Academic Network Ranks No. 2,526 on the 2008 Inc. 5,000, No. 40 in the Portland Metro Region with Three-Year Sales Growth of 141%

PORTLAND, Ore., September 22, 2008 – Inc. has ranked Academic Network No. 2,526 on its annual ranking of the 5000 fastest-growing private companies in the country. The list is the most comprehensive look at the most important segment of the economy – America’s independent-minded entrepreneurs. Taken as a whole, these companies represent the backbone of the U.S. economy. Academic Network placed No. 40 in growth for the Portland Metro Region.

“We’re able to hire more people and our business is growing because of our expanding partnerships and extended outsourcing consumer care solutions with industry giants like ConAgra, GlaxoSmithKline, Fleishman-Hillard, and Boston Scientific,” says Academic Network President, David McCarron, MD, FACP, who has appeared in the New York Times, CBS, PBS, NPR and CNN. “We wouldn’t have this success without Portland’s rich multilingual healthcare workforce.”

“Our second annual Inc. 5000 continues the most ambitious project in business journalism,” said Inc. 5000 Project Manager Jim Melloan. “The Inc. 5000 gives an unrivalled portrait of young, underreported companies across all industries doing fascinating things with cutting-edge business models, as well as older companies that are still showing impressive growth.”

Academic Network provides health care communication solutions via its call center and web-based services for pharmaceutical companies, food and beverage companies, and medical centers. The firm’s health education consulting team mans a live, toll-free call center for consumer queries, helps with patient recruitment, program development and the management of governmental and health professional relations. Academic Network is also in the business of developing non-branded websites for their clients seeking to provide online resource centers on specific health and medical issues.

“We regularly partner with Academic Network to develop and implement clinical trial recruitment programs for our pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients. Their targeted recruitment strategies, ability to ramp up call center and prescreening, processes on aggressive timeframes, and network of medical and scientific counsel are as innovative as they come,” said Mindy Warner, Senior Vice President and Partner.

Food and beverage industries, clinical research organizations, biotechnology, nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries as well as public relation firms seek Academic Network’s healthcare communication expertise. The term “one stop” clearly applies to Academic Network, whose all medical staff excels at:

• Contact center solutions: call center, IVR, online, fullfillment
• Clinical trial recruitment: site support, online screening services
• Consumer affairs counsel: direct to consumer educational campaigns
• Compliance counsel: adverse events reporting and customer care
• Healthcare operators and contact center staffing: medical & nutritional expertise
• New online media communications: web design, blogging, social networking
• Medical Advisory Boards and Medical Experts

About Inc. 500|Inc. 5000 Conference Each year, Inc. magazine and Inc.com celebrate the remarkable achievements of today’s entrepreneurial superstars — the privately held small businesses that drive our economy. The Inc. 500|Inc. 5000 Conference brings together members of the Inc. 5000 community—both a new class of Inc. 5000 honorees and the list’s alumni—for three days of powerful networking, inspired learning, and momentous celebration.

About Academic Network Academic Network is a leading medical and health communications company conceived by academic professionals to serve as a singular source for communicating health-related issues to consumers and health professionals. Academic Network works with leading pharmaceutical, food and beverage, and other Fortune 500 companies, as well as healthcare organizations, in developing effective communications strategies through consulting, telecommunications, internet and new media resources. The firm offers the combined technological and medical expertise necessary to meet the demands and expectations of today’s health-focused public. Visit Academic Network at www.academicnetwork.com.

Contact:

Claudia Johnson
Claudia@claudiajohnson.com
503.799.2220

International Corporate Giants Boston Scientific, ConAgra, GlaxoSmithKline And Others Depend On Portland’s Academic Network LLC And Its Medical and Nutrition ExpertsTo Develop, Test And Market Products

PORTLAND, ORE., JULY, 2008 – Spurred on by a sales growth record of nearly 300% as well as a 300% jump in its contact center outsourcing capacity, Oregon’s award-winning Academic Network has been named one of the fastest growing private companies in Portland by the Portland Business Journal. The medical and healthcare communications and consulting firm, which recently opened offices also in Washington DC and New York City, now offers clients expanded services like global clinical research recruitment services, drug safety/pharmacovigilance, blogging and social media services.

The Portland Business Journal’s annual list consists of privately held companies whose growth represents the best in the region. In order to be considered for the list, a company must have revenues of at least $500,000 and experienced revenue growth during the past three years.
“Our growth this last year exists in part because of our expanding partnerships and extended outsourcing consumer care solutions with industry giants like ConAgra, GlaxoSmithKline, Fleishman-Hillard, Ethicon Endo-surgery, a Johnson & Johnson company, and Boston Scientific,” says Academic Network President, David McCarron, MD, FACP, who has appeared in the New York Times, CBS, PBS, NPR and CNN. “We wouldn’t have this success without Portland’s rich multilingual healthcare workforce.”

