About Us : Meet the Team
The VDC is a team of seasoned professionals who have a reputation amongst our clients for sound advice, great connections and friendly service.
William Brah
Assistant Vice Provost for Research and Executive Director
Bill’s background includes spending the last 25 years as an executive
building partnerships for innovation within and across industry,
university and government sectors. Results include new venture funds,
technology incubators, and start-up companies.
Bill led the VDC from vision to operation during the last three years. Prior to the VDC, William was a special assistant to the UMass Vice President for Economic Development. He led a pioneering multi-campus clean tech initiative that launched university-industry research and development centers, technology licenses and companies such as SolmeteX, Konarka, Agrivida and Advanced Electron Beams.
Contact Bill at 617-287-7723 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Dan Phillips
Entrepreneur in Residence
Dan has spent the last 25 years as an executive with four venture capital backed software companies. Two of these companies achieved successful initial public offerings on NASDAQ and two were acquired by Fortune 200 companies. Dan was the COO of Concord Communications which attained an $800,000,000 market capitalization. Most recently he was the CEO of Silverback Technologies which was acquired by Dell Inc.
Dan mentors entrepreneurs in the VDC’s program, and recruits teams of student interns to meet the needs of early-stage venture-backed start-up companies. Dan has funded his own scholarship program at UMass Boston over the last fifteen years and has a great appreciation for the entrepreneurial student culture.
Contact Dan at 617-287-5783 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Susan Daudelin
Director of Industry Relations
Susan previously held the position of program analyst reporting to the Head of International Commercial Development at Genzyme Corporation. This group provided diligence reviews for business development opportunities that were generated outside of U.S. In her current role at the VDC, Susan uses her due diligence expertise to identify and support early stage business development opportunities. She strategizes and creates business development partnership opportunities that connect university researchers and entrepreneurs with industry partners and with other institutions. In addition, she manages the intellectual property program for the UMass Boston campus. Susan holds a BA in biology and English from Williams College and an MBA in international management from the University of Massachusetts Boston.
Susan may be reached at 617-287-5710 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Edel Freitas
Budget and Operations Manager
Edel manages the day-to-day operations of the facility as well as building internal programs that connect faculty and students with the Center. Edel has worked for the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at UMass Boston for several years. She has worked with the University Controller's office and the Assistant Dean of Finance and Administration at CNHS to streamline internal control policies and ensure efficient business practices. Edel brings with her a strong understanding of University budget and operational procedures. She is a UMass Boston alum who graduated with a BS in Business Management with a concentration in Information Management for Marketing. She is truly energized to become a part of the VDC's mission and is excited to work together with the Center and its partners.
Contact Edel at 617-287-5149 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).