Tentative Program Agenda *
Friday, January 30, 2026
McAlister Building, 6th floor (Skyview Lounge for talks, Cityview Lounge for posters)
3250 Chestnut St, McAlister Bldg. 6th floor, Philadelphia, PA 19104
| Time | Session | Speakers |
| 8:00–9:00 AM | Registration & Networking Breakfast | Welcome slideshow with photos/videos of Dr. Onaral’s career |
| 8:45–9:00 AM | Opening Remarks | Paul Brandt-Rauf, Drexel University |
| 9:00–10:00 AM | Session I — Neuroengineering & Optical Brain Monitoring | Hasan Ayaz, Drexel University Kurtuluş İzzetoğlu, Drexel University Scott Bunce, Penn State University Ulaş Sunar, Stony Brook University |
| 10:00–10:15 AM | Coffee Break | — |
| 10:15–11:15 AM | Session II — Human-Centered Health Innovation | Yury Gogotsi, Drexel University Justin Lathia, Cleveland Clinic Murat Yıldırım, Cleveland Clinic Utkan Demirci, Stanford University |
| 11:15–11:30 AM | Coffee Break | — |
| 11:30 AM–12:30 | Session III — Advanced Therapeutics, Genomics, Cell & Tissue Engineering | Kara Spiller, Drexel University Xiao Huang, Drexel University Rana Sanyal, Boğaziçi University |
| 12:30–2:00 PM | Lunch & Poster Session | ~30 Posters Presentations @ the City View Lounge |
| 2:00–2:30 PM | Session IV – Banu Onaral Global Innovation Fellowship Showcase | Inaugural Banu Onaral Fellows (see announcement): Hailee Mayer Phoebe Ellin Chua Samuel Sung Paul DeSantis |
| 2:30–3:30 PM | Session V — Translational Biomedical Engineering | Baruch Ben Dor, InfraScan Adam Greenspan, Trace Orthopedics Davood Tashayyod, Lumo Imaging Gözde Şenel Ayaz, Tandem Repeat |
| 3:30–3:45 PM | Break | — |
| 3:45–4:45 PM | Session VI — Global Innovation Partnerships | Uri Heshberg, University of Haifa Adrian Curtin, Drexel University Meltem İzzetoğlu, Villanova University Julie Mostov, New York University |
| 4:45–5:00 PM | Closing Remarks | — |
| 5:00–6:00 PM | Networking Reception | Light refreshments and celebration of Dr. Onaral’s legacy and global community |
* Please note that this program is tentative and subject to change. We recommend checking this page regularly for the most up-to-date schedule.