OUTbio Board Members
RAMSEY JOHNSON (he, him)
Ramsey Johnson is the founder and President of OUTbio. In his “day job”, Ramsey is a clinical and regulatory operation professional with over 24 years of experience with special expertise in rare genetic disorders. He is currently the VP, Operations for Phoenix Tissue Repair and was previously the Sr. Director of Clinical Operations for X4 Pharmaceuticals. Prior to X4, Ramsey was the Sr. Director of Clinical and Regulatory Operations for Edimer Pharmaceuticals. In 2015, Ramsey founded OUTbio with a desire to create a community where LGBTQ professionals in drug development could network and feel supported in their industry.
TOM DONOVAN (he, him)
Tom is a senior biotech communications consultant, with both in-house and agency experience assisting a wide variety of global clients. Tom was formerly a Vice President at premier biotech consultancy Ten Bridge Communications, based in Boston, Massachusetts. Prior to that, he served as Director of Communications at NASDAQ-listed drug developer Nexvet Biopharma. Originally hailing from Hong Kong and New Zealand, Tom holds a master's degree in biotech business (first class honours), and a bachelor's degree in biomedical science. Tom is the Secretary of OUTbio.
BRYAN HOFFMAN (he, him)
Bryan Hoffman is a Board member at OUTbio. Bryan is married to his husband, Josh, and has a 4 year old son, 3 dogs, and a turtle. He is also the founder and CEO of Boston Microscopes, a company specializing in the sales and service of microscopes, cameras and imagers. Bryan enjoys skiing, swimming, tennis, and outdoor activities. Being an advocate for the LGBT+ community is an important part of his life. Bryan holds a bachelor's degree in animal sciences from Cornell University.
MICHAEL SAMAR (he, him)
Michael Samar is the Treasurer and Board Member for Outbio. Michael was one of the original Board members for OUTbio Bay Area and helped to launch that chapter in 2021. In 2023, he and his husband Jimmy, along with their bulldog and Siamese cat, relocated to Boston and settled in Southie and Michael
transferred to the OUTbio Board. Michael is originally from Philly and Jimmy is from Georgia, so both were excited to get back to the East Coast and be closer to family. Michael is currently the CFO and Treasurer of Windgap Medical, Inc., a combination device company in Watertown. Prior to that he was
CFO of Assembly Biosciences, Inc., a public biotech in South San Francisco, focused on virology. Michael really enjoys cooking and mastering his new outdoor pizza oven, and Jimmy loves to eat everything he makes (and is the bartender of the family). They recently became certified boaters and are looking
forward to a summer out on the water. They are also big foodies and love to travel. Michael holds a BSBA in Finance from Bryant University, and an MBA from Villanova University.
PATRICK LEROY (he, him)
Patrick is a high-performing scientist, independent thinker, recognized innovator, effective communicator, and respected colleague with over 20 years of experience in oncology research. He currently works as a researcher at Takeda Oncology. Outside of oncology drug discovery research, Patrick is passionate about giving back to the LGBTQ community. Patrick is a veteran rider/swimmer of the Harbor 2 the Bay (H2B) and the Provincetown Swim for Life, charters that both raise money for LGBTQ causes. He holds a bachelor's degree in biology from Bates College.
JENNIFER PETTER (she, her)
Jennifer Petter, Ph.D., is a Founder & Chief Innovation Officer of Arrakis Therapeutics. An experienced drug hunter, scientist, and life science executive, Dr. Petter’s research has spanned different fields over the years, with a current focus on RNA at Arrakis. She is the author or co-author of over 50 papers and over 50 patents and/or patent applications. Prior to creating Arrakis, Dr. Petter was Vice President of Chemistry at Celgene. She joined Celgene after the acquisition of Avila Therapeutics, a startup, in 2012. She has also held roles at Mersana Therapeutics, Biogen, and the Sandoz Research Institute (now a part of Novartis). Dr. Petter received her bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College and her Ph.D. from Duke University. She completed her post-doctorate research at Columbia University.
JOE VOGEL (he, him)
Joe is a Sr. Director, Clinical & Program Leadership at Hemab Therapeutics. In his 15+ years in the biotech industry he has held a variety of roles spanning clinical operations and program management across all phases of drug development. Joe is a lifelong DE&I practitioner, from leading his high school's Gay Straight Alliance to developing grass-roots DE&I organizations and starting Employee Resource Groups. He is energized by helping teams form and evolve. Joe holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from Syracuse University and an MBA from UMass, Amherst.
SUSU WONG (she, her)
Susu is the CEO and Founder of Tomo360, an online marketing agency since 2012. She leads an experienced business and marketing team that works on a variety of companies from high-tech industry, healthcare, biotech, higher education to startup companies. Susu is an advocate in helping women advancing their careers. She is the Co-Founder of Women Accelerators, a grassroots organization that provides networking, education, and mentoring to help women in advancing their career goals. She holds an MBA from Lesley University.