More Faces of Leeds showcasing the stories of the dynamic individuals who contribute to and embody the values of the Leeds community.
Daniel Knowles (Fin & Info Mgmt’22)
When sophomore Daniel Knowles and two of his friends began to notice the effect of COVID-19 on the local businesses of their hometown of Boulder, they started brainstorming ways to help their community.
"After taking input from many small business owners, mentors, and other similar ventures, we founded GyftCO as our solution towards helping the place and people we love,” says Daniel.
GyftCO connects struggling Boulder businesses to the greater community by providing an outlet for them to sell discounted e-gift cards to customers. These gift cards can be used when the establishments reopen while providing the up-front cash these establishments need to stay afloat during the pandemic. The venture launched in mid-May 2020 and already has more than a dozen Boulder businesses featured on gyftco.com.
While this is Daniel’s first undertaking of this scale, it’s only one of several examples of his penchant for working to better his communities. During his first two years at Leeds, he’s already served as vice president of Operations and vice president of Engagements for Leeds Consulting Group, a student-run organization that connects students to the wider community for consulting projects. Additionally, he currently serves as a senator for CU Boulder’s Student Government.
Daniel and his team are also readying for a shift in the market as stores open back up and business picks up for their participating stores. They’re focusing on growing GyftCO, so they can support local businesses beyond COVID-19—a testament to their passion for the Boulder community.
Cassidy Stearns (MS BusAn’20)
Associate Analytics Consultant at DAS42
When CU Alumna Cassidy Stearns returned to the university to pursue her MS in Business Analytics at Leeds, she had almost no background in analytics. Yet, having majored in both Chinese and Russian Studies as an undergraduate, she quickly applied her aptitude for foreign languages to programming. Cassidy excelled in her courses and became a leader in her cohort, which is why she was named this year’s Outstanding MS in Business Analytics Award winner.
"I came into the graduate program at Leeds without any coding experience but am leaving as a proficient programmer in three distinct languages, two of which I will use every day in my career,” says Cassidy.
As she leaves Leeds to pursue an opportunity in analytics consulting, she advises students to practice getting uncomfortable, asking for help and making strong connections early in their careers.
"I truly believe the only reason I got where I am today and is because I made strong connections with companies, professors and faculty within the first few weeks of beginning classes. Asking for help and putting yourself out there can feel uncomfortable, but it's absolutely worth it. It allowed me a wealth of opportunities.
"If there's one thing I've learned from this program, it's that relying on other people only makes me a better version of myself.”
Bryce Duston (Fin’23)
COVID-19 may have cancelled international travel for Leeds’ First Year Global Experience (FGX) programs, but first-year Bryce Duston’s family decided not to let the pandemic stop him from experiencing Argentinian culture. Instead, they jumped at the opportunity to create an international experience at home.
"My dad is a very food-oriented person and a really good home cook,” says Bryce. “So he made a little Argentine cuisine. He grilled up a flank steak from the local butcher and made a traditional Argentine chimichurri sauce for it. He added in a few sticks of chorizo because Argentina loves to grill!
Bryce’s mom joined in by printing out and hanging country flags and playing Argentine music to create a truly authentic experience with dinner.
"Afterwards, I got a few tango lessons to simulate what the trip could have been. Overall it was really fun and made for a good night in a pretty not so fun time!”
Leanne Sigman (Acct & Fin’20, Cert in Business Leadership)
Future Corporate Finance Consultant at FTI Consulting
Leanne Sigman is this year’s recipient of the Undergraduate Impact Award. A member of Leeds Scholars, Delta Sigma Pi and the Dean’s Leadership Fellows, Leanne’s strong connections to the Leeds community helped her start a number of projects and events in the Boulder area.
"One of the most meaningful experiences of college was establishing the 1st annual KidsTek Leadership Outreach program to help underprivileged high school students achieve higher education.”
Having interned for two summers with Transamerica in Denver, Leanne will graduate this May with degrees in both Finance and Accounting alongside a certificate in Business Leadership. She leaves Leeds to pursue a career as a corporate finance consultant at FTI Consulting.
