On Nov. 9, 13 University of Iowa leaders will be honored at The Technology Association of Iowa’s 9th annual Des Moines Area Community College Iowa Women of Innovation Awards in Des Moines. The awards recognize and celebrate Iowa women in business, government or academia who are leaders in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math.
Kristi Thiel, research scientist at the Carver College of Medicine and co-founder and vice president for Business Development at Immortagen, is a finalist in both Research Innovation and Leadership and the Rising Star categories.
“There is an incredible culture in Iowa that actively seeks to develop and connect people in order to enable them to most fully flourish,” said Thiel. “The Technology Association of Iowa plays a strong role in fostering that culture and I’m honored by their recognition.”
Immortagen, a UI spin-out company, was selected as the UI Start Up of the Year for 2016 and recently completed its Series A equity financing. Previously, Immortagen received GAP funding through UI Ventures as well as the Iowa Economic Development Authority.
The full list of University of Iowa 2016 Iowa Women of Innovation finalists is below:
Research Innovation and Leadership
Tori Forbes, Associate Professor of Chemistry, College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
Paloma Giangrande, Associate Professor of Internal Medicine, Carver College of Medicine
Johna Leddy, Associate Professor of Chemistry, College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
Chioma Okeoma, Assistant Professor of Microbiology, Carver College of Medicine
Kristi Thiel, Research Scientist, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Carver College of Medicine and Co-Founder and Vice President for Business Development, Immortagen
Academic Innovation and Leadership
Leslie Flynn, Clinical Assistant Professor, College of Education
Business Innovation and Leadership
Lindsay Dozeman, Program Coordinator, Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center
Rising Star
Kristi Thiel, Research Scientist, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Carver College of Medicine and Co-Founder and Vice President for Business Development, Immortagen
Fatima Toor, Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Physics and Astronomy and the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Informatics, Colleges of Engineering and Liberal Arts & Sciences
Diversity Champion
Tonya Peeples, Professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering and Associate Dean for Diversity and Outreach, College of Engineering
STEM Champion
Kristine Bullock, Southeast Iowa Regional STEM Manager, Governor’s STEM Advisory Council
Collegian Innovation and Leadership
Ariel Bohman
Trixy Lagat
Nadeesha Wickramasri
The Technology Association of Iowa is a professional organization that works to accelerate the success of Iowa's technology industry and tech-based economy. Its members include organizations involved in technology creation, production, application and education in Iowa. More at https://www.technologyiowa.org/
UI Ventures, part of the UI Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development, assists university inventors in creating new ventures based on their research. UI Ventures provides education and mentoring to advance entrepreneurs and emerging growth companies by linking them with the capital, talent and other critical resources they need for success. More at http://uiventures.uiowa.edu/
The Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development provides resources and support to researchers and scholars at the University of Iowa and to businesses across Iowa with the goal of forging new frontiers of discovery and innovation and promoting a culture of creativity that benefits the campus, the state, and the world. More at http://research.uiowa.edu, and on Twitter: @DaretoDiscover.