Greg Johnson

MS in Accounting student leader receives PCAOB Scholarship

Katelynn C Hipolito — Tue, 29 Jul 2025 16:22:56 +0000

MS in Accounting student leader receives PCAOB Scholarship Katelynn C Hipolito Tue, 07/29/2025 - 12:22

In This Story

“He advocated for exploring the possibilities of a career in accounting to the entire class,” says Khaled Alkurd. “I took him up on that, and I have been very happy ever since.”

Khaled Alkurd

After taking the Survey of Accounting 203 course with �鶹��Ƶ alumnus Muhammad Awais, BS Accounting ‘13, MS Accounting ‘14, an adjunct instructor at the Costello College of Business, Khaled Alkurd knew everything he needed to know to switch his area of study from marketing to accounting.

“He advocated for exploring the possibilities of a career in accounting to the entire class,” says Alkurd. “I took him up on that, and I have been very happy ever since.”

Alkurd continues to excel in his accounting studies, planning to graduate with his undergraduate degree in the fall of 2025 and with his MS in Accounting in the spring of 2026, through the Bachelor's Accelerated Master's (BAM) Program.

Further boosting his resume and job prospects, he was named a PCAOB scholar following his spring 2025 semester. “It is something that means a lot to me and helps with my confidence and assurance to know that, indeed, auditing is a field that is a good fit for me,” he says.

The Accounting 461 course and the way it was taught by Ethan Kinory, an instructional assistant professor in accounting at Costello, was the most significant factor in changing Alkurd’s interest from the tax side of accounting to auditing. With Kinory’s guidance, he found that he had a knack for inspecting details for accuracy. “I believe he is a remarkable professor,” says Alkurd. “He cares deeply about his students.” Though Accounting 461 has had, perhaps, the biggest impact so far, each class has contributed more to Alkurd’s understanding, growth, and ambitions. “My experience has been excellent,” he says. “The entire faculty is extremely supportive. They have all been amazing in their own ways and rights.”

Ethan Kinory was also the one who recommended to Alkurd that he run for president of George �鶹��Ƶ’s chapter of Beta Alpha Psi, an international organization for accounting, finance, and information systems majors that he had already been heavily involved in. It is through Beta Alpha Psi that he got connected with Baker Tilly for an internship, and it helped him secure the PCAOB scholarship as well.

In addition to serving as president of Beta Alpha Psi in the fall, Alkurd will be the student ambassador for the MS in Accounting program, a role he’s very much looking forward to. "I'm excited to share my passion for accounting and the incredible opportunities available within the MS program with prospective students," he says. Costello’s student ambassadors are exceptional students who embody the values of leadership, community engagement, and professional excellence. Having gotten so much out of his Costello experience already, he is excited to lead in these extracurriculars and help others.

Khaled Alkurd is making the most of his opportunities at the Costello College of Business by being highly engaged. “If you put your best foot forward, if you attend and apply yourself, you will succeed,” he says. “There are resources available. You just have to show the engagement and you’ll be rewarded tremendously.” In the future, Alkurd plans to stay in the region and work at a large corporate firm, possibly one of the Big Four firms. He aims to leverage his strong academic foundation, leadership experience, and newfound PCAOB scholar status to contribute to complex financial audits and make a significant impact in the accounting profession.

Topics

Accounting - Costello

Costello College of Business News

Costello College of Business Students

Bachelor’s/Accelerated Master’s program

Costello MBA students are turning their ideas into successful companies

Greg Johnson — Mon, 07 Jul 2025 13:55:26 +0000

Costello MBA students are turning their ideas into successful companies Greg Johnson Mon, 07/07/2025 - 09:55

In This Story

Skip West

“I wanted to start my own business,” says Patcharaporn Adchariyavivit, a Costello MBA student, “It seemed like this course was going to help me start it. But I didn’t expect it be this good, you know?”

Skip West

Skip West, founder of MAXSA Innovations and adjunct faculty at the Costello College of Business at �鶹��Ƶ, offers the course Turning Ideas into Successful Companies once a year to MBA students. The concept for the course came from West’s own entrepreneurial experiences of turning his ideas into companies. He has co-taught the MBA version of the course with Suresh Shenoy, an engineer, senior business executive, and philanthropist.

When he was in graduate school at Stanford, West took a course that was attended by both engineering and business students, working together to turn their ideas into companies. Several years later, he reconnected with his partner from the class to build upon their ideas from school. Together, they founded DesignTech International, where they pioneered remote car starting and keyless entry, among other automotive safety accessories and wireless home automation products. The successful launch of the business took many years, but it really began in the collaborative environment of a classroom.

