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Let’s Talk Entrepreneurship Friday, August 23, 2019 

Tech Center Research Park, 630 Hofstadter Road, Newport News, Virginia

Tech Center Research Park at Newport News and Gather are pleased to host a breakfast panel discussion, “Let’s Talk Entrepreneurship,” sponsored by Newport News Economic Development Authority and W.M. Jordan Company. Panelists will provide insights on their lessons learned and best practices in starting up, successes they have achieved along their entrepreneurial journey, and key resources available to assist entrepreneurs as they expand in the U.S. market and globally. MODERATOR Jeff Johnson is the Director of Tech Center Research Park at Newport News, spearheading this project since 2014, and actively seeking out companies and entrepreneurs who are focused on commercializing discovery and growing businesses that matter. In 2009, Jeff founded his own consulting company, Averitas, to help small and medium-sized businesses profitably grow both nationally and internationally. Prior to that, he was Founding CEO and Executive Director of an innovative healthcare-based workforce training program for adults and an arts-based education program for high school students in Cleveland, Ohio. Jeff has more than 20 years of corporate experience and has held director and senior-level executive leadership positions with profit and loss responsibilities at global industry-leading companies. As a certified Six Sigma Champion Trainer, Jeff also holds an Executive M.B.A. from Tulane University and a B.A. in Chemistry from Virginia Tech. PANELISTS Stuart Henderson, Ph.D. is the Director of Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. Stuart Henderson has served as the Director of Jefferson Lab, a world-leader in nuclear physics research, since April 3, 2017. Jefferson Lab features the first large- scale superconducting accelerator that enables the research of more than 1,500 nuclear physicists worldwide. Prior to joining Jefferson Lab, Dr. Henderson served as the Director of the Advanced Photon Source Upgrade Project, where he led the effort to design and build a 4th-generation synchrotron light source that will produce the world’s brightest hard x-rays. Previously, he served as Associate Laboratory Director for Accelerators at Fermilab and spent nearly a decade at Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Spallation Neutron Source (SNS), where he played key roles in constructing and commissioning the world’s most powerful accelerator-based neutron science user facility. He worked at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring (CESR) from 1991 to 2001, first as a research fellow with Harvard University, and then as a Cornell research staff member. R. Roy Whitney, Ph.D. is the President and CEO of BNNT, LLC. Dr. Whitney has worked at accelerator laboratories for over 40 years, including Stanford University’s HEPL, Berkeley Lab, Los Alamos-LAMPF, MIT-Bates, and Saclay in France and 30 years at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (Jefferson Lab). His positions have included chief information officer, chief technology officer and now scientist emeritus. Dr. Whitney has chaired a number of U.S. Department of Energy multi- site networking and computing committees and has chaired multiple international scientific conferences. Dr. Whitney received his B.A. in physics from the University of Oregon Honors College and his PhD in nuclear physics from Stanford University. Dr. Whitney initiated BNNT, LLC, and as president & CEO. The company licensed intellectual property from NASA LaRC, National Institute of Aerospace, Jefferson Lab and Berkeley Lab, initiated operations in May 2013, scaled the BNNT synthesis process to commercial levels in March 2014, and launched sales in July 2014. To date, the company has sold and provided samples of BNNT to over 600 product developers and scientific researchers in 28 countries and is currently expanding production capabilities. Evans McMillion is the Executive Director of 757 Accelerate. Evans is passionate about solving problems through innovation and collaboration. As an attorney, she helped growing businesses rethink their options and knock down the hurdles in their path towards growth. Most of Evans’ opportunities materialized because she was willing to say “yes” and then get to work. Prior to joining 757 Accelerate, Evans worked as an attorney counseling big and small companies at all stages of growth from entity formation through IPO. She has practiced in law firms in Seattle and Virginia Beach, as well as serving as corporate counsel to ADS, Inc. Evans attended Dartmouth College and Duke University School of Law.

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