in St. Louis, Missouri. In this role, he leverages nearly 20 years of AgTech industry experience to develop, direct, and manage Crop Science’s holistic presence in key operating communities, as well as in critical business collaboration communities worldwide.

He is also responsible for shaping academic partnership strategy to support data generation for Crop Science’s R&D pipeline, product and cropping system decisions, and the faster adoption of innovations.

Phil joined Bayer in 2006 and has held multiple leadership roles focused on delivering collaborative approaches that enhance R&D and position the company as a thought leader in open innovation and a partner of choice in agriculture. In his most recent role as director of open innovation and outreach, Phil and his team developed programs and relationships that support academics, startups, and the growth of external innovation ecosystems aligned with Bayer’s R&D pipeline.

In recognition of his contributions, Phil was named a Bayer Science Fellow in 2016.

Before joining Bayer, he trained as a plant cell biologist, earning his PhD from the John Innes Centre in Norwich, U.K. He completed postdoctoral positions at the University of Leeds and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as well as a British Council Fellowship at the University of Heidelberg in Germany.

A native of the U.K., Phil lives in St. Charles, Missouri, with his wife, Amanda, and their four children.