Alumni Founders

Keep up-to-date with news and events by updating your information in the Alumni Directory, which is the official tool for alumni to submit updates to your alumni profile. This includes your contact information, employment information, communications preferences and email forwarding service. Information submitted via the Directory will be used to ensure we are sending you the communications you want to hear.

Via the Alumni Directory, you can:

• Update your contact and employment information
• Subscribe to custom communications based on your interests, location and school or college
• Access your personal member benefits page
• Easily renew or upgrade your Alumni Association membership

To keep updated on future entrepreneurship events and resources, subscribe to the EnTERPreneur Network newsletter.

TENx UMD EnTERPreneur Stories is a video series from the University of Maryland Alumni Association, which celebrates the entrepreneurial journeys of alumni founders! Watch the videos on YouTube.

Do business with Terps in your community through the Terp Business Directory. Tap into services and offerings from a #TerpBusiness by browsing all listings or searching for a specific service.

If you are a Terp looking to promote your business, products or service, apply to join the Terp Business Directory today and market your business to a community of nearly 400,000 Terps.

The Alumni Association has a dedicated entrepreneur group on Terrapins Connect. Join the Terps in Entrepreneurship group today and connect with fellow Terps for mentoring, networking and professional opportunities.

• Do Good Accelerator is a collaborative space on campus that supports and helps to scale up students' innovative solutions to our world's most pressing challenges. The Accelerator offers a number of training, development and networking opportunities to enable promising nonprofits, projects and socially-minded businesses the chance to grow their reach and impact. Accelerator membership is available to all current UMD students and alums working on a social-impact idea, project, venture and/or organization
• Mtech Ventures is a University of Maryland incubator for technology-based innovations commercialized at the university. Mtech Ventures helps early-stage startups survive the critical period in their development between conducting customer discovery and raising their first round of venture capital. The Mtech Ventures facility offers affordable space and hands-on mentoring for early stage companies.

Consult Your Community (CYC) is a national non profit organization with the goal of helping small businesses around the country thrive. As such, the University of Maryland branch (UMD CYC) provides pro bono consulting services to small business through the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore areas. through this organizations, undergraduates gain real-world experience in client-facing communication, presenting, consulting research, recommendation formation, and more, while clients gain the benefit of a team of student consultants for a semester-long engagement.

iConsultancy Capstone Projects partners with public and private sector organizations and businesses to solve your information challenges. We work with your organization to clearly define and scope your information-based projects and, with our talented pool of undergraduate and graduate students, fulfill your project goals while providing our students with invaluable real-world experience.

QUEST - By partnering with the QUEST Honors Program at UMD through a data analysis or capstone project, you will receive valuable consulting services at a reasonable cost.

1. Capstone Project - In the spring of junior year or fall of senior year, QUEST student teams complete capstone projects using the problem-solving skills they’ve learned throughout the program. Project champions from corporate sponsors work with teams during the 13 weeks of the semester and receive innovative recommendations to an identified organizational challenge. Student teams understand the opportunity, research the industry and relevant technologies, develop and evaluate possible solutions, and make final recommendations. Projects and sponsors receive recognition at the QUEST conference which takes place at the end of each semester. Student teams also give a final presentation and report on-site to their champions and other project stakeholders.
2. Data Project - In the spring of sophomore year or fall of junior year, QUEST student teams learn how to develop insights from data that is generated by real-world companies. Students address data quality issues that span data ingestion, cleansing, and wrangling and analyze the data. As the semester progresses, corporate partners glean insights from students examining the data with a fresh set of eyes. At the end of the semester, student teams share their final deliverables with actionable recommendations for the client.

Smith School of Business Office of Experiential Learning (OEL) has engaged 114 unique experiential learning projects with over 250 alumni and corporate partners. The most popular experiential learning opportunity was classroom coaching, where participants served as a guest speaker or a judge. Go online to submit your interest in partnering with the Smith School OEL.