Now, Skip West has designed the curriculum for his course at the Costello College of Business so that students can realize their own success. “It’s all about the students coming up with their passion,” he says. “It’s not what I care about. It’s what they care about and developing a business that they’re interested in.”

Ramel DuPree. Photo provided

Ramel DuPree entered the course with his idea for a men’s special skincare brand that is primarily targeted to Black men. “Once I was presented with the possibility to actually take a graduate level course, to actually learn more and go into details with it, and also have some guidance, I just jumped at the opportunity.”

Adchariyavivit also entered the course with a concept already in mind. Inspired by observing all the processes in her family’s restaurant business—combined with her previous professional experience as a project manager in an IT startup—she had been working on an AI-powered restaurant consultant application.

“In today’s digital world, where AI makes market research, competitive analysis, and business plan writing almost mundane, the real skill is learning how to learn,” says Shenoy. “That means teaching students to validate, verify, and seek relevant information to bring their ideas to life.” Throughout the course, the students examined every facet, from manufacturing to marketing and everything in between. “In the end, they develop a business plan, and it’s a lot of pitching to the class, feedback from your classmates, feedback from us,” says West. “It’s a discovery class.”

Patcharaporn Adchariyavivit. Photo provided

The class has made a significant difference in the business ideas from both Adchariyavivit and DuPree. “With Skip, the guy’s more practical, and he is a real investor and a real entrepreneur,” says Adchariyavivit. DuPree appreciated how the feedback loop kept him on his toes and focused on eliminating any blind spots. “Once I was able to get that feedback,” he says, “I had to come back. I had to readjust. I had to restructure. It was super beneficial to allowing me to do an outside-looking-in perspective for myself.”

The course was tailor made for students to turn their passionate ideas into successful companies, but it’s beneficial to all business students. “Even if you’re developing your business conceptually, it forces you to look at everything holistically,” says West. “You get to see all the aspects of a business.”

Topics

Costello College of Business News

Costello College of Business Students

Residency trip to New York City inspires Impact Fellows

Greg Johnson — Tue, 27 May 2025 15:00:28 +0000

Residency trip to New York City inspires Impact Fellows Greg Johnson Tue, 05/27/2025 - 11:00

While many of their peers were spending spring break catching sun at the beach, members of the Impact Fellows Program were busy engaging with organizations and professionals in New York City to see how they run their operations while being dedicated to social impact, sustainability, and community service. 

Impact Fellows visit New York City. Photo provided

Using the United Nations’ sustainable development goals as their framework, the Impact Fellows Program is a competitive two-year program for students in the Costello College of Business at �鶹��Ƶ who want to foster their leadership abilities and personal development.

The Costello students in the Impact Fellows Program come from different backgrounds and have different interests, but they are united in the belief that business should be a force for good in the world.

“At the Costello College of Business, we believe deeply in learning that extends beyond the classroom,” said Yena Kim, director of academic achievement and innovative learning at the Costello College of Business. “The Impact Fellows residency trip is a powerful example of our commitment to student experience and career readiness—giving students the opportunity to apply what they’ve learned, explore their purpose, and connect with professionals making a difference in the world. Experiences like this are where leadership is forged and career paths come into focus.”

Along with being plugged into a network of mentors and participating in a variety of co-curricular activities, the four-day residency trip is a requirement of the program to give the students hands-on experience away from campus.

“We had learned about the UN sustainable development goals, and we had done other co-curricular trips that were almost like steppingstones into this experience,” said Camila Rosales, a junior studying supply chain and operations management. “This residency trip almost felt like a final exam situation.”

But rather than sitting in a classroom and filling out exam sheets, they joined several organizations who are making a real difference.

High Line Tour. Photo provided

Leaving on Tuesday and returning on Friday, the Impact Fellows had many places to see and people to meet during their residency trip to the Big Apple. Touring the High Line, they saw a clear illustration of sustainability for all who walk along or around it. Formerly part of the New York Central Railroad, the High Line was transformed into a 1.45-mile-long elevated linear park. “When you go to a city like New York, you really experience the interconnectedness, the history, all of the fundamental values of community,” said Mike Van Dyken, a senior studying business analytics and management information systems.

God's Love We Deliver. Photo provided

At God’s Love We Deliver, the group learned how the nonprofit cooks and delivers specialized meals to people suffering from chronic illnesses. “Getting to help those people hands-on and seeing how my work had an impact on people’s lives definitely inspired me to create my own nonprofit organization one day,” said Shriganesh Sivakumar, a sophomore studying finance.

Leticia Nunez Nova, a senior studying marketing and business analytics, also has a passion for nonprofit work, and this was the first time she was able to speak with the operations team of a nonprofit. “I love nonprofit work, especially marketing it,” she said, “So, that would be like my dream job. Maybe work for a social enterprise.”

