By Alex Orlando
For The Herald

ALACHUA-- She’s been working in life sciences for almost 30 years, and now Susan Washer will be plucked from her community in Alachua to represent bioscience around the state.

On June 25, Washer, CEO of Applied Genetic Technologies Corp. in Alachua’s Progress Park, was picked from 41 other board members -- including four members from Progress Park -- as board chair for BioFlorida.

BioFlorida is a statewide trade and networking association for research companies in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device fields, according to its Website. Her corporation is also a member.

“Think of it as a statewide chamber of commerce for life science companies,” she said.

Still living in Alachua, Washer, who holds an MBA as one of the University of Florida’s first entrepreneurship graduates, will start at BioFlorida, representing the more than 200 member companies and acting as a liaison between them and BioFlorida President Russell Allen.

Of 41 board members, she was one of 10 to 15 eligible for board chair because she owns a bioscience company. From there, she was recommended by a nominating committee to the executive committee, both made up of other board members, to another selection board, which chose her for the position.

Allen said he was most impressed with her involvement with the association for the past six years, including her two years as a board member.

He said her name has come up in the selection process before, but she was too busy running her company to take the job as board chair.

“She’s really been engrained into the organization and all of our strategy,” Allen said. “She has dealt with a lot of concerns and challenges that other companies face.”

With 16 years of experience working with entrepreneurial firms and start-up companies in Florida, Washer said she would also provide Allen with her knowledge of young member companies needs.
 
One of those needs is to provide start-up companies’ employees with educational opportunities, she said, recalling when she sent one of her own employees to a BioFlorida seminar to learn about the science behind her company.

She has also worked with her corporation to develop products that treat genetic diseases such as inherent emphysema and inherent blindness.