• Alumni Association Online Learning - Access the support of your Terp network no matter where you are in the world. Check out the Webinar Archive for recorded content available hosted on the University of Maryland Alumni YouTube channel.
• Coursera: Developing Innovative Ideas for New Companies: The First Step in Entrepreneurship - This course assists aspiring and active entrepreneurs in developing great ideas into great companies.
• edX: Identifying Entrepreneurial Opportunities - Learn today’s newest skills and tools for identifying and acting on entrepreneurial opportunities for startup companies and corporate innovations.
• Maryland Business: Rebooted - Free Online Education Series for Maryland residents and businesses.
• Master of Professional Studies (MPS) in Product Management combines online experiences with award-winning faculty, self-paced coursework and connections with the University of Maryland community to link innovators from around the world. Offered through the convenience and flexibility of our 100% online learning environment, our program has been specially crafted to offer high-quality, interactive collaboration with worldwide.
• Master of Professional Studies (MPS) in Technology Entrepreneurship and Corporate Innovation educates and empowers graduate students to launch and lead innovative startups and corporate ventures.
• Startup Fundamentals Online Workshops are offered in collaboration with the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship at the Robert H. Smith School of Business and Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute at the Clark School of Engineering.  All sessions are offered virtually via Zoom platform and many (but not all)  are recorded and are available on our StartupUMD YouTube Channel. Subscribe to the newsletter to receive announcements about upcoming workshops, events, funding opportunities, and other news of interest to entrepreneurial faculty.

• Center for Global Business (CGB) is the driver of internationalization and global mindset education at the Smith School and a preferred partner for international commerce in the state of Maryland, specifically in regard to training and supporting students, companies, and current and future business leaders to engage successfully in global business.
• Center for Social Value Creation embodies a passionate mission: to educate, engage and empower the Smith community and the world through thought-provoking dialogue, thought leadership, and hands-on experience.
• Maryland Energy Innovation Institute (MEI2) provides a platform to catalyze basic research into new technology while stimulating economic growth and improving millions of lives across the state of Maryland. The Institute brings together science, industry, government and economic leaders to develop solutions to global and local energy problems and facilitate the transfer of technology and resources to the public in addition to transitioning the research into marketable products and services through locally based entrepreneurial ventures.
• Maryland Innovation Extension brings entrepreneurial resources to the entire state of Maryland, with a particular focus on underrepresented groups.
• UMD I-Corps is a National Science Foundation (NSF) program designed to foster, grow, and nurture innovation ecosystems regionally and nationally. I-Corps provides real world training on how to incorporate innovations into commercially viable companies to solve societal problems. The program is comprised of two parts: the self-paced I-Corps Prep mini course, and the Mid-Atlantic I-Corps Customer Discovery Workshops.

Handshake is the University Career Center's online career management platform for University of Maryland students and alumni. Handshake can be accessed online or through the app.

• Post Jobs & Internships - Once you register and are approved as an employer, you can begin posting your organization’s opportunities within Handshake. For assistance posting positions, review this guide. Typically, positions posted in Handshake by approved employers are available once posted in the system. We aim to approve all job postings within 2 business days.
• University Career Fairs & Industry Events - Registration for UMD University Career Center career fairs takes place within Handshake. Review the list of upcoming career fairs & industry events and register to attend.
• Host Employer Events - Employers may post events in Handshake and the team will market employer events to the UMD student population. If interested in hosting your own virtual or in-person event, visit our Host an Event page. Once confirmed, you’ll be able to view the details of your event within the system.
• Host Interviews (On Campus and Virtual) - Both in-person and virtual campus interviews can be arranged on Handshake. If your team would like support promoting a position, collecting resumes or scheduling candidates, review our Campus Interviews page.

If you have additional questions, please contact the Career Center for support via phone at 301-314-7225 or via email at ucc-recruiting@umd.edu (Employers).

• Dingman Center Angels (DCA) is a Maryland based angel investment group that provides funding to early-stage companies primarily located in the mid-Atlantic region. Typically, DCA invests between $100,000 and $250,000 in growth seed/early-stage companies and will often participate in syndicates with other local angel groups and VC’s for capital raises up to $2 million. DCA is not a fund and does not invest as a group.

