Since graduating from the University of Tennessee in 1980, Gary Prosterman has founded successful enterprises in hospitality, healthcare and investment banking. After graduation, Prosterman was selected to Omicron Delta Kappa (national leadership society), and he also completed the Comparative Study on Political and Economic Systems at Georgetown University while serving as an intern for Senator Howard Baker.
In 1987, Prosterman founded and served as the president of, two health care companies—Ambulatory Management Services, Inc. (AMS), a company that developed and managed outpatient surgery centers, and The Carra Company, a company that developed and managed assisted living facilities. Prosterman created the vision for both of these companies and led their growth from start-up to more than $100 million in revenue. He was also instrumental in structuring and negotiating the sale of these companies, which produced outstanding returns to his shareholders. In 1995, AMS was chosen as a regional finalist for the Ernst and Young “Business of the Year,” and in 1998, Symbion, a publicly traded healthcare company based in Nashville, Tennessee, acquired AMS. Atria Communities, a publicly traded company based in Louisville, Kentucky, acquired The Carra Companies in 1998.
Development Services Group (DSG), which he founded in 1987 has developed 24 hotels primarily in the southeastern United States and 23 health care facilities. The majority of the hotel properties (20) are franchised properties under Hilton, Starwood and Marriott. DSG properties have won multiple awards. DSG has developed for its own account as well as for third party institutional owners.
Prosterman has received numerous business honors including, “Top Forty Under 40” and “Who’s Who Among Outstanding Business Executives.” He serves on the board of directors for: Hapten Sciences, Inc., the University of Tennessee College of Consumer Services, West Tennessee Family Solutions; St. Mary’s Episcopal School, and the Housing Foundation of Tennessee (an appointment by the U.S. Department of Justice for a housing foundation that provides residential housing for mentally handicapped adults in Tennessee).
An experienced pharmaceutical developer and marketer, Hage is a founder of Hapten Sciences, and an advisor to companies and venture funds in the vaccine industry. Previously, he served as Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations of Novavax, Inc., a publicly traded vaccine company based in Rockville, Maryland. While with Novavax he led a number of functions related to business development, product development, corporate strategy, and marketing.
From 2002 until he joined Novavax, Hage worked as an Independent Marketing Consultant to pharmaceutical companies and as a Director of Marketing at biopharmaceutical company, Cephalon, with a focus on product marketing and development in the central nervous system therapeutic area. Hage began his career in biotechnology and pharmaceuticals at Eli Lilly and Company in a variety of sales and marketing management positions, including Director of US Women’s Health.
Hage holds an MBA from The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business and a Bachelor of Science in Business and Economics from the University of Kentucky.
A physician with over 30 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, Bandak is Chief Medical Officer of Biotie Therapies Corp. He has extensive experience in all phases of clinical development and regulatory affairs in a variety of therapeutic areas.
Bandak worked for Eli Lilly & Co. for 27 years in a variety of senior leadership roles including Executive Director of the US Medical Organization. Following his retirement from Lilly, Bandak became Vice President, Medical and Regulatory, for Novavax Inc. in 2004, and Chief Medical Officer of Synosia Therapeutics (which subsequently merged with Biotie) in 2007.
Bandak trained in Guy’s Hospital Medical School, University of London, graduating in 1973, and became a Member of the Royal College of Physicians in 1977.
Dr. ElSohly is President and Laboratory Director of ElSohly Laboratories Incorporated. He serves as Research Professor in the National Center for Natural Products Research, Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Professor of Pharmaceutics in the School of Pharmacy at the University of Mississippi. Dr. ElSohly is the director of the Marijuana Project at the University of Mississippi, which is funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Having authored over 230 scholarly articles and more than 200 presentations at scientific meetings of professional societies relative to drug discovery, analysis, and metabolism, ElSohly is constantly presenting his research findings at national and international scientific conferences, and is a member of many scholarly scientific societies. He was recognized by The Scientist and Science Watch as the second most-cited author in forensic sciences in the world for the period 1981-1993, and by the Journal of Analytical Toxicology as being one of the top ten Most Cited Authors and Most Prolific Authors in the journal between 1981 and 2003. In 2011, he was awarded the University of Pittsburgh “Legacy Laureate” award.
ElSohly received a BS in Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Chemistry and an MS in Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences from Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt, and a Ph.D. in Pharmacognosy from the University of Pittsburgh. He is board certified by the American Board of Forensic Medicine (BCFM) and the American College of Forensic Examiners (BCFE).
ElSohly holds a number of patents dealing with the processing, testing, and detection of drugs of abuse along with other patents dealing with biologically active natural products and compositions for the treatment of various disease conditions including cancer and other patents in the diagnostics area.
Stevenson co-founded MB Venture Partners in 2001 after six years in healthcare investment banking and equity research. Previously, he spent seven years in a variety of general management roles with Abbott Laboratories, one of the largest and most diversified healthcare companies in the world.
A certified public accountant and a chartered financial analyst, Stevenson is a board member or observer for several MBVP portfolio companies including AxioMed Spine, BioSET, Kereos, KFx Medical, Hapten Sciences, MB Innovations, S2 Interactive, Spinal Restoration and Visioneering.
He holds an undergraduate degree in accounting from the University of Missouri and received his MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
