About Me in Words

💙 Playing musical instruments, hiking in the woods, reading nonfiction, making mead (honey wine), and learning new things are some of my favorite ways to spend time, but I also enjoy cozy time at home with my family watching old shows or campy movies, and baking. I’m probably down for a trip to the used bookstore. My husband is a spectacular adventure partner and my kid is such a neat person. I’m more amazed by our little one every day and I’m constantly learning through him. Our dogs are also particularly adorable, if occasionally ornery.

✨ Need a blurb for something? Here ya go!
✨ Want to hear me talk? Here ya go!
✨ Looking for more about my professional back-story or lifelong passion for Health-Focused Innovation? Here ya go!

About Me in Images

Stuff I’m Proud Of

University Teaching Reviews
Engineering Professor
4.8/5

Employee Reviews
Founder/CEO
4.8/5

This Dapper Human
Parent
TBD 😉

~Service~

PA Department of Health
Civil Service
Volunteer

As a clinical specialist in the MRC, I stay trained to support the health department in times of need. While I joined a long time ago and basically forgot about it, I was honored for the opportunity to support cold chain and draw vaccine during the height of the covid 19 pandemic. To join me, Sign Up with Serve PA ⚕️

Pittsburgh Mamas Mutual Aid
Community Mutual Aid
Founder

In 2015, I had an infant, an appreciation for communities I saw online helping each other out, and a need to swap newborn stuff for toddler stuff, so I created this free-swap community. Today over 2000 moms participate in this lively community, support each other, and give good stuff to each other. Pittsburgh Moms can Join Here ♻️

Pittsburgh AI
Non-Profit
Steward

Pgh.Ai is an opportunity to come together as a community in the time of AI. We welcome academics on the cutting edge, children looking to learn about AI in their futures, professionals re-skilling or up-skilling, the curious, the excited, the cautious. I’ve had the greatest luck to be trusted with running this organization, as the executive director and am so excited to see where our journey goes next. Get involved with pgh.ai💡

MommYconomY
Community & Advocacy
Founder

Moms are incredibly resourceful, both out of necessity and because the new mom brain is primed for new and accelerated learning. Owning a business as a mom is a beautiful and hard thing, and supporting each other is a multiplier of our power. Moms Can Join Here 🪙

Accessibility & Inclusion Toolkit
Community & Advocacy
Founder

Disability advocacy has been part of my life forever as a Deaf/HoH Dyslexic person with a mother who specialized in Elementary Special Education, but now that advocacy takes on new life as tools have been democratized and my own child has navigated accessibility challenges. Empower yourself to build your 504/IEP and empower a coach, teacher, or scout leader to Make It Inclusive here. ♿

Autonomous Collectives
Mutual Aid
Hooligan

Community health support comes in all sorts of informal flavors for me. Sometimes, a young adult needs a gut check on choosing urgent care vs an ER. Sometimes, someone needs a bigger band-aid than they have at home. Sometimes, someone is worried about their safety and needs a buddy with a first aid kit nearby. And sometimes someone needs some tea and a hug. Find a Mutual Aid Group 🤝

Community Resource Database
Creator

My first effort at community-specific reviews started with a conversation about how highly rated restaurants for the general public are not necessarily highly rated for a family experience with small children. Now it includes physicians, parks, businesses, resource centers, and more! Check out Pittsburgh Family Spots Here. 📍

Community Mutual Aid
Founder

What started as a book drive for residents at the Allegheny County Jail has become a regular opportunity to rescue books that need a home and to stock charities looking for books, little free libraries, and each other with something new for our minds or our hearts to dive into. Connect with Pittsburgh Book Rescue 📘

Community Resources Tool
Creator

Families need to juggle air quality, weather, traffic, events, and more to make plans for the day to support each other and grow. This is a little tool for that I made to celebrate the families who were supporting my start-up. Check out Pittsburgh Family Home resources here. 🫶

~Companies~

Leading Strand
Professional Training Business

Founder

On The Leading Strand offers leadership and operations training for scientists and engineers ready to grow their project into a product. See services here.

EKTO VR
Wearable Robotics Start-Up
CoFounder|Head of Growth

EktoVR is fulfilling the sci-fi promise of virtual reality with revolutionary immersion-enhancing products. Converging technologies meet the arrival of a VR market hungry for deeper immersion and a solution for cybersickness. I aim to gamify consumer health, using wearable platforms to make health measurement & maintenance more accessible, enjoyable, & personalized. Learn more about EKTO VR here. 🛼

Connect Wolf
Health Tech Start-Up
Founder|CSO|CEO

Connection is Everything. Connect Wolf is a health technologies company developing a wearable diagnostics platform and testing consumer health offerings. Our first product is a wearable monitor for babies, Presh. Learn more about Connect Wolf here. ♾️

~Speaking~

Hear Jenn Speak here.

~Publications~

Book Author
Just. Lead.

A Practical, Tactical Guide for Mentors, Advisors, Founders, Executives, and Instigators to Inspire and Build Lasting Impact. Reserve a copy here.

Children’s Books Author
Science Concepts

Every parent has read a children’s book for the 90th time and realized that they would rather read one about things they enjoy. As a science nerd, I made a little series of science concepts to enjoy and share. Read the first one free here. 📖

Book Author
10 Lies Start-Up Mentors Tell

In progress 😉

Articles