John E. Leonard
An alumnus of California State University, Long Beach, Dr. John E. Leonard earned his bachelor’s degree in chemistry in 1969 and his master’s degree in biochemistry in 1973. John earned his doctorate in biochemistry in 1978 from the University of California, Riverside. In 2012, he was honored as the Distinguished Alumnus for the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at CSULB. Currently he is the Senior Vice President for Development at Vaccinex, Inc. In 2009, John, who holds five therapeutic antibody patents, joined Vaccinex, Inc., following three years as a national and international biotechnology company consultant. Vaccinex is a privately held clinical-stage biotechnology company engaged in the discovery and development of human therapeutic monoclonal antibodies and other targeted biological therapies.
John has over 20 years of experience at Idec and Biogen-Idec where he held Senior Director-level positions in Regulatory Affairs, Quality, Project Management, and Product Development, and Vice President-level positions in Quality, Product Development, and Program Management. John is considered a distinguished authority on therapeutic antibody development, having extensive experience across numerous development programs encompassing all stages of development. Dr. Leonard serves on the Board of Advisors to the Dean at the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of California, Riverside, and he has also been a member of the American Association for Cancer Research and the American Society of Clinical Oncology. John serves on the Board of Trustees of the American Association for Cancer Research Foundation and similarly serves on the Board of Trustees of the UC Riverside Foundation. He and his wife formed the John and Elizabeth Leonard Family Foundation. A strong supporter of CSULB, John and his family foundation have contributed generously to the College of Natural Sciences & Mathematics. Dr Leonard is also a veteran of the 1990 Gulf War.
Profession:
Senior Vice President, Development, and officer at Vaccinex, Inc.
Education:
BS, 1969, Chemistry, College of Natural Sciences & Mathematics, CSULB
MS, 1973, Chemistry/Biochemistry, College of Natural Sciences & Mathematics, CSULB
PhD, 1978, Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside
