Meet the VentureWell staff— a team of experts, leaders, and high-performing individuals committed to expanding the impact of innovation and entrepreneurship.
marketing & communications
Department
Meet the VentureWell staff— a team of experts, leaders, and high-performing individuals committed to expanding the impact of innovation and entrepreneurship.
Department
Demetria Gallagher
Vice President, Learning, Knowledge, and Impact
Demetria leads the Evaluation and Marketing & Communications teams at VentureWell, and supports the development and implementation of an organizational knowledge and learning agenda. She has led across multiple sectors including government, STEM, entrepreneurship, and innovation. Notably, she co-founded the Jamii Group, leading cross-sector business development, innovation, and social impact; she also served as a policy analyst and White House Political Appointee in the administration of former President Barack Obama. Demetria holds a B.A. in Sociology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Master’s in Sustainable Urban Planning from George Washington University.
Eliza Gallo
Marketing and Communications Officer
Eliza oversees digital content as part of VentureWell’s marketing and communications strategy, with a focus on websites, social media, and email marketing. Prior to joining the company, she worked in university communications, launching and developing a variety of websites, blogs, and social media channels, with the goal of presenting institutional content in an engaging, appealing way. Eliza also draws on her experience as a magazine journalist, at publications ranging from Architectural Digest to Archaeology Magazine. She holds a B.A. from Columbia University.
Max Germer
Marketing and Communications Officer
Max is the designer for marketing and communications for VentureWell and partner programs. He oversees the visual brand voice throughout the organization and strives to create engaging, impactful design in print and web. Max has 25 years of leading creative teams, including as senior designer for E-commerce at Yankee Candle and art director for Darby O’Brien Advertising. Max holds a B.S. in Graphic Design from Keene State College.
Jillian Gorry
Marketing and Communications Officer
Jillian focuses on writing and editing content to support VentureWell’s thought leadership work. Previously, Jillian supported Pace University’s rebrand efforts, ran its official student newsletter, and was selected to serve on its first Presidential Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion committee. She has also launched her own digital publication, FemHype, for women and nonbinary video gamers. Jillian is a double alumna of Pace University, having earned a B.A. in English Language and Literature as well as an M.S. in Publishing with a digital focus.
Brianca Kirkman
Senior Marketing and Communications Officer
In her role, Brianca develops storytelling and digital marketing campaigns for students, faculty, and entrepreneurs to spread the word about VentureWell and its programming. In past experiences, Brianca has built national marketing campaigns for political movements that have raised multiple six figures, garnered national press attention, and mobilized tens of thousands of volunteers. She holds a B.A. in Business Administration with Marketing Concentration from University of Missouri–St. Louis and an M.A. in Marketing and Advertising Communications from Webster University.
Leah Loch
Marketing and Communications Officer
Leah supports VentureWell’s mission via strategic, well organized, and creative marketing and communications. She has over a decade of experience promoting entrepreneurship education in grades K-14+. She has collaborated with executives at the National Association of Community College Entrepreneurship on a communications strategy including email, website, webinars, print materials, social media, events, and press, and more. She graduated from Miami University of Ohio with a B.A. in Communications and Spanish and a Minor in Child Studies.
Angela Russo
Director, Marketing and Communications
Angela supports the marketing and promotion of VentureWell early-stage venture programs, faculty grants, and events, as well as collateral development and design. Prior to joining VentureWell, she worked in publishing, higher education, and technology development, where she helped both corporations and non-profit organizations find their vision and stay true-to-brand. She has expertise in marketing strategy, collateral design, and project management. Angela received a B.A. from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Mike Sjostedt
Senior Marketing and Communications Officer
Mike is the content marketing strategist for VentureWell. He manages the development of engaging content and helpful resources to impact the ecosystem that supports early-stage innovators on their entrepreneurship journey. During Mike’s 25 years of publishing and marketing experience, he cultivated and managed the online presence for many organizations and personalities, including bestselling author Daniel Goleman. Mike holds a B.A. in Communications from Central Connecticut State University and a Certificate in Technical Writing/Web Content from California State University of Sacramento.
Alyssa Smith
Marketing and Communications Officer
Alyssa supports the VentureWell team by creating various marketing strategies for our plethora of initiatives, specifically for the early-stage innovator programs, events and organization’s branding. As a communications professional, Alyssa has excelled at sharing companies’ stories, mission and vision, both internally and externally. Prior to joining VentureWell, she most recently worked at the non-profit Share Our Strength, where she served as the Communications and Marketing Manager. Alyssa is a proud graduate of Howard University in Washington, DC, where she received a B.A. in Journalism.
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