International WELL Building Institute. Photo provided

At the International WELL Building Institute, the Impact Fellows had the opportunity to engage directly with leaders in sustainable finance and workplace innovation. During a dynamic conversation with Minjia Yang, vice president and head of sustainable finance, students gained insights into how companies are designing spaces that prioritize human well-being, environmental responsibility, and innovation. The visit not only deepened the students’ understanding of sustainability in business but also provided valuable networking opportunities with a global leader in the field—an experience many described as inspiring and eye-opening.

The Impact Fellows had a full itinerary on their trip, also touring the Tenement Museum and the United Nations Headquarters.

Tenement Museum. Photo provided

“I really do owe a lot to the residency trip because I was on the fence of what to pursue, but having a week of experiencing what it’s like to be in spaces that are focused on sustainability and helping the community made me realize how much I want to do it,” said Rosales.

Their experiences showed the students that profitability and sustainability are not mutually exclusive. “It opened my eyes to the fact that there are businesses that have made it possible to get revenue and also do good,” said Nunez Nova.

Besides seeing how everything operates, the Impact Fellows learned how to communicate and work effectively with professionals and volunteers from a wide variety of backgrounds.

“The Impact Fellows Program teaches you not only cross-cultural communication but also how to implement and communicate with professionals that work in the industry,” said Sivakumar. For several of the Impact Fellows, the trip confirmed career goals. “Just overall, this program helped me stick with my original vision of how I could use business to have a positive impact,” said Van Dyken.

United Nations Headquarters. Photo provided

For the Impact Fellows, the residency trip to New York City brought their program experience full circle. When they graduate, they will be entering the workforce with connections, leadership skills, and the inspiration to make the world a better place through business and innovation.

If you are interested in learning more about the Impact Fellows Program and how you can get involved, visit us online.

Topics

Costello College of Business News

Business for a Better World Impact Fellows Program

Sustainability

Students

Learn more about the Impact Fellows Program

Accounting Advisory Council Scholarship broadens horizons for international student

Greg Johnson — Fri, 25 Apr 2025 13:58:26 +0000

Accounting Advisory Council Scholarship broadens horizons for international student Greg Johnson Fri, 04/25/2025 - 09:58

In This Story

Karen King

Haoling Wang was taking a professional skills development course taught by Karen King, an associate professor in business foundations at the Costello College of Business, when she encouraged him to take advantage of the resources being offered by the college.

Haoling Wang

Shortly thereafter, Wang learned about the Accounting Advisory Council Scholarship and submitted his application. In many ways, receiving the scholarship was a validation of his decision to leave China in pursuit of higher education in the United States.

“In Beijing, it’s the professor leading study,” he says. “But here it’s the students leading study, and we can ask more questions and embrace the community.”

With his father working as a general manager and his mother serving as a vice president at a school—primarily overseeing logistics and operations—Wang grew up observing both executive leadership and the practical coordination required to support large institutions. These experiences sparked his interest in business structure and financial systems.

“Math is my favorite subject, and I’m pretty good at it,” he says. “Also, the calculating is pretty interesting for me because I can find financial reports on the company for their different activities.”

As an international student, Wang finds it easy to connect with other students who share his cultural background. However, winning the scholarship and attending events associated with it helped him build connections with students of different backgrounds. George �鶹��Ƶ’s diversity had been a major selling point for him, and he now has a much more diverse network and friend group. “It’s pretty meaningful for me to explore and broaden my horizons during this program,” he says.

Last year, Wang broadened his horizons further when he was a participant in the Global Engagement Scholars Program, a semester-long series of workshops covering topics such as cultural intelligence, cultural values, cultural influences, and how to use these factors in the workplace. “During that program, I just met so many interesting people. Some of them would be future classmates, and we work together in the same group for marketing courses,” he says. “Now they are my best friends in the school.” In addition, he is an active member of the Chinese Student Association and Beta Alpha Psi at George �鶹��Ƶ.

Embracing the challenge of coming across the world to pursue his dream of being an accountant has already brought many rewards for Wang, including tremendous personal growth. “I can handle so many things,” he says. “It’s an amazing journey that changed me a lot.” Graduating soon with his degree in accounting, Wang plans to stay in the United States to pursue a master’s degree and potentially a PhD. As he progresses through his studies, he’s keeping an open mind about which route in accounting he wants to take, but he is especially interested in corporate accounting and financial planning roles. “I want to work in areas like management accounting or corporate finance—helping companies analyze costs, manage budgets, evaluate investments, and optimize their financial performance,” he explains. “I enjoy interpreting financial data to support smarter decision making and long-term strategy.”

