Tufts Gordon Institute 2022 Annual Report

Create a worldwide community of transformative leaders, with heart.

Letter from the Executive Director

Dear friends,

What a year! As we continued to navigate a pandemic, Tufts Gordon Institute reached new milestones. We grew the number of students served by double digits. We expanded the geographic reach of our programs. Graduates and alumni continued to excel in their professional lives, leveraging what they learned at Tufts. Alumni gave back even more than before, returning to share their experiences and insights with the current generation of students. That said, the easiest thing we could do is build on our past successes, doing more of what we’ve done before. But we see greater opportunities to help more people, not only when they are our students, but across the whole arc of their professional careers by introducing new programs.

Today, we touch over 1,400 students a year in our classes. This is just 10% of the students at Tufts. What if we could touch 100% of the students at Tufts before they graduate? What if we could touch working professionals throughout their 40+ year careers, empowering them with the innovative and entrepreneurial leadership skills and mindsets, inspiring them to create the novel new solutions to our world’s biggest challenges?

I believe we can expand our impact, creating a worldwide community of transformative leaders, with heart. These are leaders who not only act to make this a better world, but do so with deep compassion and empathy for all. I am deeply grateful to our team of faculty ourselves to inspire our students while welcoming new team members who bring fresh perspectives and experiences.

with us to co-create new programs and partnerships. Together, we can expand the impact of Tufts on the world. To our advisors, I am grateful for their wisdom and countless hours coaching our students, sharing their journeys and helping to shape the next generation of leaders, and for their generosity supporting our programs.

Most of all, I am humbled and grateful to our students and alumni for sharing with us their energy, curiosity, and willingness to engage, experiment, and persevere, as we co-create new stages in their lives, and to give back so generously after they graduate with their time, talent, and treasure. It’s a demonstration of the community we are building when they return to coach and mentor current students, join our advisory boards, share their journeys in our classrooms and events, and give generously to support our growth. Their actions inspire all of us.

We are only at the beginning of a new chapter, and I thank all of you who have been part of our community, helping us to reach beyond our past successes. With your continuing generous support, we can build a worldwide community of leaders with heart.

Kevin Oye Executive Director, Tufts Gordon Institute Director, MS in Innovation & Management Professor of the Practice

Our Purpose

create a worldwide community of transformative leaders, with heart, who can harness technology to shape the world with profound purpose.

Inno

TGI continues to expand, supporting student outcomes across the full spectrum of organization design and creation. From the Startup stage to Scale Up to Optimization and Perpetual Growth — we consistently develop foundational leadership and innovation skills in our students at every step of

Marking a Milestone

To celebrate its 30th Anniversary and commemorate the success of recent graduates for whom traditional graduation ceremonies were delayed due to COVID-19, TGI hosted an inperson celebration. “I am very pleased that the Gordon Institute, founded 30 years ago in Wakefield, Massachusetts, and which was later integrated into Tufts University, continues to inculcate leadership attitudes and broaden the perspective of engineers who can more Dr. Bernard Gordon, commenting on the anniversary.

Cellens: Innovating for a B etter Tomorrow

Co-Founded and led by Jean Pham, MSIM ‘21, Cellens is a startup that’s aiming to bring clarity and precision to cancer diagnostics through advanced nanoscale imaging and machine learning based at Tufts University’s School of Engineering. It has received countless accolades and is collaborating with top hospitals in the Boston area.

Award-Winning Entrepreneurship Curriculum

In June, DEC received the Excellence in Curriculum Innovation in Entrepreneurship Award at the 11th Annual Deshpande Symposium Awards Reception.

In its first full year after its naming thanks to the philanthropy of Jack and Jan Derby in 2021, the Derby Entrepreneurship Center continued to reach new heights in its mission to deliver first-class entrepreneurship education and programming.

By providing a rich set of entrepreneurial courses to undergraduates, hosting numerous competitions and prizes, and bridging the gaps between current students, alumni, and mentors, DEC is developing entrepreneurial skills and mindsets in the next generation while creating a sense of invaluable community throughout Tufts.

New additions this year include the “Entrepreneurship and Innovation” Bootcamp, a two-week-long intensive experience for high school students, and more.

I feel strongly about the importance of entrepreneurial thinking; fundamentally, it’s a great life skill that can benefit anyone, and so it can amplify your experience of anything you choose to study here at Tufts. We’re a university-wide resource that’s all about discovering what you’re capable of—and sometimes that might surprise you!

2022 Annual Report | Tufts Gordon Institute

— Elaine Chen Director, Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts Cummings Family Professor of the Practice in Entrepreneurship

From left, Jan and Jack Derby

P ropelling the Tufts Venture Accelerator

Thanks to a transformational gift of $1.2 million this year from E61, Kim Hartman, J85, and her husband, Alan Hartman, and the Joseph H. Flom Family Foundation, and equity for anyone with an idea through the Tufts Venture Accelerator.

