The Mario M. Casabona Future Scientists Program encourages students to recognize the importance of oral communication skills and the ability to discuss the results of scholarship effectively with various audiences and at all levels. The Program motivates, trains and rewards students for the preparation and delivery of effective communication of scientific research to the general public and non-science professionals. Such presentation and communication skills provide students with the capacity to be distinctly competitive and successful in their subsequent educational and career paths. Students/Mentors will be selected from each department to compete.
On Tuesday, November 19, 2024 from 2:00 – 5:30 pm in CELS, teams of students selected by each of our departments will present five minute, five slide presentations judged by our panel of professionals for awards. Students are presenting their research in both a poster session and five-minute oral presentation.
Awards
| First Place | Second Place | Third Place | Best Mentor | Audience Favorite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2000 | $1500 | $1000 | $1500 | $500 |
Presenters
- A potential new drug target for tuberculosis: IGP Synthase
- Stella Obuba, MS in Pharmaceutical Biochemistry
- Alexandra Everson, BS in Biochemistry
- Mentored by Dr. Nina Goodey, Chemistry and Biochemistry
- Exploring the universe’s building blocks: How detectors help us explore nuclear physics
- Sarah Estupinan-Jimenez, BS in Physics
- Mentored by Dr. Kent Leung, Physics and Astronomy
- Impact of Biological Sex on Gene Therapy
- Nour Shalash, BS in Biology
- Mentored by Dr. Christos Suriano, Biology
- Advanced Manufacturing Pathfinder: A Multimodal Collaborative Robotic System
- Maxim Lyons, BS in Computer Science
- Garrett Modery, BS in Computer Science
- Mentored by Dr. Weitian Wang, School of Computing
- Carbon Loss in the Mullica River Due to Lateral Erosion
- Ava Distaso, BS in Earth & Environmental Science
- Mentored by Dr. Jorge Lorenzo Trueba, Earth and Environmental Studies
Judges
Mr. Mario Casabona
Founder and Managing Partner
Casabona Ventures, LLC
CSAM Advisory Board Member
Mr. Mario M. Casabona is an entrepreneur and active angel investor. In 2012, he founded TechLaunch, committed to identifying and nurturing early stage tech ventures by mentoring, coaching, and providing access to resources and capital. To date, TechLaunch has supported over 200 tech companies and mentored over 350 aspiring entrepreneurs. In 2006, he founded Casabona Ventures, investing in over 50 seed and early stage companies. In 1982, he founded Electro-Radiation Inc., which was acquired by Honeywell International (Aerospace Group) in 2004. He received the Small Business Administration National Tibbett’s Award for his contributions in technology, and was listed as one of the top five most influential persons in New Jersey technology by The Star-Ledger. He was twice recognized by the New Jersey Technology Council, (now TechUnited:NJ) first as the recipient of their Financier of the Year Award and subsequently their Legend of Technology Award. He is Chairman Emeritus of Jumpstart NJ Angel Network and Chairman Emeritus of the R&D Council of New Jersey. He also enjoys serving on the Boards of various for-profit and non-for-profit organizations. Mr. Casabona is an electrical engineer and holds twelve national and international patents in the field of satellite-based navigation and communications.
Ruth Clements
President, East Region
Quest Diagnostics
Ms. Ruth Clements is currently the President of the East Region at Quest Diagnostics, the world’s leading provider of diagnostic information services, providing leadership to over ~5,500 employees. Prior to serving in her current role, Ruth was the VP/GM of the Infectious Disease and Immunology franchise at Quest Diagnostics, The company annually serves one in three adult Americans and half the physicians and hospitals in the United States. In her role, Ruth has been instrumental in the COVID-19 response for Quest Diagnostics. She has also been a leader in the company’s Quest for Health Equity initiative, a philanthropic effort with the Quest Foundation backed with over $100 million in financial and testing resources to address and reduce health disparities in underserved communities. Ruth is an active board member of the Joi Life foundation, a non-profit organization that supports neurologic disease through education initiatives for patients and health care professionals, scholarships & mentorship opportunities for students, as well as innovative forms of healing.
Terry Gunning
CEO, Retired
Lone Oak Business Solution
Mr. Terence J. Gunning has 30 years of management experience in the healthcare industry including diagnostic testing and services, medical devices and consumer healthcare products. He was Chief Executive Officer of Lone Oak Business Solutions, a life sciences consulting firm. Prior to Lone Oak Business Solutions, Terry was CEO of Cadent, a worldwide medical service and device start-up headquartered in Carlstadt, New Jersey. Terry’s tenure as Cadent’s CEO brought a tripling of revenue and significant improvement in operating profit and cash flow concurrent with several successful capital funding campaigns which paved the way for a successful strategic exit. As President of Datascope’s Cardiac Assist Division (CA) Terry brought significant sales increases, the launch of three new products, CA’s first successful acquisition and re-establishment of CA as the worldwide leader in counter-pulsation therapy. As Vice President and Head of the Corporate Anatomic Pathology Division, and as Vice President, Marketing, for Quest Diagnostics, he led several growth initiatives resulting in significant top- and bottom-line improvements. His resume includes marketing-related senior management positions with Johnson & Johnson Consumer Products and Bristol-Myers Squibb. Terry earned his MBA – Finance and Accounting at Columbia University and BS in Chemistry at Montclair State University.
Peter Kestenbaum
Managing Partner
1099Partners
Mr. Peter Kestenbaum was an early employee of Sun Microsystems from 1983 to 1998 during which Sun grew from a start up to a multi billion dollar post IPO silicon valley entity and became king of the “.com” era. His final role at SUN was Director of North American Marketing. After Sun, Peter served as the chief business development officer for a NY City based firm which was also fortunate enough to IPO. Peter spent the early 2000s as an advisor and consultant to numerous startups including executive staff at IBM. He left the 9 to 5 world in 2006 and founded a firm, 1099Partners, solely targeted at providing assistance to the startup space. He or his partners have mentored or coached hundreds of startups or served as advisors or board members to many. In the last 15 years, Peter held adjunct or consultant roles at numerous universities and accelerators and even assisted us at Montclair in the early design of our own entrepreneurship program and the Feliciano center. Peter is still actively assisting young entrepreneurs today on a reduced schedule.
Mukesh Patel
Asst. Professor of Professional Practice, Management & Global Business
Rutgers Business School, Rutgers University
Mukesh Patel is an Asst. Professor of Professional Practice at Rutgers Business School and Law School. He has dedicated 25 years to entrepreneurship, supporting and helping foster the startup ecosystem in the US and NJ. Experienced in private equity, venture capital, innovation, business law, and education, he has founded numerous ventures, worked with 100+ investors and strategic partners, and advised more than 1,000 organizations. Professor Patel has created and teaches more than ten entrepreneurial university courses to more than 700 students per year, collaborating across undergraduate and graduate schools of business, law, medicine, computer science, and engineering and has taught in five countries, receiving the university’s Presidential Award for Excellence and Innovation in Education. As a lead-faculty in the executive education program, he has taught and coached executives and management in major global corporations, non-profit organizations, educational institutions, and the US military. He has interdisciplinary degrees including a B.A. in economics and statistics, with a secondary in computer science and cinematography, and a juris doctor degree with concentration in business and entrepreneurial law.