Grace Jang (JD/MBA’21)
Managing Director of Deming Center Venture Fund
As co-manager of the Deming Center Venture Fund, Grace leads a team of CU engineering, law and business graduate students through investment decisions about local startups—a community she knows well as a High Growth Venture Fellow. She also interns as a law clerk at Michael Best & Friedrich LLP in their Venture Best group. In May, 2020-21, she’ll graduate with a Juris Doctor and an MBA.
Brittany Lambert (PhD candidate, BUAD)
A fourth-year doctoral candidate, Brittany is actively involved at Leeds. She is an award-winning teacher of leadership and an advisor for Leeds’ schoolwide values initiative. Her research focuses on new frontiers in talent management, including anxiety and depression in the workplace and the advancement of high- performing women.
John Lynch
CU Distinguished Professor
“My job is to help our faculty succeed and feel recognized, and ensure they are able to accomplish what they want to in terms of research and teaching.”
He is all about collaboration, especially in support of business research excellence.
“We have a really great culture in the school, and the culture facilitates collaboration. For example, I’m part of a group of faculty and PhD students that meets bi-weekly to discuss each other’s research. It facilitates the idea that you’re a part of something bigger, and you appreciate the other great things happening [at Leeds].”
Mary Banks
Burridge Center Manager (retired)
Mary made an extraordinary impact in her nearly 20 years at Leeds; her industry connections were pivotal in helping students reach their career goals in corporate finance. She retired in early 2019 and her legacy lives on with thousands of Leeds grads.
David Shirkey (MBA’09)
Manager of Strategic Initiatives for Orbitform
Amid a massive shortage of medical supplies due to the global pandemic, David is helping lead his company’s effort to help the situation in the U.S. As a manager of strategic initiatives for Orbitform, a specialized machine builder, David collaborated with a team of engineers, technicians, machinists, electricians and builders, among others, to create a new product that sanitizes N95 face masks called the Mask-Sanitizer. So far, the sanitizers have been purchased by hospitals, police and fire departments and requests are growing.
Key to the company’s successful pivot in these unusual times is their ability to “take action and keep trying and learning,” says David.
He’s focused now on getting the word out, so they can help as many health care professionals as they can.
Shivani Bhatt (MBA’19)
Senior Intelligence Operations Analyst at Adobe Lead Singer for VICODA
“I’m a firm believer in hobbies that feed the soul,” says Shivani, the frontwoman of alternative rock band VICODA. Off stage, this recent MBA grad leads the Intelligence Operations team at Adobe.
While juggling regular performances and graduate school, she set her sights on working at Marketo early on—before the firm was acquired by Adobe in 2018. She approached them about her aspirations and came to the table with new ideas, landing an internship that led to her current role.
"The brand’s infectious energy and fun-loving approach to marketing felt natural and real to me, and I knew I wanted to be in that ecosystem post-grad."
People often ask how she has time for both work and music.
It’s more a question of ‘What fulfills and enriches me and am I doing those things?’ I try to manage my energy based on this question, rather than my time.
Brennie Pelligrini (Mgmt & Ent’20)
Venture Partner at Contrary Capital
A “person to know” in the Boulder startup scene, current senior Brennie has already worked for both Techstars and completed a Techstars program with the fintech startup Challenger, is a partner at Contrary Capital—a student-managed venture fund—and he’s the head organizer of Boulder Beta.
Emily Etzi (MBA’20)
Director, Digital DTC Merchandising, The North Face
One of the greatest lessons that Emily Etzi will take from her time in the Evening MBA program at Leeds is the importance of community and having a personal support system.
"We aren’t meant to go it alone,” she says.
Indeed; we are not. Over the past two years, Emily’s professors say she’s an outstanding Evening MBA student, who showed tremendous leadership within her team and always contributed thoughtfully to all discussions within her classes.
She’ll graduate this May as a top student and is planning to continue to grow and develop in her career with The North Face. After graduation, she’s looking forward to, “taking a moment to celebrate this milestone and reflect on—and be glad for—all she has learned and the lasting relationships she’s built [while at Leeds].”
To Emily, achieving her graduate degree is “proof that we can achieve our dreams if we are prepared to make sacrifices and remain steadfast in our pursuit.”
We totally agree. Congratulations, Emily.