ITECS Innovative Consulting Bios
ITECS is an organization comprised of experienced and celebrated individuals from government, industry, academia, and non-profits. We hire only specialists with vast experience and success launching new technology into the marketplace or who have experience and strong ties to state and federal government agencies. Our extensive network allows us to bring the right individuals to the table to give your project the best chance of success.
Our network includes program managers, technical experts with access to various government agencies, new business development professionals able to identify procurement opportunities with the government, lobby firms with access to the congressional staff, proposal writers, and contracting experts. This network allows us access to 70 percent of national laboratories and 85 percent of congressional offices and means that we have a local representation in 100 percent of state governments.
These individuals, profiled below and divided into areas of expertise, can help you get your new technologies to market faster and more successfully.
Management
Susan Ward, President, is a performance-oriented executive with over 20 years experience in business and technology development. While in industry, Susan held a variety of positions in technology management and has created and led organizations in North America, Europe, and China that supported businesses ranging in size from $33 million to over $5 billion. In 2001, Susan founded ITECS. Since then, Susan and her team have secured more than $250 million in government funding and assisted in more than $500 million in successful technology product introductions for for-profit companies, universities, and non-profit companies. Susan has a PhD in physical organic chemistry from New York University.
Tom Eppich, CFO, has over 35 years of accounting, finance, CPA, and CFO experience. Tom currently provides CFO services to over a dozen companies in the central Florida area. Previously, he was an audit partner with Ernst & Young; a CFO of over six different companies, including one with annual revenues exceeding a billion dollars; co-owned his own office furniture dealership, which was profitable each year of ownership; and was a vice president of a turnaround restructuring consulting company for over 10 years. Tom has a BS degree in business administration from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan.
Courtney Rogers, Director, Administrative Operations, graduated from The Ohio State University with a BS in Business Administration - Finance. She has held various Accounting/Finance positions in the Retail sector at Limited Brands, Value City, Inc., and Abercrombie and Fitch. She was most recently a Financial Analyst with Fifth Third Bank. Courtney joined ITECS in December 2009 as Client Services Coordinator.
Lisa Rooney, Managing Director, has been supporting ITECS clients for over four years and has over twenty years of experience developing partnership between industry, university and government agencies to launch a variety of technologies. Her experience includes working at three research universities in their sponsored research and technology transfer departments where she developed outstanding contacts in many federal agencies and national labs. She has a law degree from Capital University Law School and a BA in sociology from The Ohio State University.
Michelle Tack, Vice President New Business Development, is an industry veteran with a 20-year track record of success with start-ups and high growth technology companies, combining technology, marketing and sales expertise with a strong sense of finding solid solutions to specific business problems. A graduate of McGill University in Montreal, Michelle’s experience combines national and international assignments, covering a variety of technology disciplines.
Deidre Torrey, Manager, Technical Writing & Contract Management, provides support to clients by providing insight and guidance on agency policies and procedures from pre-award proposal preparation to post-award contract management. Over her career, she has successfully managed relationships with Federal, State and Local agencies to secure over $110M in funding for capital improvements, renewable energy, sustainability and manufacturing efficiency projects. With a focus on process and efficiency, Ms. Torrey structures teams to work seamlessly in the demanding environment of proposal preparation. Ms. Torrey is an accredited proposal manager through the Association of Proposal Management Professionals.
Brendan Ward, Director of Marketing, graduated with honors with a BS in communication and psychology from the University of Miami. Since then, he has participated in innovation programs at MIT Sloan and worked at various marketing jobs with Village Voice Media, the Coconut Grove Art Festival, and Abercrombie & Fitch. Brendan joined ITECS in July 2009 as Director of Marketing. In this role he focuses on new business development strategy, new product development, client retention strategy and campaign conception and management.
Operations
Peggy Cunningham, Controller, previously worked in the boating industry. She spent 10 years with Sea Ray Boats at their Product Development and Engineering facility, first as the Accounting Manager then as the Controller. Before the boating industry, Peggy worked 10 years for a publishing company, Patch Communications, as its Controller. Prior to joining ITECS in January of 2010, Peggy was the CFO for Everglades Boats at their manufacturing facility. Peggy has her BS degree in accounting from the University of Central Florida and an MBA from Webster University.