About Academic Network, LLC
Academic Network, LLC is a leading medical and health communications company conceived by academic professionals to serve as a singular source for communicating health-related issues to consumers and health professionals. Academic Network works with leading pharmaceutical, food and beverage, and other Fortune 500 companies, as well as healthcare organizations, in developing effective communications strategies through consulting, telecommunications, Internet and other emerging media sources. The firm offers the combined technological and medical expertise necessary to meet the demands and expectations of today’s health-focused public. Visit the Academic Network website at www.academicnetwork.com.

For more information, contact:
Claudia Johnson
Claudia@claudiajohnson.com
503.266.1776

With enhanced medical leadership, Academic Network expands its virtual medical affairs services for food, beverage, healthcare and pharmaceutical companies

PORTLAND, ORE., June 24, 2008 – Award-winning Academic Network LLC, a leading medical and health research and communications company, today announced that former Assistant US Surgeon General Woodie Kessel, MD, MPH, has joined the firm as Senior Scientific Advisor. Spurred on by a sales growth record of nearly 300%, Academic Network adds Dr. Kessel to its team of medical experts to enhance the company’s medical & health consulting, medical advisory services, and virtual medical affairs department.

“Dr. Kessel is an internationally recognized physician and public servant whose prestigious career in medicine and healthcare bring a new level of expertise to our clients wanting the best counsel to develop new products, support health claims, improve patient recruitment and retention practices, educate consumers and meet regulatory agency requirements,” said Kate McCarron, chief executive officer, Academic Network LLC. “We have worked with Woodie for years on the Shaping America’s Youth initiative (www.shapingamericasyouth.org) and know that his understanding of 21st century healthcare and medical issues will benefit all of our clients whether they are developing new products or in need of scientific advice.”

In addition to serving in the Office of the US Surgeon General, Dr. Kessel, a pediatrician who has been awarded numerous honors and medals of excellence in public service, has also served as both Medical Director and Senior Surgeon for the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps among countless other medical leadership roles. Kessel, who is best known for his advocacy for the improvement of child, family and community health, has been the senior advisor on public health, healthy policy and child and family health matters for the White House as well as PBS’ Sesame Workshop and Nickelodeon among others. He has held numerous senior medical executive positions for boards, task forces and government agencies. Kessel received his Doctor of Medicine degree from Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and his Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Kessel recently retired from the Public Health Service at the rank of Rear Admiral.

“I look forward to the opportunity to work with Academic Network in its commitment to provide best practices of the highest quality in communicating advances in healthcare to both consumers and health professionals, and ultimately to advance scientific knowledge,” said Dr. Kessel. “Academic Network’s leadership in developing effective strategies to recruit and retain subjects in clinical trials is a unique one and critical to advancing our understanding of new therapies.”

Food and beverage industries, clinical research organizations, biotechnology, nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries as well as public relation firms seek Academic Network’s healthcare communication expertise. The term “one stop” clearly applies to Academic Network, whose all medical staff excels at:

• Contact center solutions: call center, IVR, online, fullfillment
• Clinical trial recruitment: site support, online screening services
• Consumer affairs counsel: direct to consumer educational campaigns
• Compliance counsel: adverse events reporting and customer care
• Healthcare operators and contact center staffing: medical & nutritional expertise
• New online media communications: web design, blogging, social networking

About Academic Network, LLC
Academic Network, LLC is a leading medical and health communications company conceived by academic professionals to serve as a singular source for communicating health-related issues to consumers and health professionals. Academic Network works with leading pharmaceutical, food and beverage, and other Fortune 500 companies, as well as healthcare organizations, in developing effective communications strategies through consulting, telecommunications, internet and new media resources. The firm offers the combined technological and medical expertise necessary to meet the demands and expectations of today’s health-focused public.

Visit Academic Network at www.academicnetwork.com.
For a tour of what we do and request for interviews, contact:
Claudia Johnson
Claudia@claudiajohnson.com
(503) 266-1776

Award-winning medical communications firm enhances social media services to help clients engage customers and patients where they are most apt to gather information — online

Portland, Ore. (June 23, 2008) — Academic Network, an award-winning medical and health communications firm, is now offering new services to help clients practice safe, protected consumer engagement in the growing world of Health 2.0 — the use of social media for collaboration between patients, caregivers, medical professionals and other stakeholders. Because the trend toward Health 2.0 is growing so rapidly, Academic Network has started utilizing social media platforms to gather consumer information on new products, recruit patients for clinical trials and help clients successfully build, monitor, manage and track their online reputation as they engage with consumers online.

