Meet Leandra de Labastida, Gates Millennium Scholar, Class of 2005

Social Agenda Co.

 

Leandra de Labastida  is a Project Manager by trade and an event planner by passion. She believes in creating weddings and events that become memorable experiences.  Her passion for event planning began while she was attending college in San Francisco, CA, where she learned to coordinate social gatherings and campus-wide events that became staples in the community.

After college, Leandra moved to Atlanta, GA where she began planning countless fundraising events for charity. Events that included Galas, Walk/Runs, Radiothons, amongst many other social events.

 

GMS: Tell us about Social Event Co.?

Leandra: We offer a wide variety of event planning services in the Atlanta area. Our main goal is to relieve the stress of planning and allow you to enjoy your special day. With our ample experience and resources, we can craft the perfect event for any occasion.

GMS:  What inspired you to create Social Event Co.?

Leandra: I always enjoyed the event planning process, what others find stressful, I find fascinating. Event Planning is a skill that everyone needs but not everyone possesses.

GMS: Please tell us (related to your business) how the Gates Millennium Scholarship Program directly or indirectly had a part in your path to being an entrepreneur:

Leandra: GMSP allowed me to get out of my comfort zone in college, it gave me the opportunities to socialize with a lot of groups. This allowed me to expand my skill in event planning and to discover that I had a rare talent.

GMS: What advice would you give to other Gates Millennium Scholars who have aspirations to become an entrepreneur?

Leandra: There is never a right time to start a business. Just do it.

To connect with Social Agenda Co., visit their Facebook and LinkedIn Pages, and follow them on Instagram

 

Meet Cecilia Corral, Gates Millennium Scholar, Class of 2008

CareMessage

 

Cecilia Corral  is the Co-Founder and VP of Product at CareMessage. Driven by her experiences growing up in a low-income immigrant household, Cecilia takes a patient-centered approach to product development with a relentless focus on user research. Outside of her work at CareMessage, she is an advocate for Diversity and Inclusion in the tech industry through collecting and publishing data on Latina Tech Founders. Cecilia was on the 2019 Forbes 30 under 30 list for Healthcare and graduated with a B.S. in Product Design Engineering from Stanford University.

 

GMS: Tell us about CareMessage?

Cecilia: CareMessage is a patient engagement platform for undeserved populations. We work with over 6 million undeserved patients in over 40 states.Mission: Leverage technology to help safety-net organizations fulfill the essential needs of undeserved populations. Vision: A world where all people regardless of income or background achieve equitable health outcomes.

GMS:  What inspired you to create CareMessage?

Cecilia: After graduating from undergrad I thought I wanted to make an impact in the world through education. I started a Master’s/PhD program in Mechanical Engineering. However, during my first year my dad who had been diagnosed with prostate cancer a few years before passed away and it made me reevaluate what I was doing with my life. I took the summer to help my co-founder do user research and product development. I fell in love with healthcare and ended up dropping out to join the team full time. Working on this opened up my eyes to a lot of the experiences I had growing up and allowed to give back to my community in a way that helps make healthcare more accessible.

GMS: Please tell us (related to your business) how the Gates Millennium Scholarship Program directly or indirectly had a part in your path to being an entrepreneur:

Cecilia: The Gates Family has been a part of my organization from the beginning. One of our first product managers and user researchers were gates scholars. Over time, my relationships with other Gates Scholars that have moved into healthcare have been key to help us keep jointly working on fighting for healthcare access for undeserved communities.

GMS: What advice would you give to other Gates Millennium Scholars who have aspirations to become an entrepreneur?

Cecilia: The best thing you can once you have an idea is get started! Try to test your ideas with minimum investment and iterate over time. There’s never going to be a perfect time or a perfect company to start, you just have to do it and learn along the way.

To connect with CareMessage, visit their Facebook and LinkedIn Pages, and follow them on Instagram and Twitter.

Meet James Li, Gates Millennium Scholar, Class of 2009

Mighty Health

 

James Li  is the Co-Founder and CEO of Mighty Health, a highly personalized, at-home digital health coach that uses AI and behavioral science to help people with heart disease change their daily habits, improve their health, and reduce their risk of costly future cardiac events.

