Research Triangle Life Sciences Summit

Dale R. Folwell, CPA was elected for his first term as State Treasurer of North Carolina in 2016. He was reelected in 2020 and is currently serving his second term. As the keeper of the public purse, Treasurer Folwell is responsible for the more than $111 billion state pension fund that provides retirement benefits for more than 950,000 teachers, law enforcement officers and other public workers. Under Folwell’s leadership the pension plan was rated among the top five highest-funded in the country and won accolades for proactive management, efficiency and funding discipline. In 2021, the state’s coveted AAA bond rating was reaffirmed by every major rating agency, making North Carolina one of only 13 states in the country to hold that distinction. Treasurer Folwell also oversees the State Health Plan, which provides medical and pharmaceutical benefits to more than 750,000 current and retired public employees and is the largest purchaser of healthcare in North Carolina. Folwell was first elected to public office as a member of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education. He brought his problem-solving skills to the North Carolina General Assembly in 2004, where he served four terms in the House of Representatives including one term as Speaker Pro Tempore. In 2013, Folwell was named Assistant Secretary of Commerce and led a successful effort to pay off $2.7 billion in federal unemployment debt and build a $1 billion surplus in just 30 months. Treasurer Folwell began his career as a blue collar worker and became a Certified Public Accountant and investment advisor after attending Winston-Salem State University and earning Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in accounting from UNC-Greensboro. Married for over 30 years, he and his wife Synthia have three children and live in Winston-Salem.

Greg Capps serves as Managing Director for Longfellow Real Estate Partners, the largest privately held investor and developer of life science buildings in the United States. Mr. Capps oversees the coordination with Longfellow's Partners to set and execute the strategy for the firm's continued growth and presence in North Carolina. To date, Longfellow has developed a North Carolina portfolio of more than 4 million square feet and key assets throughout Research Triangle Park and Durham. Prior to joining Longfellow, Greg held positions with Newmark Knight Frank, Savills Studley, TriProperties, Inc. and JLL.

Dr. Suzet McKinney, a nationally recognized public health expert, serves as Principal and Director of Life Sciences. In her role, Dr. McKinney leads the strategy to expand Sterling Bay’s footprint in life sciences nationwide, pursue grant programs for laboratory incubation and graduation space and advance the work of various Sterling Bay life sciences initiatives including Prysm Institute. Prior to joining Sterling Bay, Dr. McKinney was CEO and Executive Director of the Illinois Medical District (IMD) where she managed medical research facilities, labs, a biotech business incubator, universities, four hospitals, and more than 40 healthcare-related facilities. Before IMD, Dr. McKinney served as Deputy Commissioner for the Bureau of Public Health Preparedness and Emergency Response at Chicago Department of Health.

Lee is responsible for acquiring new business, project planning, entitlement and execution. Lee oversaw all development activity on the award winning community, East 54 in Chapel Hill. He has special emphasis on new business development and has been responsible for the identification and acquisitions of many of the most recent projects including Riverplace and Crabtree Terrace. Lee also oversees all commercial leasing operations for the company. Lee is an undergraduate of UNC and MBA graduate of the Kenan Flagler Business School at UNC. Prior to joining East West Partners in 2005, Lee completed a 4 year rotational real estate training program with Washington, DC based AvalonBay Communities, Inc., one the nation’s largest multi-family REITS.

Bryan serves as Managing Director of Life & Health Sciences for Clancy & Theys Construction Company, a national Top 100 CM at-Risk firm. As the corporate leader in these segments, he builds on our 75-year legacy of safety, stewardship, passion and collaboration to augment our expertise and build relationships across the Southeast. Over his 20 year career Bryan has served in both General Contracting and Owner Project Management leadership roles in the life and health science segments cataloging an array of experience from ISO clean rooms to replacement hospital programs, making him an invaluable partner in the industry.

Don is a Principal and a Regional Director of the Life Science Practice at HKS. He leads business development activities and manages relationships with private, academic and government Life Science clients. Don has dedicated his career to designing facilities that advance research and create life changing scientific breakthroughs for human health.

