The University the recipients of the Fall 2025 Orange Innovation Fund, a competitive grant program that fuels early-stage ideas developed by student entrepreneurs. The fund supports innovative projects across campus that demonstrate strong potential to commercialize research.

The fund, administered through the University Libraries, is designed to help student founders move their ventures from concept to prototype on the path to commercialization. The grants range up to $5,000 and enable recipients to build MVPs (minimum viable products), test ideas with real users and validate market potential. Since its inception, the fund has helped dozens of student teams advance toward competitive accelerators, patent filings and commercial launches.

Winners were selected by reviewers from across the campus innovation ecosystem, along with alumni who are successful founders and industry experts.

The Fall 2025 recipients are the following:

• Gabi Josefson ’28 (Martin J. Whitman School of Management and S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications) and Mitchell Breakstone ’28 (Whitman School ) received funding for EXCHKR, a platform that simplifies how clubs, sports teams and Greek organizations manage payments and track budgets. EXCHKR’s team will use this grant to develop the platform’s full MVP, integrating Stripe and Plaid for secure payments and real-time dashboards.
• Jack Venerus ’27 (School of Information Studies) received support for WingStat, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that makes aircraft sales data more accessible for brokers. The Orange Innovation Fund will help WingStat build its MVP and launch a beta test with aircraft brokers nationwide.
• Trey Augliano ’27 (Whitman School) was selected for Utopia Beauty, a retail startup exclusively curating science-backed beauty products. Funding will support the creation of a proprietary tool that grades beauty products using the company’s Lab Protocol, integrating AI and customer testing to refine results before launch.
• Haley Greene ’26 (Newhouse School) received support for Miirror, a nonprofit digital platform addressing the urgent gap in accessible support for the 30 million Americans who struggle with eating disorders. Greene’s grant will fund backend development, accessibility certification and an 8- to 12-week campus pilot to assess user engagement and mental health outcomes.
• Ronan Hussar ’26 (Whitman School) was awarded funding for MacroFlow, which allows users to automate Excel tasks using simple language instead of code. The grant will support secure software development and beta testing with 25 early users.
• Jacob Kaplan ’28 (School of Information Studies) was awarded funding for The OtherGlasses, the world’s first adaptive eyewear that automatically adjusts to users’ changing vision throughout the day. Grant funds will help build a functional prototype using liquid crystal lenses and develop a companion app for real-time adjustment testing.

“We’re incredibly grateful for the continued support of Syracuse’s entrepreneurship ecosystem and excited to receive this grant as we prepare to launch EXCHKR,” Josefson says. “This funding will help us accelerate development and bring a much-needed financial management solution to student organizations nationwide.”

“Being selected for this award could not have come at a better time,” says Hussar. “The grant will take MacroFlow from an MVP to a market-ready product at a point where every dollar truly matters. Being selected also means that judges believe in my idea. That support motivates me to keep building.”

“Winning the Orange Innovation Fund award is incredibly meaningful,” says Venerus. “It gives us the momentum to finish our MVP and get WingStat market-ready, and it’s validating to know others see the impact and potential in what we’re building.”

“I’m very grateful to receive this award,” says Augliano. “I want to thank Orange Innovation team for recognizing the value that Utopia brings to the beauty industry. With this award, I will be able to build out the infrastructure for our product grading tool.”

“Being selected for the Orange Innovation Award tells me that people believe not only in Miirror, but in the future we’re trying to build, one where access to help is a right, not a luxury,” says Greene. “This grant, and every bit of support, moves us closer to turning something painful into something that gives others access to care and helps them feel less alone, which is all I’ve ever wanted to do.”

“These students represent the creativity, technical skill and drive that define Syracuse’s innovation community,” says David Seaman, dean of University Libraries. “The Orange Innovation Fund helps student founders take the important steps to move from idea to reality and achieve important milestones along their product development roadmap.”

The Orange Innovation Fund was supported through a leadership gift from University trustee Raj-Ann Gill. Through programs like the Orange Innovation Fund, the University continues to strengthen its reputation as a leading national hub for student innovation, supporting entrepreneurs who blend creativity, technology and purpose to make real-world impact.

Syracuse University has announced the election of six new members to its Board of Trustees. All innovators in their fields, the new members bring diverse backgrounds and experiences as entrepreneurs, investors, executives and visionaries. The new members are Nomi Bergman, Brian D. Grossman, Stephen H. Hagerty ’91, G’93, Allegra F. Ivey G’99, Jeannine L. Lostritto ’90 and Kirthiga U. Reddy G’95,

“We are excited to welcome these new trustees, all of whom have a connection to the Orange community either though their personal experiences or through their families,” says Board Chair Jeff Scruggs. “They have each demonstrated extraordinary vision and expertise in their different fields of interest, and we look forward to their insights and service to our students and the continued growth of the University.”