Since its beginning, we’ve seen the make in turning students’ knowledge and passion into real, meaningful ventures. We are proud to support future entrepreneurs as they continue to challenge themselves and change the world through the Tufts Venture Accelerator.

time and resources to commit fully to a new idea or project. Those who want the opportunity to focus on creating something new also need to support themselves through school with a summer job or internship. We wanted the Tufts Venture Accelerator to serve as a standalone program within DEC and allow all students the chance to take a leap on an idea they truly believe in.

— Kim Hartman, J85

Master of Science in Engineering Management

TGI re-envisioned the MS in Engineering Management program by leveraging the best of its award-winning On-Campus and Online MSEM programs. Now a single, digital-first degree, the MSEM prepares leaders for the new world of work no matter where they are in the world. Part-time. Unprecedented flexibility. The option to earn a degree 100% online. Optional, inperson Immersive Experiences. And more.

Gordon Institute

Immersive Experiences

TGI hosted its first ever Immersive Experience in March 2022, welcoming students for a weekend-long deep dive. Each Immersive centers around a topic like leadership or innovation, while also featuring workshops, case analyses, and social activities to build skill sets and professional networks. Students earn one credit towards their degree while connecting with highly interactive environment.

The Innovation Immersive Experience was exactly what I needed as an Online MSEM student who wanted to network and learn through hands-on activities. It was an incredible weekend where I got to not only learn how to be an innovative leader, but also make new friends!

— Ayushka Shrestha, MSEM ‘22

The Immersive Experiences are an ideal way to integrate the flexibility of online learning with the academic discourse, idea exchange, and social interaction of an on-campus experience.

— Birgit Mohney, MSEM ‘22

Kristen Ransom, MSEM ‘18, and Lisa Wyman, MSEM ‘06, leveraged their Tufts experiences in high-impact ways. Lisa rose to senior leadership positions in life science companies and Kristen launched her own company, IncluDE, which provides software development resources for women and minority owned businesses. Not only that, they’ve given back to the TGI community by participating in panels and sharing insights from their careers, bringing their experience full circle.

Mar y Viola Retires

In August 2021, Mary Viola, PhD, a longtime director of Engineering Management programs at Tufts Gordon Institute retired and became Professor of the Practice, Emerita. During her accomplished tenure, Mary oversaw the development and deployment of the Engineering Management program at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. Over 1,000 alumni have graduated with MS in Engineering Management degrees, benefiting from an award-winning curriculum. Thank you, Mary, for your 20 years of teaching and service.

Master of Science in Innovation & Management

The MSIM is a full-time program that appeals to recent grads who want to make things happen by learning how to identify and launch new innovations and ventures. They are passionate about science, technology, engineering, or math. They believe that new solutions will solve the world’s toughest challenges. This year innovate with impact through their Sprint projects, engagement in the community, and beyond.

Inno vation Sprints Create Global Impact

Each year, MSIM Innovation Sprints — immersive fast-paced innovative solutions to real life challenges in today’s society. Creativity is abundant; from ventures that build on cutting-edge research at Tufts University’s School of Engineering to ones that reimagine STEAM education, the impact is widereaching. And it’s getting noticed, too. The STEAM Team, launched by MSIM students Sierra Carter, Beth Krikorian, Brian Kaufmann, and Hailey Yabroudy brought their Innovation Sprint across state lines when they reached the finals of the Heartland Challenge Startup Competition hosted by the University of Arkansas. The STEAM Team focuses on transforming STEAM education with activity kits that combine storytelling with projects that foster a variety of skills.

The Innovation Sprint isn’t just this concept draw-up that’s going to be presented on a slide. You’re actually working on making it happen, making it a reality.

— Julia Santos Nothaft

MSIM ‘22 + MSDS ‘23

You’re going to learn how to fail. You’re going to learn how to get up, and it’s not going to hurt as much by the end.

MSIM ‘22

2022 Annual Report | Tufts Gordon Institute

— Jemimah Charles

SeaDeep — an MSIM startup leveraging research at Tufts University’s School of Engineering — aims to provide the data and maps required for sustainable, of the ocean, continued to reach new milestones. In 2022, SeaDeep joined Equinor & Techstars Energy Accelerator ’s Class of 2022. Led by Eric Osherow and Alok Chand, MSIM ‘20 graduates, SeaDeep leverages the work and research of Dr. Karen Panetta, Dean of Graduate Education and Professor at Tufts University.

