Dr. Ruchika Nijhara is the Executive Director of the Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund (MSCRF), where she oversees the fund’s management, grant programs, and portfolio of awards. In this capacity, she works closely with stem cell researchers across Maryland, helping translate cutting-edge research into tangible advancements in patient care. Under her leadership, MSCRF has invested over $200 million in more than 600 groundbreaking technologies, driving innovation, research, and commercialization within the state.

With more than 20 years of experience in technology commercialization, Ruchika brings a wealth of knowledge from her work across federal, public, and private sectors. She has been recognized as one of the Daily Record’s 2023 Influential Marylanders and was named a Woman of Influence by I95 Business Magazine in 2023.

Ruchika earned her PhD in Biochemistry from Delhi University, India and an MBA from the University of Maryland.

Arion Long is not just a CEO; she’s a visionary who is revolutionizing the FemTech industry. As the Chief Estrogen Officer of Femly, Arion has transformed a subscription box service into a multi-million-dollar enterprise with patented technologies. She is the mastermind behind the world’s first touchless pad and tampon vending machine, a game-changing innovation that is increasing period care access in restrooms across the nation. More than 25 states require access to period supplies in restrooms around the U.S Unlike public faucets and hand dryers, Arion’s invention uses sensors that work for all skin tones and allow users to wave “hello” to access organic sanitary products from femly.

Durham serves as the Market President for serving Maryland, Delaware, Virginia and Washington D.C, where he is responsible for coordinating Fulton Bank’s commercial, consumer and wealth services for the DelMarVa region. Durham is a founding partner and leads Fulton Bank’s Life Science and Technology efforts which provides debt and equity support for early-stage life science and technology companies across the regions. Durham serves as chairman of the board of Goodwill Industries of the Chesapeake. He has been with Fulton Bank since 2014 and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Finance from Towson University.

Bauer is a Vice President and Regional Executive for the Baltimore Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Bauer serves as the lead external facing officer for the Richmond Fed in Maryland, the District of Columbia, and West Virginia. In this role he provides support to the Bank’s monetary policy responsibilities and leads the execution of Bank’s external engagement strategy. He regularly speaks about national and regional economic conditions and Federal Reserve policy to business, professional and trade associations, community groups, and the media.

Danette Nguyen currently serves as Managing Director for the Maryland Women’s Business Center (MWBC), a signature program of Rockville Economic Development, Inc. and a certified U.S. Small Business Administration resource partner designed to assist women and underserved communities as they start, grow, and scale their businesses in Maryland’s Capital Region.

Danette’s commitment to fostering entrepreneurship includes her participation in the Leadership Maryland Emerging Leaders program, where she hones her leadership skills to better serve Maryland’s business community. She also serves on the Board of the Association of Women’s Business Centers, expanding her impact on a national level in supporting women entrepreneurs.

Winston’s has significant experience with the complex FDA requirements and is able to guide clients and their most significant deals through all aspects of FDA regulatory due diligence. He provides comprehensive advice to clients facing legal and regulatory challenges with products and services regulated by the FDA, including on how to address the FDA regulatory process.

Winston accumulated in-depth international legal and business life sciences experience through a variety of in-house positions at several large multinational biopharmaceutical companies, particularly in the areas of quality and compliance, regulatory affairs, compliance and ethics and legal affairs. This allows him to provide clients with a holistic view of their regulatory matters when combined with his knowledge of the regulatory process for pharmaceuticals, medical devices, foods and dietary supplements.

Winston previously served as the head of compliance and ethics, while based in London, for a multinational U.S. pharmaceutical company, and was responsible for business units comprised of Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East-Asia-India, China and the Pacific Rim regions.

Mr. Collier is currently a Principal with Noblis Ventures where he spearheads the fund’s sourcing efforts and is part of the investment team supporting diligence and portfolio impact. Prior to joining Noblis Ventures, Bill was the Senior Director of Investment Business Development at TEDCO, where he focused on sourcing opportunities for the Venture and Seed Funds (pre seed-series A). His unique business development background includes all areas of the customer lifecycle, from inside sales to marketing, account management, customer success, and partnerships.

As a lifelong resident of the Washington, D.C. metro area, Mr. Collier is passionate about bringing the region’s innovative concepts to market and growing the local VC ecosystem. In addition to his day job at Noblis Ventures, he is a board member with one of the nation’s largest VC networking groups, VC in DC. Prior to joining TEDCO, Bill worked at GE Digital in the Accelerated Leadership Program (XLP), GE’s premiere leadership development and training program. In his most recent role, he helped build the processes and technology stack for the global customer success organization. He previously worked at Chevy Chase, MD-based startup WeddingWire.

