Short Speaker Bio:

Dr. Gymama Slaughter is the Executive Director of the Old Dominion University (ODU)

Research Center for Bioelectronics, where she leads pioneering efforts to integrate clinical and

basic science in areas such as precision medicine, therapeutics, diagnostics, environmental

health, and women’s health. Collaborating across ODU and with external partners, she aligns

faculty expertise with government and industry initiatives to drive innovation. She co-developed

BioPaper™, a cutting-edge biomaterial that was successfully commercialized by Materic in 2023

to accelerate breakthroughs in life sciences and pharmaceutical research. Her research has been

consistently supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of

Health (NIH), the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, the Andrew W. Mellon

Foundation, TEDCO Maryland Innovation Initiative, and the Maryland Industry Partnership. She

was recently recognized as one of Virginia Business magazine’s 100 People to Meet in 2024,

reflecting her impact and leadership in the field. Her honors include the NSF CAREER Award,

the NIH G-RISE Award, the Up and Coming UMBC Inventor Award, the Greater Richmond

Technology Council RichTech Educator Award, and the Richmond Joint Engineers Consortium

Community Service Award. As a dedicated mentor, Dr. Slaughter has guided numerous scholars

to prestigious achievements. Her mentorship has also enabled many students and professionals to

secure scholarships, internships, and long-term career success. In addition to her research and

mentorship, Dr. Slaughter serves as an Associate Editor for the IEEE Sensors Journal and Nature

Scientific Reports. She received a B.S. in Chemistry, M.S. in Chemical Engineering, and a Ph.D.

in Computer Engineering from Virginia Commonwealth University.