• Maryland Energy Innovation Institute (MEI2) Energy Seed Grant Program to bridge the gap between academic transformative laboratory research results and prototype demonstrations to obtain investor interest.  The annual call supports multiple seed grant awards with a maximum award ceiling of $100,000 USD as well as potential Phase 2 awards with a maximum ceiling of $200,000 USD for those projects that received a prior seed grant. The total amount of funding available for the FY24 Seed Grant Program is $650,000 USD. Applications will be accepted each year beginning October-December.
• Maryland Industrial Partnerships program (MIPS) provides funding, matched by participating companies, for university-based research projects that help the companies develop new products. With MIPS matching funds, companies can leverage the facilities, resources and expertise within Maryland’s public universities to create new products and opportunities
• USM Launch Fund connects early stage entrepreneurs — builders, creators, and innovators — to existing resources, mentorship, and capital. This capital is flexible and early, in the form of grants (non-dilutive) and investments (dilutive) ranging from less than $2,000 microgrants to grants and investments of generally up to $50,000. This small, early capital is currently a key gap experienced by many individuals getting started and on their way with a venture. This critical foundational capital (including pre-venture funding, first money in, and pre-seed funding) bridges to next-step capital (including revenue/sustainability, bank financing, and seed funding).

• Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund (CBSCF) invests in companies with innovative solutions that can help improve air and water quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. CBSCF invests $100,000-$500,000 in seed and Series A rounds of funding for direct commercialization efforts. We also co-invest with other funds in situations where our funding can leverage additional resources for the startup.
• Discovery Fund is an early-stage investment fund formed to encourage the development and location of University of Maryland created or sponsored technology companies in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
• Maryland Momentum Fund invests in University System of Maryland (USM)-affiliated companies to support entrepreneurism, catalyze outside investment in early-stage startups
• Terrapin Fund, supported by philanthropic donations from alumni and community stakeholders, provides capital to early stage (pre-and-early revenue) UMD-affiliated startups with high growth potential seeking investment in the funding.

• DC Startup Week (DCSW) is the fastest-growing startup community in the DMV region with over 15,000 entrepreneurs. Once a year, we bring together our expansive community over 5-days to connect, collaborate, share resources and celebrate our thriving ecosystem. Throughout the year, we strengthen our united community by curating inclusive, thought-provoking, and meaningful events and partnerships.
• FedTech - A venture firm at the intersection of entrepreneurship, breakthrough technologies, and mission-driven organizations.
• Halcyon House - Is a community that supports impact-driven businesses and their founders through space, community, and access. Halcyon programs offer fellowships for social entrepreneurs and funding vehicles to help them scale their ventures.
• SEED SPOT is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering diverse, impact-driven entrepreneurs who are using their business ventures to create social change locally and around the world. SEED SPOT brings together a deep network of resources, mentors, and partners to make entrepreneurship accessible to all.

