Jack Faris has been president of the Washington Biotechnology & Biomedical Association (WBBA) since February of 2005.

Dr. Faris earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Washington and a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He was an associate professor with tenure at Towson University in Maryland until returning to Seattle in 1985 to join advertising agency Cole & Weber in 1985. He was team leader for the Boeing advertising account for 12 years and was executive vice president and general manager of the agency. In 1999 he became director of community strategies for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and participated in the launch of the foundation's global health initiatives. In 2000 Dr. Faris was appointed vice president for University Relations at the University of Washington, a position he held until January of this year. In February, he was named president of WBBA.

Dr. Faris also serves on the executive committees of the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce, the Alliance for Education, and the Seattle Public Library Foundation. He is board chair of the Urban Enterprise Center, a member of the steering committee for the Initiative for Global Development and serves on the board of United Way of King County and IslandWood.

As the president of WBBA, Dr. Faris is working with leaders across Washington to create a statewide bioscience strategy that will contribute to better health for people everywhere.