At KickStart Venture Services at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, our team provides startup support services and funding to a portfolio of companies based on intellectual property from the university. As Associate Director of KickStart Venture Services, I oversee and lead the NSF I-Corps program, the Venture Catalyst program, and our Entrepreneur-in-Residence program. Prior to joining KickStart, I was recruited by the University of Chicago to lead the operations and financing of one of their first biotech ventures, AVnovum Therapeutics. During this time I was recognized as one of the top 100 Leaders of Tomorrow by the Global Biotech Revolution.I am a neuroscience Ph.D. by training, specializing in behavioural and neuroanatomical research. While completing my undergraduate degree at the University of Toronto, I was hired as one of the first employees at CanCog Technologies, a preclinical neuroscience CRO. In 2014, I earned my doctoral degree from McGill University, where I became the first investigator in Canada to use novel viral technology to map brain connections.About KickStart Venture Services: KickStart supports new venture creation by distributing proof-of-concept funding, providing grant-writing support for SBIR and STTR applications, assembling advisory and management teams for newcos, and through incubating companies in our wet-lab space on campus. Our strategic approach to spinout creation has produced over 120 IP-based startups which have secured over $1.2B in investment.