According to a recent report by Jane Sarasohn-Kahn, MA, MHSA, The Wisdom of Patients: Health Care Meets Online Social Media, “The phenomenon of the wisdom of crowds has begun to change consumers’ relationships with their traditional touchpoints in health: physicians, health plans, suppliers and pharmacists. By sharing ideas, discussing symptoms, and debating treatment options together, all of these stakeholders gain knowledge that can ultimately improve patient care.”

Academic Network has tapped into the social media phenomenon to help companies glean powerful information at the earliest stages of product research. Academic Network’s use of interactive social media to recruit subjects for large-scale clinical trials ensures even speedier completion of product research, higher quality of data, and accuracy of information that consumers will ultimately rely on for the safe use of both pharmaceutical and food products.

According to recent surveys by the Pew Internet Trust, some 80 percent of Americans have used the Internet to find health information, especially those facing diseases or conditions. As of January 2008, the Internet rivaled physicians as the leading source for health information. (iCrossing 2008). In addition, social media is rapidly becoming one of the top ways to gather information. As only 10 percent of consumers currently look to pharmaceutical companies for information, Academic Network saw a potential to connect the two and provide social media outlets for consumers through its pharmaceutical clients.

“The Internet has surpassed even doctors as a main source for consumers to gather health information, and people trust other people to reflect reality where health is concerned,” said Kate McCarron, chief executive officer, Academic Network. “We believe that our health and medical expertise, in conjunction with a social media practice, can better integrate patient care with today’s communications best-practices; improving patient compliance with their therapies, engaging with consumers when they’re most motivated to learn, and providing safe, moderated discussions to share experiences.”

When one of the largest pharmaceutical and consumer healthcare companies planned to launch a new over-the-counter product, it called Academic Network. A team of scientific experts in nutrition, nephrology, physiology, biostatistics and informatics compiled a 45 member team of multilingual call center nurses, dietitians and professionals to answer questions on this new drug via a health call center, email and message boards.

Academic Network also has monitored, captured and reported Adverse Events (AEs) and Severe Adverse Events (SAEs) on one of the first sponsored blogs for the drug. Participants log into a secure site and can connect with other users, giving them a safe environment to share stories, advice and get support from other participants. Even in the safety of such secure sites, the need for monitoring, management and AE capture and reports is critical. With people sharing their medical and health experiences online, pharmaceutical companies must consider whether to gather information on AEs and SAEs online – especially on sites they sponsor.

Because not everyone who experiences adverse events contacts the pharmaceutical company, this practice provides Academic Network with a way to gather additional information about people’s experiences with the drug and provide its client with accurate reporting.

Academic Network provides trained healthcare representatives who have medical knowledge and experience and are dedicated to identifying consumer complaints and AEs in addition to a complete understanding of federal and state guidelines for consumer safety.

“Traditional means of monitoring AEs are critical, but we can’t stop the flow of people moving their conversations online,” said McCarron. “By monitoring forums where participants are able to speak freely with one another, we can report more accurately on customer experiences and provide better information to our clients.”

Food and beverage industries, clinical research organizations, biotechnology, nutriceutical and pharmaceutical industries as well as public relations firms seek Academic Network’s healthcare communication expertise. The term “one stop” clearly applies to Academic Network, whose staff excels at:

• call center solutions
• medical/health consulting
• clinical trial recruitment and retention
• consumer affairs for direct to consumer campaigns
• adverse event reporting
• consumer/professional health education
• blog, social media and web development
• fulfillment and technical writing
• assistance in creating scientific materials for publication and online communities

About Academic Network, LLC
Academic Network, LLC is a leading medical and health communications company conceived by academic professionals to serve as a singular source for communicating health-related issues to consumers and health professionals. Academic Network works with leading pharmaceutical, food and beverage, and other Fortune 500 companies, as well as healthcare organizations, in developing effective communications strategies through consulting, telecommunications, Internet and other emerging media sources. The firm offers the combined technological and medical expertise necessary to meet the demands and expectations of today’s health-focused public. Visit the Academic Network website at www.academicnetwork.com.

For more information, contact:
Claudia Johnson
Claudia@claudiajohnson.com
503.266.1776

Innovative Portland-based company nominated by the Mayor’s Office

Portland, Ore. – Inc. Magazine has named Academic Network, a medical and health communications firm, number 48 on the Tenth Annual Top Inner City 100 list which recognizes the fastest growing inner city companies in America. Extraordinary growth is the predominant trait of the 2008 Inner City 100, a ranking created by the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) and Inc. Magazine.