Business Development
Dan Coughlin, Director, Open Innovation, brings a wealth of new product development experience to ITECS’ clients. In his years of working as an engineer at both GE and Sappi Fine Paper, he was promoted from technical specialist to research director with responsibilities for developing and launching new products and related technologies. He is the recipient of several management and technical innovation awards and served as the Nanotechnology Chair for the Agenda 2020 Program within the American Forest & Paper Association. As an active industrial partner, Dan has worked with the Department of Energy to support renewable energy and sustainability projects within the paper industry. Dan has also been a supporting industrial partner in several National Science Foundation projects with extensive experience collaborating with universities. He has a BS and an MS in chemical engineering from the University of Maine.
Barbara Felton, Coordinator Business Development, brings over 25 years experience in the corporate world to ITECS. She has held a broad range of positions ranging from insurance adjuster, to auditor with Travelers Insurance, then as executive recruiter with Bradley and Morris. Barbara joined ITECS in May 2004 in both an administrative role and a marketing function, where she continues today. Barbara graduated with a BS in a double major in psychology and sociology from East Texas State.
Sandra Kessler, Director, Business Development, has more than 30 years experience in materials testing, technical support, marketing, and sales of specialty fiberglass and composite products to a broad industrial base. At PPG, Sandra managed PPG’s ESM (Electronics and Specialty Materials) Science and Technology Group. In this post she led the R&D staff and oversaw the facilities and equipment involved in the R&D operation. During the 1990s, she lived and worked in Asia and Europe as a reinforcements technical manager, where she served as liaison between agents/distributors/customers and PPG’s marketing and manufacturing organizations. She also chaired ASTM D20.10.02; was editor for ASTM STP 936, Instrumented Impact Testing of Plastics and Composites Materials; and authored a chapter about glass fibers in Edenbaum’s Plastics Additives and Modifiers Handbook. She is a member of the American Composites Manufacturers Association, LES, and PDMA. After retiring from PPG Industries in 2004, she started a consulting practice providing market development and technical support for a variety of clients. Sandra has BS and MS degrees in physics from the University of Florida.
Christine van Steen, Operations Research Analyst, graduated magna cum laude from Long Island University with an MA in public administration with an emphasis on health care administration. Her coursework involved extensive research in public policy as it pertains to healthcare issues. She serves as Research Coordinator for ITECS. Her projects completed with ITECS over the past four years include identifying government funds for research in healthcare, agricultural disciplines, materials, alternative energy, as well as technology pertinent to defense and homeland security applications.
Client Services
Bianca Beeks, Program Manager, has over 10 years of experience with the federal budget process from both the executive and legislative branch perspectives. Prior to consulting, Bianca served as the primary representative to the executive and legislative branches of government for Navmar Applied Sciences Corp., an R&D firm focused on defense and homeland security technologies. In that capacity, Bianca developed strategies for growing the business through congressional advocacy and direct interaction with federal departments. In addition, Bianca worked for eight years as the congressional liaison supporting the Navy for multi-billion dollar shipbuilding programs, where she gained extensive experience formulating and executing congressional strategies. In the last several years, Bianca’s focus has shifted to Department of Energy research programs. She has helped clients position their technologies for energy efficiency and renewable energy programs. Bianca earned a BA from the University of Washington and an MA in national security policy from The George Washington University. She has also completed courses of study in appropriations law, congressional operations, and advanced congressional budget procedures. Bianca holds a SECRET security clearance.
Jo Anne Goodnight, Program Manager, has 26 years of Government service where she has held a variety of positions in multiple agencies, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship (under Senator Olympia J. Snowe). Serving for more than a decade as the NIH Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program Manager, she played a major role in shaping the NIH SBIR/STTR programs to meet industry needs and accelerate technology innovations by aligning the programs with strategic partnership and investment market opportunities. In addition, she was intimately involved in the development and implementation of American experience in the NIH grants process and has helped thousands of researchers identify and secure NIH funding. Jo Anne has served NIH in various other capacities, including that of a Program Director and intramural researcher at the National Cancer Institute. Over the years, Jo Anne has worked closely with many program managers and learned the cultures at other agencies, including the Department of Defense, Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, NASA, and Department of Homeland Security. Widely recognized for her leadership positions at the NIH and as an effective communicator, Jo Anne has been an invited speaker at hundreds of conferences. She also has provided written and oral testimony at Congressional hearings related to the SBIR/STTR reauthorization. Her contributions to the NIH mission and passion for helping businesses to be successful have been acknowledged through several national awards including NIH Director’s Awards, NIH Merit Awards, and the Small Business Administration Tibbetts Award. Ms. Goodnight received her Bachelor of Science degree in Microbiology from Virginia Tech in 1983.
