Building on a strong collaboration between the state’s leading universities, Christopher Welch, chief scientific officer for Welch Innovation LLC, will join the University of Notre Dame, Indiana University and Purdue University as director of the Indiana Consortium for the Analytical Sciences.
In his new role, Welch will focus on creating new joint research activities in the analytical sciences, utilizing resources from each of the three institutions, and building new opportunities for collaboration with industry, government agencies, private research organizations and other academic institutions.
This is the first multi-institutional hire between the three universities. The three institutions brought faculty together in 2013 to teach their first joint, video-enabled graduate-level chemistry course, which focused on the design and development of “bench-to-bedside” technologies to improve patient care.
“These are some of the top analytical scientists in the world,” said Welch. “I’m excited to be working with them and to help create new opportunities for research that can improve and save lives.”
Welch, a bioanalytical and pharmaceutical chemist who specializes in process chemistry and chemical engineering, also brings extensive experience in commercial development and establishment of advanced research service centers. He has 30 years of experiences in the pharmaceutical industry, has authored more than 250 publications and patents and most recently served as Distinguished Scientist at Merck.
In addition to working with the three universities, Welch will also collaborate closely with the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, a statewide research partnership between Notre Dame, IU and Purdue, and the Indiana Biosciences Research Institute.
Contact: Jessica Sieff, assistant director, media relations, 574-631-3933, jsieff@nd.edu