Student Entrepreneurs Michael Bridges, IE '91, MS IE '93
Charles Whatley A co-op student, after earning undergraduate and master's degrees, Bridges joined Federal Express work-An Atlanta native and economing with their Internet client server. He left to join five ics graduate of Yale University, partners in starting up his own company: tuneup.com Whatley worked on Wall Street before joining the in Palo Alto, Calif. He is now earning his family construction business. doctorate in management. He is earning a doctorate at "I've found I don't have to Wech and was the original leave the state to learn about mordinator of the Small Businew ventures, how to get ness Resource Center, a public/ funding for these ventures private joint venture. and networking groups,' Bridges says. "I am taking "My plan is to move to Africa. Atlanta will a class on new venture still be a home base. I have a partner who creation and finding is in San Antonio, and we have incorpoout about a great rated a company in East Africa to transmany resources, such J fer technology to African nations. We are as the ATDC. It is a also working with the Malaysian governwonderful opportument. My partner served on the multinity to learn about media board in Malaysia. We commercializing would like to find some products. I'm getting businesses that are ready prepared to help lead to graduate from ATDC a company." that we can co-locate here and in Malaysia." Harris Bergman, MS ME 95 A doctoral student in the school of chemical engineering, Harris Bergman is starting a consulting firm that accurately reads Magnetic Resonance Images to diagnose atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. "I came here because I was interested in the collaboration that Georgia Tech is having with Emory's School of Medicine," Bergman says. "I spoke to a lot of the physicians and said, 'What can I do to make your job easier and raise the standard of patient care?' One of the ideas that I came up with became the basis of my Ph.D. research. I'm now working on commercializing and starting my own business."