Julie Goonewardene
Julie Goonewardene joined KU on January 17th, 2011 as associate vice chancellor for innovation and entrepreneurship. She comes from Purdue University where she held several roles in academic entrepreneurship, including director of business development. At Purdue, she has been instrumental in facilitation relationships with investors in the Midwest and on both coasts, including Boston and Silicon Valley.
Julie Nagal, PhD, Director of Industrial Partnerships
Julie Nagel works closely with the KU Center for Technology Commercialization to move university technology into the marketplace through startup companies and licensing agreements. She works to strengthen and broaden relationships with external partners – such as the Bioscience & Technology Business Center– seek grants in support of these efforts, and assists with the development of a strategic plan for technology commercialization and outreach. Nagel comes to KU from Purdue where she held the title of Managing Director of the Oncological Science Center at Purdue’s University Park. Prior to joining Purdue in 2005, Nagel was a program director for Biotechnology Business Consultants, following service as a technical coordinator with Rubicon Genomics in Ann Arbor, Mich. Nagel’s academic background includes a bachelor’s in biology from John Brown University, a master’s in zoology from Oklahoma State University, and a doctorate in ecology and evolutionary biology from the University of Tennessee.
Rajiv K. Kulkarni, PhD, MBA, CLP, Director of Technology Commercialization
Rajiv Kulkarni comes to KU from the University of Utah, where he is currently director of Business and Technology Development in the Technology Commercialization Office. Previously, he was associate director in that office, responsible for its physical sciences section. During his 10 years at the university, he negotiated and completed more than 100 licensing agreements, 28 of which resulted in new startup companies based on university research. In addition to his doctorate from Nebraska, Kulkarni’s academic background includes bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Eastern Michigan University, a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California-Riverside and an MBA from the University of Phoenix.
Gregory S. Kopf, PhD.
Gregory Kopf is the current Associate Vice Chancellor for Research Administration and Executive Director of the KUMC Research Institute, where his academic interests have focused on invertebrate and mammalian fertilization, gametogenesis, and early events of egg activation. Much of this work was carried out as a faculty member in the Dept. of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Prior to coming to KUMC, Kopf was Assistant Vice President and Interim Vice President, Discovery at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals. In this capacity, he directed a drug discovery group responsible for the identification, validation and patenting of various targets for contraception and other disease areas in women’s health (osteoporosis; reproductive disorders; urinary incontinence). Kopf’s group was also involved in HTS assay development, compound testing, and lead optimization and I was also involved in various in-and-out licensing activities for Wyeth.