Tim leads HDR’s Education and Science practice in the Research Triangle. Over the past 30 years, he has developed a robust portfolio of science and education projects, from ground up life science research to interdisciplinary institutes at renowned universities. Tim thrives on being part of design processes that support life-changing scientific advances and believes that at the root of good design is an understanding of human behavior and how the physical environment can affect these behaviors.

Marlene is a commercial real estate expert who specializes in the life science, technology, and health care sectors. She is especially experienced representing corporate end-users, both tenants and owner-occupants, with their lab, manufacturing, office, and flex needs. Her approach is to thoroughly understand the client's business in order to effectively align their real estate requirements with their business goals. Her unique background as an attorney with an undergraduate degree in Chemistry, coupled with her Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR) designation and her Certified Commercial Investment Management (CCIM) designation and over 25 years of commercial real estate transactional experience, brings a strong knowledge base to her clients.

Chase Kerley joined Crescent Communities in 2016 and currently serves at Managing Director of Life Sciences & the River District for Commercial. Chase is responsible for land acquisition, entitlement, and development. His primary responsibility is leading all Life Science pursuits across the United States and managing The River District - a development of 8M SF of office, 5,000 homes and apartments, 500k SF of retail, and 1000 hotel rooms in Charlotte, NC. Previously at Crescent Communities, Chase served as Director of Land Acquisition and Development. Chase has over 16 years of experience in commercial and residential acquisition and development having lead development for 2.1M SF of Life Science space, 1.4M SF of industrial, and over 8,200 residential units across the southeast. Prior to Crescent Communities, Chase was the VP of Land Acquisition for Shea Homes where he lead acquisition and development efforts for eleven years across NC and SC.

Scot Humphrey is a founding principal at Edgewater Ventures where he leads the company’s efforts in the acquisition and development of office and life science assets in the Carolinas. With over 15 years of experience in commercial real estate investments, Scot has represented institutional and private investors on nearly 50 million square feet of transactions in the region, totaling over $8 billion. Throughout his career, Scot has built exceptional relationships across the industry by being forward-thinking and taking a detailed, thoughtful and analytical approach to solving problems and identifying opportunities.

Tim joined King Street in 2021 with over 13 years of commercial real estate experience. As Vice President, he is responsible for overseeing the firm’s activities in the North Carolina’s Research Triangle. He holds a B.S. in Business Administration and Communication Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Master of Business Administration degree from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

With more than 20 years of experience in development, design, engineering and construction, Jon Fayard has extensive expertise in all phases of Life Sciences, including R&D/discovery (incubator and startup), pre-clinical/clinical research, manufacturing, commercialization and post-market research. Fayard is a former COO and Certified Six Sigma Green Belt by the Quality Institute of America. He is well-versed in managing full scale project life cycle from his time on the Owner’s side to working for a developer and top tier brokerage firm, as well as a premier manufacturing company and in design-build construction. Fayard uses a diverse, open-minded approach to solving problems for his clients, allowing them to focus on research rare and genetic diseases while he and his team bring their facilities goals to life.

George is CEO and Co-Founder of CleanSpace Modular, LLC., a Doylestown, PA-based company that provides cleanrooms and temperature-controlled environments for the life sciences, healthcare, technology, and industrial markets. Founded in 2020, CleanSpace has grown to become one of the fastest growing business in the Philadelphia region (Ranked #1 by PBJ 2021 Soaring 76) and has completed projects from coast to coast and currently has work across North America, in Asia and in Europe. Since 1992 George has worked in the development of highly technical facility programs, with a particular focus on modularity and standardization, facilitating very rapid and predictable solutions. George prefers to work interactively and diligently with clients, engaging with client teams to develop successful programs. George’s particular focus is in front end design and programming, often leading the conceptual design for projects, analyzing and developing process flows, operational ergonomics, compliance drivers, as well as incorporating new industry trends. George has been part of many project teams from concept through construction and qualification, on small projects to projects over $350MM. In addition, George also is a contributing author and lecturer, providing insight, trends, ideas and concepts to user groups and industry professionals.