“I was proud to nominate Academic Network for the Inner City 100 program and I am thrilled that they have been selected as one of four companies from Portland to make the list,” said Portland Mayor Tom Potter. “Academic Network bolsters the reputation of our region as a great place to start and grow a business. The company represents both Portland and Oregon well as a woman-owned, small business that provides a unique and innovative service in support of the growing healthcare industry.”

Academic Network is a Portland-based firm which provides national health care communication solutions via its call center as well as web-based services for pharmaceutical companies, food and beverage companies and medical centers. The firm’s health education consulting team runs a live, toll-free call center for consumer queries and helps with patient recruitment, program development and the management of governmental and health professional relations. Academic Network joins three other Portland organizations on the list: Jive Software, Straub Collective and Tripwire.

“We are honored to receive this recognition in the company of such an impressive group of businesses,” said Kathleen McCarron, Academic Network CEO. “As a rapidly growing business, we appreciate the support of the Mayor’s office and the greater community that is helping our business thrive. Portland has a great population of multilingual healthcare workers that we’ve been able to leverage for clients like GlaxoSmithKline, Boston Scientific and Campbell Soup Company.”

Now in its tenth anniversary year, the Inner City 100 list provides original data on the fastest growing inner city businesses in the U.S. For the 2008 list, more than 6,500 new nominations were received, the most in the program’s history. The 2008 Inner City 100 winners grew at a compound annual growth rate of 47 percent and an average rate of 472 percent between 2002 and 2006. Collectively, the top 100 inner city businesses have employed nearly 21,500 people and created more than 15,000 new jobs over the past five years; both of these employment figures are the highest in the program’s history and show signs of continued growth.

“We are delighted to celebrate businesses like Academic Network that are playing a critical role in urban communities throughout the country,” said David G. Latimore, president and chief executive officer of the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, based in Boston. “These high-growth businesses help create jobs, income and wealth for local residents, and they prove our belief that the most effective way to create economic equality in America’s inner cities is to focus on sustainable business growth and investment.”

The complete list can be found at www.icic.org

Academic Network, LLC is a leading medical and health communications company built by academic professionals be the best source for communicating health-related issues to consumers and health professionals. Academic Network works with leading pharmaceutical companies, healthcare organizations and food/beverage companies in developing effective communications strategies through consulting, telecommunications internet and other public media sources. The firm offers the combined technological and medical expertise necessary to meet the demands and expectations of an increasingly health-focused public.

Editor’s Notes:
To qualify for the Inner City 100 list, companies were required to have at least 51 percent of their operations located in an economically distressed urban area; have at least 10 full-time employees; and have a five-year operating sales history that includes at least $200,000 in revenues in the first year of consideration, an increase in year five sales over year four sales, and fifth-year sales of at least $1 million. For the 2008 list, ICIC looked at total revenue growth from 2002 to 2006, and the specific rankings were based on these growth rates. An economically distressed urban area is defined by ICIC as having a 50 percent higher unemployment level, 50 percent higher poverty level, and 50 percent lower median income than the metropolitan statistical area.

About the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City
The Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) is a national not-for-profit organization founded in 1994 by Harvard Business School professor Michael E. Porter. ICIC’s mission is to promote economic prosperity in America’s inner cities through private sector engagement that leads to jobs, income and wealth creation for local residents. ICIC brings together business and civic leaders to drive innovation and action, transform thinking and accelerate inner city business growth and investment.

About Inc.
Inc is the leading magazine written for the men and women who own and manage small-to-mid-sized, fast-growing companies. Published 12 times a year, Inc. helps its 1.5 million readers by providing expert advice and practical solutions as they face the opportunities, pitfalls and rewards of growing a company. www.inc.com, the Web site for growing companies, was named Best Online Magazine by Folio and Best Overall New Publication (all media) by the Computer Press Association.

Recently named one of the fastest growing private small businesses in Oregon and a top diversity-owned business, this health education and communications firm serves pharmaceutical and food and beverage industries.

Portland, OR (April 3, 2008) –Portland-based Academic Network LLC has announced the opening of two new offices in New York City and Washington DC. in order to better serve a growing list of national clients. With new corporate presence in the heart of both New York City at the Chrysler Building and in Washington D.C. at Republic Place Center, Academic Network can better serve pharmaceutical and food and beverage companies, as well as public relations firms with healthcare communications solutions via its call center and web-based services.