Phil Smith, Program Manager, has broad experience in minimizing the technical and financial risk of bringing platform technologies to market. Phil previously served as the Director of Research at Traycer Diagnostic Systems. In that role, he was responsible for operational program management, technical direction, and strategic vision for federally-funded projects. During his career, Phil has successfully established government and private collaborations, and facilitated agency access for clients ranging from startups to Fortune 50 businesses. Phil received the Ph.D. degree in Physics from The Ohio State University as a Fowler Fellow, where he focused on optimizing the electronic properties of semiconductor interfaces.
Lawrence Burr Zimmerman, Program Manager, specializes in early-stage funding and commercialization of technology. Burr blends deep technical experience with a strong commercialization strategy focus, allowing him unique insight into the full potential of technical innovation. Burr focuses on funding technology development efforts through grants and economic development funding. He is experienced in a broad array of state and federal funding programs, including strategy and proposal management. He is skilled in creating cross-functional collaborative teams and aligning partnership and funding opportunities to advance enterprise objectives, and leads organizations in identifying opportunities and risks associated with collaborative innovation. Burr holds a PhD in Chemical Engineering from The Ohio State University. He spent five years with Abbott Laboratories prior to expanding into the consulting area. He has been a member of the ITECS team for the past two years.
Congressional and Govt Agency Reach
Rick Bentley, PhD, has over 30 years of experience commercializing advanced materials and developing commercial and military applications. Richard has gained intimate familiarity with the aerospace industry, having proposed, initiated and managed development programs with most airframe and engine manufacturers in the U.S. and Europe, as well as aircraft operators. While working with Alcoa, his team was responsible for implementing the first production applications of the novel hybrid composite materials Glare® and ARALL® on the C-17, Boeing B777 and Quantas’ B747 fleet. Later, with Goodrich Corporation, he used his skills in technical sales to write winning proposals to federal and state funding agencies. In addition to experience in the innovation phase of the product life-cycle, Richard is also familiar with the production phase, having served as General Manager of a composite parts manufacturing company. Richard earned BS, MS and PhD degrees in Engineering as well as an MBA degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He is now using his wealth of technical and business experience to help companies write proposals, capture funding and manage programs with the Government.
Chris Bourdeaux has 33 years with the Department of Energy (DOE). He served as senior advisor to the Deputy Assistant Secretary for National Energy Policy and provided the interagency leadership for the Clean Energy Technology Export Initiative. He managed the DOE’s technology validation in the hydrogen program. This resulted in the demonstration of several first-time installations of novel technologies at hydrogen fueling stations and hydrogen power parks throughout the US (2001-2004). He provides our clients access to the DOE.
Rick Carne has 30 years experience as a small business owner, corporate executive, an appointed and elected government official, and consultant. Rick had a successful business career in the retail, consumer products, and utility sectors before entering public service. He spent 17 years as the key advisor to Ohio’s Third District Congressman, Tony Hall. One of the responsibilities in this role was to support technology companies through the appropriations process in different agencies. He supports our clients in developing new technologies by leveraging both state and federal governments. He has strong ties on both sides of the aisle in both the House and the Senate. Rick has a BA in business administration/political science from Capital University in Columbus, Ohio.
Leo (Lee) Eiden has 35 years of management, administration, and policy experience in the U.S. Department of Education (ED). For nearly seven years, he was the Program Manager for the Department’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. For his work, he and his team were awarded the ED Deputy Secretary’s Quality Reinvention Award. Lee also received a “Tibbett’s Award” from the SBA for working “tirelessly to develop stronger ties between individual States and the federal SBIR program. “ During his federal career, Lee served as the Executive Officer in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) where he was responsible for the oversight of the administrative, budget and financial management of OERI (including more than 400 employees). He also held a number of line and supervisory positions within the National Center for Education Statistics; served as the Deputy Director of the Office of Information Services; and, was a member of the Policy, Planning and Program Coordination Office. More recently, he served as the Director of Regulatory Information Management Services for this cabinet-level agency to ensure that ED complied with government information management requirements regarding the acquisition, release and maintenance of information. Mr. Eiden is a graduate of the College of William and Mary (Virginia), where he majored in government. He is an alumnus of the Education Department’s Senior Managers Program and classes with the Federal Executive Institute.
