Kate Wolin

Dr. Kate Wolin is an entrepreneurial executive and behavioral epidemiologist. She brings over 20 years of experience combining behavioral medicine, user-centered design and data science to deliver effective health behavior change solutions. Dr. Wolin’s unique combination of academic and commercial expertise threads the needle between evidence-based approaches and commercialization.

Dr. Wolin leads Product for Optum’s Direct-to-Consumer business the Optum Store. At Circea, she consulted with a wide-range of companies on integrating behavioral science into product strategy to create a more personalized and engaging experience and better results. She was CEO and co-founder of ScaleDown, a clinically-proven weight loss program that leveraged the science of self-regulation and daily self weighing. ScaleDown was acquired by Anthem, Inc in December 2017. Dr. Wolin also served as Chief Science Officer and a member of the executive leadership team at a private-equity backed employer health company.

Dr. Wolin co-leads the venture track for the Zell Fellows Entrepreneurial Fellowship Program at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. She is a mentor in the UnitedHealthcare Accelerator powered by Techstars. Dr. Wolin also serves on the board of Prismatic, a non-profit dedicated to teaching Chicago youth the skills to advance, lead and pivot with resiliency.

She is a co-founder of Coeus Health, which aims to speed the translation of research tested health and wellness programs to the real world. Coeus Health was awarded a SBIR by NIDDK to develop a white-labelable evidence-based weight management program with a goal of easing the integration of cost-effective solutions into a wide range of settings. Dr. Wolin was previously an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the University of Chicago.

Dr. Wolin spent her early career conducting academic research at the intersection of lifestyle behaviors and chronic-disease outcomes before transitioning to the private sector. She built an international reputation, generating more than $4 million in federal research funding and contributing to over 75 peer-reviewed publications and numerous books. She served on the faculty at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis / Siteman Cancer Center and Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine. Dr. Wolin was a member of the leadership group that developed the first set clinical exercise guidelines for cancer survivors and contributed to the development of the first validated disease risk assessment tools. She was a frequent presenter on the science behind prevention in community settings and national news media. She continues to serve on NIH Study Sections, scientific advisory panels and national research committees.

Dr. Wolin obtained her bachelor’s degree in anthropology from Tufts University, summa cum laude. She earned her doctorate in epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health, with minors in biostatistics and health behavior, where she was an NCI pre-doctoral fellow. She completed a NCI post-doctoral fellowship in cancer epidemiology in the Department of Preventive Medicine at Northwestern University.

Education

• ScD Harvard School of Public Health (2000 — 2005)
• BA Tufts University (1995 — 1999)
• Starter League (2013 — 2013)

Companies

• Vice President, Direct-to-Consumer Optum (2021)
• Adjunct Associate Professor & Co-Leader of the healthcare track for the Kellogg Zell Fellows Northwestern University (2015)
• Co-Founder Coeus Health (2013)
• Entrepreneur In Residence The University of Chicago Booth School of Business (2019 — 2021)
• Principal Circea (2019 — 2021)
• Chief Science Officer Interactive Health, Inc (2017 — 2019)
• CEO and Co-Founder Scale Down (2013 — 2017)
• Associate Professor of Surgery & Public Health Sciences Loyola University Chicago (2013 — 2014)
• Associate Professor Washington University in St. Louis (2007 — 2013)

Skills

• Editing
• Grants
• Quantitative Research

Other

SAS, Health Policy, Psychology, Global Health, Treatment, Biostatistics, Chronic Illness, Teaching, Qualitative Research, Program Development, Research Design, Health Education, Literature Reviews, Wellness, Science, Data Analysis, Nutrition, Statistics, Program Evaluation, Clinical Trials, Prevention, Grant Writing, Public Speaking, Clinical Research, Cancer, Healthcare, Research, Epidemiology, Public Health