Glory Durham, MPH, MBA

Glory Durham is the Senior Director of Healthcare Strategy at the University of Pennsylvania, jointly appointed across Penn Health-Tech and Venture Lab. In this cross-institutional role, she leads a unified vision for healthcare innovation and entrepreneurship, supporting the development, commercialization, and scaling of transformative medical technologies. Her work spans operational leadership, strategic programming, stakeholder engagement, and mentorship of emerging health-tech ventures.
 
Glory launched and currently directs the Penn ELITE Fellowship, a first-of-its-kind initiative training the next generation of health-tech entrepreneurs through hands-on commercialization of Penn-affiliated technologies. She also oversees key elements of Penn Health-Tech’s operations, portfolio strategy and ecosystem partnerships, while building new verticals within Venture Lab to expand healthcare-focused startup support.
 
As the previous Director of Operations at Penn Health-Tech, Glory was instrumental in shaping the center’s growth—driving the creation of high-impact programs that bridge academia, industry, and investment. Her leadership catalyzed faculty funding opportunities, cross-campus collaborations, and a stronger innovation pipeline across the university.
 
Prior to Penn, Glory served in public health leadership roles across Allegheny and Chester Counties, strengthening epidemiologic response, emergency preparedness, and crisis communications during public health threats. Her background in infectious disease epidemiology, combined with a strategic mindset honed through her MBA, uniquely positions her to lead innovation in complex, regulated healthcare environments.
 
Glory holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh with concentrations in neuroscience, psychology, and chemistry. She earned her Master of Public Health (MPH) in Epidemiology, Infectious Diseases, and Microbiology from the University of Pittsburgh, and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Marketing and Operations from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania through its Executive MBA program.