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NeuAge Institute (NAI)

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Faculty & Advisory Board

Faculty

NeuAge Program Advisory Board (PAB)

Program Advisory Board (PAB) provides an essential link between NAI and the Pharmaceutical Industry. PAB assists in evaluating the effectiveness of the NAI’s programs and in the identification of future trends and changes in the industry to ensure program relevancy. PAB members inform programming with respect to industry trends and thus any changes in skill and knowledge requirements, keeping the curriculum aligned with industry needs. They are the catalyst for growing and strengthening partnerships with the pharma industry. NAI’s advisory board is composed of relevant, accomplished experts offering advice and insight for guiding curricular, assessment, research, occupational, and marketing, initiatives.

Ms. Laleh Bighash

President and Dean of Scientific Affairs

Mr. Jason Chu

Director of Education

Mr. Ken Christie

Quality Assurance and Regulatory

Dr. Harvey Arbit

Clinical Research & Pharmacovigilance

Dr. Tigran Uzunyan

Clinical Research & Pharmacovigilance

Ms. Laleh Bighash

President and Dean of Scientific Affairs

Laleh Bighash is President and Dean of Pharmaceutical & Scientific Affairs at NeuAge Institute, where she provides leadership in pharmaceutical and clinical education and professional training. Her work includes the development of educational policies and course content, faculty and academic oversight, and building relationships with industry to help ensure training remains responsive to evolving workforce needs.

Ms. Bighash brings extensive pharmaceutical industry experience spanning research and development, Quality Control, Quality Assurance, financial planning, and business development. Over the course of her career, she has worked with multinational pharmaceutical organizations including Bayer and Eli Lilly & Company.

She holds academic backgrounds in Pharmacy, Pharmacology and Toxicology, as well as an MBA specializing in Finance and Strategy. An experienced industry speaker in Quality and Compliance, Ms. Bighash has also contributed her expertise at numerous professional and industry events.

Mr. Jason Chu

Director of Education

Jason Chu is an experienced pharmaceutical professional and educator with expertise in Quality Control, research and development, GMP regulations, analytical laboratory operations, and professional training. His technical experience includes HPLC, dissolution testing, method validation, process validation support, laboratory investigations, and pharmaceutical laboratory testing.

Prior to moving into pharmaceutical education and training, Mr. Chu worked at Apotex as an Analytical Research and Development Chemist and Quality Control Chemist. He also served as a Designated Compliance Coordinator, conducting self-audits to support continuous compliance improvement, and as a Subject Matter Expert responding to regulatory audit requests, including those involving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Mr. Chu holds a B.Sc. in Chemistry and has a background in academic research and laboratory instruction. His experience combines pharmaceutical operations, regulatory compliance, technical training, and hands-on laboratory practice.

Mr. Ken Christie

Quality Assurance and Regulatory

Kenneth Christie has over 30 years of sterile manufacturing and regulatory GMP consulting experience in the areas of Quality Assurance and Validation Management in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Mr. Christie is currently the Chief Operating Officer for VTS Consultants, Inc. located in Amherst, MA. Specifically, his responsibilities include quality system auditing, supplier qualification, GMP training, and serving as a subject matter expert for aseptic manufacturing processes, equipment and utilities, medical devices, and solid dosage processes on a global basis. Accomplishments include working on consent decree remediation issues for aseptically produced products, assisting clients in Japan, Dubai, Spain, China, and India by addressing audit observations and corrective actions dealing with sterilization. Performs PAI’s (pre-approval inspections) against current standards as found in the FDA’s ‘Pre-Approval Inspection Compliance Program #7346.832.

Mr. Christie is a speaker and trainer for several professional organizations and is a published author of several articles dealing with the challenges of aseptic processing. Additionally, Mr. Christie served as a member of the ISPE’s Professional Certification (PCC) Commission as an Examination Development Committee (EDC) member.
Dr. Harvey Arbit

Clinical Research & Pharmacovigilance

Dr. Harvey Arbit is a seasoned professional with a rich background in pharmacy, regulatory affairs, and clinical research spanning over four decades. With degrees from Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Duquesne University, and Northern Illinois University, he completed a clinical hospital pharmacy residency at UPMC Mercy Hospital.

His extensive industry experience includes pivotal roles at Baxter Travenol Laboratories, 3M Medical Products, Upsher-Smith Laboratories, Denvey Pharmaceuticals, SmithKline Beecham, and Coloplast Skin Care. Notably, Dr. Arbit played a pivotal role in founding the University of Minnesota’s acclaimed IND/IDE Assistance Program, recognized as a benchmark for guiding investigator-initiated research in academic settings. He later led regulatory knowledge initiatives and oversight programs at the university, also serving as an adjunct professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Care and Health Systems.

In 2010, Dr. Arbit founded Arbit Consulting, LLC, focusing on strategic support for clinical research across industry and academia. He transitioned leadership in 2023 and remains an integral part as its Founder and Consulting Partner. Recently invited as an adjunct professor at Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, he contributes to the development of a certificate program in regulatory affairs/regulatory sciences. Dr. Arbit maintains active involvement in professional associations, holds Regulatory Affairs and Clinical Research certifications, and is dedicated to mentoring PharmD students.
Dr. Tigran Uzunyan

Clinical Research & Pharmacovigilance

Tigran Uzunyan is a medical doctor and research scientist with over 18 years of diversified experience in academia, pharmaceutical industry and clinical research. Tigran acquired a degree of medical doctor and then specialized in clinical pharmacology in Yerevan, Armenia. In 2008 he defended his PhD thesis in pharmacology.

Tigran Uzunyan has an extensive experience in drug development and regulation under various jurisdictions, designing and conducting early phase (bioequivalence, bioavailability, first in human, etc.) and late phase (II to IV) clinical and observational studies.

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