Webinar series

James Develin

Entrepreneur and retired NFL Football Player

James Develin retired from the NFL in 2020 after an impressive eight-year career as a fullback with the New England Patriots, winning three Super Bowl titles with the team. Voted to the Pro Bowl in 2017, James overcame long odds to break through in the NFL, which he did as a member of the Cincinati Bengals practice squad in 2011. As an undergrad, James attended Brown University, studying mechanical engineering. His love for design and building began as a young person, studying CAD in high school and working as a laborer while in college. In his current work as an entrepreneur, James channels his creativity, empathy, and passion for making a better world to reimagine what's possible. His newest venture is Soulberri, a unique and forward-thinking brand serving fun, healthy, and family-friendly food.

Vicky Wu Davis

Entrepreneur and yCITIES Founder

Vicky Wu Davis is an entrepreneur, educator, activist, angel investor, and mom. Through her various roles, Vicky works to bridge disparate communities, cultivating genuine appreciation for diversity, which in turn fosters innovation and promotes the proliferation of diversity in all areas of leadership. Inspired by the birth of her older son, Vicky channeled her prior decade of tech and social entrepreneurship experiences to create yCITIES (Creating Impact Through Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Sustainability). Vicky has also been an angel investor for almost a decade, investing primarily in early-stage tech and medical innovation companies. Vicky has been a mentor at MIT’s Venture Mentor Services for the past 18 years, which supports innovation and entrepreneurial activity throughout the MIT community, and is the Co-Founder of "A Seat at the Table", aimed at redefining leadership representation when important conversations take place. She also sits on the Advisory Board for Gordon College's Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership.

Davidson Guerrier

Alumni Relations, yCITIES alum

Born in Cambridge, MA, and raised in Miami, Florida, Davidson graduated from Boston Public Schools and is now studying Mechanical Engineering at Wentworth College. What draws Davidson to entrepreneurship is the fact that tomorrow isn't guaranteed, and that you can live out your passion by being an entrepreneur. Davidson has a strong passion for changing and improving what's around him. He has the vision to help those who can not help themselves or do not know how to. He is also an advocate for youth voice, and a calling to help "awaken" his peers to the importance and impact that young people have within society. Davidson likes to recall Benjamin Franklin's quote, "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail!", reminding himself (and inspiring those around him) to plan for success. Davidson is currently a manager-in-training at Chase Bank (while studying at Wentworth College),and continues to actively explore entrepreneurial initiatives. Davidson is Founder of Imperialpix, a photography business, and is co-founder of Regal, a company focused on the progression of youth. He is also working on growing an e-commerce venture. Davidson loves to be part of the yCITIES, with its many opportunities for education, and its community of amazing people who he believes will rock the existence of everyone around them.

Emma Boyd

Communications Manager, yCITIES Alum

Emma Boyd is a college freshman majoring in Political Science and minoring in Italian, with the intent of going into politics or law. She has been involved with yCITIES since seventh grade, when she participated in and won the L3 Innovation Challenge. Ever since then, a lifelong interest in entrepreneurship, and its virtually limitless applications, ensued. After three years as a competitor, and four years as a student mentor, she views yCITIES as a space for the countless young people with boundless passion and unique ingenuity that provides them with the connections and mentorship necessary to follow through on their untapped potential.In college, Emma has worked to apply the concepts highlighted at yCITIES to real life: she worked for State Senator and gubernatorial candidate Annette Taddeo in her freshman fall.This internship was a challenge, but was greatly facilitated by the skills and experience gained at yCITIES. Concepts like stakeholders, the Circle of Resources, and strong communication skills are crucial in politics. Trying to pass legislation hinged on personal connections and make-or-break speeches relied on knowing the target demographic being addressed. Although entrepreneurship and politics are wildly different, the intersectionality between the two is crucial, and provides an example of just how applicable yCITIES is to real-world applications.

Joanna Lin

Marketing & Community Relations Manager, yCITIES alum

Joanna Lin is an enthusiastic founder, changemaker, and sophomore at Boston Latin School. She finds joy in learning about, coming up with, and taking action on new ideas, initiatives, and solutions to solve society’s issues. Passionate about creative and graphic design, she founded and currently oversees Aurea Co. Prints, a wall art Etsy shop. With interests in advocacy, Joanna debates on the varsity Public Forum circuit, co-directs the Workforce and Economic Development Committee of Boston’s Mayor’s Youth Council and is an editor for the News section of her school’s newspaper. She first discovered her interests in entrepreneurship and impact-making through yCITIES bootcamps and loved the yCITIES world so much that she attended three. Through yCITIES, she met a diverse group of passionate and action-oriented youth with a shared goal of making the world a better place, who challenged and uplifted each other.

Jennie Fennelle

Youth Content Development Manager at Autodesk

Jennie Fennelle is the Youth Content Development Manager at Autodesk, where she focuses on creating engaging learning content in support of educators and students using 3D design and make software, including Tinkercad and Fusion 360.

Kellyanne Mahoney

Youth Program Specialist at Autodesk

Kellyanne Mahoney is a National Board Certified Teacher, former educator of 13 years with Boston Public Schools, and Youth Program Specialist at Autodesk. Kellyanne uses design thinking to bridge the problems faced in schools with the problem of creating equitable onramps into the innovation economy for students.