Kristen Swingle

President & Chief Operating Officer

Critical Path Institute

By Tara Kirkpatrick

Two important things to know about Kristen Swingle can be found right in her LinkedIn profile.

Problem Solver. Low Ego.

Those two traits are the foundation of success for the respected president and COO of Critical Path Institute, a Tucson-based nonprofit that is a global game-changer in drug development. Swingle is C-Path’s daily operations chief who makes sure the team has the tools needed to accelerate new medical therapies worldwide.

“Humility is a really important attribute of leadership, from my standpoint,” said Swingle, who joined C-Path in 2019. “I feel pretty strongly that I’m a decent problem solver. For me though, it requires collaboration, it requires conversation. I actually come up with my best ideas when I’m in dialogue with people.”

C-Path, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary, is a global, public-private partnership founded by Dr. Raymond Woosley in 2005 to help move crucial drugs to market faster and hasten progress in diseases, both common and rare. Swingle brought two decades of experience in medical and molecular sciences to C-Path, most recently from Cord Blood Registry, where she served as VP of stem cell operations. 

“When I came out of interviews for Kristen, I said, ‘Hire her! Yesterday!’” said C-Path CEO Dr. Klaus Romero, who was then the nonprofit’s Chief Scientific Officer. “She brings a practical lens to some of my more ambitious ideas. Whenever new concepts or approaches come up, I count on her to provide an honest, insightful reality check.”

Swingle served as chair of the board of directors for Arizona Bioindustry Association from 2018 to 2023 and is a national advisory board member for the R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy at the University of Arizona. She also was the executive chair of the March of Dimes Walk in Tucson.

She grew up in Tucson, graduating from Canyon Del Oro High School before earning her bachelor’s degree in biology from Northern Arizona University and a master’s in medical science from Texas A&M University. A 6th grade science fair win helped fuel her interest in the sciences and she’s proud to be working in the city that made her.

“I love Tucson. I am a product of this community,” said the mother of two. “Having an opportunity to work at an organization that is Tucson-based, and support its mission, strategy, and people is something I deeply value. I’m grateful to be part of a team that’s working urgently to advance treatments and cures for diseases that still have far too few options for individuals and families.”