Tennessee's first specialty license plate supporting entrepreneurs!
Drive TN Forward
Launch Tennessee logo written out with a tri-star icon on the left

Meet theTeam

Our team brings a wealth of expertise and experience.

Meet the Team

Our team brings a wealth of expertise and experience.

Meet our Board of Directors

Stuart McWhorter

Commissioner
Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development

Full Bio >>

Tom Ballard

Chief Alliance Officer
Pershing Yoakley & Associates (Emeritus)

Full Bio >>

Alan Bentley

Assistant Vice Chancellor
Center for Technology Transfer & Commercialization Vanderbilt University

Full Bio >>

Bryan Bean

Executive Vice President, Corporate Banking
Pinnacle Financial Partners

Full Bio >>

Bruce Doeg

Shareholder
Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz (Chairperson)

Full Bio >>

Ryan Egly

President & CEO
Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce

Full Bio >>

Evann Freeman

Vice President, Government & Community Relations
EPB

Full Bio >>

Dr. Susan Hubbard

Deputy Laboratory Director for Science & Technology
Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Full Bio >>

Simba Jonga

Founder & CEO
Laborup

Full Bio >>

Katie Marchetti

Head of Strategic Partnerships
Jefferson Bridge Capital

Full Bio >>

Willie McLain

Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President
Eastman Chemical Company

Full Bio >>

Benjamin Orgel

Partner
Tower Ventures

Full Bio >>

Julia Polk

Founder
ClimateWiser

Full Bio >>

Sen. Bo Watson

Tennessee General Assembly

Full Bio >>

Frank Williamson

Founder & CEO
Oaklyn Consulting

Full Bio >>

Rep. Ryan Williams

Tennessee General Assembly

Full Bio >>

FY27 Board Meetings

Our Board meetings are open to the public. To join virtually, please use this link >>

Meeting Agendas
Meeting Minutes

Thurs, July 23, 2026
Thurs, Oct 22, 2026
Thurs, Jan 28, 2027
Thurs, Apr 22, 2027
(All meetings run 10am – 12pm CT)

Interested in joining the Launch team?

We’re looking to add to our fun, hard-working team. Check out the roles we currently have open!

Careers
Morgan headshot with title, Data and Compliance Manager

Morgan Beam

Morgan Beam is Launch Tennessee’s Data & Compliance Manager. After studying Art History at Auburn University, Morgan entered the world of nonprofit fundraising when she was hired at the Frist Art Museum as a Grants Coordinator. There, she cultivated her grant writing, metrics reporting, and donor cultivation skills. In 2021, Morgan pursued her love for history and antiques by starting her own business conducting estate sales in the Greater Nashville Area. This experience taught Morgan a lot about the joys and challenges of the entrepreneur journey, which led Morgan to the culminating point of combining her professional experiences—nonprofit fundraising and entrepreneurship—in 2023 when she joined the Launch Tennessee team. Morgan is also currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Information Sciences from the University of Tennessee.

Outside of work, Morgan enjoys camping and hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains with family, visiting history and art museums, reading, writing, and participating in trivia nights around town with friends. And, of course, supporting her favorite football teams—the Tennessee Titans and the Auburn Tigers.

Contact

Spencer Bowers

Spencer Bowers is a West Tennessee native who serves as the Associate Director of Development at LaunchTN, where he leads individual giving initiatives, strengthens partnerships, and drives mission-aligned growth. With a passion for cultivating innovation ecosystems, Spencer plays a pivotal role in supporting Tennessee’s startups and amplifying the state’s economic impact.

Prior to joining LaunchTN, Spencer built experience in development, nonprofit management, and stakeholder relations, successfully executing campaigns and securing key funding to support organizational missions. He is adept at weaving storytelling, data, and relationship-building into compelling value propositions that drive both impact and investment.

Spencer holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Political Science and Legal Studies. He is deeply committed to leveraging public and private resources to empower entrepreneurs, uplift communities, and position Tennessee as a hub for high-tech innovation.

Contact

Tia Coffey

As our Capital Operations Manager, Tia blends daily operational processes with a collaborative focus, handling compliance, reporting, database management, and the countless details that keep LaunchTN’s Capital team sharp and the InvestTN program running smoothly.

She’s known for her thoughtful problem-solving, love of efficient systems, and warm communication style.Tia has provided operational support to multiple Nashville-based startups over the years and has sat on both sides of the capital table.

She’s honored to help Tennessee startups thrive—and she loves being part of the momentum pushing them forward.Tia holds a BA in Psychology from Trevecca University and loves to explore Tennessee’s beautiful state parks as often as she can.

Contact

Lindsey Cox

Lindsey Cox is the Chief Executive Officer at Launch Tennessee, a public-private partnership supporting startups and innovation across the state.