“Our trustees express their dedication in so many different ways,” says Chancellor Kent Syverud. “They share their wisdom, their experiences and their generosity of time, talent and treasure in ensuring that we deliver on the promises we make to our students to prepare them for success. The newest trustees are joining a board that works collaboratively and effectively to strengthen our university.”

Nomi Bergman

Bergman is a senior executive at Advance and president of Advance/Newhouse Investment Partnership, a subsidiary of Advance. Throughout her career, she has been an executive, investor and advisor in the communications and emerging technology space with a focus on transforming the customer experience.

Bergman also recently served as interim CEO of 1010data, a technology platform provider of decision science, data management and data analytics that was owned by the Advance/Newhouse Investment Partnership and acquired by SymphonyAI. Previously, Bergman was president of Bright House Networks and helped lead the company to become the sixth-largest cable operator in the nation. She and her team provided corporate guidance, execution and oversight of technology, product and strategic partnerships across the company’s video, broadband, voice and wireless platforms.

Bergman currently serves on the board of directors for Advance’s growth investment HawkEye360. In addition, she is on the boards of Visteon and Black & Veatch, and was honored to serve as a Comcast board member. She is involved with several industry and nonprofit organizations; as a member of the FCC Technological Advisory Council, The Marconi Society, Adaptive Spirit and Bridging Voice.

She received the National Cable & Telecommunications Association’s Vanguard Award for Distinguished Leadership in 2008. In 2011, she was recognized with Women in Cable Telecommunications (WICT) highest honor, Woman of the Year.

Bergman earned a B.A. in economics and statistics from the University of Rochester in 1985. Growing up in Syracuse, her association with Syracuse University runs deep. Her father, Bob Miron ’59, is a Martin J. Whitman School of Management alumnus and a life trustee. Her husband, Neal, is a 1981 graduate of the Whitman School. Bergman herself has served on the College of Engineering and Computer Science (ECS) Dean’s Leadership Council and taught part-time as an adjunct professor. She is working to complete her own Syracuse degree, as she is enrolled in the Whitman School’s online MBA program.

Bergman lives in Fayetteville, New York, with her husband. They have three adult children, Becca (Hayworth), Dori and Allison.

Brian D. Grossman

Grossman is managing partner and chief investment officer for San Francisco-based PFM Health Sciences, a $1.6 billion health care focused investment advisor. The firm is one of the longest tenured public market life science investment funds, which focuses broadly across health sciences from small biotech firms to large global pharmaceutical, medical device and diagnostics companies. The firm also has a long history of investing in hospitals, health insurance and other businesses involved in providing medical services.

Grossman was a founding member of Partner Fund Management (PFM), which started operations in the fall of 2004. Prior to PFM, Grossman spent time as an investment analyst at Andor Capital (2001-2004) and Pequot Capital (2001) where he focused primarily on the biotech industry. He started his career in 1996 at J.P. Morgan Investment in the summer of 1996.

A graduate of economics from the University of Pennsylvania, Grossman grew up in Syracuse and has strong familial ties to Syracuse University. His grandfather Lionel O. Grossman L’1916; his father, Murray Grossman ’43, G’45 (College of Medicine); and his uncle Richard D. Grossman ’51, L’55 all attended the University as undergraduates, with his grandfather, uncle and sister Sarah going on to graduate from the College of Law. His father, Murray, provided medical services for many years to the athletics department, for which he was later recognized in 2016 with a Letterwinner of Distinction Award.

Grossman now lives in the San Francisco Bay area with his wife, Elizabeth, and three children: Brady, Zoe and Sylvie. He currently serves as co-chair of the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Health Executive Council, which evaluates business strategies, operations and financial performance for UCSF Health. The Grossmans are active philanthropically in their community, supporting the S.F. Ballet, Planned Parenthood, The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Peninsula, Tipping Point and their children’s schools.

Stephen H. Hagerty ’91, G’93

Hagerty is a management consultant, entrepreneur and civic leader. He is the founder and president of Hagerty Consulting, one of the nation’s leading emergency management consulting firms that help governments, schools, hospitals, businesses and other large organizations prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters. Between 2017 and 2021, he served as the mayor of Evanston, Illinois, successfully leading the city through a global pandemic and social unrest. As a result of his leadership, Evanston had one of the lowest infection and fatality rates in the state and one of the highest vaccination rates. Soon after leaving office, Evanston was named an All-American City in 2021 by the National Civic League.

