Jen Uner is the director of marketing and communications for Discovery Partners Institute, part of the University of Illinois System. She helps to shape brand strategy and storytelling around the things that DPI does: Applied R&D, business building, and tech talent development. She is especially excited about the opportunities for innovation and collaboration at the new DPI HQ opening in 2026. Before joining DPI, Jen applied her marketing and communications expertise to companies in tech (LRN, Oblong Industries, Realtor.com), fashion (California Market Center, LA Fashion Week, MAGIC) and media (GOOD magazine, Opportunity Green.) The through-line is a career in innovation, creativity, comms, and convening which has taken her to Europe and Asia and has enabled myriad collaborations between organizations, partners, and communities around the world. Personal highlights include a project at the Sundance Film Festival’s New Frontier, a feature in Women’s Wear Daily, and a bell ceremony of the Nasdaq stock exchange. When not at work, Jen enjoys reading, hiking, music, film, wine, and travel with her husband, composer Kubilay Uner.
Jen Uner
