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Alumni Trustees named
Bryant University Chair announces appointment of four alumni Trustees
On behalf of the Bryant University Board of Trustees, Board Chair David Beirne ’85 and Bryant President Ross Gittell, Ph.D., have announced that Bryant’s Board appointed four alumni as new members effective July 1, 2021:
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• P. James (Jim) Brady ’81, CEO
of alliantgroup India Talent • Eric Handa ’97, president and
CEO of APTelecom
• Cynthia Schmitt-Sprinkle ’81,
multi-division CFO of Pitney
Bowes Inc. (retired) • Skye Hazel ’21, joining the
Board as Recent Alumni Trustee
“Bryant alumni are exceptional leaders who drive success in organizations around the world,” said Chair Beirne. “With the added perspectives of three accomplished industry leaders and a recent graduate with incredible potential, the four alumni joining Bryant’s Board of Trustees expand the expertise and global outlook of our Board and will further accelerate Bryant’s ascent to national prominence.”
“Bryant University’s Board of Trustees has an outstanding range of visionary leadership talent,” said President Gittell. “The three alumni joining the Board from industry all share experience leading and developing thriving multinational organizations. With their expertise, and the perspective of our Recent Alumni Trustee, we have enhanced the Board’s very strong resources to guide Bryant’s path to continued growth and success.”
P. James “Jim” Brady ’81 is
CEO at alliantgroup India Talent and Vice Chairman of Advisory Services alliantgroup in Houston, TX. Prior to alliantgroup, he served as Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer at Grant Thornton, overseeing all office operations. Prior to joining Grant Thornton, Brady was employed by Deloitte & Touche for 27 years, serving as Deloitte LLP’s National Managing Partner for U.S. Government Affairs & Public Policy. In addition, he served for nine years as Audit Regional Managing Partner for Central Atlantic and Southeast regions, and seven years launching and building audit & advisory practices in Russia and India. Brady is the Founding Chair of the Bryant University College of Business Dean’s Council and received Bryant’s Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2017.
DAVID BEIRNE ’85
Eric Handa ’97 is co-founder, president and CEO of APTelecom, a privately held international telecommunications carrier and consultancy business headquartered in NJ. Since launching the firm in 2009, Handa has grown APTelecom from a start-up business to an award-winning global organization which has generated over $315 million in sales for its clients. He has been instrumental in helping APTelecom achieve representation in every continent on the globe. Prior to co-founding APTelecom, Handa worked for AT&T and Tyco Electronics. He is a member of Bryant’s College of Business Dean’s Council and received the Young Alumni Leadership Award in 2013. Prior to retiring, Cynthia Schmitt-Sprinkle ’81 served as
multi-division CFO North America Mailing/Financial Services at Pitney Bowes Inc., reporting to both CEOs of North America Mailing and Financial Services and the Corporate CFO. In this role, she was a strategic advisor on business planning and transformation while managing costs for the nearly $3 billion business and led a finance team based in the U.S. and Canada. Previous roles at Pitney Bowes were CFO and Vice President Enterprise Finance and Risk Management. Prior to Pitney Bowes, Schmitt-Sprinkle held senior roles at multinational organizations including Vice President Finance, International at Revlon, Vice President and CFO — North and South America, and Vice President and CFO — Pacific Rim for Sara Lee Personal Products, and Director of Planning and Analysis at Diageo North America. She is a member of Bryant’s College of Business Dean’s Council and the author of articles for publications including The Wall Street Journal, Financial Week, and Compliance Week.
Skye Hazel ’21, a Software Engineer at Dell Technologies, joins the Bryant University Board of Trustees as Recent Alumni Trustee. She earned her Bryant degree with a major in Business Administration and double concentrations in Information Systems Analytics and Entrepreneurship, with a minor in Spanish. She is active in College Leadership Rhode Island and, as a student, was a mentor to her peers and active in many organizations, serving as the Student Manager at Bryant’s PwC Center for Diversity and Inclusion, Resident Assistant, and as an Orientation Leader.
Reunion@Home brought Bryant together virtually
In a year when everything was different, Bryant shifted gears with a Reunion@Home, offering a wide variety of events and highlights, including drink-mixing and cooking presentations.
Among our most popular events, Bill Bishop ’78 took us
through a wine tasting course, Narine
Hagopian ’15,
’21MBA shared a charcuterie preparation, and Fernando
Fumero ’92
shared a paella demonstration. There were also music and games for the whole family, Fernando Fumero ’92 along with a historic recollection of Bryant’s campus on the East Side of Providence, as well as a presentation about how the Smithfield Bryant campus stays so beautiful.
Missed some of the events? Replays are available at bit.ly/reunionhome21 PROUD MOMENTS
FOR ALUMNI LEGACY FAMILIES
Among this year’s multigenerational family ties are (clockwise from left) Beth Carter ’85, P’18, P’20 with son
Adam Gosselin ’20; Andrew Leblanc ’21
with his parents Candice (Stewart) ’91 and Michael Leblanc; and pictured with family are Cadri Folami ’21, his sister Basarat Folami ’13, children of beloved former faculty member Buki Folami, along with their cousin Suleman Bello ’21.
