With momentum building, Technology Initiative names new leader

By: Deborah Johnson Wood

Grand Rapids-based West Michigan Science and Technology Initiative (WMSTI) has appointed a Grand Rapids native as its new executive director. Linda Chamberlain, Ph.D., has been with the WMSTI as commercialization director since 2003 and assumed the role of interim executive director in April.

The WMSTI—a joint venture of GVSU, the City of Grand Rapids, the Van Andel Institute, GRCC, The Right Place, Inc., and the MEDC—helps researchers, scientists, and life science start-ups bring life science products to market. Through the WMSTI's life sciences incubator and its collaborative initiatives Chamberlain estimates the WMSTI has had a hand in producing revenues in excess of $30 million.

"We're going to continue to drive commercialization of products, drive collaboration which supports commercialization, and create opportunities for people to connect with those doing the commercialization," Chamberlain says.

WMSTI's focus remains on bringing therapeutic, diagnostic, and medical device to market, with primary emphasis on medical devices. In addition, Chamberlain hopes to expand WMSTI's incubator space and establish labs specifically for medical device startups.

"Medical device startups need different space and services than those we have now, so we're trying to determine what the new incubator space would look like, who it would serve, and where will it be," she adds.

Chamberlain, 47, was born in Grand Rapids and graduated from Creston High School. She earned a two-year degree from GRCC and a doctorate in chemistry at age 27 from Purdue University. In previous jobs supervising new product development at several major corporations, Chamberlain helped develop 19 patents for chemical products used in the manufacture of disposable diapers, hockey masks, asphalts, and adhesives.

Source: Linda Chamberlain, West Michigan Science and Technology Initiative; Casee N. Willoughby, Seyferth Spaulding Tennyson, Inc.

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].