Morton Collins, Ph.D.
Dr. Collins is a long-standing veteran of the
venture capital business. Dr. Collins currently is a General Partner of
Battelle Ventures and Innovations Valley Partners. He earned his Bachelor
of Science Degree in Engineering from the University of Delaware and his
Master of Arts and Doctorate Degrees in Engineering from Princeton University.
During the period from April 1966 to July 1968, he was the founder and
Chief Executive Officer of Scientific Research of Princeton, Inc., an
information processing related service Company. From October 1968, to
June 1974, he was the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Data Science
Ventures, Inc. (DSV I). He was a Founder of DSV Associates (DSV II); DSV
Partners III (DSV III); DSV Partners IV (DSV IV) and has been the Managing
Partner of each since their formation in 1974, 1981 and 1985 respectively.
These organizations provide venture capital and management assistance
to early-stage high-technology companies. In July of 1997 Dr. Collins
became a Special Limited Partner of Cardinal Partners, the successor to
the DSV series of partnerships. In August of 2003 Dr. Collins became the
Managing Partner of Battelle Ventures which he founded. Battelle Ventures
is an early-stage high-technology venture firm focused on technologies
developed at Battelle Memorial Institute and the National Laboratories
managed by Battelle for the Department of Energy.
Dr. Collins serves as a Director of Kopin Corporation (NASDAQ); Strategic
Diagnostics, Inc. (NASDAQ); Ventaira, Inc.(Chairman); Pharos LLC; PD-LD
Inc.(Chairman); Viral Genomics Inc.; Advanced Cerametrics, Inc. and is
a member of the Advisory Board of Early Stage Enterprises, LP and the
Executive Committee of Battelle Memorial Institute. Dr. Collins is Chairman
of the Advisory Council to the Chemical Engineering Department at the
University of Delaware; Chairman of the School of Engineering Advisory
Council at Rutgers University; Chairman of the Graduate School Advisory
Council at Princeton University; a member of the Leadership Council of
the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Princeton University
and a member of the Systems Biology Advisory Council at the Institute
for Advanced Study, Princeton, N.J.
Dr. Collins served on the New Jersey Governor's Commission on Science
and Technology; the New Jersey Governor’s Superconductivity Roundtable
and is a Member of the Research Roundtable of the National Academy of
Sciences. He chaired President Reagan’s Task Force on Innovation
and Entrepreneurship and served as a technology policy advisor to President
George H. W. Bush. He is a former President, Director and Chairman of
the National Venture Capital Association. Dr. Collins was the recipient
of the 1989 University of Delaware Medal of Distinction; the recipient
of the 1990 New York Venture Forum Award and he received the Delaware
Valley Venture Group Award in 1992.
Keith H. Wells, Ph.D.
Keith H. Wells, Ph.D., is a Senior Consultant and Director of the New England Office of the Biologics Consulting Group, Inc. (BCG). BCG is arguably the world’s leading consulting organization that provides national and international regulatory and product development advice on the development and commercial production of biotechnological products. BCG provides consulting advice to over 400 clients through its worldwide offices in Virginia, Massachusetts, North Carolina, California, Beijing, and Tokyo. Dr. Wells is a member of the Board of Directors of BCG.
Dr. Wells has over two decades of experience in the development of vaccines and biologic products. Prior to joining BCG in 2000, Dr. Wells was the Senior Director of Process Development and Manufacturing for OraVax (now Acambis) where he led the early stage process development for the ChimeriVax® program. Dr. Wells was previously the Director of Production and Product Development for The Salk Institute Government Services Division. He also held a number of positions of increasing responsibility in manufacturing and research while at Merck and Company.
Dr. Wells earned his Ph.D. in 1990 from the State University of New York Health Sciences Center at Syracuse in the laboratory of Dr. Bernard J. Poiesz. Prior to earning his Ph.D., Dr. Wells received his BA (with honors) from the University of Texas at Austin.
J. Joseph Kim, Ph.D. Co-Founder, President and CEO.
A co-founder of VGX Pharmaceuticals, Dr. Kim is a veteran of the biopharmaceutical industry. Prior to VGX, Dr. Kim led efforts in manufacturing and process development of several FDA-approved products and developmental therapeutics at Merck. These products include FDA-approved vaccines for Hepatitis as well as developmental vaccines and therapeutics for HIV/AIDS. Dr. Kim has published over 70 peer-reviewed scientific papers and book chapters, holds numerous patents and sits on several editorial boards and review panels. Dr. Kim has garnered many honors during his career. In 2002, Dr. Kim was named as one of the world's top 100 young innovators by Technology Review magazine. The "TR100", as this group is called, was chosen by a very distinguished Panel of Judges (which includes 2 Nobel Prize Laureates). Also in 2002, Dr. Kim was chosen as one the "40 under 40" by the Philadelphia Business Journal as one of the 40 most dynamic professionals who are under 40 years of age in the region. Dr. Kim was also selected on the list of the "50 Most Influential Men" in the October 2003 and in the October 2006 "Power Issue" of Details Magazine. In 2004, Dr. Kim and VGX Pharmaceuticals were selected as one of 30 Technology Pioneers by the World Economic Forum. Furthermore, Dr. Kim was featured in the “Who’s Next 2005” issue of Newsweek International, which included a group of 10 leaders, scientists, and executives at the forefront of change and impact in the world. Most recently in 2006, Dr. Kim has been named a Young Global Leader by the Forum of Young Global Leaders, an affiliate of the World Economic Forum. Dr. Kim was among 175 leading executives, public figures and intellectuals under the age of 40 from 50 countries. Dr. Kim has also been featured in articles in Forbes and the New Yorker and in numerous other Media Outlets.
Dr. Kim was trained in economics, engineering and biological sciences at MIT where he was a U.S. Senate Honors Scholar. He holds a Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA in Finance from the Wharton School.