Jennifer Wellman has more than 20 years’ experience in adeno-associated viral (AAV) vector gene therapy research and development. She is currently Chief Operating Officer at Akouos, a precision genetic medicine company focused on developing gene therapies with the potential to restore, improve, and preserve high-acuity physiologic hearing for individuals who live with disabling hearing loss. Previously, Ms. Wellman served as Akouos’s Senior Vice President of Regulatory and Quality. Prior to that, Ms. Wellman was Co-founder, Head of Product Development Strategy, and Head of Regulatory Strategy at Spark Therapeutics, Inc., a member of the Roche Group and a fully integrated, commercial gene therapy company. While at Spark, and in her earlier role as Director of Regulatory for the Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), Ms. Wellman led the regulatory and clinical development for several AAV gene therapies, including Luxturna®, the first FDA-approved gene therapy for a genetic condition. Prior to her time at CHOP, she served as an Associate Scientist at Avigen, Inc.

Ms. Wellman holds an M.S. from the University of New Haven and an Honours B.S. in microbiology and immunology from Queen’s University (Canada).