Kristine Aleksandrovica wants to see a more sustainable world. Set to receive her B.S. in business administration and economics in May with a 3.64 GPA, Kristine “has clearly demonstrated strong academic and professional performance, service to the DMSB and NU communities, and impact on the global community,” says Todd Alessandri, associate dean for undergraduate education at D’Amore-McKim School of Business.

“I love supply chain, sustainability and design,” Kristine says. She is researching forced labor and human trafficking in supply chains with Dr. Shawn Bhimani, and learning about industries under the highest risk of modern slavery. “It is important because it is such an enormous contemporary problem,” she says, “and despite regulation, most companies don’t track lower-tier suppliers.” Her goal is to build one or more completely slave labor-free and environmentally sustainable companies.

To show her commitment to sustainability, Kristine founded DeLaKika, a naturally sourced and sustainable crystal jewelry brand, and co-founded NU Clothing Swap, the first clothing swap initiative for students to exchange clothes for free to reduce waste and cost. Additionally, she tries to find ways to re-design products so that they can be re-used or composted at the end of a lifecycle.

Kristine has been equally committed to Northeastern and served as a global student mentor to over 20 international freshmen, was a co-op peer advisor to 33 exchange students and people in special programs at Northeastern, and was the former director of finance and operations for Disrupt and NUimpact. She was also an exhibited artist and organizer at Smolensky Passage & O’Flaherty’s Gallery in both Moscow and New York.

Perhaps her greatest achievement was co-founding Northeasstern’s first interdisciplinary art club, Art Blanche. “I believe in balance in life. Having a space to express creativity regardless of your major will allow you to succeed in any other area in life, including your studies.”

In addition to her involvement with Northeastern clubs and her volunteer work, Kristine has completed three co-ops. The first was at Boston Consulting Group, one of the world’s most prestigious consulting firms. The second was a self-developed co-op in the global transportation team at L’Oréal in Paris, where she was able to pursue her passion for supply chain management. The third focused on Strategy and Product Management for Upfront in the financial technology industry.

Graduating cum laude, Kristine is a recipient of the UPS Foundation Scholarship, awarded to the most impactful supply chain graduates. She twice received the Carol and Darren Campili Competitive Advantage Award, a PEAK Ascent Award for research on forced labor and human trafficking in supply chain, PEAK Base Camp for her work on forced labor in the furniture industry, with her area of future venture building, and was a 2021 L’Oréal Brandstorm candidate.

By Matthew Burke

“The reason I chose Northeastern as the place I wanted to come and pursue my education was to me it seemed there was a very big community and it was a community of support,” says Sade Iriah, BHS’16, ’19, ’23. “For me, coming from Canada to another country where I don’t have any family, I really wanted to feel like wherever I went, I was going to be supported and there was going to be a community I could be involved with.”

Iriah moved from Toronto, Ontario, Canada to Boston to attend Northeastern on a women’s basketball scholarship. However, she suffered injuries that exposed her to opioids in the rehabilitation process. Iriah had always been interested in science, however, following her experiences, she became intrigued by the subject of opioids’ effects on the brain, which led her to pursue a career in science.

As a “triple husky” (a person who completes three degrees at Northeastern), Iriah has spent over a decade at Northeastern in anticipation of launching her career. Northeastern was the best choice for her. She considers Northeastern to be the best school for supporting students, with elite programs and tools that prepare you for success, such as the LEADERs program, which enables students to engage in experiential learning. “I don’t just want support while I’m a student, I want to be successful when I graduate and I think Northeastern does a really great job of setting up students’ post-graduation,” says Iriah

During her time at Northeastern, Iriah gained a passion for business. In her entrepreneurship innovation class, she realized she wanted to expand her creativity and start a business. She was particularly struck by the inequality that black mothers experience during childbirth in terms of the percentage of complications and percentage of fatalities. As she worked on her master’s degree in public health, she took the initiative to get certified and start a business as a doula. She also created a range of social media pages and launched an Instagram page to post different content freely, in addition to starting a hair business, ChocGoals, which sells organic and natural hair and beauty products for women.

One of Iriah’s proudest accomplishments was receiving a patent with Dr. Craig Ferris through Northeastern for the work she completed at the Center for Translational Neuroimaging. She is excited to soon become Dr. Iriah, with the hopes that she can make a positive impact on those who struggle with addiction. “Moving forward in my future career, I would want to see if I can really make some impactful change or impactful progress in how we as a society deal with addiction and have a better understanding of how the brain works,” she says.

If you would like to contact Sade, you can follow her on Instagram @all_sade and on LinkedIn

Instagram
Username @all_sade

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I want to be a great scientist; I want to really help make change in the world.”

Sade Iriah, BHS’16, ’19, ’23

Megan Adams, SSH’22, has been described by her coach as the “ultimate team player.” She is the committed, hardworking, and selfless goalkeeper for the Northeastern women’s soccer team. Since making her collegiate debut in 2018, Megan has recorded countless saves for her team and was awarded CAA Defensive Player of the Week.