• Bethesda Green - Bethesda Green is a sustainable urban ecosystem that enhances green living, ensures environmental protection, and facilitates growth of responsible businesses. Bethesda Green’s Innovation Lab is the leading entrepreneurship program in the Mid-Atlantic region that identifies and attracts leaders who are building for-profit business models around innovative and sustainable solutions to tackle environmental and social challenges.
  • Incubator – Through this year-round program, we guide new entrepreneurs through the hurdles of early stage business development, such as clarifying the problem, identifying potential customers, developing a prototype, conducting a pilot, and building a founding team. We help entrepreneurs build a self-paced program to accommodate their schedules and vision. Rolling applications open now. Learn more!
  • Accelerator – The Accelerator program includes a fast-paced, high-touch, intensive curriculum. We look for companies with a coachable, committed, founding team with a rapid growth mindset, and a demonstrated problem/solution fit. Learn more.
  • Residency Program – Select members of the Accelerator program may receive financial awards from Bethesda Green and enter the Residency program.
  • Amplifier Program – We welcome the opportunity to support validation and growth stage companies who have received outside investment and want to benefit from the growing Bethesda Green community. We’ll work with entrepreneurs to grow their teams, strengthen their business models, and expand their networks of customers, partners, and investors. Let us help you scale! Rolling applications open now. Learn more! 
• Cureate - A for profit, woman-owned, mission-driven small business that is building an empowered food & beverage supply to meet a changing consumer demand. Cureate exists to shift the dollar back into our local communities by building an empowered food & beverage supply to meet a changing consumer demand.
• Maryland APEX Accelerator - The mission of the Maryland APEX Accelerator is to help position businesses registered in the state of Maryland to fully compete in federal, state, and local government procurement processes.
• Maryland Business Express - The State of Maryland offers a variety resources for aspiring business owners:
  • 7 Steps to Planning Your Business
  • 5 Steps to Start Your Business
  • Manage Your Business
  • Grow Your Business
• Maryland Energy Innovation Accelerator (MEIA) - MEIA focuses on early-stage technology commercialization in partnership with Maryland-based businesses, universities and labs to support Maryland's Clean Energy and Climate Goals. MEIA supports solar, wind, batteries, energy efficiency, grid modernization, carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS), and any other technology that reduces greenhouse gas emissions or provides negative emissions benefits in the electric, oil and gas, residential, commercial or industrial sectors. MEIA offers three programs to Maryland-based clean energy and climate technology inventors:  Pre-Accelerator, Launchpad, and Accelerator.
• Maryland Entrepreneur Hub - Find Resources. Connect with Businesses. Navigate the Ecosystem. From funding to talent sources and everything in between, explore over 2,000 resources to build your business in Maryland
• Techstars Equitech Accelerator - This accelerator is for startups from any sector that are grounded in the values of diversity, led by founders from underestimated communities, or developing technologies that increase access and equity across society.
• Maryland Small Business Development Center (SBDC) - If you are an aspiring entrepreneur or an existing business owner in Maryland… the Maryland SBDC offers FREE individualized consulting, from start up to established businesses. We also offer comprehensive training programs, from those just thinking about starting a business to executive training, with most classes at low to no cost. The Maryland SBDC Network provides Maryland small business owners with access to trusted business advisors who have experience in starting and growing businesses. The SBDC offers expertise and keen insights essential to helping you manage your concerns today, and design solid, long-range plans to secure your vision for tomorrow.
• TEDCO provides funding, resources and connections that early-stage technology and life sciences companies need to thrive in Maryland.
• UpSurge is an ecosystem builder focused on making Baltimore the country's first Equitech city and a launching pad for founders of all background.

• 1 Millions Cups - Educating, Inspiring and Connecting Entrepreneurs Nationwide Every Wednesday Morning.
• Founder Institute (FI) is the world's most proven network to turn ideas into fundable startups, and startups into global businesses.
• Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN) is an organization that operates an array of programs in 200 countries aimed at making it easier for anyone, anywhere to start and scale a business.
• SCORE mentors know what it’s like to be a small business owner. They know it takes passion and hard work to make your dreams come true, and they’re ready to support you every step of your journey. The SCORE community of experienced entrepreneurs, corporate managers, and executives is eager to help you start and grow your business.
• Techstars - Techstars accelerators have one goal: to help entrepreneurs succeed. During each three-month program, they surround companies with the best mentors and an unrivaled network of corporate partners, investors, and alumni. Techstars provides funding and fundraising opportunities, workshops and curated resources, not to mention countless moments where you can learn from your peers.
  • Entrepreneur's Toolkit is an online educational resource to help you learn the fundamentals of entrepreneurship and accelerate your success.
  • Startup Digest - Locally curated content for entrepreneurs.
• Y Combinator (YC) - YC hosts two 3-month programs — one from January through March, and one from June through August.
  • Startup School is a free online course on how to start a startup.
  • YC Library - Watch videos, listen to podcasts, and read essays for startup founders. Peruse the full library archive here.

The EnTERPrenuer Award honors an entrepreneurial alumnus/a whose company has made a significant impact on the university, the state and/or the nation. Up to three EnTERPreneur Awards are granted annually, celebrating a Terp/s who has started a business that is fearlessly disrupting its industry.