George �鶹��Ƶ students come from all 50 states and 130 countries, and they are taught by faculty members who reflect that diversity. Though members of the community are from different places, they find a home within the cohesive culture at Costello, where opportunities are plentiful and a wide range of career paths are supported.

Topics

Costello College of Business News

Costello College of Business Scholarships

Scholarships

Students

George �鶹��Ƶ entrepreneurs win big at the 2025 Patriot Pitch Competition

Greg Johnson — Wed, 23 Apr 2025 15:34:46 +0000

George �鶹��Ƶ entrepreneurs win big at the 2025 Patriot Pitch Competition Greg Johnson Wed, 04/23/2025 - 11:34

“Let me be clear, innovation has always been, and will always be, the solution to the world’s challenges,” said Patriot Pitch emcee Patrick Soleymani, associate dean for outreach and strategic engagement at �鶹��Ƶ's Costello College of Business. “Innovation transforms potential into power and drives us forward as an institution, community, and ultimately a civilization.”

Patriot Pitch emcee Patrick Soleymani addresses packed house in the Johnson Center Bistro. Photo by John Boal Photography

As emcee of the 2025 Patriot Pitch Competition, presented by 22nd Century Technologies Inc., Soleymani addressed the packed house. Eight final teams—two from each track—had been refining their business models with their mentors and practicing their pitches for several weeks in preparation for the afternoon’s competition.

Housed within the Costello College of Business, the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) led the programming efforts and organized the final pitch event on Thursday, April 10. Ajay Vinzé, dean of the Costello College of Business, reiterated the importance of entrepreneurship and what it meant to the college’s namesake.

“In 1976, Donald and a partner founded Century Stair Company, which grew to become one of the largest stair manufacturers on the East Coast,” he said. “His passion for entrepreneurship is here with us, in spirit. Today, we are honored to have his trusted former business partners, Joe and Peg Contrucci, with us in the room.”

�鶹��Ƶ President Gregory Washington was also in attendance, along key stakeholders from the George �鶹��Ƶ entrepreneurial ecosystem.

After Ava Uppal, BS Marketing ‘19, interviewed technology founder and executive Sid Banerjee (founded Clarabridge that was acquired by Qualtrics in 2021 for over $1 billion) in an illuminating keynote discussion, the competition commenced—this time with a record amount of prize money.

�鶹��Ƶ's Choice Award winners. Photo by John Boal Photography

One by one, finalist teams in the STEM, Social Impact, General Entrepreneurship for Undergraduate Students, and General Entrepreneurship for Graduate Students and Recent Alumni tracks took the stage to make their pitches to four judges—subject matter experts chosen for each track—and to the audience of George �鶹��Ƶ community members. Following each 5-minute pitch, the presenting team fielded questions from the judges. Students in between classes quickly filled the back of the Johnson Center Bistro as they cheered on their classmates and friends.

Anticipation filled the air as another Costello alumnus and community leader, Jason Howell, BS Accounting ‘97, took the stage to announce the winners:

STEM

First place: Barty AI (Sahil Jagtap)
Second place: Q Haven (Caden Green)

Social Impact

First place: CarbonSecure (Maddie Gray, Maha Raja, Ryland Plodpluang, Juan Zambrano-Lozano)
Second place: The Allocated at Delia’s House (Marisela Zelaya Delcid, David Osorto)

General Entrepreneurship Undergraduate

First place: Valor (Caleb Fink)
Second place: NOVAFoam (Ethan Ford, Trevor Geissler, Mikhail Ivanov, Stephano Barra)

General Entrepreneurship for Graduate Students and Recent Alumni

First place: Viralbite (Emmanuel Nwokeabia)
Second place: EchoPods (Raghu Manjunatha, Pooja Manjunatha Swamy)

George �鶹��Ƶ Emmanuel Nwokeabia presenting Viralbite. Photo by John Boal Photography

Following each track of presentations, audience members scanned a QR code on the screen to vote for the separate �鶹��Ƶ’s Choice Awardees. The winners were The Allocated at Delia’s House and Viralbite.

Emmanuel Nwokeabia, a 2024 graduate of the Costello College of Business, received the most prize money—$13,000 between his two awards. “This was more than a win—it was a powerful encouragement to pursue my vision. I encourage anyone with an idea to take that bold step, and see how the world responds,” said Nwokeabia.

The 2025 Patriot Pitch Competition showcased the entrepreneurial spirit of the Costello College of Business and �鶹��Ƶ. Approximately 250 audience members attended to watch the innovative concepts and products being pitched.

