Research and innovation

Micki Morency, ’81, will be the first to tell you that she longed for a career centered around her passion for books and reading. This year, Morency made that dream come true. Drawing inspiration from her immigration from Haiti to Boston and her work in social service, she published her debut novel, The Island Sisters, to critical acclaim and was named a Rising Star finalist by the Women Fiction Writers Association.

Brain Health

Nickolai Slavov is developing new tools to investigate Alzheimer’s disease, which affects more than 55 million people worldwide. Slalov, an associate professor of bioengineering and founder and director of the new Parallel Squared Technology Institute, developed a groundbreaking platform that significantly expands the scale of single-cell protein analysis of the disease. This advance is expected to supercharge research and open areas of discovery.   

David Wyatt, ’88, is president of Wyatt Engineering, a manufacturer of flow measurement devices, which are critical instruments for monitoring fluid fluctuations and detecting leaks. Crediting the discipline that he fostered while at Northeastern and on co-op, Wyatt and his team successfully designed the flow meters that helped a lunar spacecraft, named Odysseus, control its landing and touch ground on the moon in February 2024.

Ceylan Rowe, ’03, found her calling after becoming aware of period poverty—the lack of access to menstrual products and education—in the Boston metro area. She founded Fihri to provide menstrual education and distribute sustainable period packs to financially disadvantaged students and disaster-stricken communities. Today, Fihri has sent more than 20,000 eco-friendly products to 12 countries, alleviating a substantial health and wellness barrier for young women across the globe.

Anya Gupta, ’25, spent six months at industry juggernaut Sony Entertainment working as a promotions co-op for Columbia Records. The experience was wide-ranging: She learned about radio airplay, sales correlations, the relationship between finance and promotion, and how business relations can affect an artist’s success. A bonus perk: The music industry major also got to attend artist events. Gupta is now positioned to pursue her dream career working for a major label after graduation. 

Northeastern’s School of Law reached its $1 million fundraising goal for the “A Million Thanks for Dan Givelber” campaign, honoring its late former dean. The Givelber-Subrin Public Interest Law Co-op Fund supports law students in unpaid and underpaid co-op positions that benefit society. Generous gifts came from School of Law alumni, including James Buechl, ’74, Larry Cetrulo, ’75, Leslie Joseph, ’93, Mary Kay Leonard, ’79, Jeremy Naylor, ’99, and Bill Newman, ’75.

Christian Bernier, ’25, with a combined major in computer science and physics, did a six-month co-op at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, or CERN, working on the Large Hadron Collider, the world’s biggest particle accelerator. A particle physics research assistant, Bernier helped develop software to ensure detector circuit boards connected to the LHC function long term without overheating. The experience illustrated for him how computer science can revolutionize physics research. 

Cybersecurity major Owen Seltzer, ’24, set ambitious goals for his co-op, landing a position at NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation department in Washington, D.C. There, he worked with NASA’s leadership to help shape agencywide cybersecurity policies. Seltzer also developed a tool that could be used across teams to streamline risk metrics reporting. In all, the experience proved to be not just a resumé builder, but an opportunity to make a real impact in the organization.

Network Engineering

Advancing wireless technology is critical to U.S. economic health and security. Northeastern leads the way with support from the CHIPS and the Science Act’s Wireless Innovation Fund. Tommaso Melodia – William Lincoln Smith Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and director of Northeastern’s Institute for the Wireless Internet of Things — heads the foundational work, testing approaches to building Open RAN systems — a key to standardizing systems and seamless communication across different networks.  

Northeastern’s Roux Institute in Portland, Maine, was a significant driver of our tremendously successful year. A dynamic learning, research, and innovation hub, the institute is moving to the location of the former B&M Baked Beans factory this year. Further, $1 million from Richard and Carolyn McGoldrick recently established the McGoldrick Family Graduate Promise Scholarship at the Roux and a $2 million commitment from Joe and Carol Wishcamper will support the Portland Campus Development Fund.

Kade Krichko, ’12, is no stranger to journalism. He’s written extensively for media powerhouses such as ESPN and The New York Times, and has reported from far-flung locations such as Lebanon, Cuba, and rural China. Now Krichko has launched Ori Magazine, a travel company and publication inspiring people with stories about global experiences. He’s also the creator of Game Plan, an initiative that connects Northeastern journalism students with established voices in sports media.

Health

A new AI tool called life2vec developed by computer scientist and inaugural President Joseph E. Aoun Professor, Tina Eliassi-Rad, makes predictions about the human lifespan with advanced accuracy. Built on data that reflects the population of Denmark, life2vec offers a window into a society and its policies and people, providing insights that can help doctors make informed decisions.

