Marissa Starks Banh, MHI

Marissa serves as Senior Life Sciences Business Development in the Office of Research and Partnerships at the University of Arizona. In this role, she develops and advances strategic partnerships between industry and the university by connecting companies with faculty expertise, research capabilities, clinical resources, and innovation opportunities. Her work focuses on building collaborations that accelerate research, support research translation, and strengthen Arizona’s growing life sciences ecosystem.

Prior to joining the Office of Research and Partnerships, she led strategic engagement efforts with the BIO5 Institute, where she built connections across the Phoenix Bioscience Core with industry partners, healthcare organizations, researchers, and community stakeholders. Through relationship building and cross-sector collaboration, she has advanced partnerships that connect industry needs with university expertise and support interdisciplinary research and innovation.

Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family, exploring new restaurants, traveling, and spending time with her Yorkshire Terriers.