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Our Leadership
Julian Awad, Co-Founder and CEO.
From making relief trips to refugees in Sumatra, to graduating Magna Cum Laude from the Wharton School of Business, Julian has always held a passion for two things: entrepreneurialism and social responsibility.
After spending 5 years with Xerox as a project manager, Julian moved on to CIGNA’s Early Leadership Development Program, while simultaneously graduating from Wharton School of Business with a double major in Management and Marketing. With over 8 years of experience in strategic planning, project management, insurance, information technology, and managing multi-million dollar budgets, Julian now has focused his goals on the success of Smart Genetics in the only way he knows how: by creating socially responsible value for customers and the community at large.
Richard Watson, Co-Founder and Chief Technical Officer.
Born in Saint Catharine, Jamaica, Richard immigrated to the United States in 1986, where his insatiable curiosity for science blossomed. While completing his degree in Molecular Biology at Temple University, Richard began the work that would eventually lead to the backbone of Smart Genetics. Prior to Co-founding Smart Genetics, Richard served as a Research Specialist in Molecular Virology at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Medicine. During his time at the University of Pennsylvania, Richard co-authored several articles published in journals such as the Journal of Virology. He has worked on several research studies to understand the molecular pathology of coronavirus infection, including a joint study to develop an animal model for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).
Dr. David A. Targan MD, Director of Medical Communications
Dr. Targan is an Internal Medicine Physician, board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and member of the American College of Physicians and the Pennsylvania and Montgomery County Medical Societies. He is on the medical staff of Lankenau and Bryn Mawr Hospitals, part of the Main Line HealthCare System. Dr. Targan specializes in patient education, adolescent health, and personalized and genomic medicine.
Karen R. Hanson, M.S., M.B.A., Director of Clinical Operations
Karen is a certified genetic counselor with 18 years experience in both academic and private hospital settings. For the past 10 years, Karen has built, marketed and managed the cancer genetics practice at the Genetics Department at Greater Baltimore Medical Center in Maryland. She also conceived and planned a master’s level program for genetic counseling at the University of Maryland. She is frequently asked to speak to both lay and professional audiences, and contributes regularly to community newsletters and other publications. Karen also holds a MBA degree from the Sellinger School of Business at Loyola College.
Board of Directors
Dr. Dale Pfost, PHD - Previous CEO, Acuity Pharmaceutical
Acuity Pharmaceutical was recently in a three-way merger to form Opko Health (AMEX: OPK) a leading company in ophthalmic technology and products. Dr. Pfost is a leading biotechnology industry entrepreneur and executive with 25 years experience in commercialization of new diagnostics/analytical products including genetic tests. He was founding CEO of Orchid BioSciences, now Orchid Cellmark (Nasdaq: ORCH) and Oxford GlycoSciences. Also Dr. Pfost was the co-founder of the company that developed the Biomek 1000, which was sold to SmithKline Beckman. He has led companies in over fifteen public and private financings raising over $300 million.
Maurits Geerlings - Vice President of Business Development Prism Pharmaceuticals
Dr. Geerlings has more than 15 years of industry experience, including a strong entrepreneurial background and business development expertise spanning cardiology, oncology, and neurology. Prior to joining Prism, Dr. Geerlings served in business development roles at Cephalon, Inc. and Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Dr. Geerlings was a co-founder of Actinium Pharmaceuticals where he was responsible for fundraising, research & development, government affairs and corporate development. He received his medical degree from The University of Utrecht in the Netherlands and his Masters in Business Administration from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Antony Detre - Vice President of Business Development, Falconwood
Mr. Detre heads up the business development activities for the Falconwood Corporation specializing in real estate, hospitality, entertainment and biotechnology. Prior to this, Tony was Vice President of Business Development at UPMC Health System. He led the development of UPMC's oncology network, including 10 regional cancer centers with an estimated cost of $75 million. He was also responsible for the planning and development of the $30 million UPMC Sports Performance Complex on the South Side, and was president and CEO of Chromodynamics, a biomedical start-up company developed by CarnegieMellon University physicians which was recently sold to Gooch & Housego , a publically traded company in the UK.