2025 Patriot Pitch participants

In This Story

Ajay Vinzé

Patrick Soleymani

Jason Howell

Learn more about the Costello College of Business

Topics

Costello College of Business News

Patriot Pitch Competition

Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Alumni

Students

Strategic Direction

Janis S. Reed Scholarship helps BAM student keep her focus

Greg Johnson — Fri, 18 Apr 2025 19:44:42 +0000

Janis S. Reed Scholarship helps BAM student keep her focus Greg Johnson Fri, 04/18/2025 - 15:44

Receiving the Janis S. Reed Scholarship sharpened the focus even more for the goal-oriented Anh Tran. Wrapping up her final semester as an undergraduate student in accounting at �鶹��Ƶ and completing the bachelor’s to accelerated master’s (BAM) program, she already had her eyes on the larger picture.

Anh Tran

Following a similar path as her aunt and nearly 30 other students each year, she attended two years at Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) in the ADVANCE Program before transferring into the accounting program at George �鶹��Ƶ. Her path is now leading her to completing the CPA exam after finishing her master’s degree courses.

Tran was drawn to the Costello College of Business because of its reputation for excellence and diversity. After transferring from NOVA, she worked with an academic advisor to see how she could earn the credits required to sit for the CPA exam. That’s when she first learned about the BAM program. At first, she was concerned that taking undergraduate and graduate courses at the same time would be too much. However, as she eased into the course material, she found that it was nothing she could not handle. Tran is now one of more than 60 BAM students pursuing this accelerated path to the MS in accounting degree.

Still, her course load was increasingly heavy, so Tran was relieved that the Janis S. Reed Scholarship helped pay off her financial costs. “It’s my first time taking both the undergraduate and also the grad classes, so I really want to focus on school,” she says.

Not only did the scholarship help with finances, but it also gave her other opportunities, like connecting her with Reed herself. “I had a chance to talk to her and other recipients at the scholarship luncheon,” she says. “She gave us good advice for our academic journey and then also tips for the career journey that we asked her for. It was really a great opportunity for us to meet her, and she was very sweet and friendly.”

The scholarship luncheon, which brought together Costello donors and recipients to the Fairfax Campus, was an experience that Tran was grateful to take advantage of.

Looking back on her experiences at the Costello College of Business, Tran is glad that she took advantage of many of the opportunities, some of which were recommended or assigned by professors. She recalls attending the career fair for the first time with one of her classmates.

“At that event, I had my first opportunity to talk with real recruiters, and it was really special for me,” she says.

It was at that career fair where she had the chance to interview for her first internship. The internship was exactly what she was looking for—a great learning experience in the professional tax services area at a public accounting firm.

Through focus, hard work, and informed planning, Tran is on schedule to sit for the CPA exam after graduation. She plans to begin her career immediately and balance her CPA studies with her work schedule. “I want to work for a public accounting firm, perhaps in the tax area as well,” she says. “I believe I am familiar with taxes after my past internships, and I’d like to gain more knowledge and experience about this field.”

Tran is excited to begin her state and local taxes internship at a public accounting firm in the summer of 2025. Another summer plan that she’s looking forward to is the global residency trip to Rome, Italy, as part of her global accounting environment class, where she will be able to engage with local companies and explore the culture.

Topics

Costello College of Business News

Costello College of Business Scholarships

Costello College of Business Students

Master's in Accounting Program

Business analytics alumna from Russia finds home at Costello

Greg Johnson — Tue, 15 Apr 2025 21:58:33 +0000

Business analytics alumna from Russia finds home at Costello Greg Johnson Tue, 04/15/2025 - 17:58

Born and raised in Saint Petersburg, Russia, Marina Komarova, MS Business Analytics ‘24, knew she wanted to get a business degree from a respected American university.

Marina Komarova. Photo provided

She had earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Russia, which included a semester as an exchange student in Finland. �鶹��Ƶ had met all the criteria she was looking for—most notably a top business college in a prime location. Not yet confident in her English skills, Komarova entered through the INTO �鶹��Ƶ program, which really helped her transition going to school in a new country.

Currently, Komarova is a business analyst at CakeBoxx Technologies, a company that designs and manufactures shipping containers for high-valued oversized types of cargo. Before accepting the position, she worked at the company as an intern while still studying at the Costello College of Business.

Securing the internship was a critical milestone for her. Because of her status as an international student, Komarova found herself under increasing pressure to find a job position or risk leaving the country. After speaking with career services, attending multiple networking events, and refining her online searches, she found CakeBoxx.

“At that point, they had this position that was called a supply chain business analyst intern,” she says. “It was honestly everything that I was looking for in my first internship because I have a background in supply chain, and I was studying business analytics.”