ZwitterCo — another MSIM startup leveraging research at Tufts University’s School of Engineering — raised a $33 million Series A fundraising round to push the boundaries of membrane filtration with an aim of changing the landscape of water scarcity. Led by Alex Rappaport, E17, MSIM ‘18, ZwitterCo is

Therapu is focused on giving diabetic patients with chronic foot sores a faster way to detect and treat infections that often lead to amputations if not detected early. The venture builds on smart thread technology from Dr. Sameer Sonkusale’s lab at Tufts University’s School of Engineering. Therapu is led by Jemimah Charles and Rachel Kiehne, both MSIM ‘21.

NewLine Tire uncovered that the world’s largest tire graveyard is in Kuwait. This tire graveyard, Sulaibiya, holds more than 42 million tires and often spontaneously catches on fire. NewLine Tire aims to entirely eliminate tire waste by creating a cyclical market for tires.

Alumni Pay It For ward

Alumni play a big part in developing the next generation of transformative leaders with heart. Whether it’s MSEM alumni mentoring MSIM students or entrepreneurs like Amanda Wang, MSIM ‘19, and Jun Yoon, MSIM ‘19, sharing what they’ve learned launching their own startup (Potencia, a 501(c)(3) that provides English language tutoring for refugees and recent immigrant), insights help connect the dots.

National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps

This year, TGI collaborated with the NSF ’s New England Regional Innovation Node at MIT to provide graduate students, post docs, and researchers from across the university with workshops in technology commercialization as they dive into venture creation and bring innovative technology to life. MSIM Innovation Sprint spinout Cellens participated in the program, receiving $50,000 in grants to do market research.

2022 Annual Report | Tufts Gordon Institute

education courses available to all learners, TGI faculty members Gerald Brown and Kishore Pochampally, PhD, have developed the Business Analytics for Managers MasterTrack® Certificate through Coursera. In addition to the MasterTrack® with Coursera:“Hypothesis Testing with Python & Excel.”

THE METAVERSE RETHINKING LEADERSHIP ARTIFICAL INTELLIGENCE CRYPTOCURRENCY

This year, TGI hosted an inaugural series of Virtual Keynote Debates that featured panels of industry experts. Conversations centered around a variety of timely, thought-provoking topics that captivated audiences and positioned the Institute as a thought-leader. TGI even hosted one in conjunction with the United States Association of Small Business and Entrepreneurship as part of their mission to promote entrepreneurship education. Highlights from 2021-2022:

570 Registrants on Average During First Three Keynote Debates

24 Around the World Featured

2022 Annual Report | Tufts Gordon Institute

As we continue on with 2022-2023, we thank you for all of your support, including our Board of Advisors and Industry Advisory Council. We will continue tirelessly in our mission of developing bold, transformative leaders with heart.

Back from left: MaryAnn DiRamio, Carol Denning, Nancy Buczko, Jane Seminara, Teresa Aloi, Will Trevor, Frank Apeseche, Tina Weber, Benjamin Friedman, Jill Parlee

Front from left: Samuel Liggero, Kevin Oye, Elaine Chen, Ethan Robles, Wei Cai

Acknowledgements

Leadership

Nancy Buczko

Director Admissions and Professional Education

Elaine Chen

Cummings Family Professor of the Practice in Entrepreneurship; Director, Derby Entrepeneurship Center

Samuel Liggero Academic Director, MSEM Program

Kevin Oye Executive Director, Tufts Gordon Institute; Director, MSIM Program; Professor of the Practice

Will Trevor Director, Programs, Operations and Marketing

Board of Advisors (DEC)

Chuck Auster

Chairman, DEC Board of Advisors; Founder & Partner, Runtide Capital

Ben Carson Jr. Co-Founder and Partner, Fvicrum Funds

Karen Cassel

President and CEO, Medic Alert

John Cuming Former President, Cuming Microwave Corporation

Pamela Goldberg

President and CEO, MDC; Member, Executive Committee; Chair, Finance & Fundraising Committee, DEC, Board of Advisors

Paul Halpern

JP Morgan Wealth

Kim Hartman

Owner, KH Designers; CoFounder, Mask Ready

Nancy Karp

MP of Development and Operations, Kobi Karp Architecture and Interior Design

Jordan Kivelstadt Founder & Proprietor, Kivelstadt Cellars

Sarah Kugelman Founder, skyn ICELAND & gloss.com

Kofi Asante

VP of Strategy and Business Development, Elroy Air

Jack Derby Professor of the Practice, DEC; CEO, Derby Management

Mike Doyle President and CEO, COTA Healthcare

Steve Herrod Managing Director, General Catalyst Partners

David Jen Director & Head of Finance and Strategy, X

Steve McDermid MD, Emerson Collective

Andy Merken

Partner and Co-chair, Life Sciences, Burns & Levinson LLP

Christine Dunn

Partner Seven Letter Member, Executive Committee | Chair, Marketing Committee, DEC Board of Advisors

