UNIVERSITY CITY SCIENCE CENTER PRESS KIT MEDIA CONTACTS: JEFF RECHLER Slice Communications jrechler@slicecommunications.com (215) 600-0050 ADDRESS:ESS 3711 Market Street, Suite 800 Philadelphia, PA 19104 215-966-6000 JEANNE MELL Vice President, Marketing Communications & Community Engagement jmell@sciencecenter.org (215) 966-6029 KRISTEN FITCH Senior Manager, Marketing & Media Relations kfitch@sciencecenter.org (215) 966-6156 @UCScienceCenter University City Science Center www.sciencecenter.org
GETTING TO KNOW THE UNIVERSITY CITY SCIENCE CENTER The University City Science Center is a dynamic hub for innovation, entrepreneurship and technology development in the Greater Philadelphia region. It provides business incubation, programming, lab and office facilities, and support services for entrepreneurs, startups, and growing and established companies. UNIVERSITY CITY, PHILADELPHIA In 2014, the Brookings Institution labeled Philadelphia s University City neighborhood as one of the country s prime innovation districts an ultimate mash up of entrepreneurs and educational institutions, start-ups and schools, mixed-use development and medical innovations, bike-sharing and bankable investments. Brookings recognized the Science Center as a driving force behind University City s evolution. 2
UNIVERSITY CITY SCIENCE CENTER PRESS KIT LOCATION: The Science Center is located in the heart of West Philadelphia s University City neighborhood. Its administrative offices are located at 3711 Market St., 8th Floor Philadelphia, PA 19104. POISED FOR GROWTH: Currently there are 15 buildings dedicated to office, lab, retail and residential on the Science Center legacy campus. However, the Science Center is poised for growth. The Science Center is leveraging its history as the nation s oldest and largest urban research park as it joins forces with Wexford Science + Technology, a BioMed Realty company, to expand its footprint and rebrand its physical campus as ucity Square a true mixed-use community of ingenuity. As a result of this joint venture, the Science Center has the potential to double in size as it and Wexford plan to develop nearly four million square feet of world-class office, laboratory, residential, retail facilities and structured parking over the next 10 years. 3
THE BASICS: The Science Center pioneered the concept of business incubation and has provided lab and office space for startup, growing and established companies since 1963. Science Center programs such as the Port business incubator and Quorum, the entrepreneurs clubhouse, connect entrepreneurs and startups to investors, advice and Greater Philadelphia s innovation ecosystem. At any one time approximately 70 companies from all over the world are participating in the Science Center s incubation programs, support services, programming and networking opportunities. Of these, 35 are in residence at the Port business incubator and 35 are members of the collaborative space at ic@3401. The Science Center s FirstHand program aims to spark an interest in the STEAM disciplines of science, technology, engineering, art and math, for students to explore and cultivate throughout their lives. FirstHand targets Philadelphia youth from underresourced schools and the teachers, professionals and families from their communities. FACTS AND FIGURES 400+ 442 companies have graduated from the Science Center since we were founded in 1963. alumni Alumni include SEI Investments, Centocor (now known as Janssen Biotech), Bentley Systems, Morphotek, Inc., BioRexis Pharmaceutical Corp., Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, Invisible Sentinel and Adaptimmune. 12,000 12,000 people work at incubator residents and graduate firms in Greater Philadelphia. $13B $13 billion in regional economic output is generated by graduate and current incubator companies. $250M Port business incubator residents have raised more than $250 million in investment and $14 million in federal funding since 2012. $103K $103,000 is the average annual salary of employees of our graduate companies and incubator residents. 2 Two percent of the Greater Philadelphia Region s total economic output is driven by Science Center-incubated firms. 4
KEY MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS WEST PHILLY RISING Philadelphia Magazine, November 2015 HIP TO BE UCITY SQUARE: SCIENCE CENTER UNVEILS VISION, NEW NAME Philadelphia Magazine, September 2015 3 SIGNS YOU RE BETTER OFF ABANDONING YOUR IDEA Entrepreneur.com, August 2015 MEET 4 PHILLY COMPANIES REDEFINING INNOVATION Philadelphia Magazine, July 2015 $1 BILLION PLAN TO TRANSFORM UNIVERSITY CITY SITE Philadelphia Business Journal, June 2015 WORK-LIFE BALANCE IS DEAD HERE S WHY THAT MIGHT BE A GOOD THING Fortune, March 2015 THE MOST INNOVATIVE CITIES IN AMERICA Inc. magazine, April 2014 WHY PHILLY S BIOTECH STARTUP SCENE IS BOOMING Inc.com, January 2014 UNIVERSITY CITY SCIENCE CENTER A HUB OF INGENUITY IN PHILADELPHIA 6ABC, January 2014 UNIVERSITY CITY SCIENCE CENTER GOING STRONG AT 50 The Philadelphia Inquirer, October 2013 5
