2023 Alumni Service Award

Leslie Blair ’83

Leslie Blair received an associate’s degree in liberal arts from Colby-Sawyer College in 1983. She went on to achieve a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Trinity College in Hartford, Conn., in 1985 and later a master’s degree in business administration from Georgetown University in 1996. Early in her career Leslie worked in administration at Tufts New England Medical Center in Boston, where she was actively engaged in the clinical trials program within her department. Working closely with investigators and the sponsoring pharmaceutical companies, Leslie discovered her passion for drug development, seeing firsthand how new medications offered such promise for chronically-ill patients. After receiving her MBA, she began her 25+ year career in the pharmaceutical industry, working for companies such as Merck and Novartis, where she lead different teams in Global Marketing, Insights & Analytics, and US Operations. Earlier this year, she started her own consulting firm to support start-up biotech companies as they navigate the commercialization process from clinical trials through FDA approval and into the hands of patients. Active in the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association, Leslie is also a staunch mentor to women and men in the pharmaceutical industry.

Leslie has a strong connection with Colby-Sawyer College. Her mother, Sally Trussell White, graduated from Colby Junior College in 1959, and her sister, Susan Blair, graduated from CSC in 1988. She and her mother created a scholarship fund in 2002 in honor of Susan, who was killed on September 11, 2001. The scholarship has been awarded annually since then to support Colby-Sawyer students who are majoring in child development and education programs. Susan had just started the process of earning her teaching degree when she was killed. “Though Sue never got the chance to fulfill her dream of teaching, we are so honored to help other students reach their goals of helping children,” said Blair.

At Colby-Sawyer, Leslie served as president of the sophomore class, and today, she sits on the Advisory Board to the College of Arts and Sciences and is a new member of the President’s Alumni Advisory Council. She is also a long-standing member of the Family Advisory Committee for the Massachusetts 9/11 Fund, and along with her other committee members, is responsible for planning and executing the official 9/11 Remembrance ceremonies for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. During the 2023 Remembrance, recent CSC graduate and recipient of the Susan Blair Memorial Scholarship, Lauren Wilkinson ’23, was featured in a video focusing on “The Legacy of 9/11.”