Josh Kapelman EVP and MD, Hilldun Corporation; Chair, Development and Governance Committee, DEC Board of Advisors

Kenny Nova Founder & Investor, Stat Scientific

Catherine Popper Angel Investor, LaunchPad Venture Group

Acknowledgements

Steve Remondi

Founder & CEO, Xphera Biosciences

Peter Rothschild Partner, East Wind Advisors; Managing Member, Daroth Capital

Felice Shapiro

Founder and Publisher, Better after 50 (BA50)

Forrest Snowden Chairman and CEO, Aria Gems

Omer Trajman Founder, AskFora

Alex Wulkan Co-Founder and COO, Estateably Former MD, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meager & Flom LLC

Industry Advisory Council (TGI)

Mert Aktar

Senior Vice President, Global Head of Corporate

Development & Strategy, Kite Pharma

Brett Boghigian

Vice President, Biology Platform, FL79, Inc.

Chief Engineer, The MITRE Corporation

Heather Gaylord

Head of the Transformation Takeda Chris George Vice President of Manufacturing, Axcelis Technologies

Sean Hemingway at Imvax, Inc.

Kathrin Knauf Site Head, US Drug Substance + Internal Drug Product, Moderna

Carl Long Global Quality Director, Cabot Corporation

Matt Lyman Vice President of Engineering, Toast Mark Martin Managing Director, Forward Pivot, LLC

Azin Nezami Senior Director, Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Allison Perkel Head of Software and Firmware Development, Blink, Amazon

Mihir Shah

CIO, Enterprise Head of Data Architecture and Engineering, Fidelity Investments David Sullivan

Vice President, Global Vaccines, Biotech, & Sterile Injectable Manufacturing Sciences & Technology, Pfizer

Nick Svencer General Manager, Pramand LLC

Robert Treiber President, Boston Engineering Corporation

Jim Lawton

Vice President and General Manager, Robotics Automation, Zebra Technologies

Diane Roberts Senior Director, Software Development & Site Lead, Sonos Forrest Roush Director, External (Corporate) Business Development and Strategy Execution, Corning Life Sciences

Richard Russell Vice President, STR

John Wilson Vice President, CIO & CSO, The MITRE Corporation

Lisa Wyman

Senior Vice President Technical Operations & Quality, Generate Biomedicines Faculty

Frank Apeseche Professor of the Practice

Mark Almeida Lecturer

Moneer Azzam Lecturer

Mark Bamford Lecturer

Bennett Baldwin Lecturer

George Blount Lecturer

Jennifer Braggin Lecturer

Jerry Brightman Lecturer

Gerry Brown Lecturer

Michael Cameron Lecturer

Stephen Caplow CLP Advisor

Eli Cushner Lecturer

Nicholas Diehl Lecturer

James Edgerton Lecturer

Phillip Ellison Lecturer

Gavin Finn Professor of the Practice

Partha Ghosh Professor of the Practice

Wendy Swart Grossman Lecturer

Scott Hilton Lecturer

Amy Hirschfeld Senior Lecturer

Paul Klein Lecturer

Ron Lasser Lecturer

Stacy Lennon Lecturer

Hannah Lippe Lecturer

Elizabeth McCarthy Lecturer

Kyle Monahan Lecturer

Thomas Mooney Lecturer

James Nash Lecturer

Andrew O’Brien Lecturer

Alexander Ocampo Lecturer

Chimuanya Okoro Lecturer

Usha Pasi Lecturer

Monica Pheifer Lecturer

Kishore Pochampally Lecturer

Debra Reich Lecturer

Sanford Rosenberg Advisor, MSIM Program

Marci Sapers Lecturer

Jane Seminara Senior Lecturer

Avital Shira Lecturer

Malakia Silcott Lecturer

Mary Viola Professor of the Practice, Emerita Josef Volman Lecturer

Tina Weber Lecturer

Abbott Weiss Lecturer

Joshua Weisman Professor of the Practice

Ewa Winston Lecturer

Julianne Zimmerman Lecturer

Teresa Aloi Program Coordinator

Wei Cai Senior Marketing and Communications Specialist

Carol Denning Assistant Director, Derby Entrepreneurship Center

MaryAnn DiRamio Administrative Assistant

2022 Annual Report | Tufts Gordon Institute

Acknowledgements

Benjamin Friedman Marketing and Communications Specialist

Idicula

Mathew Entrepreneur-in-Residence

Annika

Murphy Program Manager

Jill

Parlee Associate Director, Programs and Operations

Ethan

Robles Senior Assistant Director, Admissions

Special acknowledgement to the greater Tufts University Community, including the School of Engineering and University leadership, our students, alumni, and countless others: Thank you.

Joyce Cummings Center

177 College Ave., Room 390, Medford, MA 02155 (617) 627-3110 • gordon.tufts.edu