Hagerty has successfully helped manage the recovery efforts from major U.S. disasters, including 9/11, Hurricane Katrina and the California wildfires. Before starting his firm in 2001, Hagerty worked for PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) for eight years building a disaster recovery practice.

Hagerty earned a B.S. degree from the College for Human Development (now the Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics) in consumer studies and went on to earn an M.P.A. from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. He has served on the Maxwell Advisory Board since 2014.

Together with his wife, Lisa Altenbernd G’93, they established the  in 2022, the Stephen Hagerty and Lisa Altenbernd Faculty Fellow Fund in 2018 and the William D. Duncombe Faculty Research Endowment in 2014. Hagerty and Altenbernd reside in Evanston, Illinois, with their two children, Caroline, a junior at Washington University in St. Louis, and Garrett, a sophomore at Evanston Township High School.

Allegra F. Ivey G’99

Ivey is a managing director at BofA Securities Inc. She has served as a public finance investment banker in the municipal banking and markets division for 15 years, primarily covering large cities, such as New York, Atlanta, Houston, Detroit, Nashville, Memphis and New Orleans.

During her 25-year career, Ivey worked for PaineWebber Inc. (which became UBS Financial Services), J.P. Morgan and Bank of America Merrill Lynch. She has helped state and local governments nationwide finance over $40 billion in infrastructure projects, including airports, toll roads and water and sewer facilities, among others.

Ivey earned a master’s in public administration from the Maxwell School, where she has served on the advisory board since 2017. She inspired other Maxwell graduates when she delivered the keynote speech at the 2018 convocation.

Ivey came to Syracuse University after earning a bachelor’s degree in economics from Harvard University in 1997. She lives in Manhattan with her husband, Matthew Brennan, and their four children, Tiernan (TJ), Ellison (Ellie), Kellan and Braden.

Jeannine L. Lostritto ’90

Lostritto parlayed her interest in architecture into her professional, personal and volunteer experiences, most recently in her engagement with the board of trustees of Friends Academy in Locust Valley, New York, an independent Quaker college-preparatory private school serving early childhood through 12th grade.

A former Friends Academy parent, Lostritto serves as a member of its board of trustees and on its Governance Committee, and helps oversee new building construction, maintenance of the campus and existing buildings as clerk of the Buildings and Grounds Committee.

With an undergraduate degree from the School of Architecture, she first took a job as an architectural consultant at Avis Rent-a-Car and on commercial architecture projects. From 1995 to 1998, Lostritto was employed in the civil engineering division at Sear-Brown—an architecture, engineering, planning and construction services firm—where she worked on large highway and expressway projects, such as the renovation of the Queens Midtown Tunnel, as well as drainage and landscape architecture projects.

She is currently a board member of her family’s real estate company, Steel Equities and is a member of the Board of Regents at NYU-Winthrop Hospital. Additionally, she and her husband, Glenn, actively support Syracuse University through contributions to such initiatives as the Barnes Center at The Arch and the General Supported Scholarship Fund. She is also a member of the School of Architecture Advisory Board.

Lostritto lives in Old Brookville New York, with her husband. They have three children, Domenica “Sunny” L’23, Glenn Jr. and Joseph.

Kirthiga U. Reddy G’95

Reddy is an entrepreneur and investor who has been at the helm of technology-driven transformations in innovative companies. She is CEO and co-founder of Virtualness, a mobile-first platform to help creators and brands navigate the complex world of Web3, and use the power of generative AI and blockchain. She is a founding investment partner of f7 Ventures, whose mission is “Bold Women Investing in Bold Ventures.” She is co-founder of Liftery, a social impact initiative focused on working mothers.

Previously, she was the first female investment partner at SoftBank Investment Advisers focused on frontier, enterprise and health tech investments. She was managing director for Facebook India and South Asia and then became managing global partner and emerging markets lead for global accounts in markets, including Mexico, Brazil, Indonesia, South Africa and Middle East. She has also held engineering and product executive roles at of Phoenix Technologies, Motorola and Silicon Graphics Inc.

Reddy earned a master’s degree in computer engineering from the College of Engineering and Computer Science and later earned an MBA from Stanford University. She served on the ECS Dean’s Leadership Council for several years and has established the Kirthiga Reddy Graduate Scholarship in ECS.

Reddy lives in Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada, with her husband, Dev G’94, who also attended the College of Engineering and Computer Science. They have two adult children, Ashna and Ariya.