How Did You Get Your Start?

I was always interested in business, math, and science. I figured I could always learn business on the job, but if I didn’t study math and science, I’d lose those skills. So I decided on the E-School rather than Comm.

I studied systems engineering. Most system engineers at UVA applied for consulting jobs, so I did the same. It drained me. The case studies and interviews weren’t giving me any energy.

I found a program called Venture for America, which connected college grads with high-access, high-impact roles at fast-paced startups in emerging cities.

I applied, never again having to market size the number of people in NYC or how many quarters stacked in a room.

I got into the program and moved to Birmingham, AL, and the experience changed my life.

I joined the product management team at a company called Fleetio. We raised a series A, B, and C. I launched the first revenue-generating add-on product, which made a quarter million in revenue in its first year.

I wanted to push myself, so I left Fleetio to start my own mental health app called Encircle. Even though our product wasn't successful, it gave me the professional confidence to keep following my interests.

I had volunteered at a lot of farms, and was interested in diving deeper into the agriculture industry. I networked with farmers, friends of friends, trying to find people who were doing cool stuff in the space.

I joined a nonprofit that was helping the U.S Department of Agriculture think about how they can collect and use data more effectively. After 2 years, our government grant dried up, which was a blessing in disguise.

It felt like being deep in a complex system where my voice was buried under a lot of bureaucracy. At a startup, you build something and iterate. With the nonprofit, it was a much slower cycle.

I still do some work in agriculture, but it’s more startup-adjacent.

Currently, I work at the Ember Fellowship. It's an organization I founded as a way to revitalize Venture for America, which shut down in late 2024.