Greg Fess has over 25 years experience in federal government contracting and acquisitions, principally with the U.S. Department of Energy and its laboratory complex. For 10 years, he was the General Counsel at Brookhaven National Laboratory dealing with the management and operation of this high-energy nuclear physics laboratory, including matters related to the nation’s science agenda, national laboratory modernization, and regulatory and contract compliance for the Federally Funded Research & Development Center. Greg’s experience covers major U.S. Government contract management, funding acquisition from federal agencies, and compliance with the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). This includes the conduct of sponsored research, technology transfer, the responsible conduct of research (including coordinating standards and reviews with HHS’s Office of Research Integrity), joint university-laboratory appointments, and numerous laboratory-institutional collaborations.
Doug Freitag has over 25 years experience developing and commercializing advanced materials and related technologies for application to structural, electronic, photonic, bio, and energy devices. For the last 15 years he has supported both industry and government clients in market research, acquisition and alliances, engineering analysis, business development, technology advocacy, and technology commercialization. His technical areas of expertise include microelectronics, device packaging, flat panel displays, MEMS, composite materials, coatings, advanced ceramics, electronic substrates, biotechnology, photonics, advanced manufacturing, and energy generation and storage. Doug has participated in a broad range of federal science and technology initiatives with federal agency/lab relationships throughout the Department of Energy, NASA, the Department of Defense, the Department of Commerce, and the National Science Foundation. Doug has an MS in mechanical engineering from Purdue University.
Megan Irvin has extensive experience at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where she was the technology development associate for the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, program analyst for the Office of Management Assessment, and legislative officer for the Office of the Director for the National Human Genome Research Institute. Prior to her work at NIH, she was an AAAS Congressional Fellow for US Senator Mark O. Hatfield, where she tracked and drafted positions on policy and legislative issues and drafted speeches and position papers for biomedical research, health care, the Endangered Species Act, and fisheries. Meg has a DVM from the New York State College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University and a BA in biology from the University of Delaware.
Marty Kowalsky started his career as an engineering manager for the automotive industry in Detroit. As a consultant, he helps ITECS’ clients capture research funding and develop procurement opportunities. For the ITECS interfaces, the assignment is usually "selling to the military" for the ITECS material supplier client, where obtaining the military's support and advocacy for a project is required. Marty can operate as either a financial analyst or a purchasing agent. Marty is a graduate mechanical engineer and a graduate architect from The City College of New York.
Chris McNamara has spent the preceding nine years at WBB Consulting where he led their business development efforts. Prior to his work with WBB, Chris was a Captain in the United States Navy. At sea, he held a variety of posts in cruisers, destroyers and frigates, culminating in command of the Navy’s newest guided missile Destroyer. In his last post at sea, Mr. McNamara directed the operations of an Aircraft Carrier Battle Group, composed of 12 ships and submarines, 6,000 sailors and marines, and over 100 aircraft. When assigned ashore Mr. McNamara served as a Special Assistant to the Chief of Naval Operations, dealing with political-military matters and international relations. His work there resulted in his selection as a Senior Public Policy Fellow at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. He also attended the National War College in Washington, DC. A graduate of Georgetown University’s College of Arts and Sciences and Graduate School, Mr. McNamara’s writings on National Strategy have received wide acclaim. He has spoken widely on the subjects of leadership, crisis response and decision-making. His work in these areas now form the basis of U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency’s Office of Anti-Terrorism “Incident Management” course for its senior leaders.
Jim Rand has held technology leadership positions in the solar field with both large and small companies for the past 25 years. Dr. Rand plays an active role in the global photovoltaic research community – both academic and industrial. Presently, Jim consults as an expert in legal and technical matters associated with silicon-based PV. In addition, he teaches at the University of Delaware. Most recently Dr. Rand was a “Consulting Engineer” at GE Energy, a position similar to chief scientist at other large technology firms. Prior to that, Dr. Rand was Vice President of Research and Development at AstroPower, the first pure-solar public company. He has a PhD and MS in electrical engineering from the University of Delaware, and a BA with high honors from the University of Virginia. Jim has authored over 70 publications and holds 8 patents on all aspects of photovoltaics. He is the Industrial Board Chairman of the Silicon Solar Consortium, and a long time member of program committees for a number of international conferences.
