Dr. Nannette Stangle-Castor is a leading technology transfer expert that guides her clients’ inventions from concept through commercialization to make positive impacts in the world and solves their technology challenges needs through execution of strategic partnerships. As a Sr. Consultant at Fuentek, she has lead contracts with NASA’s Johnson Space Center, Glenn Research Center, and Goddard Space Flight Center, as well as Michigan State University, the University of Iowa, and Roche Diagnostics.

Her accomplishments include securing multiple licenses for her clients; prioritizing portfolios of hundreds of life science technologies for major research universities; identifying strategic partners for her clients and then facilitating numerous partnership deals; leading efforts to secure millions of dollars in additional R&D funding for her clients; developing and leading training on intellectual property management and open innovation for government and university clients; and developing a user’s guide for technology infusion/open innovation for NASA’s Innovative Partnerships Program.

Most recently, Nannette was honored with the Triangle Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 Leadership Award. In support of inspiring the next generation of innovators and leaders, she serves as an advisory board member for Alfred University’s Women’s Leadership Center and gives presentations to local middle and elementary students on the impacts that NASA technologies have had on their lives. She supports Fast Forward, an organization founded by the National MS Society, focusing on expediting the drug development process for MS. She has also served as a technology transfer reviewer for the Deployment Related Medical Research Program for the Department of Defense in the area of traumatic brain injury.

Jennifer Amster is an architect and partner at BJAC, pa, where she leads the Higher Edu¬cation Studio. She has managed the firm’s largest edu¬cation projects and has assisted universities and institutions across the state to develop facilities that foster learning and encourage discovery.  Recent projects include the new School of Dental Medicine at East Carolina University, and the North Carolina History Center at Tryon Palace.  Ms. Amster received an architecture degree from the University of Virginia, and studied at North Carolina State University for her Master’s degree.  At NCSU, she worked with the Community Development Group, leading teams to work with municipalities to provide design and long-range planning.  Originally from Fairfax, Virginia, she has called the Triangle home for 18 years.  She lives in Chapel Hill with her husband Kevin and young son Otto.  All three enjoy watching college sports and live music, as often as possible.

Patti Fralix inspires positive change in work, life, and family through speaking, consulting, and coaching in three specialty areas: Leadership, Managing Differences, and Customer Service. Her leadership firm, The Fralix Group, Inc., has been helping clients achieve practical and tangible results for more than fifteen years.

Patti’s more than thirty years experience in business includes administrative and leadership positions in complex organizations. Academic credentials include an undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia and a graduate degree from the University of Alabama in Birmingham.  Patti’s first book, How to Thrive in Spite of Mess, Stress, and Less!, was published in 2002.  She is a frequently published author and quoted business leader in national magazines and other publications.

Patti has considerable professional and community service volunteer experience.  Positions she has served in include: president of the National Speakers Association/Carolinas Chapter, Chair of the Ethics Committee of the National Speakers Association, and Chair of the board of The National MS Society/Eastern North Carolina Chapter.

Chandra has over 15 years of experience in management consulting, strategic growth, marketing, business development, and operations.  In 2003 she co-founded a management consulting firm specializing in taking companies to the next level.

Her experience in management consulting includes strategic planning and implementation; marketing and business development initiatives; process improvement; interim executive leadership; operational due diligence; acquisition integration; and best practice development.

Chandra thrives on challenging opportunities to resolve issues within fast-paced dynamic environments and is a trusted advisor to Boards and executives.  She is recognized for propelling performance to unprecedented levels through hands-on leadership of teams on complex projects, exceptional people management, and aggressive business development initiatives.  For example, in 2008, Chandra was inserted as interim Chief Marketing Officer to champion the turnaround and divestiture of a troubled global supply chain subsidiary for a client.  Applying comprehensive competitive and market analysis, she optimized strategic planning efforts to increase revenue by 39%, locate investors, and divest the subsidiary in fifteen months.

