Jess has 15 years of clinical research experience, with much of that time uniquely focused on rare and orphan diseases. Most recently, Jess oversaw clinical operations at the University of Pennsylvania’s Orphan Disease Center and Gene Therapy Program, both housed within the Perelman School of Medicine. While at Penn, Jess worked closely with biotech companies to implement strategic clinical development initiatives and with thought-leaders to foster collaboration within the rare disease community. She oversaw vendor partnerships to create patient registries and natural history studies, and, most impactfully, she worked hand-in-hand with patient advocacy groups, providing rare disease patients and their families with data-driven guidance while accelerating the clinical research process.
Prior to Penn, Jess spent eleven years in the CRO industry with Syneos Health, formerly INC Research, where she held director level positions growing their therapeutic business units, with a specific focus in global rare disease and pediatric trials.
Jess earned bachelor’s degrees in both Molecular Biology and Psychology from Meredith College in Raleigh, NC.