John B. Mowell, Chairman
Mr. Mowell is president and CEO of Mowell Financial Group, Inc., of Tallahassee, Florida, an investment-banking firm he founded in 1980 serving clients primarily throughout the Southeast. He also serves on the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Capital City Bank in Tallahassee, one of the oldest banks in Florida.
Mr. Mowell has served on the Board of EMS Technologies since 1984, and as its chairman since 2002. EMS Technologies is a publicly traded, leading innovator in the design and manufacture of wireless, satellite and defense solutions that also focuses its unique range of advanced technologies on the needs of broadband and mobile information users. He previously served as Chairman and CEO of Reflectone, Inc., a publicly traded high technology aerospace company involved in the manufacture of large-scale flight simulators and training systems for the commercial aviation and military aerospace industries. He sold Reflectone to British Aerospace PLC London, U.K. in the early 90's.
Active in public service, he was appointed by the Governor of Florida to the Florida State Board of Administration, the agency responsible for the management of over $70 billion of state retirement assets where he served two terms as chairman. Mr. Mowell was also a founding director and treasurer of the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra, a founder and director of the Governors Club in Tallahassee, past chairman of the Tallahassee Arts Alliance, and past director of the Economic Development Advisory Council for the State of Florida. He was founding president of the prestigious Economics Club of Florida, serving as its chairman for five years and is currently chairman emeritus of that organization. Mr. Mowell also serves on the Florida A & M University-Florida State University College of Engineering Advisory Council and the Challenger Learning Center Advisory Board, as well as the Boy Scouts of America Advisory Council-Suwannee River Area Council.
Mr. Mowell earned his Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania, and is a 1956 graduate of the Wharton School of Commerce and Finance. He subsequently served in the military as a Naval Aviator engaged in carrier based anti- submarine warfare operations in the North Atlantic.
Norman E. Thagard, MD, MBA
Dr. Thagard is a professor and Director of College Relations at FAMU-FSU College of Engineering in Tallahassee, FL, and has held a number of research and teaching posts while completing the academic requirements for various earned degrees.
In September 1966 he entered active duty with the United States Marine Corps Reserve. He achieved the rank of Captain in 1967, was designated a Naval Aviator in 1968 and flew 163 combat missions in Vietnam from January 1969 to 1970. He returned to the United States and resumed his academic studies in 1971, pursuing additional studies in electrical engineering, and a degree in medicine.
From 1978 until 1996, Dr. Thagard served as a NASA astronaut, participating in four Shuttle missions and one mission aboard the Russian Mir Space Station, for a total of 140 days in space. Dr. Thagard received a Doctor of Medicine from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School and, subsequently, a Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in Engineer Science from Florida State University. He also recently received a MBA degree from the University of Florida. Dr. Thagard has been on the Board of Directors of EMS Technologies since 1998.
Thomas “Tommy” L. Edwards
Mr. Edwards has led an active 38 year business career primarily focused on food processing, manufacturing, and distribution businesses; and on banking / investment businesses. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board, President and CEO of Carolina Ice Company, Inc., as Secretary / Treasurer of Coastal Wholesale Grocery, Inc., as President of Edwards Development Company, Inc., as Manager of Edwards Investment Group, LLC, and as Manager of Edwards Property Group, LLC all based in Kinston, NC. Mr. Edwards previously served as Chairman of the Board, President and CEO of the little bank, Inc.; Chairman of the Board / President of Carolina Dairies Corporation, Inc.; President of Fresh Way Food Stores, and as President of Carolina Industrial Vending, Inc. Each food related business has required FDA approvals, which have been consistently met. Coastal Wholesale Grocery, Inc. has consistently been ranked one of North Carolina's top 100 privately held businesses by North Carolina Business Magazine.
Mr. Edwards is active in public service serving as Secretary of East Carolina University Medical Foundation, Inc., Trustee of Arendell Parrott Academy, Trustee of Jarvis United Methodist Church, and President of the E. Merle and Ollie W. Edwards Foundation, Inc. He has served as President of the Carolina-Virginia Dairy Products Association, Inc., Chairman of the Board of the NC Association of Convenient Stores, Rotary District Governor of District 773, President of the East Carolina Council BSA, and as Trustee of Barton College.
Special recognition includes receiving the "Citizen of the Year" award by the Pitt-Greenville Chamber of Commerce, the "Silver Beaver" and "Citizen of the Year" awards from the East Carolina Council BSA, recognition as a Paul Harris Fellow by the Greenville Noon Rotary Club, along with a number of other special recognitions.