Joe Turnham works as a consultant, and governmental affairs specialist for ITECS. Joe, a native of Alabama, is a 1981 graduate of the School of Business at Auburn University. He has an extensive and diverse network of business and governmental contacts throughout the US, especially in state governments. He works with Fortune 500 companies, non-profits, and start-ups as a strategic consultant on a range of issues such as securing federal funding/permits, lobbying, new project development, site location, crisis resolution, and PAC development. Joe works both in Washington, DC, and throughout the states with local governments and economic development authorities.
Philip Winkler assists businesses and organizations with research, development, and demonstration funding opportunities and commercial item sales with the federal and state governments. Phil served as Manager, Government Contracting for Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. a global supplier of products, services and solutions. The role combined global, company-wide leadership of leveraging government funding for R&D projects and contract administration as well as providing commercial item sales leadership. During his 30 year career at Air Products he developed a successful strategic process for securing and managing government R&D funding. During his last year as Manager, Government Contracting Phil was successful in securing $1 billion of new R, D, & D funding from the Department of Energy and Department of Defense. Prior to joining Air Products he had experience in chemical engineering, marketing, and project engineering with several pollution control equipment suppliers. Phil earned his Master’s Certificate - Government Contracting from George Washington University, Washington, DC. He completed his MBA from Rutgers University in Newark, NJ and his BE, Chemical Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ.
Business to Government
Erin Bland has over 18 years of experience in technology management and transition with Department of Defense (DoD) business development for large/small businesses and research organizations. She is the recipient of corporate-level business development awards from Computer Science Corporation and the PEO Ships Vanguard Award for her innovations in program management. Erin has developed and managed projects for Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and U.S. Navy programs such as Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR), ManTech, Joint Concept Technology Demonstrations, Defense Acquisition Challenge (DAC), and Title III. Her extensive knowledge on successfully transitioning Defense related S&T and R&D programs to the Defense acquisition community contributed to her selection to participate in the development of DoD 5000.1 policy for the OSD Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP) and the Navy’s Commercialization Pilot Program (CPP). She also has extensive knowledge in the technical support of the hull preservation, combat systems, and mechanical and environmental systems of the U.S. Navy’s surface fleet assets. Erin earned a BS degree in Chemical Engineering from Florida Institute of Technology and has technical expertise in composites manufacturing, ship systems engineering, and explosive/propellant technologies. Erin also holds a SECRET level security clearance.
Erica Courtney has earned clients millions of dollars in state and federal government contracts and contributed substantially to their growth. She had over 11 years experience as a scout helicopter pilot and senior staff officer in the U.S. Army in charge of government acquisitions, contracts, budgets in excess of $200M and logistics before “retiring” to start work in the private sector. She is an ‘insider’ who knows how to cut through the red tape and help firms sell successfully to the government. Courtney has also worked corporate as a government contracts director and owned two for profits and one not-for-profit centered on sustainability, community and economic development, empowerment, biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation. She has won several national and global technology and socially responsible business plan awards from highly respected organizations and universities. She now sits as a national business plan judge evaluating and providing feedback for budding entrepreneurs. Courtney was named one of 80 women nationwide with the leadership background and a vision for what to do with it to change the world by Oprah Magazine and The White House Project. She was appointed to the Mayor’s Commission on the Status of Women where she represents more than 677,625 women in the greater Jacksonville area. Courtney has an Executive MBA from Florida International University and has a plethora of formal training on government and business operations.
John Grizzard is a cutting edge technology engineering executive with over 25 years of experience in the Department of Defense. He has provided R&D planning and coordination for both acquisition programs, OPNAV and technology development program managers with emphasis on signatures, survivability, power systems, and littoral warfare. Prior to consulting, John was President and CEO of a small business involved in low observable technology development for the Department of Defense. In this role, he developed and implemented successful business plans which tripled corporate revenues and profits. The resultant business base provided multi-year backlog long-term stability via Prime Navy production contracts and technology development subcontracts with large Defense contractors. John has served on Source Selection Boards for major acquisition programs in the U.S Navy and has extensive knowledge on the acquisition, technology development and transition processes of Department of Defense organizations. John earned a BS degree in Electrical Engineering from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and an MBA from the Florida Institute of Technology. He also holds a TOP SECRET level security clearance.
