2018 Field Visits & Mentors
Director
Whitney Webb
Whitney has been working with teens and young adults since 2012 in the areas of financial, philanthropic, and entrepreneurial education. Most recently, she was the Director of Operations at Independent Means, a private company educating and preparing families for the responsibilities and challenges of wealth transfer. She was the lead trainer with 30+ families and the director of global programs including Camp Start-Up and Fashion and Finance.
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Prior to her work in financial education, Whitney was a Kiva Fellow in Kigali, Rwanda where she worked to strengthen partnerships and increase the reach of microfinance through employee training and industry research. Whitney graduated from the University of Florida and began her career with Porter Orlin hedge fund in New York City, where she performed investment research for the managing director, Alex Porter.
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She is currently a board member and volunteer business mentor at Youth Interactive, a non-profit teen center in Santa Barbara working to promote leadership and entrepreneurial skills. Whitney is an advisor for the Ruth and Hal Launders charitable trust located in Herndon, Virginia. She has been a speaker and panelist at the FOX Wealth Advisor Forum, Youth Philanthropy Connect Conference, and the Hawaii Tax Institute.
Counselor - Mentor
Genine Iffla
Genine is a first-year MBA candidate at the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin with a focus on Finance and Innovation Strategy. She serves on the board of the United Way of Greater Austin and is the co-President of the Graduate Women In Business.
Prior to her MBA, Genine was the Director of Events and a Principal Trainer for Independent Means, Inc., a privately held company focused on providing financial and human capital education to families and family offices, financial institutions, and non-profits. She has spearheaded numerous projects developing curriculum and unique programming for the next generation.
Before her work in financial education, Genine lived in Seoul, South Korea for four years. There, she taught ESL to Korean children and worked with Korean executives from large corporations, teaching business communications and global interaction skills.
Counselor - Mentor
Robin Elander
Robin founded Global Good Impact in 2013 to provide individuals and organizations the skills, tools, and confidence needed to bring their ideas into the world. She is skilled in the art of creating campaigns around causes and helping people do things they might not think they can do. Robin has a decade of experience coaching change makers, coordinating community building projects, and leading interactive workshops for youth and adults. She specializes in helping organizations build new programs and events or in growing existing programs that build stronger communities worldwide.
Counselor - Mentor
Paul Simmons
Paul Simmons is a Captain in the British Royal Marines. He served most recently as the lead programme manager responsible for the design and coordination of a multifaceted foreign deployment in East Africa. Prior to that posting, he led maritime security operations in the Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman, Arabian Sea, Red Sea, and North Indian Ocean. He was responsible for planning lead and execution of higher intent to intercept non-compliant vessels complicit in piracy, narcotics, and human trafficking. Paul has also led the selection of high-level candidates for the single entry of Officers into the Royal Marines and worked to develop a recruitment strategy, identifying and targeting suitable potential candidates. Paul is a graduate of the University of Birmingham with a degree in Geography.
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Counselor - Mentor
Sarah Hughes
Sarah Hughes is a psychotherapist working with individuals and couples. Sarah’s diverse training and life experience bring depth and perspective to her clinical work, and she understands the process of making comprehensive life changes.
Prior to becoming a therapist, she spent 12 years working in finance, at a global long/short equity fund manager in New York City. Sarah graduated cum laude from the University of Delaware with a dual degree in French and Political Science, and has a Master’s of Social Work from New York University.
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Ethics & Stakeholders
Cory State, from Starbucks, will talk to the students about social responsibility in business with a focus on stakeholder and ethics, Cory will take us through the inner workings of Starbucks and how a large corporation can have a positive social and environmental impact on communities.
This hot sauce with a cult-like following has turned into an international sensation. Visit the Huy Fong factory and learn how a Vietnamese refugee became a business powerhouse in Southern California.
Get Fired Up with Sriracha
Started by a UCSD grad who wanted to capture surfing the perfect wave, GoPro is now a billion dollar publicly traded company and known worldwide. Take a tour of the San Diego campus, meet with a panel of executives, and be prepared to be put to work, envisioning the future of handheld cameras and action capture.
Visit the Pros at GoPro
Business Accelerator
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All start-ups need help with financing, tools, advice, or general support. Mission Edge is a business accelerator with a heart, investing in and providing structure for social enterprises and non-profits that are creating positive change, locally and globally.
2018 Staff & Mentors
We vet and select a diverse staff for each program to act as role models, catalysts, and educators. Our participant to staff ratio is 5:1 and we employ an eclectic mix of professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives of all ages and walks of life to inspire and collaborate with this next generation of leaders.
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Bios of staff and mentors will be finalized one month prior to each program. A sample of current Launch Generation staff, mentors, and advisors are below:
2018 Visiting Mentors
Cassie Nichols
College Application Guru
Founder of Collegica, Inc. and College Specific LLC, Cassie Nichols has been helping students and their families navigate the college admissions process for over a decade.
She is a graduate of Princeton University, where she earned NCAA All-American and Academic All-American awards as captain of Princeton’s water polo team. Upon graduation in 2002, she conducted educational research at Yale University, taught the college essay at Choate Rosemary Hall, and earned a master’s degree in Education from UCSB.
She is the author of The College Essay Trap, which helps students avoid the most common pitfalls of the college application essay."
Oscar McBride
Developing Character & Creating Influence
Oscar McBride is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame where he was a four-year football letter winner. After playing in the NFL, Oscar received a Master’s degree in Coaching, Athletic Administration and Exercise Science from Concordia University and is currently pursuing his doctorate in educational leadership.
A published author, Oscar released “Relentless Wisdom” which takes an objective yet satirical look at a sport as it impacts the cognitive and social development of today’s youth.
Oscar is a member of the National Positive Coaching Alliance, the National Federation of State High School Associations, the Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association, the American Football Coaches Association, World Class Speakers & Entertainers Bureau, Denver Speakers Bureau, the Notre Dame Alumni Club of Orange County, the Notre Dame Monogram Club and the NFL Alumni Association
Stan Sung
Finance & Business Funding
Educated at University of Southern CA (USC) as an Electrical Engineer, a descendant of the Song Dynasty, and a frequent speaker on family governance, Stan founded and evolved a financial consulting business into the pinnacle of private wealth ownership for the ultra-affluent: A Family Office.
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Over the course of operating his company, Stan has held interim CFO positions with companies in manufacturing, distribution and television media production.Early work includes, working with Risk Management Advisors (RMA) as a senior advisor to highly-profitable privately-held businesses, their owners, and accredited investors on advanced financial planning strategies.
Stan currently sits on the Board of Challengers for Chapman University’s Leathery School of Entrepreneurship where he is spear-heading the launch of a family office education and leadership program targeted to developing the skill sets needed by succeeding generations to properly lead their family enterprise.