Emer Leahy, Ph.D., M.B.A. - Psychogenic - President and CEO
Dr. Emer Leahy received her Ph.D. in Neuropharmacology at University College Dublin, Ireland and her MBA from Columbia University. She has more than 15 years of behavioral research experience, as well as experience in business development for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including extensive knowledge of technology assessment, licensing, mergers and acquisitions and strategic planning. Prior to her appointment as CEO, she was PsychoGenics’ Vice President of Business Development. In addition to the aforementioned, Dr. Leahy has spearheaded contract negotiations and licensing agreements focusing on Alzheimer’s disease, psychiatry, epilepsy and other neurodegenerative disorders.
Expert Advisors
Alzheimer’s Advisory Board
Norman Relkin, Ph.D., M.D
Norman Relkin, Ph.D., M.D. is an ABPN board-certified Neurologist who graduated from Yale College and received his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He has been a physician at the New York Presbyterian Hospital - Weill Cornell Medical Center since 1987 and Director of the Cornell Memory Disorders Program since 1993. Dr. Relkin is internationally recognized for his work on Alzheimer’s Disease and related disorders. He is the author of a book, several book chapters and numerous scientific papers on neurodegenerative and traumatic disorders of the brain, and lectures throughout the world on these topics.
Lindsay Farrer, PhD
Dr. Lindsay Farrer is a medical geneticist at Boston University Schools of Medicine and Public Health where he is Chief of the Genetics Program, Director of the Genetic Epidemiology Center, and a Professor of Medicine, Neurology, Genetics & Genomics, Epidemiology, and Biostatistics. Dr. Farrer is a graduate of the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, received his Ph.D. from the Indiana University School of Medicine, and gained additional training in genetic epidemiology at Yale University. He holds adjunct faculty positions at Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, and the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Bedford, Massachusetts. He is a Founding Fellow of the American College of Medical Genetics. Dr. Farrer teaches several courses in human genetics and genetic epidemiology at Boston University, directs the Molecular Genetics Core Facility, which offers DNA genotyping and sequencing services to investigators at the Boston Medical Center, and provides genetic counseling and testing to patients with a variety of inherited conditions.
Genetic Counseling Advisor
W. Andrew (Andy) Faucett M.S., C.G.C
W. Andrew (Andy) Faucett, M.S., C.G.C., has worked as a genetic counselor and public health geneticist since 1987. He has provided prenatal and cancer genetic counseling services; developed healthcare provider education; and recently has focused on rare disease test translation, oversight and education. Andy is a faculty member in the Department of Human Genetics at Emory University School of Medicine, CETT Program Coordinator for the NIH Office of Rare Diseases, and has an Interagency Professional Agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to work on genetic testing issues. Andy received his B.S. from the Baptist College at Charleston and his M.S. in genetic counseling from Sarah Lawrence College. He is board certified by the American Board of Genetic Counseling (ABGC). He worked in Houston and Savannah, Georgia prior to moving to Atlanta to work with the CDC and Emory. He is an active leader in the profession of genetic counseling and has served on the Board of Directors for the National Society of Genetic Counselors (NSGC), the ABGC, and the Jane Engelberg Memorial Fellowship.
Scientific Advisor
Howard McLeod, Pharm.D.
Dr. Howard McLeod is a Fred N. Eshelman Distinguished Professor and Director of the UNC Institute for Pharmacogenomics and Individualized Therapy at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Pharmacy. He received his Doctor of Pharmacy from Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science and went on to complete research fellowship training in cancer pharmacology at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis and at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. Dr. McLeod is an internationally recognized expert in the pharmacogenomic analysis of cancer therapeutics and is a member of the FDA Subcommittee on Clinical Pharmacology.