Ken Shatzkes, Ph.D.
Senior Program Officer
Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts (FORE)
Dr. Shatzkes is the Senior Program Officer at FORE and helps to identify innovative, patient-centered, evidence-based solutions addressing the nation’s opioid crisis. He studied Molecular Genetics and Development at McGill University before moving to Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey to complete his Ph.D. in Immunology and Infectious Disease. Dr. Shatzkes has over 15 years of experience performing biomedical research at institutions such as NYU Langone Medical Center, the J. Craig Venter Institute, and the U.S. FDA. He has worked on NIH-, DoD-, DHS-, and DARPA-funded research projects, including developing innovative detection methods of bio-threat microorganisms, large-scale genomic studies of antibiotic resistant bacteria, and using predatory bacteria as a novel antimicrobial. In addition, Dr. Shatzkes has advised federal and state political leadership on a range public health issues, from infectious disease to the opioid crisis. In 2017, he served as the Science Policy Advisor to the Governor of New Jersey.