• Seema Alexander '00 - DISRUPTIVE.CEO
• Adriana Avakian MBA '12 - TheIncLab
• Cate Luzio '97 - Luminary
• Brett Schulman '95 - CAVA
• Roy Schwartz '98 - Axios
• Steve Touw '99 - Immuta

Artists & Creatives

• Elizabeth Acevedo MA '15 - The Poet X
• Carmen Balthrop '71 - Opera Singer, Soprano
• Sarah Cooper '98 - TheCooperReview.com and sarahcpr.com
• Larry David '70 - Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm
• Jane '55 and Jim Henson '60 - Sam and Friends and The Muppets
• N.K. Jemisin MA '97 - “The Most Celebrated Science Fiction And Fantasy Writer of Her Generation.” —​The New York Times
• Jeff Kinney '93 - Diary of a Wimpy Kid
• Wilbur Munro Leaf '27 - The Story of Ferdinand
• Liz Lerman '70 - Liz Lerman Dance Exchange
• Aaron MacGruder '98 - The Boondocks
• Chef Huda Mu'min '05 - Chef Huda's Kitchen (CHK) and Just Savor
• Jason Reynolds '05 - NYT Bestselling Author, Library of Congress' national ambassador for young people's literature.

Founders

• Michael Antonov '03 - Scaleform and Oculus VR
• David Baggett '92 - Crash Bandicoot, ITA Software, and Inky
• Robert Basham ’70 - Outback Steakhouse
• Gail Berman '78 - The Jackal Group.
• Angel Bezos '69 - Pulse Electronics
• Sergey Brin '93 - Google
• Anthony Caselena '05 - Squarespace
• Marguerita M. Cheng ’93 - Blue Ocean Global Wealth
• Jason Cohen '96 - Mamma Says Biscotti, Sensible Portions, and Halen Brands
• Dominique Dawes '02 - Dominique Dawes Gymnastics Academy
• Emilio A. Fernandez '69 - Pulse Electronics and PulseIQ
• Jason Finger '94 - Seamless
• Carly Fiorina MBA '80 - Carly Fiorina Enterprises
• Brian Hinman '82 - PictureTel Corp, Polycom, and 2Wire
• Kathleen Magee M.Ed '72 - Operation Smile
• Rob McGovern ’83 - CareerBuilder.com, JobFox, and PreciseTarget
• Haroon '01, Idris '10, and Zeki '01 Mokhtarzada - Truebill (Rocket Money)
• Kevin Plank ’96 - Under Armour and Sagamore Ventures
• Scott Plank '88 - War Horse Cities, MissionGO, and MediGO
• David Quattrone MBA '05 - Cvent
• Andrew Reisse '01 - Scaleform and Oculus VR
• Pooja Sankar '04 - Piazza
• Brett Schulman '95 - CAVA
• Roy Schwartz '98 - Axios
• Jigar Shah, MBA ’01 - Generate Capital and SunEdison
• Jagdeep Singh '87 - Airsoft, Lightera Networks (sold to CIENA), Infinera, and QuantumScape
• Tim Sweeney '93 - Epic Games
• Ali von Paris '12 - Route One Apparel
• Shayan Zadeh '02 - Zadeh Group and Zoosk

Innovators & Inventors

• Robert Briskman M.S. '61 - Developed the innovative technologies that enable efficient satellite transmission of continuous radio programming to mobile and fixed receivers, with near perfect availability across enormous geographic areas that include urban and rural environments. The formal name for the technologies is Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service (SDARS), commonly known as satellite radio. He co-founded Sirius Satellite Radio to build and implement the service.
• Robert E. Fischell M.S. ’53, Hon. Sc.D. ’96 - Developed a rechargeable implantable pacemaker that could be programmed with radio waves, invented the implantable insulin pump, numerous coronary stents used to open clogged arteries, and two feedback systems that provide early warning of epileptic seizures and heart attacks.
• George Lauer '51 - Developed the Universal Product Code while working at IBM.
• Jeong H. Kim Ph.D. ’91 - Recognized for his efforts in the advancement in broadband optical systems, data communications and wireless technologies that have made communication faster and clearer, including improvements in battlefield communications that strengthen national security.
• Glenn Ricart Ph.D. '80 - Influential in the development of the Internet (ARPANET) going back to 1969 and early implementation of the TCP/IP protocol.