Mireya McKee (née Rodriguez) is originally from Tampico, a coastal city in Northern Mexico. She began her career as a researcher, completing a BSc in chemistry at Monterrey Tech, Mexico, a Ph.D. in biochemistry at UT-Austin, and a postdoc in nano-biotechnology at the University of Oxford.

She transitioned into business after obtaining a certification in scientific research commercialization at Oxford’s Saïd Business School. She worked for several years at Oxford’s technology transfer office and later at Oxentia Ltd., a global strategy and innovation consulting group. After that, Mireya moved to Raleigh, NC and started an innovation management consulting firm to provide licensing, market analysis, and innovation services for institutions and startups. She also led business development at Tekcapital Plc., a Miami-based venture capital firm.

Currently, she is the Director of KickStart Venture Services, a department at UNC-Chapel Hill that supports research-based startup formation and growth through education, connections to stakeholders, early-stage funding, and incubation space. She is also the PI and Site Director for UNC’s I-Corps program as well as a regional I-Corps instructor. Mireya is the chair of the Mid-Atlantic Hub I-Corps DEI Committee and is passionate about promoting inclusive innovation.