Komarova enjoys how flexible her job is and how it requires both statistics and interpersonal skills. “You need to know how to communicate with different kinds of people from different industries and how to actually put your ideas into words,” she says. Much of what she learned from her Costello business analytics program she was able to apply instantly to her job. “The knowledge I got from classes like marketing analytics predictions is helping me every day in my job. We have very customized solutions for different industries, so we need to do our marketing research and find out who can be our potential clients and how we can make them interested in our products.”

As an international student at George �鶹��Ƶ, Komarova never felt out of place or like she did not belong. “My experience was great professors and university staff,” she says. “Everybody was very helpful and very welcoming.” She also thoroughly enjoyed the campus culture outside of the classroom and how the university was constantly holding events not only for academic interests and professional development but also for fun social gatherings. “The social stuff actually helped me a lot,” she says. “I was worried a lot that I wouldn’t feel like I belong here, but that was not the case.”

Marina Komarova has come a long way in a short amount of time. “It’s been a crazy journey with some ups and downs, like from the moment when I was freaking out that that I wouldn’t be able to secure a job to the point when I graduated,” she says. After overcoming uncertainty and bettering herself, she is thriving in a new country and in her career.

Topics

Costello College of Business News

Costello College of Business Alumni

Master's in Business Analytics Program

Alumni

INTO �鶹��Ƶ

internships

Learn more about Costello's MS in Business Analytics

George �鶹��Ƶ alumnus launches AI software startup for law enforcement training

Greg Johnson — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 16:05:48 +0000

George �鶹��Ƶ alumnus launches AI software startup for law enforcement training Greg Johnson Wed, 02/26/2025 - 11:05

Delivering immersive, voice-driven simulations for law enforcement through building skills, gaining real-time feedback, and preparing for real-world scenarios, Kaiden AI is a software startup co-founded by its CEO Ali Aldubaisi, BS Neuroscience ’21.

Ali Aldubaisi

Aldubaisi had begun studying neuroscience at George �鶹��Ƶ with the intention of going to medical school. However, the distance learning forced upon by COVID led him to think outside of the box and start his first company vRealm, an online tutoring platform.

After a few years working on the project, he co-founded Kaiden AI with his vRealm partner, Ali "AJ" Aldjaei. “When we first started, we were focused on the higher education market,” he says. “We initially built the AI platform for grading and evaluation. Like most startups, you build where you initially think is the right fit, and that’s going to be the market for you.” Throughout the process of building his startup and attracting investors, he would find each day bringing surprises.

After seeing limited traction in higher education, Aldubaisi and his team built a small-scale simulation demo to test a new direction. Among the first to see it was Steve Gladis, a senior scholar at George �鶹��Ƶ’s Center for the Advancement of Well-Being and a former FBI special agent. He immediately recognized its potential for law enforcement training and encouraged Aldubaisi to explore that path.

“We put the MVP [minimum viable product] in front of police chiefs and academy directors, and their reaction was completely different from our earlier demos,” says Aldubaisi. “That’s when we knew we had to double down.”

Now, Aldubaisi and his team partner with law enforcement agencies and regional academies to implement their simulation platform, with organizations like the Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Academy currently piloting the technology. Recently closing a $1 million pre-seed round, Kaiden AI’s investors are venture capitalists largely outside of the law enforcement space.

Ali Aldubaisi (right) at the 2024 Patriot Pitch competition. Photo by John Boal Photography

Even though his current work does not appear directly related to neuroscience, Aldubaisi recognizes the value of his degree. In fact, he still keeps up with neuroscience journals, seeing the relevance between that field and running his company. Developing hypotheses and constantly experimenting has helped Aldubaisi and his team refine and optimize Kaiden AI, from its initial concept in January 2024 to its current phase today.

“A lot of the concepts mirror each other,” he says. “What goes into marketing, how to understand people, how people learn.”

In 2024, Aldubaisi led the keynote discussion at the Patriot Pitch Competition, an event organized by the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship to support ideas and early-stage business ventures from George �鶹��Ƶ students and recent alumni. He is now in talks with Rebecca Howick, the center’s director of operations and engagement, about getting more involved with their efforts.

“Having a center where somebody in whatever discipline that they’re studying can articulate or put together an idea or experiment on ideas is so crucial,” says Aldubaisi. He knows there are many intelligent people with brilliant ideas who may be hesitant to pursue their ventures because they don’t know how they’re going to get the funding or backing.

Having gone through that process, Aldubaisi offers crucial advice to aspiring entrepreneurs that reflects his scientific background. “Having the courage to focus on that one thing that you’re trying to prove out is probably the biggest thing,” he says. “Second thing is always look at what your idea is as an experiment, and the goal is to prove or disprove as soon as possible.”

