CENTER VALLEY, Pa. — Lehigh Valley LaunchBox (LVLB) continues its educational event series focusing on the unique challenges and victories of female entrepreneurs called “LaunchBox Ladies: From Passion to Profit” with a program on Thursday, April 11. Continuing the Fall and Spring 2018-19 focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math, the speakers will discuss their contributions within medicine and healthcare.

Using multiple formats, including conversational interviews, videos and events, LaunchBox Ladies shares the stories of women at all stages of their businesses and careers.

A donation will be requested at the door. The event is open to students and the public on a limited first-come, first-served basis. Networking and the program are from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Penn State Lehigh Valley campus. Light fare is provided.

The April event features the following speakers:

Thursday, April 11

Speaker: Vassie Ware, professor of biological sciences, Lehigh University

Ware has several roles at Lehigh University, including: co-director of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Undergraduate Bioscience Program and co-director of the Distance Master’s Degree Program in Molecular Biology. Ware has helped to build an interdisciplinary life sciences curriculum and fostered interdisciplinary course-based and team-based research opportunities for Lehigh University undergraduates, working with science and engineering faculty and graduate students.  Ware earned a bachelor of science in human biology from Brown University, and her master of philosophy and doctorate in biology from Yale University. She became a member of the Lehigh University faculty in 1985.

Speaker: Kathryn Colonna Worrilow, founder and CEO, LifeAire Systems

Worrilow earned her doctorate in anatomy and cell physiology from the University of Virginia School of Medicine, and completed her postdoctoral fellowship in reproductive physiology and infertility at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. She served as the scientific director of in-vitro fertilization programs for more than 20 years and her work led to the development and design of the LifeAire Systems patented air purification technology and System, Aire~IVF. Worrilow has authored more than 60 scientific papers and chapters, served as an invited editor and reviewer for leading textbooks and journals, and has been invited to speak both nationally and internationally. As an advocate of science education and the role of science in our community, Worrilow serves on many boards throughout the Lehigh Valley.

To register, visit the LaunchBox Ladies website. For more information on LaunchBox Ladies, email LVLaunchBox@psu.edu or call 610-285-5111.

Lehigh Valley LaunchBox (LVLB) is an early-stage business accelerator program for entrepreneurs. As a signature program of Invent Penn State, LVLB partners with a network of community and university partners to offer continuing support to small business owners and guides them through every step of their startup journey.

Information regarding the Invent Penn State initiative is available online.