Expanding relationships with companies and organizations such as GlaxoSmithKline, Fleishman Hillard, Boston Scientific, ConAgra Foods, and Shaping America’s Youth have accelerated the growth of Academic Network. Last fall Inc. magazine editors recognized Academic Network as one of the fastest growing private businesses in the nation and in the Portland Metro Region with three year sales growth of 97.2%. Business growth recently prompted a 300% increase in the company’s call center capacity.

“Portland’s diverse healthcare workforce has made our accelerated growth possible,” CEO, Kathleen McCarron stated. “Our new office locations in New York and Washington D.C. enable us to better respond to our clients’ needs.”
Because of recent company growth and clients’ need for immediate information on the company and its services, Academic Network has also significantly expanded its website www.academicnetwork.com for better navigability, more news and information about services and client log-in for access to project updates and reports.

Academic Network provides health care communication solutions via its call center and web-based services for pharmaceutical companies, food and beverage companies, and medical centers. The firm’s health education and consulting team supports a live, toll-free call center for consumer queries, assists with clinical trial recruitment, program development, management of governmental and health professional relations, as well as strategic planning. Academic Network also develops non-branded websites for their clients seeking to provide online resource centers on specific health and medical issues.

Portland’s Academic Network Gains National Recognition as one of the Top 10 Small Businesses in Oregon

Portland, OR (January 30, 2008) — In recognition of the economic power of small, woman-owned and multicultural businesses, DiversityBusiness.com, the nation’s leading multicultural internet site, has named Academic Network LLC, a unique health education and communications agency, as one of the “top 10 small businesses in Oregon” (Div100). Academic Network also ranked 5th on the list of Top 100 woman-owned businesses, and 8th among top 100 diversity-owned businesses in Oregon.

The Div100 is the 8th annual listing of Oregon’s top 100 diversity-owned businesses. The companies listed on the Div100 represent Oregon’s top multicultural earners and challenge the long-held notion that a diversity-owned business is small or insignificant. Div100 members are sought after by major corporations wishing to increase spending with diversity owned companies.

“Diversity businesses and consumers are a growing force in the U.S. economy, and a force to be reckoned with,” said Kenton Clarke, CEO of Computer Consulting Associates International, the company that built DiversityBusiness.com. “This is a whole business segment that can carry its own, that provides jobs, products and services, and generates wealth for their communities. These are the new leaders in American business.”

Affected by recent economic and demographic trends and changes, Fortune 1000 corporations throughout the country have recognized that buying products and services from diversity owned companies positively impacts their business. Diversity-owned businesses contribute over $1.4 trillion in sales to the U.S. economy.

Woman-owned and founded and directed entirely by doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals, Academic Network speaks with authority on health and medical issues. At the helm of Academic Network, husband and wife team Kathleen McCarron and David McCarron, M.D., FACP take their medical knowledge and customer care operation experience to clients who have a health, medical or nutrition-related message. They apply their medical research experience to effectively convey the messaging for their clients.

“We have been honored by these awards for the past several years and we are delighted to have made it into the top 10 lists here in Oregon. We believe that our experience with swiftly ramping up the contact center including calls, online, message boards and other communications elements with healthcare professionals for new over the counter products like GSK’s alli™, the only FDA approved, over-the-counter weight loss product, and our knowledge of how the Internet has driven new trends in communications strategies for our clients has enabled us to continue to grow our business,” says the company’s co-founder and chief executive officer, Kathleen A. McCarron, a 22-year veteran of customer care operations with a background in healthcare management and telecommunications.
Expanding partnerships with GlaxoSmithKline, Ethicon Endo-surgery, a Johnson & Johnson company, the National Toy Association, Fleishman-Hillard, Boston Scientific, ConAgra, Campbell Soup Company, and Shaping America’s Youth have accelerated the growth of Academic Network. Business growth recently prompted a 300% increase in call center capacity. “Portland’s diverse healthcare workforce has made our accelerated growth possible”, CEO McCarron stated.

Academic Network provides what some clients are calling an outsourced consumer affairs department addressing element like consumer queries and fulfillment, patient recruitment, program development, management of governmental and health professional relations. In addition, healthcare communication solutions via the Academic Network call center and web-based solutions for pharmaceutical companies, food and beverage companies, and medical centers are key outsourced client services. The firm’s health education consulting team mans a live, toll-free call center for consumer queries, helps with patient recruitment, program development and the management of governmental and health professional relations. Academic Network is also in the business of developing non-branded educational websites for their clients seeking to provide online resource centers on specific health and medical issues.

