In the Valley | Nov 18 | Eugene

Rachel Jagoda Brunette is the CEO of the Regional Accelerator and Innovation Network (RAIN) and leads the Cascades West Innovation Hub, which supports innovation-based entrepreneurs in rural Oregon through technical assistance, mentorship, and ecosystem building.
Before joining RAIN, Rachel served as a Philanthropic Director at Foundation Source, advising private and corporate foundations on strategy, program design, and impact measurement. From 2014–21, she led The Lemelson Foundation’s Regional Ecosystems initiative, advancing entrepreneurship and innovation programs across Oregon and nationally. Earlier in her career, Rachel worked in federal science, technology, and education policy as professional staff on the U.S. House Committee on Science and Technology, contributing to major legislation including the America COMPETES Act. She has also supported technology and education policy in Oregon at the local level. Rachel serves on the boards of VertueLab, the Oregon Economic Development Association, and the TiE Oregon Foundation. She holds degrees from Georgetown and George Washington University.

Chris Adamek is the President of VivoTex and focuses on the development and implementation of the business strategy, leading commercialization efforts and collaborating with investors.  Chris was previously the COO for 4G Clinical and held positions as the COO for Columbia Sportswear (Columbia Brand) & Vice President of North Highland.

Stephen Laffoon is Chief Executive Officer of Penderia Technologies, a Phil and Penny Knight Campus based medical device startup with a vision to commercialize sensor technology for orthopedic surgical procedures. Stephen's career has spanned 19 years, with 14 FDA clearances, 20+ patents, 2 acquisitions, and hundreds of thousands of devices implanted. Stephen completed his BSME from Georgia Tech in 2006 and began his career in medical device manufacturing technology for CR Bard. He then used his manufacturing knowledge to move into product development and connect with technologies from academia. Among them, Stephen was co-founder and Director of Engineering for Vertera Spine, who collaborated with the Guldberg and Gall labs to commercialize the first clinical application of porous PEEK in spinal fusion procedures. Founded in 2013, Vertera was acquired by NuVasive (now Globus) in 2017. Stephen oversaw the technical aspects of acquisition integration and remained with NuVasive post-integration in a management role until he joined Penderia in the spring of 2023. 

Craig Stolarczyk is the co-founder and CEO of SynPlexity, a company spun out of the Knight Campus at the University of Oregon. His path has taken him from industrial chemistry through next-gen sequencing and proteomics, and now into synthetic biology, where his team is building a platform to scale multiplexed gene synthesis. He thrives at the intersection of deep science and business execution, taking ideas from lab benches to markets. Along the way he has raised venture capital, secured IP licenses, and led product and business development efforts.