Scholar and Entrepreneur Sam Niedbala, ’82, Ph.D., to Speak at ESU’s Spring Graduate Commencement Exercises

Posted by: admin on May 5, 2014, No Comments

A scholar and entrepreneur, Sam Niedbala, Ph.D., will be the keynote speaker for East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania’s graduate commencement ceremony on Friday, May 9, at 7 p.m. in Koehler Fieldhouse. Dr. Niedbala earned his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from East Stroudsburg University in 1982, his master’s degree in clinical chemistry from Lehigh University in 1983 and his doctorate in chemistry in 1986 from Lehigh University, where he is currently a faculty member.

In addition to teaching in the areas of clinical chemistry and regulatory affairs at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa., Dr. Niedbala is President and CEO of CryoConcepts, a leading manufacturer of cryosurgical equipment. He is also the CEO of TB Biosciences LLC, a spinout company formed by researchers at Lehigh University and NYU’s School of Medicine and Dentistry. The company is researching and developing the use of a new class of peptides that will allow testing of blood or saliva to identify Tuberculosis infections.

Dr. Niedbala is also the former Chief Science Officer and founder of OraSure Technologies Inc. (OTI), which is a publicly traded diagnostic company. OTI develops, manufactures and markets proprietary immunodiagnostic tests and other diagnostic products. During his time with OTI, Dr. Niedbala was responsible for the development of new products and technologies as well as more than 70 approvals of new medical devices by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. OraSure Technologies developed the first rapid HIV test in the United States approved for use with blood or saliva. OraQuick, in-home, oral HIV test, was also recently approved for use over-the-counter.

In addition to having published numerous articles in a variety of areas of technology and clinical science, Dr. Niedbala holds 19 U.S. patents.