“The Fleishman-Hillard Clinical Trials Division and Academic Network enjoy a long-standing partnership that focuses on the development and implementation of strategic clinical trial recruitment programs. Academic Network provides compliant patient confidentiality processes, database management, trained healthcare operators, senior-level project management and strategic counsel from start to finish. Academic Network’s team is consistently responsive, results-oriented, and resourceful,” said Mindy Warner, Senior Vice President and Partner.

Academic Network and its founders the McCarrons have been instrumental in such projects as the “Milk Mustache” campaign, and most recently, GlaxoSmithKline’s launch of alli™, the only FDA approved, over-the-counter weight loss product, and nationally recognized Shaping America’s Youth, a public / private initiative focused on addressing the public health crisis of childhood obesity.
The Div100 is a classification that represents the top 100 diversity-owned (Women, African American, Hispanics, Asians, Native Indian and other minority groups) businesses in the state of Oregon in sectors such as technology, manufacturing, food service and professional services. Large organizational buyers throughout the country that do business with multicultural and women-owned businesses use the list. The Div100 is produced annually by DiversityBusiness.com, the nation’s leading multicultural B2B Internet portal that links large organizational buyers to multicultural product and service suppliers.

Academic Network will be honored at a special awards ceremony at DiversityBusiness.com’s “8th Annual Multicultural Business Conference”, taking place April 23 - 25, 2008 at Disney’s BoardWalk Resort in Orlando, Florida.

For more information, visit www.academicnetwork.com.

About Academic Network, LLC:
Academic Network, LLC is a leading medical and health communications company conceived by academic professionals to serve as a singular source for communicating health-related issues to consumers and health professionals. Academic Network works with leading pharmaceutical companies, healthcare organizations and food/beverage companies in developing effective communications strategies through consulting, telecommunications internet and other public media sources. The firm offers the combined technological and medical expertise necessary to meet the demands and expectations of today’s health-focused public.

About DiversityBusiness.com:
Launched in 1999, with over 35,000 members DiversityBusiness.com is the largest organization of diversity-owned businesses throughout the United States that provide goods and services to Fortune 1000 companies, government agencies and colleges and universities. Members use the sites technology to find and track new business opportunities. It also produces the country’s largest conference on diversity education and training for major corporations and small business. Its research on top businesses appears in Fortune, Forbes, Business Week and numerous magazines and media publications. The site has gained national recognition and has won numerous awards for its content and design. DiversityBusiness.com is produced by Computer Consulting Associates International Inc. (CCAii.com) of Southport, CT. CCA was founded in 1980 by CEO Kenton Clarke.

Academic Network, LLC Ranks No. 3,216 on the 2007 Inc. 5,000, No. 58 in the Portland Metro Region with Three-Year Sales Growth of 97.2%

Portland, OR, September 5, 2007 - Inc. magazine has ranked Academic Network, a medical and health communications firm, No. 3,216 on its first-ever Inc. 5,000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in the country. The Inc. 5,000, an extension of Inc. magazine’s annual Inc. 500 list, catches many businesses that are too big to grow at the pace required to make the Inc. 500, as well as a host of smaller firms. Taken as a whole, these companies represent the backbone of the U.S. economy. Academic Network placed No. 58 in growth for the Portland Metro Region.

“The Inc. 5,000 provides the most comprehensive look ever at the most important part of the economy- the entrepreneurial part,” said Inc. 5,000 Project Manager Jim Melloan. “The expansion of the list has allowed us to tell the stories of larger companies, older companies, and a wealth of companies in industries like Manufacturing and Construction that are underreported in the business media.

“Academic Network is pleased with this national recognition. Now more than ever, consumerinformation on healthcare issues and products is vital,” says the company’s co-founder and chief executive officer, Kathleen A. McCarron, a 22 year veteran of healthcare management and telecommunications.

Expanding partnerships with GlaxoSmithKline, Fleishman-Hillard, Boston Scientific, Campbell Soup Company, and Shaping America’s Youth have accelerated the growth of Academic Network. Inc. magazine editors specifically noted the recent recognition of Academic Network as one of the top 50 diversity-owned businesses in Oregon. Business growth recently prompted a 300% increase in call center capacity. “Portland’s diverse healthcare workforce has made our accelerated growth possible, “CEO McCarron stated.

Academic Network provides health care communication solutions via its call center and web-based services for pharmaceutical companies, food and beverage companies, and medical centers. The firm’s health education consulting team mans a live, toll-free call center for consumer queries, helps with patient recruitment, program development and the management of governmental and health professional relations. Academic Network is also in the business of developing non-branded websites for their clients seeking
to provide online resource centers on specific health and medical issues.

