Alumni
Spotlights
Jack Wilber '09
Alum Making His Mark at Startup Medical Device Company
Jack Wilber ’09 graduated from Gilmour and headed to Miami University, where he majored in biology and minored in neuroscience. It was in his neuroscience classes that he became interested in the sensory and pain pathways of the nervous system. He began working in a research lab studying the central and peripheral nervous systems of fruit flies. In later coursework, he was exposed to neurostimulation/neuromodulation and was fascinated by the subject matter.
Jack Wilber ’09 graduated from Gilmour and headed to Miami University, where he majored in biology and minored in neuroscience. It was in his neuroscience classes that he became interested in the sensory and pain pathways of the nervous system. He began working in a research lab studying the central and peripheral nervous systems of fruit flies. In later coursework, he was exposed to neurostimulation/neuromodulation and was fascinated by the subject matter.
Upon graduating, Jack sought opportunities with medical device companies that had therapies that involved neurostimulation. He was accepted as a clinical research intern at SPR Therapeutics, which was a small startup of about 15 employees at the time. He worked on their clinical research team for three years until the company received FDA approval for their therapy. At that point, he took over as head of sales operations in the commercial environment and currently serves as SPR Therapeutics’ sales operations manager.
Describing his job, Jack said, “As a company, we are focused on improving the lives of patients who are/have been suffering from pain, which is extremely rewarding.” He recognizes the unique experience he has gained at SPR Therapeutics as well. “I feel extremely fortunate that I have been able to participate in taking an investigational therapy that had been studied for over 10 years to the commercial market. It has provided patients with an opioid-free option to manage their pain.”
Jack says that, while he discovered his passion for neuroscience in college, he believes that because Gilmour emphasized the importance of critical thinking, he dove deeper into topics and extracted the information that was valuable to him. He also credits Gilmour with teaching him to use his voice to articulate information in an organized manner for a variety of populations.
Reflecting on his time at Gilmour, Jack fondly remembers Br. Richard Keller, C.S.C. He said, “I think that some of the happiest moments I had at Gilmour, outside of my group of friends, were conversations with Brother Richard. He cared so much about all of us, and every day his focus was on making the students happy.” Jack is also grateful for the incredible friends he made at Gilmour. He said, “We have stayed very close, despite some of us moving to different states, and there are running jokes that are over a decade old at this point.”