Patrick F. Nash
Mr. Nash has had a twenty-year career in the sales and marketing of medical devices and information technologies. He also founded several successful companies, including Imaginis.com, and served as Managing Partner of Glenwood Venture Partners, a private equity firm. In addition, Mr. Nash has served as a Sales Executive in several divisions of Siemens Medical Solutions, an International Medical Imaging and IT concern. He is on the Boards of Directors of Arkcar Farms, Inc. and Riverside Development Group. Mr. Nash received a BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and currently resides in Washington, NC. Mr. Nash joined the Entegrion Board of Directors in December 2006.
William “Will” S. Corbitt, III
Mr. Corbitt has been involved for over thirty-two years in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry in many different capacities, including QA compliance, FDA interaction, validation, auditing, training, the QC laboratory, supervision, QA/Production liaison, and consulting. In addition to employment at Burroughs Wellcome, GlaxoWellcome and Catalytica, his clients have included GlaxoSmithKline, Bayer, Cardinal Health, Metrics, Valera Pharmaceuticals, Allergy Laboratories, AmerisourceBergen and Dell Labs. He also currently serves on the initial Board of Directors of The Clinical Trial Management Group (CTMG), as incoming Treasurer of The Pitt Memorial Hospital Foundation and on the local Advisory Board of RBC Centura Bank in Greenville, NC. Mr. Corbitt received a degree in Chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1974, and subsequently a MBA degree from East Carolina University in 1981.
E.S. “Stan” Eskridge
Mr. Eskridge is a founder of Entegrion. He brings an extensive background in entrepreneurial business development and management to Entegrion. Starting in 1977 with the formation of his first company, Mr. Eskridge has enjoyed hands-on experience in nearly every aspect of business operations, with special emphasis on business planning, capital formation, business development, strategic alliances, and marketing.
An early participant in the venture capital world, Mr. Eskridge led The Aviation Group from raw start-up in 1977, through major venture investment, and to IPO in just four years. The company ultimately formed the core of today's massive UPS overnight lift system. Subsequently, he shifted his focus to providing the efficiency of off-site manufacturing to repetitive construction programs and developed a patented system for non-combustible modular construction still in use in the fast food industry today.
These ventures were followed by a shift to technology programs, especially those involving the enhancement of communications between manufacturers and consumers, both corporate and individual. At the forefront of developing applications for newly emerging technologies including CD-ROM, interactive (touch screen) TV, and the Internet, Mr. Eskridge gained valuable experiences and relationships in building programs and working with some of the country's most notable corporations.
Mr. Eskridge utilizes his network of contacts and business relationships to insure that Entegrion has access to the resources it needs to advance its programs on a timely basis. As a result of his efforts, Entegrion has achieved substantial equity financing from individual investors, as well as substantial non-equity funding from direct Congressional appropriations and the US military. In addition, Mr. Eskridge has led the company in forming productive relationships with contract manufacturers, collaborators, consultants, and other service providers that enable Entegrion to develop its products while maintaining flexibility and cost effectiveness in corporate operations.
James True Martin, MD, CIME, FAADEP
Dr. Martin is a neurologist in private practice at the Tallahassee Neurology Clinic, in Tallahassee Florida, has held a faculty appointment as a Clinical Associate Professor at Florida State University since 1983 and serves as an advisor for the Florida bar. Dr. Martin has eight years of research training, and was the first student from Florida State University to be accepted to Vanderbilt Medical School based on academic achievements while waiving requirements for undergraduate graduation. As a result, the University established the James True Martin Award, an annual award presented by the department of Neurology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center to the resident who has demonstrated superior academic skills and compassionate concern for patients.
The Honorable Les Brownlee
Les Brownlee served as the Acting Secretary of the Army from May 2003 until November 2004. He became the 27th Under Secretary of the Army November 14, 2001, following his nomination by President George W. Bush and confirmation by the United States Senate. Mr. Brownlee served previously on the Republican staff of the Senate Armed Services Committee beginning in January 1987. In March 1996, he was designated Staff Director of the Senate Committee on Armed Services by then Chairman, Senator Strom Thurmond. In January 1999, He was designated Staff Director by then Chairman, Senator John Warner, serving through a change in control of the Senate in mid-2001. Mr. Brownlee is a retired Army colonel, a distinguished honor graduate of the U.S. Army Ranger Course, serving two combat tours in Vietnam. He holds a Masters Degree in Business Administration from the University of Alabama.