“The Fleishman-Hillard Clinical Trials Division and Academic Network enjoy a long-standing partnership that focuses on the development and implementation of strategic clinical trial recruitment programs. Academic Network provides compliant patient confidentiality processes, database management, trained healthcare operators, senior-level project management and strategic counsel from start to finish. Academic Network’s team is consistently responsive, results-oriented, and resourceful,” said Mindy Warner, Senior Vice President and Partner.

Founded and directed entirely by doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals, Academic Network speaks with authority on health and medical issues. At the helm of Academic Network, husband and wife team Kathleen McCarron and David McCarron, M.D., FACP, apply their medical research experience to effectively convey the messaging for their clients.

Academic Network and its founders the McCarrons have been instrumental in such projects, in past, as the “Milk Mustache” campaign, and most recently, GlaxoSmithKline’s launch of the product, alli™ Weight Loss Aid, and nationally recognized Shaping America’s Youth, a public / private initiative focused on addressing the public health crisis of childhood obesity.

The 2007 Inc. 5,000, as revealed online at www.inc.com, reported median revenue of $9.4 million and median three-year growth of 140 percent. Complete information on this year’s Inc. 5,000, can be found at www.inc.com/inc5000. The list features a profile for each company, almost all of them written as a result of Inc. interviews with management. In addition, the list is searchable according to numerous criteria, including industry, city, state, region, and year founded.

Hottest Industries for Fastest-Growing Businesses
The largest business category is Construction, with 561 of the fastest-growing companies in this category, followed by Manufacturing with 515 companies, IT services in third with 466 companies, Business Services with 377 companies and Advertising & Marketing with 349 companies round out the top five industries ranked on the 2007 Inc. 5,000.

Industries reporting the highest total revenue in 2006 are Construction ($27.1billion), Manufacturing ($18.6 billion), Health ($13.1 billion), Computers & Electronics ($12.7 billion), and Financial Services ($11.8 billion).

Methodology
The 2007 Inc. 5000 list measures revenue growth from 2003 through 2006. To qualify, companies had to be U.S.-based and privately held, independent - not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies - as of December 31, 2006, and have had at least $200,000 in revenue in 2003, and $2 million in 2006.

Companies can apply for next year’s Inc. 500 and Inc. 5,000 by registering with IncBizNet, the new social network for private companies that will launch this fall on Inc.com.

About Inc.com:
Inc.com, the Daily Resource for Entrepreneurs, delivers advice, tools, breaking news, and rich multi-media to help business owners and CEOs start, run, and grow their businesses more successfully. Information and advice covering virtually every business and management task, including marketing, sales, finding capital, managing people can be found at http://www.inc.com.

About Academic Network, LLC:
Academic Network, LLC is a leading medical and health communications company conceived by academic professionals to serve as a singular source for communicating health-related issues to consumers and health professionals. Academic Network works with leading pharmaceutical companies, healthcare organizations and food/beverage companies in developing effective communications strategies through consulting, telecommunications internet and other public media sources. The firm offers the combined technological and medical expertise necessary to meet the demands and expectations of today’s health-focused public.

ACADEMIC NETWORK, a Unique Health Education & Communications Agency Serving the Health & Nutrition Industries, Is Staffed and Managed Completely by Medical Professionals.

PORTLAND, OR — (MARKET WIRE) — 02/28/2005
– One of the health education industry’s best-kept secrets just might be located in the newly rediscovered, historic Pearl District in Portland, Oregon. Buzzing with the energy of the streets below and the creativity of its talented staff, Academic Network has gotten the attention of industry giants like Boston Scientific, Campbell Soup Company, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis Consumer Healthcare, McNeil Nutritionals, a Johnson & Johnson company, and Nike to name a few. They’re among the major international corporations which have called on Academic Network to apply its 35 years of experience in academic medicine and research against opportunities and issues in consumer health communications.

Founded and directed entirely by doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals, Academic Network speaks with authority on health and medical issues. At the helm of Academic Network, husband and wife team Kathleen McCarron and David McCarron, M.D., FACP take their medical knowledge and customer care operation experience to clients who have a health, medical or nutrition-related message. They apply their medical research experience to effectively convey the messaging for their clients.

“Now more than ever, consumer information on healthcare issues and products is vital,” says the company’s founder and chief executive officer, Kathleen A. McCarron, a 20-year veteran of customer care operations with a background in healthcare management and telecommunications. “Academic Network works with industry leaders helping to turn complex medical, health and nutritional issues into easy-to-understand information for consumers.”