A Tennessee native, Lindsey has dedicated her career to the support and acceleration of startups and entrepreneurs in Tennessee and across the Southeast. During her first term at Launch Tennessee, she reimagined the organization’s annual 3686 entrepreneur conference as a multi-day celebration of startup founders, investors, and partners and generated national attention for Tennessee’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. She also created LaunchTN’s government relations team and oversaw the passage and administration of the state’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Matching Program, which to date has deployed $24.5 million in grants to tech-enabled, Tennessee-based companies, resulting in over $700 million in economic impact for the state. 

She currently leads the organization’s strategy in supporting startups via robust connections, commercialization support, and the deployment of $70 million in equity investment capital, as well as high-impact live events like the 3686 conference, now in its 12th year, and the organization’s hit South by Southwest activation, Tennessee House.

Lindsey’s experience is vast, with tenures at the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Washington, D.C., and as CEO of The Company Lab (CO.LAB) in Chattanooga, TN.

Lindsey and her husband, Joe, reside in Nashville, Tennessee, with their dog, Banjo, and three cats.

Contact
Karrie headshot with branding and title of SBIR/STTR Proposal Manager

Karrie Dudek

Karrie Dudek supports Tennessee entrepreneurs as they navigate the federal SBIR/STTR funding pathway. Through LaunchTN’s innovation and commercialization initiatives, she helps founders identify funding opportunities, understand agency requirements, strengthen commercialization strategies, and prepare competitive applications that advance breakthrough technologies toward market impact.

Prior to joining LaunchTN, Karrie built her career at the intersection of science, entrepreneurship, and innovation. She holds a PhD in Cell and Developmental Biology from Vanderbilt University and has experience spanning academic research, technology commercialization, startup development, and non-dilutive funding. In addition to her role at LaunchTN, she serves as Director of the Life Science Venture Program for the Life Science Tennessee Foundation and is the co-founder and CEO of Eupalinos, a regenerative medicine startup focused on developing novel therapies for vascular disease.

Contact

Donna Ford

Donna Ford serves as the Tennessee Technology Advancement Consortium (TTAC) Operations Coordinator at Launch Tennessee. In this role, she supports the commercialization team with program implementation, data management, compliance, internal process improvement, as well as assisting TTAC member institutions.

Prior to joining Launch Tennessee, Donna worked at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where she retired after 14 years of service – the last nine of which were with the Office of Research, Innovation, and Economic Development.

In her free time, Donna enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, cooking, baking, planning parties/entertaining, and reading.

Donna and her husband, Doug, celebrated their 37th wedding anniversary on December 31, 2025.  They have two adult children and one “diva dog,” Miss Flossie Mae Ford.

Contact

Eller Kelliher

Eller Kelliher is the Chief Investment Officer for Launch Tennessee. In this role, Eller oversees all capital and equity programs for the organization including the $70M InvestTN Fund and IMPACT and INCITE portfolios. She leads the Capital team on investment strategy, due diligence, and capital deployment. Eller is a native Tennessean who grew up in Chattanooga. She moved to Nashville in 2015 to start a career in venture capital.

Eller spent seven years with Nashville-based early-stage healthcare fund, Jumpstart Health Investors, where she served as Managing Director of Jumpstart Foundry. In that capacity, Eller invested in over 100 pre-seed stage healthcare technology companies and helped advise founders in the areas of business operations, fundraising, go-to-market strategy, and team development.

Prior to joining Launch Tennessee, Eller served as Partner with Atlanta-based SeedtoB Capital. She has experience as an independent consultant and adviser to startups and funds and serves on multiple portfolio company boards.

Contact

Logan Leatherwood

Originally from Richmond, Virginia, Logan Leatherwood earned a bachelor’s degree in English from Vanderbilt University.

Logan joined Launch Tennessee as a Venture Fellow on the Capital Team and now serves as a Capital Analyst, supporting the $70M InvestTN Fund. He works directly with founders and supports early-stage investments across Tennessee, from screening and diligence through closing.

Prior to Launch Tennessee, Logan gained experience across venture capital, investment banking, and early-stage startups. He worked as an Investment Banking Summer Analyst at Matrix Capital Markets Group, supporting M&A transactions, and as an Investment Intern at Techstars. He also interned with early-stage venture firms, worked with startups, and co-founded an AI solutions company focused on healthcare. These experiences have given Logan perspective from both the investor and founder sides of the startup ecosystem.

