Management

Nancy Lurker
Chief Executive Officer and Board Director
Nancy

As Chief Executive Officer and Board Director, Nancy Lurker leads EyePoint Pharmaceuticals in its mission to improve the lives of people facing serious eye disorders. During her more than 30 years in the pharmaceutical industry, Ms. Lurker has driven scientific and commercial innovation working with both public and private companies from start-ups to the Fortune 500 to bring innovative therapies and diagnostic solutions to patients. She has a proven track record of maximizing the potential of new therapies and successfully implementing innovative US and global drug launches in a diversity of therapy areas. Lurker has served on numerous Boards across public and private companies, and advocacy organizations. Dedicating her career to maximizing the potential of science to improve the lives of patients, Ms. Lurker is passionate about supporting the future of STEM and engaging with the critical thinkers and innovators of tomorrow.

Jay Duker, M.D.
President and Chief Operating Officer
Jay

As President and Chief Operating Officer of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Jay S. Duker, M.D., leads all clinical development, regulatory affairs, and operations.

Dr. Duker has devoted more than 30 years to the field of ophthalmology focused on improving eyesight and preventing blindness, holding roles in clinical, research, business, start-ups, and academic settings. He previously served as Chief Strategic Scientific Officer on a part-time basis since 2020 before joining EyePoint full-time in 2021. He was an independent member of the Board of Directors since 2016 and served as Chair of the Board’s Science Committee. Before joining EyePoint, Dr. Duker was Director of the New England Eye Center, one of the largest academic ophthalmology practices in the US, and Chair of Ophthalmology at Tufts Medical Center and the Tufts University School of Medicine. He also co-founded three businesses, including Hemera Biosciences, a gene therapy company that developed an anti-complement treatment for dry macular degeneration, which was acquired by Janssen in 2020.  

Dr. Duker is currently the Chair of the Board of Sesen Bio, a publicly traded clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, and Emeritus Editor of the International Journal of Retina and Vitreous. He has published over 350 journal articles focused on ophthalmology and is co-author of Yanoff and Duker’s Ophthalmology, a best-selling ophthalmic textbook, now in its sixth edition. Dr. Duker received an A.B. from Harvard University and an M.D. from the Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University.
 

George O. Elston
Chief Financial Officer
George

Mr. Elston brings more than 25 years of diverse financial and senior leadership experience in the biopharmaceutical sector with both global publicly-traded and privately-held organizations. Mr. Elston most recently served as Chief Financial Officer and Head of Corporate Development at Enzyvant Therapeutics where he helped build the pre-commercial rare disease firm leading to its recent acquisition. He previously was President and Chief Executive Officer at 2X Oncology, Inc., where he advanced the Company from a spin-out into a multi-program, clinical-stage organization. He has also held senior executive roles at Juniper Pharmaceuticals, Inc. KBI Biopharma and Optherion, Inc. Mr. Elston began his career in public accounting at PriceWaterhouseCoopers. He earned his B.B.A. in accounting from Pace University and is a Certified Public Accountant. He currently serves as a Trustee and Audit Committee Chairman of the DWS – DBX ETF Trust.

Ron Honig Esq.
Chief Legal Officer & Company Secretary
Ron

As Chief Legal Officer & Company Secretary, Ron Honig leads in-house counsel for EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, using his more than 30 years of experience in corporate governance, securities law compliance, and mergers and acquisitions to support the Company’s business priorities. Prior to joining EyePoint in 2018, Mr. Honig served as Vice President, Global Legal Affairs at Novanta, a publicly traded company that develops and manufactures technology solutions for medical devices and advanced industrial equipment makers worldwide. He also previously managed legal functions in senior executive roles at Lake Region Medical and ACMI. In addition to his diverse in-house legal experience, Mr. Honig has served as a corporate attorney for several law firms, including Mintz Levin in Boston. Mr. Honig began his career as a consultant with the Monitor Group. He holds a B.S. in Finance from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, a B.A.S. in Systems Engineering from the School of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania, and a J.D. from Boston University, where he served as Editor-in-Chief of the Boston University Law Review.

Scott Jones
Chief Commercial Oficer
Scott

As Chief Commercial Officer of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Scott Jones draws on his significant experience commercializing drugs and devices globally to drive forward the commercialization of innovative ophthalmic products. Prior to joining EyePoint in 2019, Mr. Jones served as Chief Commercial Officer and Vice President, Business Development, at Notal Vision, where he built the organization’s commercial and growth strategy. Mr. Jones’ tenure at Notal Vision also included his role as President, in which he was responsible for developing a business model in the US that would allow for a telemonitoring platform to be covered by Medicare. He previously served as President of QLT Ophthalmics, where he created the strategy and infrastructure for a US commercial operation, and also navigated healthcare policy through roles of varying responsibility at Novartis, including Executive Director, Health Policy, and Executive Director and Head of Market Access and Government Affairs at Novartis Ophthalmics. Mr. Jones began his career with Geigy Pharmaceuticals as a medical representative and subsequently as a hospital sales representative for Ciba-Geigy Pharmaceuticals. He holds a B.S. in Chemistry, an M.A. in Political Science, and a Certificate in Public Administration from the University of Florida.

Jennifer Leonard
Chief People Officer and SVP, IT
Jennifer

Ms. Leonard currently serves as the Chief People Officer and SVP, IT. She brings to EyePoint over 25 years of successful executive coaching, organizational effectiveness, leadership development, talent management and culture development experience. Most recently Ms. Leonard served as the Head of HR, Consumer Healthcare and Global Functions for Sanofi, US. From 2012 to 2015, Ms. Leonard served as the Senior Vice President of HR & IT of PDI, Inc., a NASDAQ-listed healthcare commercialization company now named Interpace Diagnostics Group, Inc.