Even with her busy soccer schedule, Megan has made the most of her five years at Northeastern. She majored in criminal justice, is currently pursuing her master’s in security and resilience studies, and interned at Bain & Company, a top management consulting firm. Her favorite Northeastern experience was traveling internationally for the first time to France and Spain with her team. This memorable trip gave Megan the opportunity to compete in games against European players, immerse herself in other countries’ histories, and attend unique cultural excursions.

Being a part of the women’s soccer program has given me the opportunity to attend Northeastern and build lifelong relationships. I’ve learned more from being a part of the team than anywhere else, and I’m grateful for all of my experiences and opportunities.”

– Megan Adams, SSH’22

Megan identifies her time on the women’s soccer team as an important and special period of her life, and she has generously made a gift in support of her team in gratitude. “Being a part of the women’s soccer program has given me the opportunity to attend Northeastern and build lifelong relationships,” she says. “I’ve learned more from being a part of the team than anywhere else, and I’m grateful for all of my experiences and opportunities.”

January 10, 2022

Nicolas Maciel, E’22, has always had a passion for engineering. Since beginning his academic career at Northeastern, he set out to immerse himself in learning the ins and outs of transportation engineering. Through multiple internships, co-ops, and extracurricular organizations, he’s done just that.

During Nicolas’s first semester, he joined Paradigm Hyperloop. This international team of students from the United States and Canada is making the Hyperloop concept—a mode of transportation consisting of levitating high-speed capsules traveling through low-pressure vacuum tubes—a reality. Now a senior, he leads the Paradigm team as project manager, working to design, build, and test the Hyperloop pods.

Outside of engineering, Nicolas has made countless memories as a member of the Entrepreneurs Club and Club Taekwondo, and through traveling abroad. His most unforgettable experience was traveling to Israel and Palestine to speak with regional and local diplomats regarding the conflict between the two nations, and immersing himself in the culture and geography of the Middle East.

With these accomplishments under his belt, Nicolas recognizes the importance of giving back to the program that made it all possible. He’s made a gift in support of Paradigm Hyperloop, contributing directly to club resources for those who will lead the group after him. “Northeastern has provided me with numerous career avenues both related and unrelated to my experience on the Paradigm team,” says Nicolas. “I feel compelled to return the favor.”

In just a few years, Nicolas has grown personally and professionally. His dedication, enthusiasm, and involvement in the university community have set an example for future Huskies, showing them that at Northeastern, the possibilities are endless.

January 10, 2022

Northeastern has provided me with numerous career avenues both related and unrelated to my experience on the Paradigm team. I feel compelled to return the favor.

-Nicolas Maciel, E’22

Graduating senior Mohsen Alqunaie, E’21, has always been active in Northeastern campus life. From community service to athletics, he does it all, making the most of his college experience and truly embodying the university spirit. He’s a member of the Hall Council, Triathlon Team, Class of 2021 Senior Year Experience Board, and Northeastern’s student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Mohsen has also pursued experiential learning opportunities at Northeastern to advance himself and his professional career. He’s been on co-op with Keolis Commuter Services, as well as the Public Works Department with the City of Boston. And last fall, he worked as a research assistant in the College of Engineering and analyzed the impact of COVID-19 on transit and mobility, focusing on Boston’s MBTA, highways, bike shares, and airlines. His enthusiasm for learning knows no bounds, and through his work experiences, he’s found his greatest passion in the field of civil engineering.

Not only does Mohsen commit his time to enhancing student programming as a leader on the Senior Year Experience Board, but he has generously made a gift to the College of Engineering, hoping to pay it forward to future engineering students. “I want to give future students more opportunities at Northeastern,” he says. “I also want to thank Northeastern for the incredible experience it has given me, and I hope the university keeps giving future students an amazing time.”

It’s graduates like Mohsen whose positivity, dedication, and philanthropy continue to inspire even after becoming an alumnus, leaving a legacy at Northeastern and exemplifying what it truly means to be a Husky.

March 24, 2021

Generate, operating under the Michael and Ann Sherman Center for Engineering Entrepreneurship Education, is Northeastern’s student-led product development studio. Teams of students connect with clients to work together on engineering product development for early stage startups. Aimed at fostering entrepreneurial engineering on campus, the organization has partnered with clients to help build new technologies.

The organization divides members into five teams: Management, Build Studio, Operations, Outreach, and Branding. There is huge emphasis on the Build Studio, where students contribute to hardware and software production.  

“Since working with Generate I have been doing my best to replicate the construction of that team, and re-acquire the skill sets that they possessed” says Max Thalheimer, founder of earnz. earnz is a customer loyalty platform for small restaurants, bars, and coffee shops. Generate worked with Thalheimer throughout the Fall in 2020 to build a customer-facing mobile app and a supporting backend for earnz. 

The student team helped build a foundation for the startup, and since then earnz has continued developing their platform. The mobile app is roughly 30 to 40 percent complete. “earnz has onboarded a front end developer and accepted another full time engineer, making up the current team of six. The team is targeting a Summer 2021 launch of their product in Boston.” 

