Duke Entrepreneurial Leaders Network Announces New Cohort

The Duke Entrepreneurial Leaders Network (ELN), a select group of Duke alumni committed to founding or leading an innovation-driven startup, has announced its 2024 cohort.

"I couldn't be more proud of the power of our ELN community," said Jamie Jones, Director of Duke Innovation & Entrepreneurship (Duke I&E). "These are the people who are actively driving impact and living out I&E's mission in their day-to-day lives. We're glad to welcome the 2024 cohort on board."

Founded in 2020, ELN consists of 63 members across the U.S. who receive ongoing access to emerging opportunities from Duke I&E, the Office of Translation & Commercialization (OTC), the Pratt School of Engineering, and Triangle-area growth-stage ventures. For instance, they may be invited to engage with Duke IP ready to be spun out or to connect with local entrepreneurial leaders seeking senior talent to enable their companies’ growth.

ELN members also cite Duke’s powerful innovation and entrepreneurship alumni network as motivation for joining the group, wanting to connect with others who share their passion for innovation-driven business growth.

"With Duke I&E's deepening engagement in Research Triangle Park and beyond, the 2024 ELN cohort stands poised to harness its collective potential to solve some of the world's most pressing problems,” said J. Paul Mosley, M.B.A. ‘24. “I'm honored to contribute to this ecosystem of innovation, learning from esteemed mentors while sharing insights with peers."

“Banding together with I&E on the ELN program is an exciting way for OTC to support entrepreneurial alumni,” said Robin Rasor, Associate Vice President for the Office of Translation & Commercialization (OTC). “When inventors leave Duke, we don’t always get to keep working with them, so it’s wonderful to create long-term connections with innovators who can make a big impact locally by continuing to interact with our office and Duke as a whole.”

ELN’s 2024 cohort includes nine Duke students in their final year of study in law, business, chemistry, pharmacology, and electrical and computer engineering. The ten alumni members selected for the cohort are founders and executive leaders working in software, AI, healthcare, biotech, med tech, and legal counsel.

STUDENT INDUCTEES

• Faisal Anees M.S.'21, Ph.D.'28
• Paul Cray Postdoc ‘22[KW1] 
• Jennifer Cui M.B.A.'24
• Victoria Goldenshtein Ph.D.'23
• Hansel Hobbie Ph.D.'26
• Casey Lessard J.D./L.L.M. '24
• Xiaobao Li M.B.A.'24
• J. Paul Mosley M.B.A.'24
• Todd Sega M.B.A.'24

ALUMNI INDUCTEES

• Claire Aldridge Ph.D.'96
• Deborah Bitterfield Ph.D.'11
• Michael Boyarsky Ph.D.'19
• Ashley Flucas A.B.'08
• Demetrios Kydonieus M.B.A.'07
• Victoria Nneji M.Eg.M.'15, M.S.'19, Ph.D.'19
• Bimal Shah M.B.A.'01, M.D.'01, H.S.'05-09
• Jake Stauch 
• Stefan Stryker M.S.'19, Ph.D.'21
• Joe Wilson A.B.'11

ELN—a partnership between Duke I&E and OTC, with support from Duke Capital Partners—is part of a broader comprehensive suite of programs that prepare and support entrepreneurial Duke students and alumni, including courses like New Ventures: Develop, New Ventures Clinic: Healthcare, Design Health, and Duke Start-Up Ventures Clinic, along with co-curricular programs such as the Melissa & Doug Entrepreneurs, Duke Capital Partners Associates, New Venture Fellows, and OTC Fellows.

With the entrepreneurial mindset and skills students and alumni gain from these and other Duke programs, they are prepared to become the next generation of impactful leaders, building a regional, national, and global supportive entrepreneurship community.

“Every year, the quality of the ELN applications increases and this year was no different,” said Josh Cohen, Director of MBA Entrepreneurship Programs and Startup Recruiting at Duke I&E. “We have some amazing entrepreneurs in our Duke community. These additions to the ELN show that the future of Duke-led startups solving critical problems with innovative solutions is bright.”