Contact

Rory Levine

Rory Levine is the Vice President of Marketing at Launch Tennessee. In this role, Rory serves as strategist, creative developer, and leader of all LaunchTN brand-related initiatives, internal and external. Overseeing marketing and communications and working across owned, earned, and paid media channels, he focuses on three key areas: development and execution of the organization’s master and sub brands; support of the Development team’s partnerships and fulfillment of sponsorships; and activation of major tentpole events like 3686 conference, Tennessee House at SXSW, and more.

Rory moved to Nashville in 2016 and boasts a career leading and growing some of the most resonant media brands. Most recently, he served as Vice President, Marketing and Digital Strategy & Engagement at the Academy of Country Music, the powerhouse trade organization, at a major moment of transformation and growth, including making history as the first major awards show to move to streaming exclusively.

Prior to that, he led major marketing and communications initiatives at The Atlantic magazine’s live events business, U.S. cable TV networks CMT and BBC America, and celebrated arts non-profit AIGA, the Professional Association for Design.

He hails from the Hudson Valley of New York state and is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.

Contact

Mariel Liggin

Mariel Liggin serves as Launch Tennessee’s Assistant Director of Technology & Research Development. With a background spanning biotechnology, innovation management, and technology commercialization, Mariel brings a deep commitment to strengthening research capacity and entrepreneurial ecosystems across the state of Tennessee.

After earning her M.S. in Biotechnology from Johns Hopkins University, Mariel entered the world of technology transfer, where she developed expertise in intellectual property strategy, market assessment, and federal grant development. Her work at Louisiana State University’s Office of Innovation & Technology Commercialization included managing a diverse portfolio of emerging engineering technologies and leading a landmark U.S.–Kenya higher education partnership focused on commercialization and workforce development.

Joining Launch Tennessee in 2025 marked a full-circle moment for Mariel. A graduate of Tennessee State University, she long envisioned contributing to the growth of research capacity and tech transfer operations at universities across the state; especially emerging and under resourced institutions. Today, her work focuses on strengthening capacity building, expanding commercialization pathways, and ensuring that Tennessee’s innovation economy continues to grow statewide.

Outside of work, Mariel loves to travel, attend Broadway musicals and spend time with friends and family. She also enjoys creating and connecting with communities that support artists, young professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs.

Contact

Emily Masters

Emily Masters began her more than twenty-year career in the nonprofit and public sectors as a Resolution Writer for the Tennessee General Assembly. She then spent eight years as a Program Officer then Director for Humanities Tennessee, the state partner affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. In 2009 she began working as an independent Development and Fundraising Strategist, going on to help a broad spectrum of organizations and institutions achieve their funding goals and hone their strategic missions. Among her many engagements with clients from within and without the state, Masters wrote and managed a Broadband Technology Opportunities Program grant for the state of Tennessee, raised the local matching funds for Metro Arts when Nashville hosted the Americans for the Arts Convention, functioned as Development Consultant for NashvilleHealth from the point of its founding through the departure of the inaugural CEO, and spent nearly three years with The Porch Writers’ Collective, where she more than tripled the organization’s annual grant funding.

A lifelong Tennessean, Masters holds an MA in English from East Tennessee State University. Her own experience as an entrepreneur (as founder of a Nashville-based dance studio that has been in business since 2008) informs her passion for the mission of LaunchTN. Additionally, Emily served as the District 3 Representative on the Metro Nashville Board of Education from 2020-2024.

Contact
Landon headshot with LaunchTN branding and title of Creative and Design Manager

Landon Matney

Landon Matney serves as the Creative & Design Manager at LaunchTN, supporting all visual communications, brand development, campaigns, events, and statewide initiatives.

Landon relocated to Tennessee to attend Nossi College of Art, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Interactive Design. With over a decade of experience as an Art Director and multidisciplinary designer, his work has spanned civic, cultural, hospitality, nonprofit, and entrepreneurial sectors nationally, with strong ties to Nashville.

Prior to LaunchTN, Landon worked as an independent contractor on community-focused campaigns, developed brand identity systems in an agency capacity, and led in-house creative direction for organizations including the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and Castlerock Asset Management.

Outside of work, Landon enjoys traveling (with only Alaska left to complete all 50 states), painting and selling original artwork, staying active, spending time outdoors, and slowing down with friends and fur babies.

Contact

Avery McConkey

Originally from Danville, Illinois, Avery McConkey moved to Nashville to attend Belmont University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Finance and Entrepreneurship and later completed his MBA. While at Belmont, Avery was awarded Belmont’s Entrepreneur of the Year and represented the university in national pitch competitions such as the CFA Institute Research Challenge.

Prior to Launch Tennessee, Avery worked as an Investment Banking Analyst at Watercress Capital, advising middle-market founders through M&A transactions. He later worked as an Investment Analyst at the Tennessee State Treasury Department, helping manage and oversee the state’s $70 billion investment portfolio across multiple asset classes.

