People on the Move: Sept. 15

People on the Move is a rundown of recent hirings, promotions, appointments and other notable movements by professionals in the state. If you’re interested in submitting an entry, please contact news@delawarebusinesstimes.com.

The Chemours Company announced Ron Charles, vice president of talent and culture and human resources business partner for titanium technologies, will be promoted to senior vice president of the people function, following Susan Keliliher’s retirement from Chemours.

Ron Charles | PHOTO COURTESY OF BUSINESS WIRE

Charles takes on his new executive role with 24 years of human resources, manufacturing, and labor relations experience, including 18-plus years in the chemical industry. During his six-year tenure with Chemours, Charles has contributed to Chemours’ performance through various HR leadership assignments spanning the fluoroproducts, fluorochemicals, and titanium technologies businesses. He has also led the personnel aspects of several large-scale, transformative business initiatives, including the Southern Ionics Minerals acquisition and the divestiture of the methylamines business line. He also played a leadership role in forming the strategy and approach to negotiations and optimization of labor contracts at critical manufacturing locations. More recently, he expanded his responsibility to include leadership of the Culture and Talent organization, where he assembled a high-performance team, upgraded the talent acquisition process, and developed programs, policies, and tools for frontline and office employees.

Before Chemours, Charles held various leadership positions with Phillips 66, Albemarle Corporation, Frito Lay, and Texas Instruments. There, he gained deep experience serving as the HR leader of billion-dollar business units and their frontline workforce and leading the people aspects of complex mergers, divestitures, and organizational restructuring.

Chemours CEO Mark Newman said, “Ron is a trusted advisor who brings a wealth of knowledge in strategically managing HR for an evolving company like Chemours. Plus, his deep manufacturing and labor relations experience will bring tremendous insight as we look to maximize the performance of our plant sites which represent 75% of our workforce. Ron’s unique perspective and ability to find simple solutions to complex HR challenges make him critical to our continued success and a welcome addition to the executive team.”

Uvax Bio LLC, a vaccine biotechnology company, announced Pedro Garbes, MD., has joined the company as vice president, global medical lead. Dr. Garbes joins Uvax Bio at a key inflection point as the company’s recombinant protein nanoparticle vaccines are advancing in development. Dr. Garbes will lead medical, clinical, and regulatory functions in support of Uvax’s lead vaccine candidate for HIV-1 in it phase I clinical trials and guide development of the multiple preclinical-stage vaccines in the company’s pipeline.

“We are pleased to have Pedro join our leadership team as we prepare to take our lead vaccines to the next stage of development. With the help of Dr. Garbes clinical leadership, Uvax Bio will continue to optimize our portfolio and business strategies and to progress our promising pipeline of vaccines to address major areas of unmet need in global health. Pedro’s depth of experience in infectious disease, HIV medicine and strategic clinical vaccine development will be especially valuable as we advance our vaccines into human studies,” Ji Li, Ph.D., chief executive officer at Uvax Bio, said.

Dr. Garbes brings to Uvax Bio over two decades of life sciences experience in clinical vaccine development, medical affairs, and medical/commercial strategy. Most recently, he served as senior vice president at Gritstone Bio, where he was responsible for the clinical development and execution of Gritstone’s self-amplifying mRNA platform to develop vaccines against viruses.

Dr. Garbes earned his Doctor of Medicine and Masters degrees from Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro. He later served as an assistant professor and lecturer in Medicine at Universidad Federal Fluminense (Brazil).

“I am excited to be joining Uvax Bio and I look forward to working with the rest of the management team to help advance our vaccines toward the market. I am enthusiastic about the groundbreaking 1c-SA-pNP vaccine development platform and its potential to provide broad and durable protection against threatening infectious diseases. I look forward to guiding the company’s multiple vaccine programs through the clinical development process,” Dr. Garbes said.

Peter Minneci | PHOTO COURTESY OF NEMOURS

Nemours Children’s Health named Peter Minneci, MD, MHSc, the new chair of the Department of Surgery at Nemours Children’s Health, Delaware Valley, as well as director of perinatal surgery in Nemours Children’s Advanced Delivery Program. Dr. Minneci will be responsible for guiding the department’s strategic direction while fostering a collaborative and inclusive environment, and joins on September 18. Dr. Minneci will also serve as the interim director of research across all surgical specialties, where he will develop the Nemours Surgical Outcomes Center.

Throughout his career, Dr. Minneci has dedicated his career to advancing surgical practice, fostering innovation, and providing the highest quality of patient care. Dr. Minneci is a distinguished surgeon-scientist with over 250 peer-reviewed publications, 180 national presentations and 25 academic awards. His published work crosses many of the pediatric surgical subspecialties, demonstrating his commitment to advancing medical knowledge across a multi-disciplinary surgical practice.

“I look forward to taking on the role of the Chair of the Department of Surgery at Nemours Children’s Health, Delaware Valley,” Dr. Minneci said. “The patients and families are at the heart of everything I do as a surgeon. I am committed to leading the team in advancing surgical excellence, research and innovation to ensure a healthier future for each child we serve.”