Previously, James founded and served as CEO of Encore Alert, a marketing intelligence platform that helps executives at brands like IDEO, Denver Broncos, University of Michigan, Under Armour, and the American Cancer Society identify and act on the top 5 daily crises and opportunities facing their brand, their competitors, and their industry. In March 2016, Encore Alert was acquired by Meltwater, the leading media intelligence platform.

James also regularly writes and speaks about practical startup tactics at his site, JamesLi.com, and his work has been featured in the Washington Post, TechCrunch, NPR, and Bloomberg.

GMS: Tell us about Mighty Health?

James: Mighty Health is a digital cardiac health program that helps heart patients improve their health and avoid costly hospitalizations. Dr. Bernard Chang (medical co-founder) was the youngest ever in the history of emergency medicine to attain a top tier, multi-million dollar NIH grant (researching the intersection of cardiovascular disease and psychology). He is a practicing physician and Vice Chair of Research at Columbia, with an MD from Stanford and PhD in Psychology from Harvard. James Li (CEO) and Felipe Lopes (CTO) previously founded a software solution used by organizations ranging from Tufts Medical Center to the American Cancer Society, which they successfully led to an acquisition. Mighty Health was in the Summer 2019 batch of Y Combinator, and their investors include Vivek Garipalli (Clover Health), Max Wessel (CIO of SAP), NFL Hall of Famer Joe Montana (Liquid 2 Ventures), RRE Ventures, and NextView Ventures.

GMS:  What inspired you to create Mighty Health?

James: My dad had to have emergency open heart surgery back when I was in college. Luckily, The surgery was successful, but that was only the beginning of our problems. As you may know, heart disease is the #1 leading cause of death around the world and the American Heart Association recently found that over half of Americans – 121 million people – have some sort of heart disease. When people are diagnosed, like my dad, they’re sent home and told by their doctors to just “eat healthy” and “exercise more,” with no support or accountability. It’s no wonder that people are anxious and overwhelmed, continue their bad habits, and up to half of heart patients end up back in the hospital within 6 months.

GMS: Please tell us (related to your business) how the Gates Millennium Scholarship Program directly or indirectly had a part in your path to being an entrepreneur:

James: The Gates Millennium Scholarship was one of the biggest factors that enabled me to become an entrepreneur. It allowed me to choose an undergraduate business program I really wanted to attend, regardless of the cost. I was able to graduate college with no debt, which empowered me to be able to dream bigger and start a company right after graduation. It also allowed me to have financial peace of mind in college as my dad was going through his health issues (above), so I could focus on my studies and supporting him in other ways.

GMS: What advice would you give to other Gates Millennium Scholars who have aspirations to become an entrepreneur?

James: What would you do if you could not fail? Utilize the time when you have lower financial overhead (in school or recently graduated) to take risks and create something. The best way to learn to be a better entrepreneurship is to start early and get the reps in.

 

To connect with Mighty Health, visit their Facebook and LinkedIn Pages, and follow them on Instagram and Twitter.

Meet Aroona Toor, Gates Millennium Scholar, Class of 2010

Muslim Women’s Professional Network

 

Aroona Toor is a Co-Founder and the Executive Director of the Muslim Women’s Professional Network (MWPN) and an incoming Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) student at the George Washington University, Milken Institute School of Public Health.

 

She completed her Bachelor of Science in Public Health and International Studies with a minor in Spanish, as well as a Masters in Public Health with a concentration in Epidemiology from Saint Louis University. Since graduating, Aroona has worked for the Saint Louis County Department of Public Health focusing on mental health and substance abuse prevention in North Saint Louis County Youth, as a Legal Assistant for CG Immigration Law, LLC and as the Project Manager for Health Equity at the American Cancer Society.

Additionally, Aroona is a member of the APIA Scholars, Scholar Advisory Committee and has previously served on the Gates Millennium Scholars Alumni Advisory Council and the American Cancer Society’s Global Young Professionals Council.

In her free time, Aroona enjoys mentoring younger members of her community, outdoor adventures, trying new food and spending time with family and friends.

 

GMS: Tell us about the Muslim Women’s Professional Network?

Aroona: The Muslim Women’s Professional Network (MWPN) is an award-winning national nonprofit organization with chapters in four major U.S. cities (St. Louis, MO., Atlanta, GA., Washington D.C., & Houston, Texas) and is governed by Muslim women professionals.

