The President today announced his intent to appoint William C. Oldaker to serve as Member of the National Bioethics Advisory Commission.

Mr. William Oldaker of Potomac, Maryland has an extensive career in both the Federal government, and in private practice. From 1997 to the present, Mr. Oldaker has been serving as Co-Founder and General Counsel to NeuralStem Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. in College Park, Maryland. NeuralStem has developed and wholly owns the enabling Central Nervous System stem cell technology, a key technology for genetic therapies and drug discovery. In addition, Mr. Oldaker is currently a Senior Partner in the law firm of Oldaker and Harris LLP. Mr. Oldaker has been in private practice of law since 1979 in Washington, DC. From 1975 to 1979, Mr. Oldaker served as General Counsel of the Federal Election Commission, where he was responsible for enforcement actions and for drafting advisory opinions. Mr. Oldaker served at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in several capacities: as Special Assistant to the Chairman of the EEOC from 1968 to 1973 and as a Regional Attorney in the Denver Regional Litigation Center from 1973 to 1975. From 1967 to 1968, Mr. Oldaker served as an attorney with the Federal Communications Commission. Mr. Oldaker holds a B.A. and a L.L.B from the University of Iowa.

The National Bioethics Commission shall provide advice and make recommendations to the National Science and Technology Council and to other appropriate government entities regarding the appropriateness of departmental, agency, or other governmental programs, policies, assignments, missions, guidelines, and regulations as they relate to bioethical issues arising from research on human biology and behavior; including the clinical applications, of that research.