Bill earned both his MBA, focusing on Strategic Marketing and Finance, and his BA in Environmental Studies and Geography from George Washington University.

Geyssel Gonzalez, CPA, is an experienced finance professional with expertise in accounting, financial reporting, and ERP system implementation. She specializes in optimizing processes and leading automation initiatives to enhance operational efficiency. With a strong focus on real-time reporting and financial forecasting, Geyssel excels at driving strategic growth and improving organizational performance. Her leadership skills have enabled her to effectively manage teams and contribute to executive-level decision-making, positioning her as a key asset in advancing financial success.

Tayo Sanders II is a scientist, biotech investor, and founder with extensive experience in driving innovation at the intersection of technology and biology. As an investor and board member, Tayo has been instrumental in identifying and supporting groundbreaking ventures at the forefront of drug discovery and phenotypic screening, CRISPR-based therapeutic development, and multi-omic diagnostic platforms. While at Anzu Partners, a deep tech venture capital firm in Boston, MA, he led due diligence on over 15 companies, totaling more than $130M in deployed capital. Tayo pursued his Ph.D. in Engineering Science from the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar.

Mindy leads TEDCO’s Government Program Development, Affairs & Policy department, serving as TEDCO’s chief liaison with State, Federal and local elected officials, and government, including broad-based policy development, intra and inter-agency coordination, and guidance on program implementation and management to ensure compliance with statutory requirements.

Dr. Tammira Lucas is a dedicated advocate for women entrepreneurs, particularly in increasing their access to capital and essential resources. As the founder of The Cube Cowork, the largest Black women-owned coworking space in the United States, which offers babysitting services, Dr. Lucas supports women in balancing business and family life. Her commitment to creating entrepreneurial communities has significantly impacted access to funding and resources for founders of color on both local and national levels. With over a decade of experience as a professor, Dr. Lucas currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Business at Coppin State University. Her research in business spans local, national, and international landscapes, further advancing her dedication to empowering women in business. Dr. Lucas also holds the role of Venture Growth Advisor for the Urban Business Innovation Initiative at TEDCO.

Justin is a versatile Program Manager at TEDCO’s Venture Development team, overseeing innovation strategy and pre-seed fund management. With a background rooted in data analytics and experiences at Citibank, Bloomberg, and the NSF Innovation Corps, he helps startups and academic professionals commercialize research into viable businesses. Justin holds an MBA from the Robert H. Smith School of Business, a Bachelor’s in Communications from the University of Maryland, and a Master’s in Project Management from Georgetown University. As a 4x founder with an industry-agnostic background, Justin brings diverse entrepreneurial experience working c-suite in multiple ventures, offering creative solutions and strategic guidance.

Graham Dodge is an award-winning entrepreneur, author and patented inventor with experience developing systems of intelligence, entrepreneurial ecosystems and open source communities. He co-founded the Autonomous Robotics Innovation Center (ARIC), SMGB Technologies, Shield Pals and Sickweather, the latter of which was recognized as one of Entrepreneur Magazine’s 100 Brilliant Companies. He is a technology accelerator veteran as an alumni of Techstars, 500 Startups, and Plug And Play Tech Center as well as a mentor to countless startups through Johns Hopkins Technology Ventures. Graham lives in Westminster, Maryland with his wife and five kids. He’s the author of The Entrepreneur’s Dance.

Lisa Friedlander is an attorney, entrepreneur, investor, and a strategic advisor/mentor to numerous startups. Lisa is currently the Chief Revenue Officer for NEXT powered by Shulman Rogers, an award winning legal platform for startups, and has spearheaded numerous initiatives to support clients and startups in the DMV tech ecosystem. Recently, Lisa co-founded another company called My NEXT Raise, an investor readiness platform for early stage companies seeking to raise capital. Lisa is a mentor and speaker for a variety of entrepreneurship and investment groups and sits on the advisory board for several startups. Lisa is a founding member and on the Board of Directors for Citrine Angels, a women investing in women angel group that provides capital to female founders across the country and helps to cultivate and educate more women to participate in this asset class. Lisa is also on the Board of 2gether International, an organization focused on supporting entrepreneurs with disabilities, and Main Street, a movement of inclusion where people of all abilities live and thrive together in Rockville, MD. Lisa also founded 2 organizations that raise money for Children’s National Medical Center – The Heartsongs Luncheon Fund (2001) and Teens with Heartsongs (2020) – together these organizations have raised nearly $3 million for Children’s Hospital.

Investing since first Dot-Com era.
Carnegie Mellon University Math/CS ’94, Econ ’94 MBA ’98
Hundreds of companies coached
Thousands of ideas reviewed