Archive for category: Featured

Director of Alumni Programs Frances Beusse (BS ’06) sat down with Marc Gorlin (ABJ ’95), serial entrepreneur and owner of Kabbage, Inc., the 2015 No. 1 Bulldog 100 business to discuss his latest venture, Roadie, the first neighbor to neighbor shipping network. 

Roadie delivers your stuff where it needs to go faster, cheaper, and friendlier. Learn more about Roadie and download the app at roadie.com/download.

Say you’re making a Roadie delivery from Atlanta to Athens. Describe your perfect day in the Classic City.

Well, the day obviously starts with me rolling into Athens with a package to deliver. I love meeting new people and the Roadie community includes more than its fare share of Bulldog fans, so that’s always fun. After that, I like to walk around campus and stop at the bookstore to get my kids something – you can never have enough UGA gear. Stopping by the Grady College is a must and Dean Charles Davis (MA ’92) usually has good stories to share. Finally, it’s hard to get me out of town without visiting The Grill. I used to enjoy that fine establishment much later in the evening during my days in Athens, but these day I go old school and drop in for a BBQ Burger platter with some feta fries and a chocolate milkshake. That always makes for a great day.

The start-up world is continuing to gain speed in the business world. As an alumnus, what advice do you have for UGA alumni or students looking to break into the start-up business?

Start early and start often. Don’t be afraid of failure. Coming out of school is your best time to take risks. Most students aren’t coming out of school with a spouse, mortgage payments or kids. Take chances and don’t be afraid to break things. My Dad always told me, “Don’t get a job, find a deal.”  Whether you’re starting a company or just figuring out the right career to begin with, it’s important to find your deal.

With all of your business ventures throughout your career, you’ve met and worked with some pretty accomplished people. Who is the coolest? Celebrities count, too.

The real superstars in my world are the people on my team. They’re the ones that propel the business forward and I’m fortunate to have the job where I get to talk about all the awesome stuff they’re building everyday. Outside of that, meeting Steve Case, founder of AOL, was pretty cool. We met this summer as he toured the country on his start-up tour called Rise of the Rest. What he’s doing is very exciting in our community. But, I’d have to say my favorite is Chris Bridges, better known as Ludacris in the music world, Roadie’s newest partner. This guy is a Grammy Award-winning artist, he’s about to start filming Fast & Furious 8, and he’s so down to earth, and easy to work with. Not to mention that getting to know him has been seriously great for my street cred.

What did it meant to you to be the owner of the No. 1 Bulldog 100 fastest growing business in 2015?

It was a huge honor. There are so many great Bulldog businesses out there, so to come out on top was an unexpected but crazy awesome honor. I love that it was the first time someone from the Grady College has won the award. That made it even more special to me, and based on his reaction, Dean Davis was pretty excited about it, too.

As a UGA student, what impacted you the most? Any student groups, notable professors or light bulb moments that helped to launch you?

It’s not every day that a tech entrepreneur comes out of journalism school, but I think that experience had a huge impact on me. It helped develop my natural curiosity for people and for how things work in the world. That’s what being an entrepreneur is all about. Conrad Fink was one of my favorite professors in J-school. He taught me to ask great questions and narrow in on the essence of an idea or concept. He probably exhausted more than one box of red pens getting that point across, and for that I owe him a huge debt of gratitude.

Your career path has had lots of twists and turns. Where do you see yourself in five years?

Assuming Roadie’s partnership with Ludacris continues to go well, I plan to start my own hip-hop career under the stage name Lil’ Roadie and I hope to fill stadiums worldwide and make billions. If that doesn’t work out, I’ll be thankful to be running the most innovative company in the shipping industry and helping make the world a better, greener, friendlier place.

Roger Hunter’s (BS ’78, Mathematics) passion for UGA is unmatched by most, and despite living thousands of miles from Athens, his veins are still filled with red and black.

In 2014, the associate director for programs at NASA Ames Research Center in California gave the fall commencement address and a TEDxUGA Talk. This past summer, he hosted UGA President Jere W. Morehead (JD ’80) and other university representatives on a tour of Ames, even surprising them with an image of Uga IX on Mars – the first “earth-being” to visit the surface of the Red Planet.

His commitment to UGA continued this fall when Roger brought two of his NASA colleagues, Roberto Carlino and Jasper Wolfe, to campus to present to and mentor students and faculty on the Friday prior to the UGA vs. South Carolina football game.