The organization was developed to build a community for aspiring and established Muslim women professionals and a mission to engage, empower and connect Muslim women with a focus on professional development and community service. Through our work, we aim to recreate the mainstream narrative of Muslim women to accurately reflect our diversity and bring awareness to our contributions to society.

Since its establishment, MWPN has held many large and small scale events including a Coffee and Conversation series, Fireside Chat series, Networking events, a Wellness Summit, several Mentorship programs, a Fashion Show, and other events that provide an opportunity to learn and act on social justice issues.

MWPN has presented at conferences, been invited to speak on panels and have even formally been recognized by other organizations for the work we have done in the community.

GMS:  What inspired you to create the Muslim Women’s Network?

Aroona: It started as a panel discussion and community conversation on the shared experiences of Muslim women. This uncovered a very evident need in our community but with no one to address it. A lot of things aligned in my personal and professional life and I was able to dedicate the time and effort needed to work towards addressing this need.  What I had originally envisioned to be a onetime local mentorship program eventually became a national nonprofit organization. I think it speaks to the need of these spaces and the value of having an organization like the Muslim Women’s Professional Network.

GMS: Please tell us (related to your business) how the Gates Millennium Scholarship Program directly or indirectly had a part in your path to being an entrepreneur:

Aroona: Indirectly, I wouldn’t have met my co-founders or had the platform I had to build out the organization. Without the Gates Millennium Scholarship, my alma matter, Saint Louis University (SLU) would not have been financially accessible to me, which is where I met the other co-founders of MWPN.

Additionally, graduating debt-free allowed me to prioritize high-impact work over needing a well-paying job. It allowed me the opportunity to intentionally understand the needs of my community while building a strong foundation to address these needs.

GMS: What advice would you give to other Gates Millennium Scholars who have aspirations to become an entrepreneur?

Aroona: As GMS Scholars, we have the grit, passion and lived experiences to solve many of society’s biggest problems.

If you see a need, figure out what your role is in addressing that need. Let it be your call to action. Remember you have your GMS family is here to support and guide you along the way.

This journey is a long one, extremely time consuming, exhausting and you will have good and bad days. What makes all of this worth it, for me, is knowing that I’m not on this journey alone, I have 30+ incredible team members who are all equally passionate about and dedicated to this work and collectively, we have and will continue to make a substantial impact.

 

To  connect with the Muslim Women’s Professional Network, visit their  Facebook and LinkedIn Groups, like their Facebook Page, and follow them on Instagram and Twitter.

Meet Gates Millennium Scholar x Entrepreneur: Frank Romo

RomoGIS Enterprises  /Detroit Developers Group /www.raceandpolicing.com

 

 

About Frank

Frank is a real estate developer, urban planner, and community advocate working to positively impact the urban landscape. He is the CEO and founder of RomoGIS an IT consulting company working to advance the greater good through the use of innovative technologies and community-driven research. He also works as a real estate developer in Detroit, Michigan where his company, the Detroit Developers Group, seeks to improve the quality of life for Detroiters by providing high-quality housing and practicing responsible urban development. Since receiving the Gates Millennium Scholarship Frank has worked tirelessly to give back to marginalized communities by fighting for social justice and advocating for greater equity in cities around the world through his research, technical expertise and community organizing.

GMS: Tell us about your businesses

Frank:  With RomoGIS we have trained professionals using a variety of products including open source GIS software, web mapping applications and GIS for desktop. Our past clients include non-profit organizations in Detroit, Michigan, research organizations in Los Angeles, California and international non-governmental organizations.

With Detroit Developers Group our team of professionals provide real estate consulting and construction services in Detroit, Michigan. From strategic planning to brokering real estate deals, our team is focused on building a better Detroit through responsible urban development. 

The website www.raceandpolicing.com (Race and Policing) is a map we created that shows the hundreds of protests occurring across the United States and highlights key images from each city.

GMS: What inspired you to start these businesses.

Frank: I began these businesses to help support minority communities. My goal is to use my skills in research, technology and community organizing to help advance communities of color in any way possible. From my work in community engaged research to my role as a real estate developer, I support the advancement of communities of color and help develop future leaders in a variety of fields which include technology, academia and community development.

