New Venture for Upson

Don Upson may have stepped down from his position at the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship (LCE) this past June, but that doesn't mean he's been taking it easy. Instead, he is juggling a new set of responsibilities, as cofounder and president of QE Chemicals, Inc. The startup aims to sell a new type of chemical building blocks--molecules called azaborines--that chemists can use in their efforts to improve current drugs and create new ones. Already, the company has garnered a grant to prove they can create a version of Tylenol that is safer for patients' livers. What motivated Upson to jump back into business after nearly a decade of teaching new venture planning courses and supervising the UO's Technology Entrepreneurship Program? "I'm proud of my time at the LCE but wanted to try to do something else significant for society," said Upson, who has a PhD in chemistry and holds sixteen U.S. patents. "It's exactly the same motivation I had in coming to the Lundquist College. I've always needed new challenges, and it seemed like it was the right time to make the move." We will miss you, Don!