Board of Advisors

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Kevin Watkins - Energy Industry / Commercialization
Kevin Watkins is the Engineering Vice President of PNGC Power. Mr. Watkins leads and manages the operations and recent capacity expansion of the Coffin Butte Resource Project, a 5.7 MW landfill-gas-to-energy generation facility. Kevin is responsible for directing technology and resource demonstration activities including the Ocean Wave Energy Demonstration Project and a multi-year fuel cell demonstration. He leads the evaluation of emerging and conventional generation resources for inclusion in integrated resource planning. Mr. Watkins has 10 years experience in the planning, design and engineering of high-voltage transmission systems and over 25 years experience in planning, evaluating and operating generating resources. Prior to PNGC Power, Kevin was a Senior Resource Analyst for the Pacific NW Utilities Conference Committee (PNUCC), and Section Chief, Resource Supply Section for the Bonneville Power Administration. Kevin serves on both the Generating Resource Advisory Committee for the Northwest Power and Conservation Council and the Small Scale Energy Loan Program Advisory Committee for the State of Oregon. Kevin is a Registered Professional Engineer in Oregon. "Sustainable Profitability" is Kevin's idea.

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Dennis Powers - Technology Commercialization / Investments
Dennis Powers is currently the Managing Partner of Cornerstone Management Resources. CMR is a successful consulting firm focusing on all aspects of business development and revenue acceleration for emerging and mid-market companies. He has successfully completed numerous projects involving strategic planning, business plan creation, sales channel development, marketing communication programs, merger/acquisitions and assistance in raising early stage funding. Mr. Powers is also an Executive in Residence at the Oregon Technology Business Center, a leading incubator in Oregon, Chair of the Portland Angel Network, and an active angel investor.

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Steve Morris - Technology Commercialization / Business Incubation
Steve Morris is the Executive Director of OTBC and the Managing Director of OregonStartups.com. He has more than 25 years of management experience in the software, service, and semiconductor test industries at companies such as Hewlett Packard, Integrated Measurement Systems, Cadence Design Systems, Mentor Graphics, and Credence Corporation. Prior to joining OTBC, he founded OregonStartups.com, providing consulting and web-based advice and information or startup companies. He founded Teseda Corporation and served as CEO from 2001 to 2005, and prior to that founded two internal startups in larger companies. He holds a B.A. in mathematics from Reed College and a Masters of Science degree from Carnegie-Mellon University Graduate School of Industrial Administration (now The Tepper School of Business).

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Greg Horner - Research & Technology Development
Greg Horner is a founding member and CTO of Tau Science Corporation. Based in Beaverton, Oregon, Tau Science is a 2008 startup that develops novel test and measurement tools for solar photovoltaic manufacturing lines. Prior to Tau Science, Greg held engineering management and staff scientist positions at FEI, KLA-Tencor, and Keithley Instruments. He holds a B.A. in Astrogeophysics from Colgate University, an M.S. in Applied Physics from Colorado School of Mines, and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from C.U. Boulder. He performed his graduate research in solar cell and materials characterization at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and has received 15 patents and published more than 30 technical papers in the field.

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David McFeeters-Krone - Technology Licensing/Commercialization: Federal Labs
Mr. McFeeters-Krone has Principal at Intellectual Assets Corporation has a strong background in licensing from positions with MIT, NASA, and Intel. He has provided Intellectual Property strategy services to DoD, NASA, Sharp Technology Ventures, Tektronix, Deloitte, OHSU, Providence Medical Center, PSC Inc., the National Technology Transfer Center, and numerous small firms. Prior to forming his firm, he served as CenterSpan's Vice President of Strategic Planning and prior to that at Intel where he represented internet communication technologies, seeking outside (and internal) partners to commercialize Intel Labs'ą°²oducts. Mr. McFeeters-Krone is a member of the Licensing Executives Society and the Federal Laboratory Consortium; a contributing author for the Association of University Technology Managers' Technology Transfer Practice Manual; and often presents on IP business issues. He holds a Physics degree from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh. He serves on the advisory boards of Innovation Assets Group and Stragellan; is a adjunct professor at Portland State University; and is a recent recipient of the Portland Business Journal's "Forty Under 40" award.

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Dixie Lee Samuels - Leadership & Strategy
Dixie Lee has over 18 years experience as an advisor and consultant to businesses across a variety of sectors. A former CEO herself, she has participated in two start-up business ventures, led a turnaround in a family business, and established The Entrepreneurs' Forum, a development program for leaders of emerging companies in Oregon. Dixie has led CEO learning groups, served as chairwoman of advisory boards and works with executives in the areas of strategy, executive development, and organizational transitions. Dixie Lee has a passion for helping companies -- and the individuals who lead them -- thrive as they face the inherent challenges of growth and change.

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Patrick Wheeler - Management Contract Services

Patrick brings more than 30 years of banking and financial services experience to his clients. He has worked with a wide range of established and emerging companies to develop and implement sound financial and personnel practices. As a Regional Manager for a regional bank, he oversaw several lending and operational units. He has financial services industry, international trading and contract CFO expertise. Patrick held executive roles (General Manager) at Lamb Industries and (CEO) at Digital Connex, LLC. He holds an MBA in Corporate Finance / Banking and is the principal of Management Contract Services.