RESIDENT AND GRADUATE COMPANIES IN THE NEWS FOOD TESTING START-UP LOOKS TO STAND OUT WITH A NEW WRINKLE Science Center resident Invisible Sentinel profiled in the NY Times (January 2016) THIS STARTUP COULD CHANGE YOUR IPHONE INTO A TINY DISEASE- DETECTING LAB Digital Health Accelerator participant in Wired (August 2014) GSK AND ADAPTIMMUNE IN $500M DEAL TO DEVELOP T-CELL CANCER DRUG Port graduate Adaptimmune in Financial Times (February 2016) CANCER-FIGHTING BIOPHARM COMPANY LOGS $191M IPO Adaptimmune goes public, Philadelphia Business Journal (May 2015) GLAXOSMITHKLINE IN $350 MILLION CANCER DRUG VENTURE Adaptimmune earns a spot in the N.Y. Times Dealbook (June 2014) POINT.IO JUST CLOSED A $4M SERIES B WITHOUT ANY VCS ic@3401 anchor tenant, Point.io raises $4M, Technically Philly, (April 2015) TODAY S HUGE IPO NEWS (NO, NOT SHAKE SHACK) Gene therapy isn t as sexy as shakes but Science Center-based Spark Therapeutics managed to raise more in its IPO than Shake Shack which filed on the same day. (Fortune, January 2015) FOR MORE INFO ABOUT THE SCIENCE CENTER, PLEASE VISIT SCIENCECENTER.ORG SOCIAL MEDIA @UCScienceCenter University City Science Center 6
SPOKESPERSON: JEANNE MELL - VICE PRESIDENT MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT @jlmell jmell@sciencecenter.org (215) 966-6029 Jeanne Mell joined the University City Science Center in 2009 as vice president marketing communications. She is responsible for corporate marketing, program development, communications, public and media relations and community engagement. Mell also oversees Quorum, the entrepreneurs clubhouse. Immediately before joining the Science Center, Mell was senior vice president, communications for the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce, where she had overall responsibility for print and electronic communications, public relations and media relations. Prior to joining the Chamber, Mell had a career in journalism. Most recently she served as Director of Photography and Design at The News Journal in Wilmington, Del. She also worked at the Associated Press in New York and Philadelphia, ABC News, Good Morning America and Popular Photography Magazine. She started her career at Inc. Magazine back when it was a startup. Mell chairs the board of Campus Philly and serves on the boards of the Alliance of Women Entrepreneurs, the Association of University Research Parks, The Economy League of Greater Philadelphia, and the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau (PHL CVB). She also represents the Science Center on the PHL Life Sciences division of the Greater Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau. 7
KEY FIGURES: STEPHEN S. TANG, PH.D., MBA - PRESIDENT AND CEO @stephenstang Stephen Tang became president and CEO of the Science Center in February 2008 following an extensive nationwide search. He brings to the position a wealth of professional experience in academia, professional services and private industry. Most notably, Tang is the first president in the Science Center s history to have not only led a company through venture funding and an initial public offering, but to also serve as a senior executive with a large life sciences company as it acquired and integrated smaller startups. A seasoned life science, energy technology and management consulting executive, Dr. Tang previously led U.S. operations for Olympus America Inc. s global Life Science businesses. Before joining Olympus, he was president and CEO of Millennium Cell Inc., an energy technology firm he led through its initial public offering. Tang has also had leadership roles with A.T. Kearney Inc. and Gemini Consulting Inc., now known as Cap Gemini. In 2014, U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker appointed Dr. Tang to the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE). Tang is one of the 27 NACIE members who advise the Secretary on issues related to accelerating innovation, expanding entrepreneurship, and developing a globally competitive workforce. Previously, Tang served on the U.S. Department of Commerce s Innovation Advisory Board. Dr. Tang also serves on several state-wide, regional and local Boards of Directors. He currently chairs the Board of Directors of the Committee of Seventy, the Philadelphia region s good government advocate and is co-chair of Team Pennsylvania Foundation (along with co-chair Gov. Tom Wolf). Team PA bridges the gap between government and the private sector to allow both sides to partner for the betterment of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Tang earned a doctorate in chemical engineering from Lehigh University, an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania and a B.S. in chemistry from the College of William and Mary. A graduate of the public school system in Delaware, he has resided in the area for most of his life. 8
CHRISTOPHER J. LAING, MRCVS, PH.D. VICE PRESIDENT, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Christopher Laing, MRCVS, PhD, is Vice President, Science and Technology, at the University City Science Center, where he oversees commercialization programs, startup investment, and business incubation. Since 2009, participants of these programs have collectively raised hundreds of millions in venture financing. His particular areas of expertise include life sciences and healthcare. Prior to joining the Science Center, Chris worked for a number of biomedical start-up companies, and was a practicing companion animal veterinarian in the United Kingdom, where he is a Member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. He completed his veterinary training and his PhD (in endocrinology) at the University of Sydney, and his post-doctoral training (in molecular biology) at the University Of Pennsylvania s School Of Medicine. Chris serves on the Board of Visitors of the University of the Sciences Mayes College, and on the Board of the South Jersey Technology Park. He chairs the Oversight Committee of the Philadelphia Pediatric Device Consortium. In 2015 he was invited to spend a month exploring China s innovation economy as an Eisenhower Fellow. 9