Nichole Mercier, Assistant Vice Chancellor & Director, Washington University in St. Louis

Nichole Mercier is the Assistant Vice Chancellor & the Managing Director of the Office of Technology Management for Washington University in St. Louis (WashU). Under her leadership, WashU’s activity in technology transfer has grown exponentially by doubling or more the invention disclosures, licensing transactions, and startups formed. Dr. Mercier is strongly committed to ensuring that women and minorities engage in technology transfer and entrepreneurship, establishing Women in Innovation and Technology (WIT) at WashU and Equalize as a national program to enable academic women researchers to overcome barriers to entrepreneurship. She received her Ph.D. in cell biology from the University of Massachusetts Medical School and M.A. and B.A. from Clark University. 

Mandy Gettler is the senior innovation asset administrator at the University of Oregon and co-lead of the Women’s Innovation Network (WIN). WIN supports faculty, postdocs, and graduate students as they navigate gender-based barriers to bringing their research to market and supports entrepreneurs in Oregon as they launch and sustain their businesses. Mandy tracks and manages the university’s intellectual property, works with faculty through the disclosure of inventions, crafts participation agreements to manage IP rights, and files U.S. copyrights in addition to maintaining the university’s compliance with the Bayh-Dole Act. She presents nationally on change management, organizational leadership, public-private partnerships, alternative academic careers, data management, and technology transfer operations. Mandy was recognized as the UO’s Outstanding Officer of Administration in 2014, Campus Innovator of the Year in 2022, and as one of the Eugene Chamber’s 20 Under 40 Rising Business Star in 2022. Mandy previously served as the associate director for the Center for Applied Second Language Studies, one of sixteen national language resource centers designated by the U.S. Department of Education. She negotiated industry-sponsored research agreements and supported the creation of two spin-out companies. Mandy managed business development, human resources, and strategic communication as well as leading multiple project teams.

Mihaela Bojin, Associate Director, University of Iowa Research Foundation

Mihaela Bojin is an associate director at the University of Iowa Research Foundation. She has extensive expertise in intellectual capital management (licensing, business, and IP assessment and partnerships) in a variety of areas, such as pharmaceuticals, drug delivery, medical devices and software.  Dr. Bojin also advises start-ups and mentors their entrepreneurs. Dr. Bojin has held numerous leadership positions as a director on the Licensing Executives Society (LES) Board, board member of the LES Standards Development Organization (SDO), and board member of the Midwest Research University Network (MRUN).  Dr. Bojin has also served on the University of Iowa Staff Council Executive Committee, the University of Iowa Research Council, IP policy, and conflict of interest committees. She serves as an LES Board liaison to LES Chapters and Education, and she is an instructor for the LES Education committee.

Dr. Bojin is a Certified Licensing Professional (CLP) and a registered patent agent with the USPTO.  Dr. Bojin holds a PhD in theoretical chemistry from Cornell University, and a BSc in chemistry from University of Bucharest, Romania. Dr Bojin is the author of “Academia and Technology Transfer in the US” in Les Nouvelles, June 2019.  She also served several times as a reviewer for the US Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program as a technology transfer specialist.  She was profiled in Inspiring Minds, featured in Access Magazine and in Live Science Behind the Scenes, a National Science Foundation sponsored website.