UNIVERSITY CITY SCIENCE CENTER PRESS KIT MEDIA CONTACTS: ELYSSE CICCONE Slice Communications eciccone@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 mission-driven nonprofit with a 50+ year track record of helping innovators and entrepreneurs bring world-changing technologies to market. It provides startups at any stage of their lifecycle support and access to resources, programming, capital and space, helping to move innovation from idea to IPO and beyond. The Science Center s core strength in tech-based economic development makes it a powerhouse in the Greater Philadelphia region. 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 UCITY SQUARE: The Science Center is located in the heart of ucity Square, an innovation hub in West Philadelphia s University City neighborhood. Over the next 10 years, the Science Center and its development partner Wexford Science & Technology are adding 4 million square feet of office, lab, retail, residential, and shared public space growing ucity Square to a total of 6.5 million square feet spanning 11 city blocks. As the heart of Philadelphia expands westward, ucity Square will be the linchpin that connects the surrounding neighborhoods to the rest of University City, opening pathways to access and inclusion. And it will carry on the Science Center s 50+ year legacy of convening and connecting the diverse members of the region s innovation ecosystem to foster ideas and breakthroughs. ucity Square is the place for innovation to happen and the Science Center is the nucleus that makes it all possible. 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 at the Port business incubator and 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. Technology commercialization programs like QED, Phase 1 Ventures and the Digital Health Accelerator offer funding, targeted advice, introductions and space to help startups move their ideas to market. 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 SCIENCE CENTER BREAKS GROUND AT 3675 MARKET STREET Philadelphia Magazine, January 2017 PHILLY AND PITTSBURGH TO TEAM UP ON TECH COMMERCIALIZATION Philadelphia Magazine, January 2017 CAN UNIVERSITY CITY BECOME A CATALYST FOR THE PHILLY TECH SCENE? Technical.ly Philly, December 2016 CAMBRIDGE INNOVATION CENTER SIGNS BIG LEASE IN UNIVERSITY CITY Philadelphia Business Journal, December 2016 HOW MICROSOFT S NEW VENTURE IN PHILADELPHIA COULD BOOST DIVERSITY IN TECH Philadelphia Business Journal, November 2016 DNA AS AN ARTISTIC MEDIUM The Scientist, October 2016 4 WAYS ENTREPRENEURS EARN HUGE ROI INVESTING IN THEIR COMMUNITY Entrepreneur.com, July 2016 REPORT: UNIVERSITY CITY SCIENCE CENTER GENERATES $13B ECONOMIC IMPACT ON REGION Philadelphia Business Journal, June 2016 SCIENCE CENTER GIVES PHILLY SCHOOLKIDS FIRSTHAND LOOK AT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Flying Kite Media, November 2015 DO I START A BUSINESS OR GET A JOB? SAGE ADVICE FROM STEPHEN TANG Philadelphia Magazine, May 2015 5
RESIDENT AND GRADUATE COMPANIES IN THE NEWS 12 IMMIGRANT FOUNDED COMPANIES THAT MADE PHILLY THEIR HOME ROAR for Good, GraphWear Technologies, and The One Health Company are immigrant founded companies located at the Science Center (Technical.ly Philly, January 2017) HOW TO ENROLL YOUR DOG IN A CANCER-DRUG TRIAL ic@3401 resident The One Health Company was featured in The Economist (November 2016) BBC 100 WOMEN 2016: WHO IS ON THE LIST? ROAR for Good CEO Yasmine Mustafa named to BBC s 100 Women 2016 list (November 2016) STARTUP WANTS TO GO BEYOND PENCILS TO IMPROVE PATIENT MONITORING FOR PSYCHIATRIC PATIENTS InvisALERT seeks to give a digital upgrade to psychiatric hospitals (MedCity News, October 2016) GRAPHWEAR TECHNOLOGIES PILOTS SWEAT SENSOR PATCH WITH NFL TEAM GraphWear Technologies piloted its sweat assessment wearable patch with a professional football team (MedCity News, October 2016) EXPLORING THE LIFESTAGES OF AN ENTREPRENEUR VIA FOUR PHILLY COMPANIES Flying Kite Media profiled four Science Center resident companies (August 2016) FOOD TESTING START-UP LOOKS TO STAND OUT WITH A NEW WRINKLE Science Center resident Invisible Sentinel profiled in the NY Times (January 2016) 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, and the Microsoft Reactor. 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 is Vice President of the Association of University Research Parks. She also serves on the board of the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau (PHL CVB) and represents the Science Center on its PHL Life Sciences division. 7
KEY FIGURES: STEPHEN S. TANG, PH.D., MBA - PRESIDENT AND CEO @stephenstang Steve Tang became President and CEO of the University City Science Center, the nation s oldest and largest urban research park, in 2008. Dr. 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 start-ups. In September 2016, Dr. Tang was re-appointed to the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE) and now serves as NACIE co-chair through 2018. NACIE members offer recommendations to the U.S. Secretary of Commerce for policies and programs designed to make U.S. communities, businesses, and the workforce more globally competitive. Previously, Tang served on the U.S. Department of Commerce s Innovation Advisory Board. Dr. Tang also serves on several statewide, regional and local Boards of Directors. Along with Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf, he co-chairs the Team Pennsylvania Foundation, which bridges the gap between government and the private sector. Dr. Tang also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of OraSure Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: OSUR), a leader in the development, manufacture and distribution of diagnostics and collection devices designed to detect or diagnose critical medical conditions. Dr. Tang earned a doctorate in Chemical Engineering from Lehigh University, an M.B.A. from Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, and a B.S. in Chemistry from the College of William and Mary. 8