By following these guidelines, Aldubaisi and his team have surpassed fundraising milestones and are excited to put Kaiden AI into the hands of many more law enforcement students and officers.

In This Story

Rebecca Howick

Learn more about AI research at George �鶹��Ƶ

Topics

Costello College of Business News

Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship

entrepreneurship

Center for Advancement of Well-Being

Artificial Intelligence

Alumni

Finance alumnus is making a big difference in his native Mongolia

Greg Johnson — Mon, 11 Nov 2024 15:54:10 +0000

Finance alumnus is making a big difference in his native Mongolia Greg Johnson Mon, 11/11/2024 - 10:54

Born in Mongolia’s capital city of Ulaanbaatar, Itgel Bold, BS Finance ’08, moved to the United States in eighth grade so that his father could complete his master’s degree in New York City. A year later, his family moved to Washington, D.C.

“I didn’t know much English at the time, so it was a very new beginning, new setting,” he says. “I had to adjust and settle in in a relatively short amount of time.” Years later he would return to his native country, with experience and sharpened skills, to support energy, water supply, and other issues critical in Mongolia. “

I was able to develop and hone my hard skills, my analytical skills at [�鶹��Ƶ], and then I was able to apply that knowledge,” he says. “Without George �鶹��Ƶ and the level of quality of education that I received, I don’t think I would be where I am today.”

Itgel Bold, BS Finance '08, speaking at the

Boao Forum for Asia. Photo provided.

Recently adopting a free market economy, Mongolia is seeking to advance via partnerships and collaborations with private entities and countries. As part of the Millennium Challenge Corporation’s $350 million (USD) investment, the Mongolia Water Compact, co-financed by the government of Mongolia, aims to increase water supply for the rapidly growing city of 1.6 million.

Since its beginning of 2024, Bold has been the director of finance for this account. “By this initiative, the freshwater supply of Ulaanbaatar will actually increase by 80%, and we are also utilizing recycled water to supply the needs of the thermal power plants in the city,” he says. The team expects the project to be completed by the deadline of March 2026.

Also based in Ulaanbaatar, NovaTerra is an investment, project management, and financial advisory firm that helps companies gain access to capital from foreign investors on energy transition projects. Bold is a shareholder and has advised the firm.

“At the moment, NovaTerra is involved with assisting the city of Ulaanbaatar to build a large scale 50-megawatt battery storage facility,” he says. “That will be very crucial in meeting the energy needs of the city because during the peak times of wintertime, Mongolia actually needs to import electricity from Russia.”

In his spare time, Bold, like many Mongolians, enjoys spending time outside playing and watching sports. “We have a lot of basketball, soccer, and traditional wrestling,” he says. “During the summertime, people go out in the countryside and watch horseracing and wrestling as well as archery competitions.”

Another vibrant part of the culture is folk art, especially paintings. In fact, the largest painting in the world, Nadmid Sergelen’s One Day of the World, is from Mongolia and promoted by Bold at various exhibitions. The masterpiece, which took more than 20 years to complete, stands at 8 feet tall and 69 feet long and offers a unique perspective on various cultures and human experiences that make up the world, celebrating the diversity and uniqueness of 193 countries.

“I was able to develop and hone my hard skills, my analytical skills at [George �鶹��Ƶ}, and then I was able to apply that knowledge,” says Bold. “Without George �鶹��Ƶ and the level of quality of education that I received, I don’t think I would be where I am today.”

Before he was ready to take on these ambitious roles, Bold was a finance student at the Costello College of Business. “When I was at George �鶹��Ƶ, it was exciting times,” he says. “We went to the Final Four, and we had the first Black president in Obama and the country’s first female vice-presidential candidate in Sarah Palin.” George �鶹��Ƶ’s proximity to Washington, D.C., gave him a front row seat to many political and cultural events that were shaping the country. The campus location, along with the quality of the faculty and staff, is what led Bold to choose George �鶹��Ƶ in the first place. “It was a no-brainer,” he says.

Even though he is now on the other side of the planet, Bold remains close to his alma mater by serving as director-at-large on the Costello College of Business Alumni Chapter. “I want to give back to the students in any way I can by sharing my insights and knowledge as well as building networks and friendships,” he says. He’s also eager to build connections between George �鶹��Ƶ and some of the reputable universities in Mongolia.

Itgel Bold is executing a purpose- and passion-driven mission to help his country grow and thrive in partnership with his second home country. His connections to the United States are invaluable and so is the education he received at the Costello College of Business. He is excited to see his projects continue to progress as he builds bridges between the two countries.