Jasper Lau, ’19, who founded venture capital firm Era, is a story of unbridled success. Now Lau, as the youngest member of the D’Amore-McKim School of Business Dean’s Executive Committee, is paying forward his good fortune by making gifts totaling over $500,000 to Northeastern. Most recently, he supported unpaid and underpaid co-ops for business students. He’s also championing first-generation college students like himself through the DMSB F1RST Scholars Program.

Philip Mathieu, ‘24, had a bachelor’s in physics from Brown University and was teaching middle schoolers at the Ecology School, in Saco, Maine. But he had his eye on a career in tech and when he discovered the Roux Institute’s Align program in data science, designed for people like him with no computer science experience, he took the leap. He now works as a data scientist at IDEXX, which creates diagnostic and software products and services for veterinary medicine. 

Few leaders have been as influential in hospital administration as Steven Summer, ’72. Currently president and CEO of the Healthcare Institute, Summer has held similar roles at both the Colorado and West Virginia Hospital Associations. He credits his 1968 co-op at the Massachusetts Hospital Association for launching his professional journey. He highlighted that experience in his remarks while accepting the American Hospital Association Board of Trustees Lifetime Achievement Award.

The late Professor Emerita Lakshmibai Venkatramani was a trailblazer for women in mathematics. She arrived at Northeastern in 1987 and was an accomplished researcher and dedicated teacher throughout her 32-year tenure. Venkatramani passed away in 2023, but she continues to inspire people, including her son, Girish. He established the Lakshimibai Venkatramani Fund for Math Graduate Students to honor his mother’s legacy; the fund will give students from underrepresented backgrounds the opportunity to pursue their dreams.

Marcello Twahirwa, ’25, got to experience surgery up close and personal during his co-op at a Seville, Spain, medical clinic. The biology major helped with everything from holding tools during surgical procedures to helping with tasks like cutting sutures. He also worked in pediatrics, which taught him how to interact with patients, an essential skill for a physician. By the end of his co-op, Twahirwa was sure he wants to pursue a career as a surgeon.

Health sciences major Leah Oruko, ’25, is already contributing to understanding how to take on a deadly, but often overlooked, tropical disease: visceral leishmaniasis. While on co-op at the Research on Multi-Disease and Educational Services Center in Chemolingot, Kenya, Oruko interviewed local doctors and residents about barriers to seeking treatment—vital information for the team to break the disease’s continued spread and valuable experience for Oruko’s career plans in medicine.

Bioinformatics major Tianyi Zhang, ’23, chose to study computer science at Northeastern’s Vancouver campus under the mentorship of machine learning instructor Aanchan Mohan. Recognizing Zhang’s potential, Mohan offered him a position at his software development company, Happy Prime. There, Zhang worked with the team on an app that uses machine learning to recognize the voices of people with speech disorders. He earned his master’s in December 2023 and is now pursuing a PhD in computer science at University of Victoria.

Andie Weiner, ’24, spent a semester working in development at the Boston Symphony Orchestra, doing everything from event planning to hashing out old gift agreements with donors. The theater/psychology combined major especially enjoyed helping with a holiday gala that introduces young students to the symphony. The experience also opened Weiner’s eyes to what’s possible in the arts. She’s now a master’s candidate studying creative producing at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, in London.

Network Science

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention chose Alessandro Vespignani—director of Northeastern’s Network Science Institute and Sternberg Family Distinguished University Professor—to launch an infectious disease prediction center. EPISTORM: The Center for Advanced Epidemic Analytics and Predictive Modeling Technology, leading a consortium of 10 research institutions, healthcare systems, and private companies, will use AI and network science to monitor and forecast outbreaks of new and existing diseases, similar to the way the National Weather Service provides hurricane warnings.

Created with a nearly $3.5 million commitment from Northeastern trustee and co-chair of the Experience Powered by Northeastern campaign Todd Manganaro, ’95, the Michele and Anthony Manganaro Distinguished Professorship will support vital research in brain health, including neurodegenerative diseases, cerebrovascular diseases, and other brain disorders.

As a biology major at Rochester Institute of Technology, Paige Norris, ‘24, discovered her passion for sustainability. During an internship, she caught the data science bug and saw how it could apply to sustainability. The Roux Institute and its Align master’s program in data science was the perfect next step. Norris is now a data engineer at Braincube, a startup that creates tools for manufacturers to improve quality, productivity, and sustainability in their factories.