Power in Numbers: Alum Builds a Community of Women in Biotech

Stephanie Skouras is uplifting women in the life sciences industry by creating a safe space for them to share ideas and gain support from their peers.

As a student, when she wasn’t reading textbooks, Stephanie Skouras was scouring publications from life sciences companies, staying updated on the latest drug approvals or technological developments.

“Reading these publications got me so excited to be a part of revolutionizing the industry one day,” she said.

In her last year of undergrad at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS), Skouras read about the Food and Drug Administration approving a first-of-its-kind ribonucleic acid interference (RNAi) therapeutic from Cambridge-based Alnylam Pharmaceuticals. RNAi plays a role in several biological processes, including regulating gene expression.

Six years later, Skouras, MS ’20, BS ’18, is a Clinical Trial Specialist at Alnylam, managing the testing phase for therapies, from logistics with hospitals to regulatory processes. Equally important to Skouras is The Female Catalyst, an organization she co-founded in 2023 to build a community of women working in biotechnology in the Boston area.

“There’s power in numbers, so our hope is by bringing like-minded women together, we can build a community of women who are more confident at work and in other parts of their lives,” she said.

A Surprising Love for Science

Skouras attended MCPHS to become a physician assistant. However, she quickly discovered that she truly thrived in her science courses. She switched to the Medical and Molecular Biology program after taking immunology and learning about laboratory assessments and techniques.

“There’s something about using your hands to create something with knowledge from a textbook that just clicked for me,” she remembered. “The lab is a great place for creative people to be.”

After earning her bachelor’s degree, Skouras enrolled in the Clinical Research program and began working as a scientist at Kymera Therapeutics. She was a sponge, learning everything she could about medicine development.

“I read as much as I could, asked a ton of questions, shadowed others, networked, and was strategic about the resources available to me,” she remembered. “I embraced that I was a beginner and took the opportunity to learn as much as I could.”

That work paid off as Skouras became one of the core scientists at Kymera Therapeutics and was part of a team that discovered and named a new molecule for treating inflammatory diseases. While she loved laboratory work, Skouras always saw herself working on a larger scale. Her current role at Alnylam in clinical development presented that opportunity.

“This role is forward-facing and allows me to communicate regularly with others, which is where I thrive,” she said. “I’m putting together my clinical research studies with my science skills.”

Bringing Together Women in Biotech

While working at Kymera, Skouras joined a local nonprofit called Women Accelerators, which helps women advance their careers through webinars, trainings, and more. Skouras served as president of the organization and made a conscious effort to involve more women in biotech.

“Speaking as a woman in this industry, I have noticed there are a lot of things we don’t know or are afraid to ask about,” she said. “I thought we should create a group where women could feel safe and comfortable learning about these topics together.”

In March 2023, Skouras launched The Female Catalyst with Gianna Iantosca, MBA, a close friend and fellow Colleges of the Fenway alum. They quickly saw the great demand for this kind of group, and they grew from 25 to 350 women in fewer than two years.

“We are very intentional with our events, keeping them small and having them in person so everyone who attends can make meaningful connections. We are ready to discuss a topic or trend in biotech, and we all go home having learned something.”

With dinners, networking events, workshops, and more, members can turn to The Female Catalyst for advice about salary negotiations, finding a job, or having difficult conversations with colleagues. This summer, several members attended the Gearing Up Conference at Bentley University. Over lunch, one asked the group how to approach an upcoming meeting with a global manager.

“We went around the table, everyone had different advice, and the conversation just kept building on top of everyone’s ideas,” Skouras recalled. “There was another woman near us who wasn’t part of our group but heard the conversation. I looked over at her, and her jaw had dropped. She told us she had never seen anything like that in her entire career, and that we were going to change the world. It hit me in that moment that what we are doing is working.”

Skouras said this is only the beginning of her career leading innovations in biotechnology and growing The Female Catalyst community.

“I’m very lucky that I have a support system that encourages me in what I’m doing outside of work,” she said. “Bringing women from this industry together to show them they are not alone really just fills my cup.”