Jean Wilson Day Memorial Lecture and Celebration of Undergraduate Achievement 2011

9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Poster Symposium to be held in the Atrium of the Life Science Building

11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Sol J. Barer, Ph.D. Lecture in Wright Auditorium: “The Rise of a Biopharmaceutical Company – A Chemistry Story”

12:00 p.m. to 12:30 p.m. Undergraduate Awards to be held in Wright Auditorium

Luncheon in Atrium of Life Science Building to follow award presentations

Speaker Bio-sketch:  Dr. Sol J. Barer is the Chairman of Celgene Corporation.  He was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer from May 1, 2006 until June 16, 2010 and Executive Chairman subsequently until January 1, 2011 when he transitioned to his current position. Previously he was appointed President in 1993 and Chief Operating Officer in 1994 before assuming the CEO position. He also served as Senior Vice President, Science and Technology, and Vice President/ General Manager, Chiral Products, from October 1990 to October 1993, and Vice President, Technology, from September 1987 to October 1990.

Dr. Barer joined the Celanese Research Company in 1974 and formed the Biotechnology group that was subsequently spun out to form Celgene, which is currently one of the fastest growing and most profitable global biopharmas with a market capitalization of over $25 Billion, products in over 70 countries and revenues expected to exceed $4 Billion this year.

Dr. Barer holds numerous professional awards including the “Lifetime Achievement Award” (International Myeloma Foundation), “Outstanding Individual Award” (The Biotech Meeting 2010), “Dream & Promise Award” (Children's Brain Tumor Foundation)  “Odyssey Award” (Center for Medicine in the Public Interest), the “Corporate Vision Award” (Gilda’s Club), the “Sparkle of Hope Award” (Community Hope),  “Master Entrepreneur Award” (Ernst & Young), “The Hall of Distinguished Alumni Award” (Rutgers University Alumni Federation), “Dr. Sol J. Barer Award for Vision, Innovation and Leadership” (BioNJ),  “Science and Technology Industry Medal” (R&D Council of NJ), “Rutgers University Graduate School Annual Distinguished Alumnus Award”, “Winthrop-Sears Medal” (The Chemists Club and the Chemical Heritage Foundation), and “Albert Einstein Award in Life Sciences” (Global Capital Associates and Jerusalem Fund, Israel), “DART/NYU Biotechnology Achievement Award in Applied Biotechnology” (Biotechnology Study Center of the New York University School of Medicine).

Dr. Barer and his wife have been honored for community service including the “Community Service Award” (Contact We Care), “Outstanding Philanthropists” (American Foundation for Philanthropy-NJ) and the “Community Service Award” (Union County Torah Center). Dr. Barer has been married to his wife Meri for 41 years, have four children and twelve grandchildren.

Dr. Barer is also is on the Board of Directors of Amicus Therapeutics and of the private company ContraFect, serves on the Board of Trustees of BioNJ, is on the Board of the Brooklyn College Foundation, the Board of Trustees of Rutgers - The State University of New Jersey and the Tourette Syndrome Association. He has previously served as a Commissioner of the NJ Commission on Science and Technology.

Dr. Barer received a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from Rutgers University and B.S. from Brooklyn College.