Topics

Costello College of Business News

Costello College of Business Alumni

Finance

Alumni

Learn more about the Costello College of Business Alumni Chapter

In This Story

Itgel Bold, '08

FedWriters strengthens ties with Costello College of Business by joining Corporate Partners Program

Greg Johnson — Fri, 25 Oct 2024 19:48:26 +0000

FedWriters strengthens ties with Costello College of Business by joining Corporate Partners Program Greg Johnson Fri, 10/25/2024 - 15:48

Though they have offices and staff members across the United States, FedWriters’ headquarters is conveniently located just down the road from �鶹��Ƶ’s Fairfax Campus. FedWriters is a professional writing, research, and communications company serving more than 80 federal agencies across the scope of the federal government, including the Department of Transportation, every branch of the United States military, and science agencies such as NASA, NIST, and NOAA.

FedWriters team at headquarters with CEO Mitchell Cho (far right). Photo provided

CEO and George �鶹��Ƶ alum Mitchell Cho founded FedWriters at the �鶹��Ƶ Enterprise Center in 2010 as a one-person company, which today boasts $40 million in annual revenue with more than 375 employees.

The company was recently recognized as NOAA’s Small Business of the Year, Washington Post’s Best Places to Work, Inc. 5000's fastest growing companies in America, Washington Business Journal's Fast75, and more.

Cho sits on the board as chair for the Fairfax Economic Development Authority, where he first learned of the Costello Corporate Partners Program from Patrick Soleymani, associate dean for outreach and strategic engagement at the Costello College of Business.

“I thought it was an ideal opportunity for us to expand our profile and really market the company to the student body as an exceptional place to start their careers,” says Cho. “We really see George �鶹��Ƶ as the perfect kind of platform to hire people and help them grow because that’s what we’re all about.”

The FedWriters team was already an engaged partner with George �鶹��Ƶ, conducting mock interview sessions, reviewing resumes, and participating in career day events. “When this opportunity popped up to be a corporate partner, we jumped on it,” says Cho.

Moreover, much of their engagement focused specifically on the Costello College of Business, including supporting a student team in the Patriot Pitch Competition and speaking with business students about career opportunities in government contracting. In addition, they worked with a few different groups of students from the Professional Readiness Experiential Program (PREP) taught by Brian Ngac, instructor in information systems and operations management at the Costello College of Business. “I think I've personally done two letters of recommendation and validated work experience for three of those students out of PREP,” says Marc Fain, chief revenue officer.

Becoming an official corporate partner has strengthened FedWriters’ ties with the business college, as they support recruitment, internship opportunities, scholarships, student activities, faculty awards, and the Dean’s Excellence Fund as part of the program. In return, FedWriters receives high visibility, increased student recruitment, special invitations, and named scholarships, among other benefits.

Having graduated from George �鶹��Ƶ with a BA in political science in 1999, Cho estimates that he has close to 60 George �鶹��Ƶ alumni employed in their Fairfax office. “We love having that kind of network and pool of really great candidates that we can pull from, and we also love to hire people directly who are early in their careers and help them grow,” he says.

As FedWriters continues to grow rapidly—hiring about 100 new employees so far this year—they typically first look at George �鶹��Ƶ via career fairs and Handshake, George �鶹��Ƶ’s platform for students seeking jobs and employers.

A few of the publications from FedWriters. Photo provided

Since its inception, FedWriters has only gathered more steam growing both their staffing and client list and earning remarkable accolades along the way. “The employee’s experience matters to us, making sure that they know that we support them when things happen in their lives,” says Susan Parr, chief operations officer. “When you take care of people, they perform. Our customers are happy, and the company grows.”

With the constant growth and acquisition of new contracts, and because government contracts are finite, employees are provided with new opportunities to work for causes that they are passionate about.

Housing the Greg and Camille Baroni Center for Government Contracting, the first-in-the-nation university center to address the business, policy, and regulatory issues in government contracting, the Costello College of Business continues to build connections with the top minds in government contracting, many of whom directly share their expertise with students in the classroom. These well-prepared Costello students can look forward to entering into a stable industry.

Student Alejandra Villanueva sits down for

one-on-one coaching during FedWriters

Takeover Day. Photo by Greg Johnson

“Government services are always needed, and they play a big role in keeping our society running," says Cho. "Government contracting helps make sure these services are provided, and there will always be opportunities for people to work in various fields, such as defense, science, environmental, and finance.”

With their mission of “communicating the business of government,” FedWriters has embraced the innovative business collaboration at the top business school in the region by joining the Corporate Partners Program, and they look forward to preparing and recruiting many George �鶹��Ƶ students.