Ms. Leonard has led, managed, mentored and coached individuals and teams to achieve outstanding business results. She has designed and implemented organizational development solutions at companies to increase corporate employee engagement and people effectiveness. She has led numerous M&A activities and resulting culture change and personnel integration activities.

Ms. Leonard’s experiences include work with global companies such as Novartis, Pharmacia/Pfizer, Boston Scientific Corporation, Biovail Pharmaceuticals and Silicon Graphics (SGI). Ms. Leonard also established and developed her own company, ImpactHR, LLC which provided coaching and consulting services to the life sciences sector.
Ms. Leonard holds a Masters Degree in Organizational Development and Human Resources from The University of San Francisco, and a B. A. in Psychology and Business Administration from The University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA.) Ms. Leonard is a Certified Professional Coach and has earned her Associate Certified Coach (ACC) from the International Coaching Federation (ICF.) She is also certified in the Hogan Assessment Certified Consultant.

Dario Paggiarino, M.D.
Senior Vice President & Chief Medical Officer
Dario

As Senior Vice President & Chief Medical Officer of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Dario A. Paggiarino, M.D., leads Company Clinical Development programs and Medical Safety.  He leverages more than 35 years of pharmaceutical industry experience with small molecules, biologics and devices/drug-device combinations across a variety of Therapeutic Areas. Prior to joining EyePoint in 2016, Dr. Paggiarino served as Senior Vice President and Chief Development Officer at lipid-targeted therapeutics company Lpath, where he advanced Phase I-II clinical programs in ophthalmology, oncology, and chronic pain. He also previously held the role of Vice President and Therapeutic Unit Head for Retinal Diseases at Alcon Laboratories, a division of Novartis, where he was responsible for advancing its retina pharmaceutical clinical development pipeline through regulatory approvals worldwide. Prior to that, Dr. Paggiarino served as Executive Director of Clinical Development and Medical Affairs at Pfizer Global R&D, with focus on global clinical development in glaucoma, diabetic and degenerative retinal diseases, and medical responsibilities for Macugen®, the first anti-VEGF treatment approved for age-related macular degeneration. Earlier in his career, he held research and development positions at Angelini Pharmaceuticals as well as Pharmacia Global R&D, where he was Clinical Program Director of Ophthalmology with responsibilities over Xalatan® one of the leading glaucoma therapies in the world, and Tecnis® IOLs. Dr. Paggiarino holds an M.D. in Medicine and General Surgery from the University of Rome La Sapienza and has authored numerous scientific articles.

 

Said Saim Ph.D.
Senior Vice President & Chief Technology Officer
Said

As Senior Vice President & Chief Technology Officer, Said Saim, Ph.D., advances EyePoint Pharmaceuticals’ development and manufacturing activities through his strategic leadership, product development, and effective planning expertise, which spans more than 30 years. Prior to joining EyePoint in 2019, Dr. Saim served as Vice President, Pharmaceutical Development, at Collegium Pharmaceutical, where his responsibilities included managing formulation development, clinical trial manufacturing, and commercial manufacturing for controlled-release dosage forms. He also served as Senior Principal Scientist at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc., where he led a team of engineers and scientists in charge of process development, scale up, and technology transfer of North American products. Dr. Saim began his career as an Assistant Research Professor at the Higuchi BioSciences Center for Drug Delivery Research. He holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Kansas, has published 22 papers in engineering and science journals, and holds 18 patents.

Isabelle Lefebvre
Chief Regulatory Officer
Isabelle Lefebvre
As Chief Regulatory Officer, Isabelle Lefebvre is responsible for EyePoint Pharmaceuticals’ regulatory strategy and compliance, with a focus on bringing innovative products to patients in the US and around the world. She oversees the Quality Management organization. Ms. Lefebvre has over 30 years of global regulatory affairs and compliance experience across all phases of drug development, including ophthalmic and ocular conditions. Prior to joining EyePoint in 2022, she served as Vice President, Head of Regulatory Science, at Hengrui USA, where she oversaw US and EU regulatory strategies for clinical programs in various phases of development. Ms. Lefebvre spent 10 years at Bausch Health Companies, Inc., where she held roles of increasing responsibility and led the successful approvals of two ocular drug products, LOTEMAX gel and VYZULTA®. Earlier in her career, Ms. Lefebvre held senior roles in regulatory strategy and affairs at Lundbeck, Inc.; Alpharma Pharmaceuticals; Bristol-Myers Squibb. Ms. Lefebvre holds a B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Montreal and an M.S. in Regulatory Affairs from Northeastern University.
Michael Pine
Chief Corporate Development & Strategy Officer
Michael Pine

As Chief Corporate Development & Strategy Officer, Michael Pine draws on his more than 20 years of industry experience in business development & licensing, commercial, and financial functions to generate growth and drive strategy at Eyepoint Pharmaceuticals. Prior to joining EyePoint in 2022, Mr. Pine served as Senior Vice President of Business Development and Strategy at Medexus Pharmaceuticals, where he managed the company’s inorganic growth strategy, facilitated partnerships and acquisitions, and supported several transactions critical to the growth of the organization. He also previously held a variety of roles spanning business development, commercial, operational, and strategy functions at Lupin Pharmaceuticals, Aralez Pharmaceuticals, and Novartis Pharmaceuticals. Earlier in his career, Mr. Pine held similar roles at Kos Pharmaceuticals, Organon Biosciences, and Pfizer, and served as an Investment Banking Analyst at JP Morgan Chase. Mr. Pine holds a B.S. in Consumer Economics from Cornell University and an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School.