GMS: How did the Gates Millennium Scholarship Program directly or indirectly impact you becoming an entrepreneur?

Frank: The Gates Scholarship Program has played a tremendous role in my development as a leader and innovator over the years. I always knew there was a great responsibility receiving the Gates Scholarship, so while in school, I began working as a community organizer and activist for civil rights. This activism led me to become an urban planner by trade, and eventually guided me into becoming an entrepreneur. Now I use my skills as a community organizer, urban planner and technical expert to develop products and provide services that support communities in their fight for justice, equality and access.

GMS: What advice would you give to other Gates Millennium Scholar who have aspirations of becoming an entrepreneur?

Frank: Do not be afraid of failure. Failure is essential to success and both personal and professional development.

 

To learn more about Frank Romo  and his businesses, please visit his LinkedIn page and business website!
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Meet Durecia Moorer, Gates Millennium Scholar, Class of 2007

Managing Partner & Chief Marketing Officer

ABCD & Company

 

Durecia Moorer is an entrepreneur, international speaker, and strategic marketing advisor. Moorer, a Managing Partner, serves as Chief Marketing Officer at ABCD & Company. In her post, Moorer has oversight of business development, marketing strategy, and strategic partnerships. Moorer, is recognized as a thought leader in business, marketing, and entrepreneurship.

GMS: Please tell us about your business ABCD & Company.

Durecia: ABCD & Company (ABCD) is a marketing and events firm that specializes in stakeholder engagement. We leverage technology, cross-functional teams, and a national network of suppliers to help our clients better connect and communicate with their internal and external stakeholders. We accomplish this through five core services: digital and creative services, branding, conferences and events, people strategy, and communications and engagement.

Durecia: ABCD is guided by the following principles:

  1. Providing excellence in service from start to end;
  2. Helping mission driven organizations and companies impact the communities they serve;
  3. Embracing creativity in the business sector;
  4. Demonstrating ethical and responsible growth.

 

GMS: What inspired you to start ABCD & Company?:

Durecia: In January 2014, Amber Dozier, Brittanye Calhoun, Corey Briscoe, and I decided to start ABCD. After graduating from Howard University (All four partners are Howard University graduates), ABCD spent time developing their professional skills yet landed together in West Baltimore providing operational, marketing, administrative and programming support to a faith-based institution. What inspired us all was the ability to be sharp individually, but unstoppable together. Recognizing the limitless earning potential, opportunity to give back to the community, and dynamic results from pro-bono clients, ABCD decided to make it official.

GMS: How did the Gates Millennium Scholarship Program directly or indirectly had a part in your path to being an entrepreneur?:

Durecia: The Gates Millennium Scholarship Program inspired me to be an entrepreneur because I wanted to replicate the opportunity that was afforded to me. Blazing a path for students to be exposed to opportunities that they would not otherwise was always my goal.

GMS: What advice would you give other Gates Millennium Scholars who  have aspirations  of becoming an entrepreneur?

Durecia: I would say do not despite small beginnings. Being a startup/small business owner is not easy, but there are a plethora of resources out there to help you succeed. Use your startup phase as an opportunity to test the market, find your brand voice, and add value. Build relationships and be consistent. Take a financial class, enroll in a program, find mentors, invest in you and your brand

To Learn more about Durecia Moorer  and  ABCD & Company please visit her LinkedIn page and business website!
Want to be featured as a GMS Entrepreneur? Click the link for the questionnaire and share your information with us! Start Questionnaire Now!

Meet Jomari Peterson, Gates Millennium Scholar, Class of 2004

The Digital Reserve

 

Jomari Peterson has significant experience in the Blockchain space as one of the founding members of the Quantum Resistant Ledger Blockchain. He helped to delivered a 10x return as the Co-founder for the Quantum Resistant Ledger, leading to a $100 Million+ Valuation. As a serial entrepreneur, academic and public speaker, Jomari Peterson brings vision, a strong understanding of the business landscape and an interdisciplinary technical background to the establishment of Gama Ventures. Jomari has a strong history in the development of systems and process improvement evidenced by his management of budgets over $18 million dollars and 80+ employees. Jomari also facilitated and supported the raise of millions of dollars for social enterprises and non-profit activities at the Oasis Project. He is a PhD Candidate at Carnegie Mellon University in Engineering & Public Policy with a focus on risk assessment and system design. Prior to Carnegie Mellon, he received his B.S. and MBA in Strategy & Logistics from Howard University.

