News, Notes, and Nods: Graduates
1978
John G. Peters MBA’78 writes, “To help prevent arrest-related deaths, my training firm developed two programs for law enforcement officers: ‘Recognizing and Managing Abnormal Breathing,’ and ‘Spit Restraint Device’ user-level and instructor-level programs. Webinars have also been offered on these two important and timely subjects at no cost so everyone can attend regardless of budget.”
1987
Walter Dillingham MBA’87 wrote an article on community colleges that was covered by the American Association of Community Colleges in its latest national magazine. “This is my eighth nonprofit white paper as part of my nonprofit practice in New York City,” he writes. “Community colleges are a very important part of our economy and educational system. There is very little information on community colleges, and my Babson MBA helped me to be entrepreneurial and develop some research here!”
1995
Allegro CEO Francois Nuyts MBA’95 writes, “Allegro has completed its initial public offering, the second-largest in Europe this year, and is now trading on the Warsaw Stock Exchange!”
1996
Alicia Castillo Holley MBA’96 launched the Wealthing VC Club to co-invest in post-seed rounds. Members meet once a month to discuss one vetted deal and make individual investment decisions, learning about high-quality deals funded by venture capitalists.
1999
Bernard Lee MBA’99 joined forces with FamilyAid Boston for the fifth consecutive year to provide holiday gifts for 35 local families experiencing homelessness. Lee is one of New England’s top professional poker players and an active poker media personality. For 10 consecutive holiday seasons, Lee has supported children in need by donating all proceeds of The Full House Charity Program to child-focused charitable organizations across New England. Each family received customized gifts for adults and children; 55 children participated.
2000
John Towle MBA’00 has been appointed chief client officer for Hearts & Wallets, a financial services research and benchmarking firm, to support the firm’s growing client base and demand for its advice benchmarking, thought leadership reports, and interactive software. Towle brings more than 30 years of experience in financial services to his role at Hearts & Wallets, with a focus on product marketing, marketing communications, and distribution marketing.
2001
Vilms Consulting CEO Michelle Vilms MBA’01 was named a 2020 100 Top ProAdvisor by Insightful Accountant. Vilms Consulting is a Boston-based virtual firm offering accounting, advisory, and training services to small- and medium-size businesses.
2003
Bessie Kokalis MBA’03, vice president of global internal communications for Philip Morris International (PMI), now serves on its women’s inspiration network steering committee. The employee resource group provides a community for PMI’s women employees and their allies worldwide, creating opportunities to grow awareness and get inspired through events, networking, and mentoring.
2006
Ryan Raveis MBA’06 and Chris Raveis, co-presidents of William Raveis Real Estate, Mortgage & Insurance, have been named the 31st most powerful and influential real estate leaders on the Swanepoel Power 200 List. The prestigious ranking is considered a definitive list of leaders and executives in the residential real estate brokerage industry.
2011
Matthew Kasberg MBA’11 received the prestigious AFCEA International Meritorious Service Award during a worldwide virtual broadcast in conjunction with AFCEA’s TechNet Cyber Symposium. The award was presented “in recognition of his outstanding dedication, record of remarkable contributions, and exceptional achievement” to the Lexington-Concord (Massachusetts) Chapter. Kasberg currently is chief operating officer for Odyssey Systems Consulting Group.
2015
Jen Sorenson MBA’15 was named vice president at Highwire PR, a modern communications agency specializing in technology, healthcare, consumer public relations, and digital offerings.
2016
Braeden Ruud MS’16 is the co-founder and CEO of Raised Right, a human-grade pet food company that makes home-cooked-style, whole-food recipes that are stored frozen and served fresh for dogs and cats. Raised Right recently launched its Shake-A-Flakes, a line of single-ingredient meal toppers that conveniently can be shaken on top of pet food to help keep things exciting at mealtime.
2017
Gustavo Mayen MBA’17 recently was nominated as a top 100 criminal trial attorney by the National Trial Lawyers.
2018
Stephen J. Hunnewell MBA’18 was interviewed in an episode of the Civil Affairs Association’s podcast and mentioned the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business. The episode, “Digital Civil Reconnaissance,” discusses the emerging technologies and tradecraft his firm offers with respect to reaching vulnerable populations across the globe.
2019
Jacob Fohtung MBA’19, MSEL’20 has been interviewing entrepreneurs, investors, researchers, and experts in their respective fields in emerging and frontier markets (including Babson alumni) on his podcast, Doers Within Emerging Markets. “(We discuss) exciting stories, especially in Africa, that are worth sharing, including a book club and weekly Africa series.”
2020
Kevin Monteiro MBA’20 has been appointed as the executive director of the Massachusetts Dental Society (MDS). The MDS includes more than 5,000 member dentists and is a statewide constituent of the American Dental Association. Monteiro has been working with the MDS since 2013 and previously served as the managing director of strategy and external affairs.
MORE NEWS, NOTES, AND NODS FROM THE SUMMER 2021 ISSUE:
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