Malcolm Adams, a Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor of Math, arranged for an afternoon lecture in the Miller Learning Center that was open to all students and promoted in STEM classes on campus. The presentation focused on the history and future of the use of Cube-Sats (mini satellites used for space research) from the perspective of the NASA Ames Research Center.

Earlier that day, though, the NASA representatives participated in a seminar/workshop for a group of faculty and students who are planning to build the first UGA CubeSat to gather spectral data off the Georgia coast. The group includes faculty from geography, marine science, physics and math, and 25 to 30 undergraduate students.

Both the students and faculty in attendance were inspired by the exciting, breakthrough technology presented by the visitors, and were appreciative of the first-hand mentoring offered.

Roger Hunter continues to contribute to UGA through his time, expertise and financial support. His involvement is greatly appreciated and can be seen as a stellar example of alumni enriching the learning experience on campus through volunteerism.

If you are interested in mentoring on campus or bringing a special project to UGA students, please email alumni@uga.edu and indicate your interest.

Update: the Red & Black, UGA’s student newspaper, ran a feature on the student cube sat project at UGA. Read more.

“Candidly, there’s nothing more important to the University of Georgia than its linkage with the agricultural industry. This tour gives the university a chance to showcase what the university does for the agricultural industry and how important that industry is, not only to the state today but to the future of the state.” – UGA President Jere W. Morehead (JD ’80)

Agriculture has a more than $72 billion impact on Georgia’s economy. From the assistance offered through UGA Cooperative Extension to research advances, farmers and food industry leaders rely on UGA’s expertise.

Last week, UGA President Jere W. Morehead saw the close partnership between the agriculture industry and the university as he toured several north Georgia farms, and food processing and biosecurity facilities with Commissioner of Agriculture Gary Black, Sen. John Wilkinson, chairman of Georgia state Senate’s Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee; Rep. Terry England, chairman of Georgia state House’s Appropriations Committee; and J. Scott Angle, dean and director of the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

With agritourism, poultry and food manufacturing playing key roles in northeast Georgia’s agricultural economy, the tour covered six points of interest. At each stop, farm and plant managers shared ways in which UGA has contributed to their success and ways the university can help in the future.

This year’s tour included visits to:

• Hillside Orchard Farms – Tiger, Georgia
• Tiger Mountain Vineyard – Tiger, Georgia
• Jaemor Farms – Alto, Georgia
• Georgia Poultry Laboratory Network Headquarters – Gainesville, Georgia
• King’s Hawaiian Bakery – Flowery Branch, Georgia
• Sonstegard Foods – Gainesville, Georgia

Continue reading to learn more about the UGA Farm Tour.

Ailsa Von Dobeneck (BS ’07) has built a career on communications and world travel. She’s traveled to locations such as London, Singapore, and Washington, D.C. for her developing government and international relations career. Most recently, however, Ailsa traveled to Los Angeles to display her passion for cooking on the Fox’s MasterChef.

UGA staff member Erin Miller recently spoke with Ailsa regarding her experience on appearing on MasterChef sixth season, her global travels and memories of UGA.

What motivated you to pursue cooking as a passion? Have you always spent a lot of time in the kitchen?

You know how there are some people that live to eat and some that eat to live? I am the former, through and through. After graduating, I took a semester off before I pursued a master’s degree at King’s College in London and decided to spend the time learning to cook. After all, if you love to eat, it is great to know your way around a kitchen. I enrolled in the advanced beginner’s class at the Le Cordon Bleu in London and learned the basics. I have been experimenting ever since and enjoy traveling in search of new and exciting flavors. My career took me to Singapore, where I worked in shipping, and I was able to travel extensively throughout the region. I now work in government affairs in Washington, D.C. I spend my free time looking through old White House cookbooks at the Library of Congress. It is amazing the kind of gems you find in there. Next month, I will be starting a weekly column on presidential recipes in my blog, The Curious Tastebud, which will run through to the election next year.

On your MasterChef contestant page, you described yourself as a “unicorn” because no other contestant possessed your unique set of skills.  What are some of the unique skills that you acquired at UGA? 

I think UGA was the place where I truly started to learn about myself. I discovered what I’m great at, good at and need to work on. I think the skill that I focused on developing first was time-management. Like in the kitchen, you need to be prepared to pace yourself and use your time wisely at UGA. As an out-of-state student, my experience at UGA encouraged me to put myself out there: to introduce myself to people and take risks.

What is a positive MasterChef experience that you’d like to share?