 

GMS: Tell us about your business.

 

Jomari: The Digital Reserve is a automated microlending platform built to provide financial access to under invested communities. It is designed as a global solution for international investments as microloans.

BridgIt creates a map for the internet. Through the use of super-tags, we are able to connect various content online through the creation of two-way hyperlinks, which we call bridges. Our goal is to create the context layer for the internet through the formalizing of relationships of text, audio, video and images throughout the internet.

Finite Games also known as Infinity Games is a video game development studio focused on the creation of new verticals in the gaming space. We are looking to launch block chain enabled casual esport games where players own their in-game assets.

 

What inspired you to create Finite Games, BridgIt, and The Digital Reserve ?

I got into the cryptocurrency and blockchain gaming space while investigating how to implement a robust approach to mobile and online voting. While reaching out to various experts, I had a conversation with David Chaum. He mentioned the use of blockchain transactions for validation. While assessing the viability, I saw that there was a risk factor that needed to be mitigated, the eventuality of quantum computing. After co-founding the Quantum Resistant Ledger and bringing it to a $100 Million valuation, I was looking for projects more closely aligned to my personal passions and interests.

Finite Games was born out of my love for gaming and a lack of block chain enabled games I would play. Bridgit was created out of frustration with the current internet experience and reliance on google to provide connections to other online content. The Digital Reserve was a natural development from my analysis of how to build a viable proof of stake system that doesn’t just rewarded the financially wealth.

 

GMS: Tell us how the Gates Millennium Scholarship Program (GMS) directly or indirectly had a part in your path to becoming an entrepreneur?

 

Jomari:  The Gates Millennium Scholarship was why I was able to attend Carnegie Mellon University and hone my interdisciplinary skills. This was foundation to my ability to founding the Quantum Resistant Ledger and the following businesses.

 

GMS: What advice would you give to other Gates Millennium Scholars who aspire to come an entrepreneur?

 

Jomari: My advice would be to hone the ability to build as much of the business yourself and understand the processes necessary for your business to survive and thrive.

 

 

To learn more about Jomari Peterson and his entrepreneurial efforts, please visit his LinkedIn and business websites.

Want to be featured as a GMS Entrepreneur? Click the link for the questionnaire and share your information with us! Start Questionnaire Now!

My Health Ed, Inc (Real Talks)

Dr. Cristina Leos, PhD, a 2009 Gates Millennium Scholar  is a behavioral scientist, entrepreneur, and design thinking expert leveraging technology innovation to improve adolescent health. With degrees from Stanford University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, she has spent nine years investigating lifestyle, behavioral, and technological interventions to improve health. Her academic research focuses on adolescent development, and identifying structural and interpersonal drivers of health inequities. She also applies her design thinking skills to train and inspire students, researchers, educators, activists, and public health professionals. She now uses her expertise in behavioral science and human-centered design to help youth of every identity reach their fullest potential.

Cristina is Co-Founder & CEO of Real Talk, a mobile app that connects teens with authentic stories and trusted resources on sexual health, mental health, and identity-related topics to help teens know they are not alone in their experiences growing up. Real Talk has been generously recognized by prominent media outlets including Forbes, Fast Company, Smithsonian Magazine, Teen Vogue, and NPR.

GMS: Tell us about your business.

Cristina: MyHealthEd, Inc. is a nonprofit dedicated to using human-centered design to support the health and well being of youth of every identity. Our flagship product, the Real Talk mobile app, provides teens with authentic stories and trusted resources on sensitive health topics to help them know they are not alone in their experiences growing up.

GMS: What inspired you to create My Health Ed, Inc?

Cristina: Growing up, I saw many of my peers become teen parents by the time we finished high school. I later went on to pursue graduate degrees in public health to better understand why this was happening and what I could do to help other young people. This venture began when I was in graduate school as a student research project to use technology to increase access to sexual health education for youth of color living in low-income and rural areas. We received seed funding from the U.S. Office of Population Affairs and the national nonprofit Power to Decide to develop the app, and at that point my colleagues and I decided to found a nonprofit to operate it.