Frank Wattenbarger specializes in business development support activities for technology oriented companies who have unique and innovative solutions for defense and security programs in the Federal government. Frank retired as the Director, Advanced Technology, Special Operations Acquisition and Logistics Center, United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), MacDill Air Force Base, Florida. He was responsible for all the planning and execution of special operations-related programs involving basic, exploratory, and advanced development science and technology (S&T). In this capacity, Mr. Wattenbarger also represented USSOCOM on several OSD executive level S&T panels, integrated product teams (IPTs), working groups, and senior steering committees. Frank also held the Navy Science Advisor position at the Naval Special Warfare Command in Coronado, California. In this capacity, he advised the Commander, Naval Special Warfare Command on technical developments and their impact on Naval Special Warfare (NSW) mission and requirements. Mr. Wattenbarger was a requirements officer at the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict during 1991. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering Science and Mechanics from the University of Florida and a Master of Science degree in Coastal and Oceanographic Engineering from University of Florida. Mr. Wattenbarger additionally obtained a Master of Science degree in Systems Management from the University of Southern California.
William T. Williams is a retired Lt. Colonel (1969 to 1991) with the United States Marine Corps with specialties in infantry, artillery, intelligence, joint operations and acquisition. After retiring from USMC, Williams worked in Federal Civil Service, Department of Defense. He then worked at West Virginia University Research Corporation as the Biometrics Manager and was Vice President, Tactical Systems Group at Azimuth, Inc. Will has over 37 years of operational, management and analytical experience at the cutting edge of defense technology, biometrics, and special operations systems development and fielding. He has transitioned over 50 technology projects to acquisition or procurement since 1993 and has managed multiple high visibility acquisition programs and technology demonstrations with consistent, superlative results. Williams T. Williams has a B.S. in Geological Sciences from The Pennsylvania State University. He holds several levels of certification: DoD Certified Level III, Program Management; Level III, Systems Planning, Research, Development & Engineering; and Level III, S&T Management.
Government Contract Management
Alan Ayers is the founder of Strategic Innovation Group LLC, which helps companies align their R&D and innovation to best exploit accelerated profitable growth. He is also president of Integrated Dual-use Commercial Companies (IDCC), a consortium of Fortune 1000 high-technology firms dedicated to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of federal government procurement and R&D interaction with commercial firms. Alan retired from Energizer Battery, Inc. as a senior manager of External Technology. He was accountable to source outside products and capabilities, provide strategic technology and business planning, and obtain government funds in support of Energizer’s R&D objectives. From 2004 through 2006 at the Industrial Research Institute, Alan chaired the Research-on-Research Committee, which develops leading-edge practices, tools, and techniques to improve technological innovation in industry. In addition, Alan has chaired the Radical Innovation Subcommittee since 2001 in cooperation with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Babson College, which led to a new book, Grabbing Lightning: Building a Capability for Breakthrough Innovation. He is currently a chair for the Level 5 Innovation Subcommittee, which is exploring emerging practices at leading edge innovative companies and has authored several articles on innovation. Alan has a BS in chemistry from St. Lawrence University and an MBA with honors from Baldwin-Wallace College.
David Doty has over 17 years experience in working in all aspects of Sponsored Programs Administration all with The Ohio State University. This experience includes pre-award services / management such as: identification of funding opportunities, costing, submission of proposals, pre-award audits and the negotiation of resulting awards from extramural sponsors. As well as post award program management activities which include: invoicing, financial reporting, cost allowability analysis, project closeout and post award audits. David has extensive background and experience in the negotiation of grants and contracts with all major federal agencies, a wide variety of Industrial Sponsors and the State of Ohio. He also has a wide and diverse experience and dealing with issues of Export Controls (ITAR and EAR) and developing compliance management plans for the handling of export controlled information. David has a dual degree in Business and Operations Management and Marketing from OSU. David is a Certified Research Administrator, and holds a “Secret” clearance with the Dept of Defense.