I had so many positive experiences on the show. One of the highlights was getting to prepare a filet for Gordon Ramsay in his own restaurant, Gordon Ramsay Steak, in Las Vegas. I had never been to Vegas and the razzle dazzle of the whole experience was really special. Though my filet didn’t get me to the next round, I was proud of my dish. I also really enjoyed meeting the other talented contestants. One of my favorite fellow contestants went to LSU, so we had some great football banter. Go Dawgs!

You’re an extensive world traveler.  What countries have you visited and would recommend based on their cuisine?

I’ve been lucky with my travel options, as both of my parents are from Europe and I lived in Asia for a time. I am completely in love with Vietnamese cuisine and would recommend a trip to Ho Chi Minh City for anyone who enjoys street food and isn’t afraid to try bold flavors. Italy will always be close to my heart when it comes to edibles. My family spent a lot of time in Venice when I was a kid, where I learned the joy of a big bowl of pasta. For those who aren’t as adventurous, the Italian menu will give you familiar classics made with the best ingredients possible. Gelato anyone?

When you’re at home, what are some of the dishes you like to prepare?

My absolute favorite part of cooking is seeing people enjoy what I have made. I host dinner parties at my house and focus on making dishes you can prepare ahead of time so you have time with your guests. There is nothing worse than an absent hostess. Risotto is a favorite; it is refined and can come in a host of different varieties. I make a gorgeous manchego risotto with chorizo, red peppers and arugula.

What is your favorite memory of UGA? Are there any places in Athens that you remember?

With enough amazing memories to last a lifetime, I am struggling to pick a “favorite.” Watching the Dawgs win Between the Hedges was always amazing. We won the SEC championship my freshman year against LSU in Atlanta. I remember being over the moon that I had chosen the “best university ever.”

Athens also has so many places that stick out in my mind. The Pi Beta Phi house on Milledge brings back a lot of fun memories, from getting ready for formals to decorating the front porch for every holiday imaginable. If we are talking foodie memories, I still dream about the grits from Last Resort. Hugh Acheson from Five and Ten is a real talent and always dished out the tastiest Southern dishes every season. I ran to the bookstore when Acheson’s book, A New Turn in the South, was published.

Is there anything else regarding your career that you’d like to share?

In both my careers (government relations and cooking), my education at UGA has held in me in amazing stead. My time in Athens gave me access to some of the best and brightest professors and allowed me to really channel my energy in positive ways. It is amazing the amount of UGA alumni I have met across the world. It seems Georgia alumni are all connected by a lifelong love of learning and I am really proud to forever be a Bulldog.

To learn more about Ailsa and to see examples of her culinary work, please visit her blog.

A record-breaking number of contributors—63,784 at final count—led the University of Georgia to its best fundraising year in history.

After all contributions were tallied for the year on June 30, the university received nearly $144.2 million in new gifts and commitments for the 2015 fiscal year, a 14 percent increase over last year’s record total of $126.4 million.

“Once again, the University of Georgia community has joined together to provide an unprecedented level of financial support to advance the academic mission of this great institution,” said President Jere W. Morehead. “I am grateful to our generous and loyal alumni and friends for their significant contributions; to the UGA Foundation board of trustees, to the development team, and to the senior leadership across our schools, colleges, and other units for their hard work and dedication; and to our outstanding faculty, staff, and students, who continue to make UGA the very special place that it is.”

The 63,784 donors represent a 12 percent increase over fiscal year 2014, in which 56,897 donors contributed to the institution.

“Having established an all-time fundraising record just one year ago—and to exceed that total by a significant margin just 12 months later—is an incredible tribute to our donors who have stepped up and answered the call to support the university,” said Kelly Kerner, vice president for the Division of Development and Alumni Relations.

“Words are inadequate to express the depth of appreciation I have for our alumni and friends who have committed their financial resources to help ensure the University of Georgia maintains an upward trajectory as one of the world’s great institutions of higher education.”

Fiscal year 2015 at UGA marks a continuation of significantly increased support from individual donors—no single major gift had a disproportionate impact on the total—and the second year the university has been under Morehead’s direction.

“The university’s development team, support staff and the foundation’s board of trustees all played major roles in this milestone achievement, and I am appreciative of what was truly a team effort,” said Ken Jackson, chair of the University of Georgia Foundation. “Of course, I am most grateful to our donors, who continue to exhibit a great spirit of generosity and a commitment to enhancing the academic mission of the University of Georgia.”