Office of the Director biographies

Adrian J. Ivinson, PhD, is the founding Director of the Harvard NeuroDiscovery Center (originally the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair). Dr. Ivinson helped develop the vision of an integrated and tightly managed research center engaged in groundbreaking and collaborative research at Harvard Medical School, its affiliated research hospitals, and other leading research groups around the world. Prior to his appointment as Director, Dr. Ivinson was special advisor to the Provost of Harvard University. From 1993-2000 he held a number of leadership positions at the prestigious Nature Publishing Group, including Editor-in-Chief of the journal Nature Medicine and Publisher of the monthly journals. Trained as a geneticist, Dr. Ivinson's research career focused on the genetics of single gene disorders.

Ross Stein, PhD, is Director of the Laboratory for Drug Discovery in Neurodegeneration. With more than 20 years experience in drug discovery and the development of new therapeutics for human disease, Dr. Stein is the co-inventor of VELCADE, a drug that was recently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of multiple myeloma. He built and ran research departments in both pharmaceutical and biotech companies, including Merck and ProScript before founding the Laboratory for Drug Discovery in Neurodegeneration, the largest university-based drug discovery lab devoted to neurodegenerative diseases.

Craig Kennedy, MBA, MPH, is the Harvard NeuroDiscovery Center’s Deputy Director with responsibility for business development. Previously Mr. Kennedy directed intellectual property, business development, clinical trials and commercial launches for BioMarin Pharmaceuticals. Earlier experience includes corporate development roles at CibaGeigy, Myriad Genetics, Life Technologies, CellGenesys and the National Cancer Institute.

Patti A. Stoll, MBA, is the Harvard NeuroDiscovery Center’s Deputy Director with responsibility for marketing and development. Previously, Ms. Stoll spent 24 years in the financial services industry, most recently as a Managing Director in the Alternative Investment Group at Bank of America, directing the development, management and marketing of private equity and hedge funds. Previous experience includes a variety of senior corporate finance and lending positions at FleetBoston and Bank of Boston.

Zara Smith is the Harvard NeuroDiscovery Center's Programs Manager. Ms. Smith has a degree from Bard College, and oversees the NeuroDiscovery Center's finances and operations, and helps to facilitate the administration of its scientific programs.

Rachel Talentino is the Harvard NeuroDiscovery Center's Administrative Coordinator. Ms. Talentino has a degree from Trinity College, and oversees the back office operations of the Center and the annual symposium and other meetings.

Jon Lu is the Harvard NeuroDiscovery Center’s Administrative Assistant. Mr. Lu has a degree from Bentley College, and provides project and administrative support to the Deputy Directors.