8:00-8:45 Name Tag Pick-Up, On-Site Registration & Breakfast
8:45-9:00
Opening remarks: Dujuan Lu, Ph.D., SGS, E&L manager/global leader, E-CACS president
Welcoming Speech: Longqin Hu, Ph.D., Professor and Department Chair, Medicinal Chemistry, Rutgers University
Opening remarks: Dorothy J. Phillips, Ph.D., ACS president
Morning Sessions | Lecture Hall
Three key topics will be presented, each featuring short talks, followed by a panel discussion:
9:00-10:15 The Transformative Power of AI in Drug Development, Regulation and Healthcare
• Moderator:
Ran He, Ph.D., THC Lawyers, Founder
• Speakers and panelists:
Peter Butch, Fox Rothschild LLP, Partner (Short talk, Panelist)
Melody Dai, Ph.D., Global Molecular Solutions, Founder & CEO (Short talk, Panelist)
Diwei Shi, Knewly AI, Founder (Panelist)
Kai Wang, Ph.D., AI Ager, Founder and CEO (Panelist)
10:15-10:30 Coffee break
10:30-11:30 Building Resilient Supply Chains in a Volatile World
• Moderator:
Baohua Yue, Ph.D.
• Speakers and panelists:
Baohua Yue, Ph.D., Epic Pharma, CEO
Qiaolin Ren, Ph.D., Aucta Pharma, SVP
Michael Mrvos Agno Pharma, VP
Ben McGovern Francis Sterling Advisory Group LLC, President and Founder
11:30-12:30 The Evolving Regulatory Landscape of Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls
• Organizers: NJ-ACS
• Moderator:
Rongfeng Zheng, Ph.D. & Robert Menger, Ph.D. BMS & NJ-ACS
• Speakers and panelists:
Yuan Cheng, Ph.D., Regeneron, Associate Director
Yijun Lu, Ph.D., J&J, Director
Amy Bu, Ph.D., BMS, Director
Baoqing Ma, Ph.D., Past CACS President
12:30-13:30 Lunch break & Networking
13:00-14:00 Poster session
14:00-16:00 Afternoon Parallel Sessions:
Track A. Career Development & Job Opportunities (Lecture Hall)
The afternoon’s career workshop and panel discussion will be moderated by Lijuan Wang, Ph.D., Alexion, AstraZeneca Rare Disease. We have four speakers from experienced HR specialist, ACS career consultants, University professor, accomplished scientific leader, to recently graduated young scientist: Jaclyn Lee, GPHR, SHRM-SCP, MS. Certified Global HR Business Leader, Founder, D-I-C-E Consultant; Jingbo Louise Liu, Ph.D., Professor, Texas A&M University-Kingsville and Louise Nanoinnovation North American and ACS career consultant; Wei Gao, Ph.D., The Dow Chemical Company and ACS career consultant; Wenxuan Li, Ph.D., Merck. They will also join panel discussion together with other three panelists: Linda Zhao, MBA, MS, MSQ Ventures; Jungmin Eun, Ph.D., Alexion AstraZeneca Rare Disease; Xizhe Zhao,
Ph.D., Insmed Incorporated. We also have volunteer resume reviewers and mentors onsite at the conference!
14:00 – 15:00 Career Workshop
Jaclyn Lee, SHRM-SCP, GPHR, MS, D-I-C-E Consultant
Breaking In, Not Breaking Down: AI-Smart, Visa-Savvy, and Future-Ready in a Shifting World
Jingbo Louise Liu, Ph.D., CSci., CChem., ACSF, FRSC, Professor of Chemistry, Texas A&M University-Kingsville
Navigating the Academic Job Market for Scholars
Wei Gao, Ph.D., The Dow Chemical Company
Finding Your Path: Blending Passion, Strength, and Value Through a Growth Mindset
Wenxuan Li, Ph.D. Merck
Chemistry Ph.D. to Pharma Industry Scientist: Lessons Learned and Insights Gained
15:00 – 15:30 Panel Discussion
Jaclyn Lee, Jingbo Louise Liu, Wei Gao, Wenxuan Li, Linda Zhao, Jungmin Eun, Xizhe Zhao
15:30 – 16:00 Resume Review and Career Discussion
Track B. Vendor Show (Exhibit Hall)
16:00-17:00 An open mingle session for attendees to connect, exchange ideas, and engage with speakers, vendors, and fellow participants
17:00-17:10 Poster Award & Closing remarks by Mingwen Wang, Ph.D., 2025 E-CACS President-Elect & Symposium Chair
18:00-20:00 Reception Dinner (Invitation Only for speakers, vendors and volunteers)
Job Posting (by 06/01/2025)
We encourage our members and symposium attendees to share job openings at your company. Please submit job openings using the form below by 06/01:
https://forms.gle/WWHtoqb1QCzLeQTD9
Or send your job openings to eastcacs@gmail.com by 06/01 using the format below.
Subject: Job Openings - [Your company] - [Your name].
Body text:
Your name:
Your contact information:
Your relationship to this role (select one):
a. Hiring manager
b. Willing to refer
c. Just sharing information
Please consider including a PDF file or a job link for each job opening. Comment in the email if you are not willing to share any of information listed above (your personal information is not mandatory).