CAHS Board of Advocate Feature- Jim Schoeneck

Biotech leader Jim Schoeneck is one of California’s most admired CEOs, named a finalist for Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young in 2015. Over the past 20 years, he has served as CEO for five companies.

As CEO of Depomed, a pharmaceutical company that treats patients with pain and central nervous system conditions, he increased revenue from $1 million to over $450 million in five years and grew the team from 65 to more than 500 employees. 

Mr. Schoeneck has also served as CEO of BrainCells Inc. – a neuroscience-focused drug development and discovery company targeting novel and/or best-in-class therapies for neuropsychiatric disorders and other central nervous system diseases – and 

for Prometheus Laboratories, a specialty pharmaceutical and diagnostics company that achieved No. 3 on the “Inc.” 500 list of the fastest growing private companies in North America. 

As vice president and general manager of the Immunology Business Unit at Centocor, now a division of Johnson & Johnson, he launched Remicade, a leading biologic for rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease that became the third largest selling drug in the world. 

He has served on the board of multiple companies, including two that went public on NASDAQ with multi-billion market caps. He chairs the board for FibroGen, a biotech firm with first-in-class drugs for fibrosis, and Calidi Biotherapeutics, which studies a cutting-edge combination of stem cells and benign viruses to eliminate hard to treat cancers. He is also an active leader in not-for-profits, including the leadership organization YPO. 

The JSU alumnus earned a BS in education from the university in 1979, graduating with distinction and special honors in music. While on campus, he was a member of the Marching Southerners and A Cappella Choir, and served as president of the Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity. He remains active as a member of the JSU Board of Advocates for the College of Arts, Humanities, and Sciences. 

Mr. Schoeneck is married to JSU nursing alumna, Cindy, and they share two sons, Chris and Jon. The family currently resides in San Diego. 

The College of Arts, Humanities, and Sciences Board of Advocates exist to support and advance the college and include alumni, former professors, industry leaders, and any persons affiliated with Jacksonville State University and the college that wishes to contribute through a commitment of their time, talent, treasure, or testimony. Their mission is to assist the dean in developing, executing, and advancing the mission, strategy, and vision for the college. Advocates strive for increases in funding for the college’s purposes, awareness of the college in the community, and opportunities for students, faculty, and staff, as well as advise the college on areas for innovation and relevance for its academic and co-curricular programs.