William N. Starling ’75
Bill Starling has had a successful four-decade career in the medical device industry, where he founded and managed innovative start-ups and lucrative venture capital partnerships. He retired in 2024 as co-founder and chief executive officer of Synecor LLC, a Research Triangle Park-based generator of life science businesses.
Always a steadfast supporter of UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, Starling and his wife, Dana, made a significant gift to the school in 2022 to establish and promote meaningful and deeper connections among UNC Kenan-Flagler students, faculty, staff and leadership. Starling remains actively involved in the life of Kenan-Flagler, including guest lecturing to students on entrepreneurism, participating in the Venture Capital Investment Competition and serving on the Kenan-Flagler Board of Advisors.
Starling’s dedication to his alma mater also included serving as chairman of Carolina Research Ventures, a $20 million-plus venture capital fund focusing on UNC Life Sciences intellectual property, the only source of “seed” capital on campus and a model to foster university innovation across the U.S.
In 2016, Starling was recognized with the Kenan-Flagler Leadership Award. He also has a fellowship named in his honor—the William Starling Life Sciences MBA Fellowship, which is designed to encourage those interested in biomedical engineering and science to pursue an MBA.
The Starlings have further cemented their legacy at Carolina with a significant gift to the School of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry, establishing the UNC Suicide Prevention Institute. The institute’s mission of better understanding mental illness and improving treatments reflects the importance of establishing meaningful relationships among college students, faculty and staff.