In 2019, Matthew Swenson collaborated with Generate for SmartyPill, an automatic pill dispenser to address the issue of medication noncompliance in an inexpensive and easy to use fashion. “Generate was instrumental in giving us a barebones implementation of the SmartyPill idea,” says Swenson.  

SmartyPill came to Generate with three prototypes, aiming to create a fourth. Together they sought to address two central challenges: accurately dispensing single pills of any size and decoupling the client and server of their software in order to introduce other user cases to the product workflow. “It was very easy for me to understand Generate’s process, and the documentation and handoff materials helped a ton in continuing development after I was a client. Since Generate, I have been working with my co-founders on improving our hardware, software, and business strategy. We are hoping to obtain a patent for the most recent iteration of our hardware prototype. ” 

SmartyPill was Generate’s first client to have two teams in the same semester: one focused on the hardware components of the product, and the other focused on the supporting software infrastructure. The Software team designed and implemented an API, web portal, and device interface which are extensible and forward-compatible with anticipated future products in the larger Smarty Pill ecosystem. The hardware team was able to design and test a novel universal pill canister design that is modular and can dispense a single pill of a large range of sizes, as well as developing a custom PCB to house the power components required for this prototype. 

Generate is an integral part of what defines the Sherman Center, and by extension what defines the university’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.” 

Professor shashi murthy, Built for Northeastern by Greg St. Martin

With dedicated university students providing their expertise and skills, Generate provides great opportunities for entrepreneurs in the Northeastern community. Read more about their mission, development process, and some previous works here. Their website details client applications, and the interest form is open year round for prospective clients. For Northeastern entrepreneurs, perhaps this organization can help you generate your startup ideas.  

February 23, 2021

STUDENT DONOR

An ambitious leader. An incredible mentor and friend. A true inspiration to her peers and community. Miracle Olatunji, DMSB’22 brings a positive attitude, generous outlook, and unmatched work ethic to everything she does.

Miracle continues to make her mark on Northeastern. She’s part of the D’Amore-McKim Building Belonging Fellowship, the Women in Finance Club, Women Who Empower, the Entrepreneurship Club, Finance for the Community, the Huntington 100, the No Limits Dance Crew, and Innovation at Thrive, the financial literacy education center on campus. Miracle’s favorite part of Northeastern is the myriad of different communities, clubs, and organizations available to its students—and she has made sure to take full advantage.

Through her active roles in women’s programs and initiatives, Miracle has seen firsthand how important, imperative, and urgent the need to support women is—and says that “we have to take bold, purposeful steps toward gender equality,” which “will take a collective effort of stakeholders across government and policy, industries, institutions, and communities.” She is proud to be part of this joint action.

To advance a cause that’s near and dear to her heart—and one to which she devotes much of her time—Miracle made her gift in support of Women Who Empower, a community that has inspired and supported her greatly during her experience at Northeastern. Miracle was part of the university’s inaugural group of Women Who Empower Ambassadors, an opportunity that enabled her “to help further the mission of the community and help build a network of fellow students and alumni who are also passionate about it.” She is also heavily involved in the Women in Finance Club, having served as the club’s vice president of access and now as a mentor.

Miracle believes the relationships built and memories made at Northeastern have been a catalyst for her personal and professional growth. She wants to help ensure this is the case for her fellow Huskies—and that’s why giving back is so important to her.

January 25, 2021

Learn more about student philanthropy at Northeastern

STUDENT DONOR

A true people person and enthusiastic changemaker. With experiential learning in mind and an eagerness to get out of her comfort zone, Maria transferred to Northeastern as a third-year student. Here, she majors in psychology and minors in film production and behavioral neuroscience, blending her passions for critical research and cinema. An aspiring doctor, Maria has put countless hours into these interests and exploring how she can use them to better the lives of others.   

Maria made her gift to the Psychology Department Research Fund because of her ties to the field and appreciation for the impact psychology has on society. Her hope is that supporting this fund will lead to new advancements and discoveries, and improve people’s lives. She says, “I believe Northeastern has the right people and initiatives that can do that.” Through her work with the Senior Year Experience Board, her Northeastern pride will continue long after she earns her degree this year. With her time as an undergraduate coming to an end, Maria is working closely with members of the Senior Year Experience Board to ensure fellow students have unforgettable experiences, opportunities, and moments at Northeastern, just like she did. Among her favorite memories is her co-op, the university’s signature feature.

Maria also cherishes her membership in Sigma Xi, the scientific research honor society. The goal of the Northeastern chapter is to encourage both new and experienced student researchers to reach their fullest potential. Through her generous gift to the Psychology Department Research Fund and invaluable efforts in the organizations she’s part of, Maria is elevating the Northeastern experience for her fellow Huskies. Students who go on to become proud alumni, like her, build a crucial base for continued giving—and we are beyond grateful for her role in making this happen.

January 25, 2021

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Learn more about student philanthropy at Northeastern