Now a Senior Associate at Launch Tennessee, Avery leads diligence and supports InvestTN portfolio companies across the state, bringing both institutional investment experience and firsthand founder perspective.

Outside of work, Avery competes in Hyrox events, Ironman triathlons, CrossFit competitions, and enjoys, traveling, cooking, and spending time with family.

Contact

Chloe Morrison

As LaunchTN’s Communications Director, Chloé Morrison oversees written content and messaging. She also works with members of the media and other partners on storytelling initiatives.

Chloé grew up in Middle Tennessee and calls Chattanooga home. She spent 14 years as a reporter covering everything from government and crime to entrepreneurship and education.

She also serves on boards of Chattanooga nonprofits, WTCI and the Popup Project. Chloé also loves to create art, even if not beautifully. She’s a dilettante guitar player, singer, painter, and she loves to crochet different sized squares for her bonus children.

Contact

Tracee Perrin

Tracee Perrin serves as the Operations & Office Manager at LaunchTN, supporting the LaunchTN team and its daily operations.

She is a California native and has called Nashville home since 2014. Tracee earned a B.A. in Sociology from Boston University and spent 6 years NYC working in the non-profit, hospitality and entertainment sectors. As an entrepreneur, Tracee helps people build wealth through real estate as a licensed Realtor. In addition to being an Agent, she has also served as a training instructor, mentor and Assistant Team Leader of her Brokerage.

When she is not in the office you can find Tracee writing songs, performing locally & regionally as a Singer/Songwriter or hanging out with her husband and son.

Contact

Katherine Reall

Katherine currently serves as the Vice President of Finance & Administration, overseeing Launch Tennessee’s financial, audit, HR, and other administrative activities.

She is a Nashville native, receiving her BBA in Accounting from Belmont University. After spending several years in the tax worlds of both public and private accounting, she opened her own CPA firm, with many of her clients becoming some of Nashville’s most beloved establishments. During this time, Katherine also served as the CFO for several clients across various industries. She loves combining the 30,000-foot view with systems and processes that allow companies to work smarter.

Katherine is a CPA and member of the AICPA and TSCPA. She also serves on the Advisory Board for Restore Small Groups.

Contact

Jenn Ross

Jenn Ross is the Senior Manager of Event Planning and Activation at Launch TN. In this role, she oversees all facets of live event production for the evolving and expanding lineup of in-person programs, conferences, and activations, including 3686 and Tennessee House at SXSW.

Jenn holds a degree in Recording Industry Management from Middle Tennessee State University and brings a diverse background in live events and production. Her experience spans merchandise management with Exhibitionism: The Rolling Stones, artists including Brandi Carlile, and the You Got Gold Festival, stage management for AmericanaFest, and large-scale event production, most recently serving as a producer for Nashville Earth Day and Musicians Corner at the Centennial Park Conservancy.

Originally from Chattanooga, Jenn has called Nashville home for more than 15 years. Outside of work, she enjoys exploring Tennessee State Parks, knitting and crocheting, and spending time with her chihuahuas, Ollie and Ladybug. An avid traveler, she has visited 48 U.S. states and seven countries, with birthday trips to Cuba and Ireland among her favorite adventures – so far.

Contact

Jennifer Skjellum

Jennifer Skjellum is Vice President of Commercialization and Director of the Tennessee Technology Advancement Consortium (TTAC) at Launch Tennessee, where she leads statewide efforts to catalyze research translation and streamline technology transfer across Tennessee’s universities and research institutions.


Her career spans every stage of the innovation pipeline. At the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, she built the university’s first Commercialization Counselor role, advancing faculty innovation and deploying targeted seed funding. While at the CO.LAB, she directed programs and the HealthTech Accelerator. As President of TechBirmingham (2012–2017) and Executive Director of the Birmingham Angel Investor Management Group chapter, she grew one of the Southeast’s most active regional tech and investor ecosystems.


An entrepreneur herself, Jennifer co-founded MPI Software Technology in 1996, leading it through acquisition by Verari Systems, and has served as President of RunTime Computing Solutions since 2009. She has held faculty roles at UAB, served as the McCain Executive-in-Residence in Entrepreneurship at Birmingham-Southern College. She is currently pursuing a doctorate in Leadership and Decision-Making at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Contact

You are now being taken to Startup Tennessee to view current events.

Launch Tennessee provides an ecosystem map with links and resources to other organizations, but this does not constitute an endorsement of content, viewpoints, policies, products or services of that site. Once you link to another web site not maintained by LaunchTN, you are subject to the terms and conditions of that website, including but not limited to its privacy policy.

Continue to Site >>