Dr. Anne Khademian was named to serve as the Universities at Shady Grove’s third executive director in October 2020, following a nationwide search and her appointment to the post by Dr. Jay Perman, Chancellor of the University System of Maryland. As executive director of USG – a regional higher education center of USM in Montgomery County, with programs from nine universities on one campus – Dr. Khademian also holds the title of Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs for USM.

Before joining USG, Dr. Khademian served most recently as a Presidential Fellow and professor at Virginia Tech, where she enjoyed a stellar 17-year career that included several years as director of the School of Public and International Affairs. A longtime resident of Montgomery County, Maryland, she served in her presidential fellowship in Virginia Tech’s Research Center in Arlington, near Washington, D.C. In that capacity, she supported the collaborative implementation of “Beyond Boundaries” initiatives, working across the university’s campuses and stakeholder committees to support organizational innovation and growth.

With nearly three decades of experience in higher education, Dr. Khademian is a nationally recognized scholar and author in the areas of inclusive leadership and organizational change. As director of the School of Public and International Affairs in Virginia Tech’s College of Architecture and Urban Studies for seven years, she led the school through a period of significant growth and transformation, including the introduction of new academic degrees and programs; increased student enrollment; new faculty hires; forging of new global partnerships and initiatives; and extended outreach into the local community.

Dr. Khademian’s research focuses on leadership and organizational culture, inclusive management, policy networks, and the work of organizations involved in homeland security and financial regulation. She is the author of three books: Working with Culture: The Way the Job Gets Done in Public Programs (CQ Press, 2002); Checking on Banks: Autonomy and Accountability in Three Federal Agencies (Brookings, 1996); and The SEC and Capital Market Regulation: The Politics of Expertise (University of Pittsburgh Press 1992). She has also published numerous articles on public management and public policy.

Dr. Khademian is a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration, an independent, nonprofit, and nonpartisan organization established by Congress to assist government leaders in building more-effective, efficient, accountable, and transparent organizations.

As part of her leadership in the community, Dr. Khademian serves on the boards of both the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce and the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation. She is also on the Board of Directors for the American Red Cross, National Capital Region for the Montgomery, Howard and Frederick Counties Chapter and the Board of Directors for Smart City Works. In addition, she is a member of the Leadership Montgomery CORE Class of 2023.

Dr. Khademian holds a B.A. in Political Science and a Master of Public Administration from Michigan State University, and a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Political Science and Government from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. She was a cross country and track star while at Michigan State and in 2016 she was inducted into the university’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

Dr. Khademian also hosts a video podcast series called "This is USG" and an audio podcast entitled "AKA Innovation," which showcases innovative leadership and business practices that can help to drive transformation and innovation in education.

Brian Darmody serves as CEO of the Association of University Research Parks (AURP), a global nonprofit building communities of innovation in 42 states and 12 countries sponsored by universities, hospital systems, government labs and cities and the firms planning and building these communities. The largest number of AURP members are clustered in the DC/Md/Va region. Darmody launched the AURP Bio Health Caucus that focuses on planning and building life science facilities across the globe and is co-author with Rich Bendis of the Journal of Commercial Biotechnology Creating Communities of Life Science Innovation in the U.S.: History of Critical Factors That Helped the Bio Health Capital Region Emerge, March 2021.

Previously, he was the University’s AVP for Corporate and Foundation Relations in the Division of University Relations, AVP for Research and Economic Development, Special Assistant Vice Chancellor for Technology Development for University System of Maryland, Director of State and Federal Relations in the UMD President’s Office and served in the university’s legal counsel office. He worked for the U.S. Health Care Financing Administration Office of Attorney-Advisor and for a member of Congress and member of Maryland House of Delegates.

He is a frequent author and speaker and serves on national and state boards, including Bio Health Capital Region Forum Planning Committee, Fraunhofer USA, and the Maryland Technology Corporation Venture Board. He holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Baltimore, and he received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland, College Park.