Richard Maresca is focused on handling all administrative and legal aspects of contract and grant instruments with US government, particularly the military branches, and the state of Ohio. He has interfaced with, and reported to, federal and state government funding agencies. He has managed relationships with for-profit, non-profit and academic institutions, such as Wright State University, University of Dayton, The Ohio State University, Georgia Tech University, Johns Hopkins University, Edison Materials Technology Center, Boeing, SAIC, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Pratt & Whitney. He has been responsible for handling all contract administration and legal affairs, especially contracts involving state or federal funding, for the Dayton Development Coalition family of companies: Dayton Development Coalition, Inc.; Development Research Corp.; Development Projects, Inc.; National Composite Center; Miami Valley Economic Development, Ltd.; North Central Campus for Emerging Technologies; and the Dayton Campus for Advanced Materials Technologies. He acts as the principal point of contact with technical monitoring for fiscal and legal personnel at the Ohio Department of Development for numerous Ohio Third Frontier grants to DDC, DPI, DRC, NCC and NCC-ET. Rich has a BA from Dartmouth College and a law degree from Cornell University.
Glenn McGee is a senior business executive with over 20 years experience in the high-technology sector leading business service teams that were responsible for contract, proposal, export and customer management. He is an accomplished negotiator who has successfully concluded over $250M of complex domestic and international business contracts. While working for such companies as Lockheed-Martin, General Dynamics and Curtiss-Wright, he developed & implemented processes, practices and innovative solutions with his business services teams to deliver outstanding value to his customers. In his most recent position, he was on the Executive Leadership team and participated in activities such as 5-year Strategic Planning, Annual Operating plans, Balanced Scorecard, while concurrently a member of Merger & Acquisition teams performing both due diligence and integration roles. He holds a BA Honours in Economics from Queen’s University at Kingston and numerous professional education certificates specializing in leadership development and negotiation/mediations.
Proposal Services
Cheryl Baker, Proposal Manager/Writer, was chosen from among multiple applicants to receive a Smith Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center’s Department of Cancer Biology, where she was a very successful postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Isaiah J. Fidler’s laboratory. After completing her postdoctoral training as a cancer biologist, she was recruited to Harvard University as an Instructor in Surgery where she worked in the field of angiogenesis, tumor models, drug development and testing with Dr. Judah Folkman. From 2006-2010, Dr. Baker was the Director of the Cancer Research Institute at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center Orlando and established a very credible team of doctoral level investigators and physician-scientists and instituted new and exciting cancer research projects, many in collaboration with scientists at local and national research institutions. These collaborations have led to patent applications/device testing and data generation necessary for FDA approval. She currently holds an appointment as Assistant Professor at University of Central Florida (UCF) mentoring graduate students and UCF College of Medicine as the Co-Director of Individualized Research course. Cheryl has presented at seminars and conferences around the world, has published over 45 cancer research articles in peer-reviewed journals and has secured over $5 million in funding which include peer-reviewed and foundation grants and industry contracts.
Meg Bouvier, Proposal Writer and Technical Expert, is the principal of Meg Bouvier Medical Writing, a company that assists biomedical research and policy groups communicate about their work to professional and lay audiences. She combines her experience as a bench scientist with a successful track record of writing persuasively about her client’s work. She has extensive experience with the NIH grant process, and in 2009 helped land a prestigious NIH Challenge Grant (1% funding line). Dr. Bouvier served as a staff writer and planning officer for the National Human Genome Research Institute, where she penned press, policy, and communications work for The Human Genome Project. Prior to that, she was a post-doctoral research fellow at the National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Meg holds a PhD in Biomedical Sciences from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, and a BS from Fordham University, Bronx NY. She currently serves as adjunct faculty at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, teaching undergraduates, graduate students, and faculty about grant writing, manuscript writing, and public speaking.
Valerie Delmonico, Proposal Coordinator, was formerly an Assistant Director for the Engineering Experiment Station at the Ohio State University. At the Experiment Station Valerie collaborated with support staff to assist and oversee the proposal submission process for state and federal agencies as well as the private industry sector. Valerie served as a liaison between engineering departments and funding streams to negotiate contract terms and conditions consistent with university guidelines regarding intellectual property and conflict of interest policies. Valerie also served as a Proposal Coordinator and Office Administrative Assistant before being promoted. In these roles she prepared budgets and paperwork for proposal submission and provided administrative support to the Associate Director and the Experiment Station staff. The last published records for the Engineering Experiment Station indicate annual successful awards of approximately $125 MM. Valerie holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Capital University in Business Management/Marketing.