For the past decade, Dr. Minneci served as the director of the Center for Surgical Outcomes Research, the Surgical Director of ECMO, Surgical Director of the Center for Intestinal Rehabilitation and Nutritional Support, and the Associate Director for Minimally Invasive Surgery at Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

Dr. Minneci graduated from Cornell University with a BS in Biology, obtained his medical degree from New York University, and completed his Master of Health Sciences degree at Duke University. He fulfilled his training in general surgery at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, his pediatric surgery fellowship at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and his critical care fellowship at the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Minneci is a board-certified pediatric surgeon and Professor of Surgery at Ohio State University with clinical expertise in advanced foregut surgery, intestinal failure, extracorporeal life support, and perinatal surgical management.

Beebe Healthcare announced Elizabeth Campbell, J.D. as its first director of diversity, equity, inclusion & belonging (DEIB). Campbell will develop business plans that bring people and teams together, respect all perspectives, and foster equitable practices.  

“Diversity is important in healthcare because having a diverse team allows Beebe to better meet the needs of our patients and team members on many levels of care and collaboration. Our staff members bring their own experiences to this mission, delivering care that understands a patient’s background and life experiences,” David Tam, MD, MBA, CPHE, FACHE, President & CEO, Beebe Healthcare, said.

“The demographics of our patients and staff are changing,” he said. “Elizabeth will play an important role, bringing best practices across our healthcare system that keep diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging at the forefront of what we do and how we do it.” 

Campbell is an employment attorney by background and has been an DEIB advocate for more than 20 years. Before joining Beebe, she was a Specialist Manager for Deloitte Consulting in Philadelphia, managing DEI and talent projects. She was also the Director of Inclusion and Diversity for the Campbell Soup Company, where her accomplishments included developing interactive learning modules and aligning employee resource groups with the DEI strategy regarding talent, culture, and marketplace.    

Campbell served for more than 10 years as partner & chief diversity officer for the Houston-based law firm Andrews Kurth Kenyon and for four years as the Vice President Employment Practices and Corporate Diversity Officer for Aramark in Philadelphia.    

Campbell received her Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School and her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Psychology from the American University. 

She also earned certificates in Fostering Inclusion & Diversity and Leading Effective Decision Making, both from the Yale School of Management. Her community work includes chairing the Council on Legal Education Opportunity and serving on the boards of the National Diversity Council and the University of Michigan Law School’s Advisory Board on Race and Racism.

The Department of Safety and Homeland Security (DSHS) and the Delaware Capitol Police (DCP) held a ceremony to welcomed Elmer C. Harris as chief of police. Harris, with 39 years of police experience, was selected to lead the Capitol Police following the retirement of Chief Michael Hertzfeld.

Elmer C. Harris | PHOTO COURTESY OF DSHS

“Chief Harris is a qualified, experienced, and proven leader. I am confident in his ability to lead the women and men of The Capitol Police Department.  His leadership skills and years of experience will enable him to build on the progress of the Capitol Police,” Safety and Homeland Security Secretary Nathaniel McQueen, Jr. said. “His 39 years of dedicated service to our State throughout his law enforcement career and his passion for the mission of public service are admirable.”

“I firmly believe a leader is only as good as the people surrounding him, and we have an outstanding group of individuals in the Division,” Chief Harris said. “I look forward to the opportunity to serve in this new leadership role. I am confident that working together with the men and women of the Delaware Capitol Police, we can continue to move the Division forward by diversifying, embracing inclusion, and providing opportunities for our workforce as we serve the citizens of the State of Delaware.”

Chief Harris began his career in law enforcement in 1984 with the Wilmington Police Department, retiring at the rank of Inspector of Uniformed Operations. During his law enforcement career, he served as an officer in Patrol Division and Criminal Investigations. He was promoted to Sergeant in 1991 and was a supervisor in the Patrol Division, Criminal Investigations, and Internal Affairs as an Investigator. He was then promoted to Lieutenant and served as a Platoon Commander in the Patrol Division. He was promoted to the rank of Captain and served as the Commanding Officer of the following divisions: Patrol Division, Internal Affairs, Special Operations and Criminal Investigations. He was then promoted to Inspector in charge of the Uniformed Operations.

After retiring, he joined the Delaware Capitol Police (DCP) in 2017 as a Corporal. He worked out of the New Castle County Courthouse. He was then promoted to the rank of Major in September 2022, where he was in charge of the Kent Sussex Counties operations.

He is a graduate of the 251the session of the Federal Bureau of Investigation National Academy and a member of the International Association of Police Chiefs. Chief Harris is a military veteran, serving 13 years in the United States Army and Army Reserves.

Chief Harris is a Delaware native and resides in Bear with his significant other, Tracy Henderson. He is the proud father of Ashley, Byron, Chryshele Henderson, and Myiesha Harris. He has three grandchildren Mehki, Maliyha and Amani.