Bryant University secures $650,000 National Science Foundation grant to fund STEM Scholars program
Bryant has been awarded a $650,000 grant from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) program. The grant will support Bryant’s new STEM Scholars program, which funds scholarships and programming to remove barriers to success in STEM education for academically talented students with demonstrated financial need, particularly women, minorities and low-income students.
“Bryant is a leading university in the Northeast for education at the intersection of business, liberal arts and STEM,” says Bryant President Ross Gittell, Ph.D. “Our distinctive real-world education prepares future leaders to succeed in an increasingly data, science and technology-driven economy and 40% of Bryant students pursue a STEM major, minor or concentration. We are grateful that this NSF grant will allow us to expand student opportunities in growing STEM and related fields.”
“Congratulations to the dedicated faculty who developed the Bryant STEM Scholars program and secured this grant for enhancing undergraduate enrollment, persistence and graduation in science and mathematics, with a particular emphasis on enrollment of women in STEM,” Gittell adds.
“Bryant is a remarkable institution dedicated to ensuring students benefit from an interdisciplinary educational experience that extends beyond the
classroom. Students will engage in a number of high-impact practices that currently exist at Bryant or will be enhanced and implemented as a result of the grant,” says Kirsten Hokeness, The grant will fund scholarships and programming to remove barriers to success in STEM education, under the leadership of educators like Kirsten Hokeness, Ph.D. (right). Ph.D., Director of the Bryant University Center for Health and Behavioral Sciences, Chair of the Department of Science and Technology, and a principal investigator for the grant and research. SCHOLARSHIPS, MENTORSHIP AND STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS Approximately 75% of the grant allocation will be for scholarships. In addition, Bryant’s STEM Scholars program will provide comprehensive instructional support building on the University’s student-centered focus, faculty and peer mentorship, experiential learning opportunities, the first-year IDEA (Innovation and Design Experience for All) program,
PRESIDENT ROSS GITTELL, Ph.D.
Amica Center for Career Education and programs for Institutional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
“We already have strong and nationally-recognized programs in Actuarial Science, Applied Mathematics continues on page 10
Record-setting Women’s Summit highlighted powerful voices and messages
Areimagined Bryant Women’s Summit saw a record-setting year for participants. The expanded access of the virtual format on June 16 contributed to 2021 being the most-attended Summit in the history of the event, which began in 1997.
This year’s theme, “Resilience and Growth” — highly relevant coming out of 2020 — gave the speakers and participants a platform to talk about those ideas, as well as the topics of feedback, authenticity, perspective, teamwork, mentoring and many others throughout the day’s events. The Summit also featured breakout sessions, panel discussions and networking opportunities for participants.
PROMINENT KEYNOTE SPEAKERS AND SPONSORS Keynote speakers for the event included Angela Duckworth, Ph.D., Founder and CEO, CharacterLab; Amy C. Edmondson, Ph.D., Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management at Harvard Business School; Jody Hoffer Gittell, Ph.D., Author and Professor at Brandeis University’s Heller School for Social Policy and Management; and Arlan Hamilton, Founder and Managing Partner of Backstage Capital.
Led by Platinum-level sponsor Amica Insurance — an annual Women’s Summit sponsor since 2003 — the event leveraged the emerging strengths of online business and educational environments, thanks to generous support from more than 20 sponsoring corporations.
Designed with input from those sponsors, and a team of organizers that included several Alumni Trustees, the virtual event utilized a new web browser-based platform that provided continuity for attendees and allowed for break-out sessions and seamless networking opportunities for individuals and small groups.
Nancy DeViney ’75, a University
Trustee who moderated Angela Duckworth’s opening keynote and later in the program participated in a Sponsorship and Career Growth breakout session, said this year’s event went above and beyond. “The Women’s Summit at Bryant is a tremendous annual tradition, and this year we were able to bring such high-quality content to an even broader audience, with more participants than ever before.”
“Our theme of ‘Resilience and Growth’ could not have been more appropriate for this year,” she added. “And with so many prominent scholars and accomplished executives generously sharing their experiences and knowledge, it was no wonder that our attendees came away inspired to tackle the challenges and opportunities ahead.”
Along with attracting a diverse group
NANCY DEVINEY ’75 of professionals, including early and mid-career professionals and senior- and executive-level leaders, this year’s event was accessible to more students than ever before. Thanks to generous support from the new Diamond-level sponsor Bank of America, complimentary registration was offered to targeted high school students and guidance counselors throughout the country.
BUSINESS LEADERSHIP AWARDS Three distinguished business leaders were recognized for their leadership excellence, with Bryony Bouyer ’90MBA receiving the Kati Machtley Businesswoman of the Year Award, named for recently retired Women’s Summit co-founder and director for 23 years Kati Machtley, and recognizing the highest level of excellence in business leadership.
Kim Anderson, entrepreneur and Creator and Co-Founder of PLANT CITY in Providence, RI, and Brenda Galgano ’91, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Perdue Farms, Inc, were the inaugural Women Who Lead Award recipients. The awards recognize leadership; excellence and pursuit of growth and improvement; advocacy for others; championship of diversity, equity and inclusion; and innovation and creativity in challenging the status quo.