Andrew DePristo, Proposal Writer and Technical Expert, was a tenured Professor at Iowa State and the UNC Chapel Hill for 19 years, a Program Director at the Ames Lab (US DOE) for 7 years in Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and Basic Energy Sciences (BES), and an (interim) Program Manager in Chemistry and Materials Sciences in BES for 2 years. He published over 130 articles in peer reviewed scientific journals, presented over 100 invited talks at top institutions and international conferences, and received prestigious fellowships from the J.S. Guggenheim, Alfred P. Sloan and Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundations. His research had significant scientific impact as evidenced by an “h-factor” of 40 in the ISI Web of Science with over 4500 references including 100 in 2008 even though his last paper was published in 1998. After moving into industry, he was a VP, President and CEO of various biotech, informatics, and hitech companies for 12 years. He received nearly $5M in individual research grants and over $35M in multi-investigator grants in the fields of chemistry, physics, materials science, genomics and bioinformatics during his career as a professor, program director and senior executive in private industry. Andrew earned a PhD in Chemical Physics from the U of MD at College Park, received an NSF postdoctoral fellow at Princeton University..
Holly Gessel, Proposal Writer/Coordinator, has over 10 years’ experience in renewable energy technologies. Her early experience involved R&D work at Energizer Battery, Inc. focusing on Lithium battery technologies. As a proposal writer and coordinator, her interest and expertise involves a wide range of renewable energy technologies, including wind, solar, energy efficiency programs, and biofuels. She has written a broad range of proposals for various federal and state funding opportunities, including DOE, USDA, Department of Treasury, ARRA, and Ohio Department of Development. Ms. Gessel holds a BS in Chemistry from Andrews University and an MBA from the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University.
Michael Mauk, Proposal Writer, is an Assistant Professor of Applied Engineering at Drexel University (Philadelphia, PA), and a Research Associate at the University of Pennsylvania in the School of Engineering and Applied Science. Mauk has a B.E.E. (Electrical Engineering, University of Delaware), B.Ch.E. (Chemical Engineering, University of Delaware), M.S. (Biochemistry, University of the Sciences in Philadelphia), M.S. (Biotechnology, Johns Hopkins University), M.E.E. (Electrical Engineering, University of Delaware), and Ph.D (Applied Sciences, Electrical Engineering, University of Delaware). He was a Research Associate at the Interuniversity Microelectronics Center (IMEC, Leuven, Belgium) and a Research Engineer at AstroPower, Inc. (Newark, Delaware). He is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Delaware. He has served as a technical writer for ITECS since 2010. Dr. Mauk has been a Principal Investigator for Research Programs sponsored by NSF, DOE, DARPA, NASA, NIST, ARO, ONR, BMDO, and ONR, totaling over $25 million in funding. Michael has over 200 technical publications, eight patents, and six patents in application.
Paula Stevenson, Proposal Manager/Writer and Technical Expert, joined ITECS in 2007, following a 30-year career at The Ohio State University (OSU). At ITECS she specializes in writing and managing multimillion-dollar technical proposals to federal and state agencies for research, development, and/or demonstration (RD&D) projects. The ITECS work builds on deep experience in starting up and managing a number of cutting-edge technology programs, in close collaboration with visionary leaders and interdisciplinary teams across many scientific and engineering fields ranging from nanobiotechnology to advanced energy, as well as across diverse organizations. Prior work included writing/editing proposals, organizing team efforts, and managing the resulting government awards, with activities ranging from ideation of new technology frontiers to commercialization. She has a Ph.D. in civil and environmental engineering and geodetic science and a B.S. in engineering physics (specialty electrical engineering) from OSU.
Partners
EisnerAmper LLPThe Federal Government Contracting Group of EisnerAmper LLP is specifically trained in government contract accounting and serves government contractors’ needs both pre-award and post-award. The group’s services include assistance with accounting system compliance, incurred cost submissions (ICS), Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) consulting, Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) audits and grant compliance audits (A133). As Partner-in-Charge, Anthony Faugno CPA utilizes his over 25 years of public accounting experience to guide the federal government contracting team in helping clients comply with the government accounting regulations related to their federal contracts and grants. EisnerAmper LLP is one of the premier full-service accounting and advisory firms in the Northeast and is among the largest firms in the United States. The firm provides audit, accounting, and tax services, as well as internal audit and risk management, litigation consulting and other professional services to a broad range of clients – from start-ups to Fortune 500 in size – including more than 150 public companies. As companies grow, EisnerAmper is prepared with a full complement of services to help them reach their goals every step of the way.