GMS: Tell us how the Gates Millennium Scholarship Program directly or indirectly had a part in your path to being an entrepreneur.

Cristina: The Gates Millennium Scholarship made it possible for me to attend graduate school and gain important skills related to my current venture. This venture also came to life with help from my two co-founders, whom I met during my time in graduate school.

GMS: What advice would you give other Gates Millennium Scholars who aspire to become an entrepreneur?

Cristina: My advice for other scholars who aspire to become entrepreneurs is to always test your ideas with the audience you intend to serve (make sure it’s actually useful to them!), seek out a team you trust and can depend on (this is invaluable in so many ways), and you will never have all the answers, so get comfortable with ambiguity.

      (Photo Credit: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)

To learn more about Dr. Cristina Leos and My Health Ed, Inc please visit her LinkedIn page as well as her business website.

Note: The Real Talk, launched in 2017 and crowd sources advice from teenagers ages 13 to 15 based on their personal experiences to help their peers. The app boasts 16,000 teenage users across all 50 states. The Real Talk App is available on the Apple Store.

Want to be featured as a GMS Entrepreneur? Click the link for the questionnaire and share your information with us! Start Questionnaire Now!
Photo Credit: Head shot from Personal LinkedIn Page

As a vocal performance major at DePauw University School of Music, Bo Shimmin reaches beyond standards and limitations of performing arts through leadership. His diligence led him to become a recipient for an English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) from the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. While the other 4 recipients of DePauw will teach at Thailand, India, and Serbia, Shimmin will get the opportunity to teach English in Italy.

“When I found out that I won a Fulbright ETA to Italy I was absolutely stunned. I called my grandma and my dad and then my accompanist… I felt like I won the lottery. I was practically incoherent on the phone because I knew the chances of getting this were so slim. I had dreamed of going back to Italy ever since I left in the spring of 2018 and I never would’ve imagined that it would be this soon.

This Fullbright program wouldn’t be the first thing Shimmin won, as he is also a recipient of the prestigious Gates Millennium Scholarship by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In college, Shimmin participated in opera and theater productions and served as vice president of DePauwCappella, a student led organization. This leadership prepared him to open for a concert and perform with a local jazz choir in Milan, Italy. Doors continue to open for young and gifted Shimmin, as he was also asked to be apart of the Southern Illinois Music Festival and the Ad Astra Music Festival in Kansas this past summer.

Shimmin continues to delve into more opportunities that will sharpen his artistry including pursuing his master’s degree in voice performance. In an interview from DePauw University’s “News & Media” site, Shimmin shared some words on his future plans:

“I have dreams of becoming a professor of voice and I hope that I can take away useful skills and approaches to teaching from this ETA experience as well as truly immersing myself in the language and beauty that is Italia.”

Photo credit: Depauw University

At  at the age of three, Latoya Nicole Beatty already knew she wanted to become a doctor. Through public health and medicine, Beatty’s ultimate goal is to be active in the community through her career and mentorship. As a Gates Millennium Scholarship recipient, Beatty obtained her Bachelor’s of Arts degree at UNC Chapel Hill, a Medical degree from Howard University College of Medicine, and her Masters of Public Health at Mercer University.

In addition, she earned a one-year pre-medical post-baccalaureate program at UNC Greensboro.

“I always knew I wanted to do something in the medical field related to children. I just kept pushing and didn’t give up.”

According to The News Reporter, Beatty was inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society (GHHS) which solely highlights students who are “exemplars of compassionate patient care.’

Today, Beatty continues to serve as role model and  leader in medicine as founder of Alumni in Action: Bolton and Neighbors Recovery Team. She recently completed an educational session at the North Carolina Rural Center’s Economic Development Institute (REDI) in efforts to support the program.

One of Beatty’s many aspirations is to collaborate with her twin sister and establish scholarships at their former high school.

“At the health department, I enjoyed my experience working with young moms and their children,” she said. “I see myself bridging the gap between public health and medicine. There is a reason for each step in my life and eventually it will all come together.”

Source/Photo credit: The News Reporter