The group’s health education consulting team operates a live, toll-free call center for health professional and consumer queries as well as for patient recruitment. Clients are counseled on program development and the management of governmental and health professional relations. Academic Network also develops and manages websites for those clients seeking to provide online resource centers on specific health and medical issues.

One such project is in the works for medical giant Boston Scientific, which recently called on Portland’s Academic Network to get the word out about the potentially serious health problems posed by acid reflux disease. Gastro-esophageal Reflux Disease, or GERD, affects some 60 million Americans. To help reach those who suffer from this condition, Academic Network developed a non-branded website which addresses the symptoms, risks and treatments for GERD. Now, logging on to
http://www.gotgerd.com/
will lead ‘heartburn’ sufferers through an easy-to-understand explanation of their ailment while offering information on the very latest medical procedures now available to treat GERD.

Academic Network acts as an objective partner to Boston Scientific’s test marketing of endoscopic treatment options for GERD by offering not only thoughtful medical and health education counsel to the program, but by managing all of the call center inquiries at 1-866-Got-GERD, fulfilling all requests for GERD information, and managing the http://www.gotgerd.com/ website. “We are not only providing an additional balanced and objective medical perspective on GERD and its treatment options, but we were able to secure Health on the Net (HON) certification for reliability and credibility on the gotgerd.com website,” says McCarron.

“We have used Academic Network for several IVR programs. Academic Network has always been very helpful, quite responsive and has often taken the initiative in making suggestions to improve program performance,” said Ken Neher, Sr. Manager, E-Marketing GlaxoSmithKline.

Academic Network also developed and currently manages the nationally recognized Shaping America’s Youth (SAY) public / private initiative focused on standardizing and coordinating the national effort to end childhood obesity. Academic Network developed an online survey web portal and is currently planning regional meetings for SAY in conjunction with allies such as the Office of the Surgeon General, Department of Health and Human Services; The American Academy of Pediatrics; Nike; McNeil Nutritionals, a Johnson & Johnson company; and Campbell Soup.

Academic Network’s Vanguard Medical Advisory Board participated in the development of the Campbell Soup Company’s Intelligent Quisine food product line. This eight-person board, comprised of scientists whose specialties included nutrition, nephrology, physiology, biostatistics and informatics, oversaw clinical trials at 10 medical centers in the United States and Canada during its five-year tenure. The observed clinical effects of the product line were published in several major medical journals.

Academic Network’s co-founder, David McCarron, M.D., is a Visiting Professor with the Department of Nutrition at the University of California-Davis, and as the former Head of the Division of Nephrology at Oregon Health Sciences University he is an internationally recognized authority on diet, heart disease and the treatment of hypertension. Dr. McCarron has been featured in national media including The New York Times, CBS, PBS, CNN and NPR.

The term “one stop” clearly applies to Academic Network, a start to finish operation — from concept development to order processing through in-house mail fulfillment (usually in 24 hours). Academic Network excels at technical writing, offering assistance in creating effective scientific materials for publication. When it comes to clinical trial recruitment and retention, Academic Network draws on the knowledge of a staff with over three decades of experience in trial design and management. Professional medical consulting, consumer education and marketing services round out the full-service groups’ state-of-the-art, high tech approach to reaching consumers in a busy and often confusing marketplace.

Academic Network assembles medical advisory boards comprised of medical professionals from medical universities around the world for those companies’ efforts that rely on medical or nutritional accreditation. “Academic Network’s consulting services created a virtual medical affairs office that provided access to international scientific experts, the most recent scientific information, validation of health messages and the design and implementation of state of the art clinical trials,” said Jerome J. Kozak, President and CEO, National Milk Producers Federation.

Whether companies need expert guidance with national health policy issues or focused public relations campaigns, Academic Network has set and met high standards in these areas. Academic Network’s client list continues to grow and currently includes international businesses, academic institutions and government agencies. Clients’ needs are tailored to accommodate their specific needs for direct-to-consumer campaigns, 1-800 ad response and professional education. Offering effective, cost-efficient messaging for consumers and healthcare professionals alike, Academic Network handles all phases of project management from concept through to program completion making it a unique resource for the healthcare, pharmaceutical and nutrition industries.

About Academic Network, LLC: Academic Network, LLC is a leading medical and health communications company conceived by academic professionals to serve as a singular source for communicating health-related issues to consumers and health professionals. Academic Network works with leading pharmaceutical, food and beverage, and other Fortune 500 companies, as well as healthcare organizations, in developing effective communications strategies through consulting, telecommunications internet and other public media sources. The firm offers the combined technological and medical expertise necessary to meet the demands and expectations of today’s health-focused public.

Contact:

Claudia Johnson
Public Relations
Academic Network
503.266.1776