Beth LaPierre is a financial representative with Northwestern Mutual Financial Network.  She partners with her clients to help them envision their best financial future and make financial decisions that they can feel good about.

Prior to joining Northwestern Mutual Beth consulted with Stone + Company and delivered strategic facilitation, leadership development and coaching. She also held the position of senior project specialist at the HayGroup, a global human resources management consulting firm, where she supported dozens of large-scale consulting initiatives.

Beth holds a B.A. from Boston University where she studied psychology and marketing, and she obtained her M.S. from Suffolk University in adult and organizational learning. In addition to her volunteer work with the MS Society, she is active in the Triangle Down Syndrome Network. She and her husband Stephen make their home in Raleigh, North Carolina with their two children, Zachary and Siena.

Jennifer Tolle Whiteside is CEO of the North Carolina Community Foundation.  She has served on the planning committee of WAMS for the past 3 years in support of her dear friends with MS.

Chris Schmidt is a senior public relations specialist with WakeMed Health & Hospitals.  Since starting with WakeMed nearly eight years ago, Chris has been responsible for a wide array of service line marketing for the system, including the WakeMed Rehabilitation Hospital and Outpatient Rehab Services, Emergency & Trauma Services, Heart & Vascular Services and Mobile Critical Care Services.

Chris is co-chair of the Advocates for Health in Action Public Relations workgroup as well as a member of the Advocates for Health in Action Advisory Board. In addition, Chris is a member of the Raleigh Chamber of Commerce Young Professional’s Network Marketing Task Force and has served on the Chamber’s First Responders Appreciation Task Force since its inaugural event in 2008. In 2007, he was the recipient of the WakeMed Circle of Excellence Award.

A native of Maryland, Chris holds a Mass Communications degree from Towson University.  He and his wife, Melissa, have two children – Olivia (6) and Andrew (4).

Heather Grant works at Rex Healthcare as the Operational Improvement Leader. Her experience in healthcare has been focused in process improvement and finance. She received her undergraduate degree in business from the University of Kentucky before completing her Masters of Healthcare Administration at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. Heather is a Green Belt in Lean Six Sigma and is pursuing her Black Belt.

Heather is Chair of the Easter NC MS Society’s Scholarship Committee, on the Steering Committee for The Women Against MS Luncheon, and participates on the MS Mud Run committee. She is also a member of the Junior League of Raleigh. Heather is an avid runner and participates in many local running groups and activities. She also enjoys reading and cooking.

Pam Kohl has served as the District Director for Congressman Brad Miller of North Carolina’s 13th Congressional District since 2004. As District Director, she serves on Mr. Miller’s Senior Management team, she manages Congressman Miller’s Raleigh and Greensboro offices, she represents Mr. Miller throughout the District when he is in DC, she advises Mr. Miller and his DC staff on policy issues of concern to the District and she oversees Mr. Miller’s schedule when he is in the District.

She previously served as Executive Director for the Alice Aycock Poe Center for Health Education in Raleigh and President/CEO for Planned Parenthood of the Capital and Coast, where she gained extensive experience in non-profit management, community organizing, public relations/marketing, advocacy and fundraising.

Pam was born and raised in Greensboro, and moved to Raleigh to work for Governor Jim Hunt’s first administration as the Ex. Dir. of the Youth Advocacy and Involvement office. She is married to Tom Gongaware and has two children; Max 20 and Sofie 17.

Machelle Sanders is Vice President of Global Quality Assurance at Biogen Idec, one of the world’s largest biotechnology companies, where she oversees all aspects of Quality Assurance (QA) for the company’s cGMP manufacturing facilities in Research Triangle Park (RTP), North Carolina, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Hillerød, Denmark. 

She previously held leadership positions overseeing QA, Quality Control, and Manufacturing Operation functions at Biogen Idec and other pharmaceutical and biotech firms including Purdue Pharmaceuticals, L. P. and Akzo Nobel-Diosynth.  Machelle obtained a B.S. degree in Biochemistry from North Carolina State University and a Masters of Health Administration (MHA) from Pfeiffer University.