nucleus awards

Our Nucleus Award Honorees

The Nucleus Awards honor the region’s leaders in innovation and recognize visionaries who are commercializing promising technology, allocating capital, cultivating our STEM workforce, and convening the community.

2024 Nucleus Award Honorees

Commercialization Award

Bon Ku, MD, MPP

Program Manager, Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H)

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Capital Award

Michael Burychka

Founder & CEO, Longview Innovation

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Cultivator Award

Dan Rhoton

CEO, Hopeworks

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Convener Award

Danae Mobley

Executive Director, 1Philadelphia

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2023 Nucleus Award Honorees

Commercialization Award

Daniel M. Skovronsky, M.D., Ph.D.

Executive Vice President, Chief Scientific and Medical Officer, and President, Lilly Research Laboratories, Eli Lilly and Company

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Capital Award

Margaret Berger Bradley

Vice President of Strategic Initiatives, Ben Franklin Technology Partners

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Cultivator Award

Sheila D. Ireland

President & CEO, Philadelphia OIC

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Convener Award

Sulaiman W. Rahman

President & CEO, DiverseForce

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2022 Nucleus Award Honorees

Commercialization

Jeff Marrazzo
Spark Therapeutics

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Capital

James Burnett
VestedIn

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Cultivator

Jimmy White IV
Four Seasons

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Convener

Shannon Morales
Tribaja

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2021 Nucleus Award Honorees

Commercialization

Max Perelman
Biomeme

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Capital

Della Clark
The Enterprise Center

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Cultivator

Tracey Welson-Rossman
TechGirlz, Chariot Solutions

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Convener

Michelle Freeman
Witty Gritty

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Adaptation at the Inflection Point: Meet the 2021 Nucleus Award Honorees

2020 Nucleus Award Honorees

Commercialization

Benjamin Doranz, Ph.D., MBA
Integral Molecular

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Cultivator

Sylvester Mobley
Coded by Kids

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Convener

Aurora Archer
The Bellatrix Group, Opt-In Podcast

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The Visionaries Behind the Awards: Meet the Nucleus 2020 Honorees

2019 Nucleus Award Honorees

Commercialization

Mihir Shah & Matthew Campis
UE LifeSciences

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Cultivator

Wil Reynolds
Seer Interactive

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Convener

Kiera Smalls
Philly Startup Leaders, City Fit Girls

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Meet the Ecosystem Builders: Our Nucleus 2019 Awards Honorees

The Nucleus Awards

Commercialization Award

Recognizes outstanding contributions to the commercialization of innovative science and technology. The awardee is a catalyst in the acceleration of technology transfer. By identifying and developing new and creative ways to transition discoveries to the marketplace, the awardee has a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development, or the welfare of society.

Capital Award

This award recognizes an individual or organization that has intentionally sourced and invested in minority-owned startups or founders with the purpose of mobilizing capital to unlock innovation. The 2021 awardee is investing in diverse minds to make transformative change in the STEM ecosystem.

Cultivator Award

Recognizes outstanding contributions in creating a diverse and inclusive talent pipeline in the STEM sectors. The awardee has demonstrated leadership and commitment in building a sustainable workforce that represents the community at large.

Convener Award

Recognizes an individual or organization that has generated new ideas or solutions through collaboration, placemaking or unique introductions. The awardee has removed barriers to connect assets, resources and strengths of diverse people and organizations to advance civic interests and improve lives.