As the CEO of TEDCO—Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies—Troy leads the organization’s mission to support economic development through the cultivation of an inclusive entrepreneurial innovation ecosystem. He brings to bear more than 25 years of experience in investment management, higher education, telecommunications, information/communication technology, and management consulting in this leadership role.

Prior to joining TEDCO, Troy was the chief operating officer at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC), the nation’s only urban land-grant university. UDC encompasses a six-site community college, a four-year baccalaureate campus, and a law school, and serves 7,000 degree- and certificate-seeking students. He oversaw an array of critical functions at UDC, including capital construction, communications, emergency management, enrollment services, facilities management, government relations, information management, institutional research, marketing, public safety, risk management, and strategic planning, to name a just a few.

An entrepreneur at heart and in spirit, Troy founded the management consulting firms LeMaile-Stovall LLC and GTMS Partners, LLC. He also co-founded and served as the first president and CEO of GulfSouth Capital. His resume includes positions as the interim president of Zenith Education Group; principal at Butler Snow Advisory Services; executive vice president and chief operating officer of Howard University; and senior vice president and chief financial officer Jackson State (Mississippi) University, where he was awarded the Thurgood Marshall HBCU CFO of the Year. Earlier in his career, Troy held positions at McKinsey & Company, Southwestern Bell Telephone (now AT&T), AT&T Bell Labs, and Rockwell international.

Troy is a subject matter expert in capital stack formation and a frequent speaker on venture capital, economic development, and higher education administration, among other topics. He has published articles on entrepreneurship, venture capital, economic development, diversity and inclusion, and higher education. His expertise has been recognized through the various awards he has received including the Dealmakers Award and the Most Admired CEO, among others.

Founded by a female, solo-GP with a PhD in Biophysics, Ecphora Capital’s founder boasts an extensive background, having deployed over $15M into medical startups. Additionally, she has been involved in the founding, funding, and board membership of 53 startups allowing for unparalleled expertise and support to portfolio companies.

Bibhash is an investment fund manager, investor, company builder and board member with almost 2 decades of experience in biotech. He is the CEO of Sapient Biotech, which is currently building a sector-specialized investment fund that invests exclusively in biotech companies, both private and small-cap public, with a fundamental, bottom-up, absolute-return strategy. It is also building a fund focused on rare diseases with a double bottom-line mandate for return on mission and return on investment. Through DW Wealth Management, he also advises various Family Offices and Disease foundations on investing in the healthcare sector. Previously, he was a co-founder and GP in Sound Bioventures and an investor with the biotech practice of a large, diversified venture fund, NEA. Prior to that he has operating experience in business development, portfolio management and corporate strategy functions at both AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson. He has led, managed and exited multiple private and public biotech investments, participated in multiple major in-licensing, divestiture and acquisitions and cross-border Europe / US deals and has had advisory roles in several life science incubators and healthcare delivery non-profits. His education spans 3 continents culminating with a PhD in the biology of retinal degeneration from Baylor College of Medicine.

Susan Mitchell has a 20+-year track record of success delivering grants management, research and evaluation, logistics, and technical assistance solutions to government, industry, and the community. Susan is committed to improving access to and success in education, healthcare, workforce, and economic development. Ms. Mitchell serves on the board of directors for Virginia Career Works and STEM for Her, is a Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce GovCon Committee Chair, and was tapped to serve on the Loudoun County Economic Development Advisory Commission (Life Sciences Sector), appointed by the Board of Supervisors and supports DEIA efforts as the Chair of the Loudoun Chamber Toolkit subcommittee. With innovation, education and empowerment as cornerstones, she leads a team of doctors and scientists dedicated to using their Sterling, Virginia CLIA diagnostic testing lab as an asset for the progression of therapeutic developments. She and her team are a driving force behind social and health equity endeavors that positively impact population health, product commercialization, and pipeline development.