Rodney Bednar

Rodney Bednar is a Vice President and Professor of Biochemistry at the Pennsylvania Drug Discovery Institute. Rodney has also served as a Board Director for the Laboratory Robotics Interest Group for the past 11 years. Prior to their current positions, Rodney spent 37 years at Stony Brook University where they held various positions, including Adjunct Professor of Pharmacological Sciences and Assistant Professor of Chemistry. Rodney also spent 20 years at Merck, where they held various positions of increasing responsibility, including Director, Senior Investigator, Senior Research Fellow, and Research Fellow. Rodney is recognized for their expertise in all aspects of early drug discovery and has provided leadership and critical scientific contributions to the successful advancement of over a dozen drugs into clinical trials. Rodney is also the founder and Chief Drug Discovery Engineer of FAST (Facility for Automation and Screening Technology), which has served as a model for in vitro Biology components of Merck’s Basic Research Global Operating Strategy. Rodney has won numerous awards for their work, including a Special Achievement Award for their leadership in Fragment Based Screening.

Rodney Bednar received their Ph.D. from the University of Delaware in Chemistry & Biochemistry in 1981, where they studied under Professor Robert F. Colman. Rodney then did their postdoctoral fellowship at Brandeis University from 1982-1985 with Professor William P. Jencks. Bednar received their B.A. in Chemistry from Juniata College in 1977, summa cum laude and Valedictorian.