Worcester Business Journal

12 Worcester Business Journal | July 9, 2018 | wbjournal.com P O W E R 5 0 H I G H E R E D U C A T I O N & N O N P R O F I T S REV. PHILIP L. BOROUGHS, S.J. PRESIDENT COLLEGE OF THE HOLY CROSS, WORCESTER Residence: Worcester Colleges: Gonzaga University, Jesuit School of Theology, Graduate Theological Union is was the year Boroughs dely navigated controversial waters while still moving Holy Cross forward academically. Boroughs was in a potentially unwinnable position when a Holy Cross committee found the college's founding president, omas Mulledy, once sold slaves, and the family of its first valedictorian, James Healy, owned slaves. Boroughs chose to keep their names on dormitory buildings but to also add to one dorm the name of John Brooks, a Holy Cross president who actively recruited minority students. e next dilemma was the college's Crusader nickname and mascot, with their reference to religious wars. Boroughs kept the Crusader name but not the knight logo. While this was going on, Boroughs oversaw a new $95-million athletics center and plans for a $92-million arts building. What advice would you give up-and-comers? Living in this diverse city, explore local opportunities, discover our region's many resources, and move beyond your comfort zone. An eye for design: If I hadn't followed this vocational path, I would have enjoyed being an architect. MICHAEL F. COLLINS, MD CHANCELLOR UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS MEDICAL SCHOOL, WORCESTER Residence: Worcester Colleges: College of the Holy Cross, Tufts University School of Medicine e numbers tell the story best: more than $900 million in annual revenues, 1,100 graduate students and 700 medical residents and fellows. UMass Medical School is a major endeavor, and Collins has led the school as chancellor for 11 years now. UMass Medical School has expanded locally and far beyond, from opening the Albert Sherman Center in Worcester and the purchase of the UMass Medicine Science Park to the MassBiologics SouthCoast facility in Fall River and partnerships abroad, including in China and Ireland. What advice would you give up-and-comers? ere's a small plaque on my desk that quotes one of my mother's favorite sayings: "First you have to want to then you can." is is one of the principles shaping my life and career, and oen, I simply have to point to it when I am meeting with one of my mentees. Remember the name: For the first three days of my life at Norwood Hospital, my name was Salvatore, until our family physician intervened and recommended Michael. My mother said the doctor was not going to discharge her unless she relented. F. JAVIER CEVALLOS PRESIDENT FRAMINGHAM STATE UNIVERSITY, FRAMINGHAM Residence: Framingham Colleges: University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez, University Of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Framingham State's student body is 95-percent Massachusetts residents, and most of those are from a short drive from its campus. But Cevallos, who was born in Ecuador and grew up in Puerto Rico, has given the school a much broader focus geographically. Since Cevallos became president in 2014, Framingham State has created partnerships with universities in Ecuador, Costa Rica and Brazil. Cevallos has made sure Framingham State stays on top of local hiring trends, such as its new master's degree in quality control for biotechnology. He's active in local groups, including serving on the boards of MetroWest Medical Center and the MetroWest Chamber of Commerce. What advice would you give up-and-comers? Understand the culture of the industry they are interested in, and develop the appropriate credentials to succeed in that area. en assess the tradeoffs they will need to make to get to the position they want to have. It is a cliché, but it will require hard work and success seldom happens overnight. Good taste: I enjoy cooking. I find it very relaxing and creative. I love art but have no talent for it, so I use cooking as a way to be creative. JILL C. DAGILIS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR WORCESTER COMMUNITY ACTION COUNCIL, WORCESTER Residence: Worcester Colleges: Worcester State University, Clark University If you've ever served on a volunteer nonprofit board in Central Massachusetts, you've probably met Dagilis, serving right along aside you. In her day job, Dagilis leads a nonprofit with a $22-million annual budget, more than 100 employees and 75,000 clients served through energy, early childhood, youth education, employment and asset development programs. WCAC does everything from helping first-time parents raise newborns to providing heat for seniors' homes. Aside from those duties, Dagilis is the chairwoman of the Worcester Business Development Corp. and vice- chairwoman for the Massachusetts Community Action Parner, and has served on the boards for Worcester State University Foundation, Worcester Regional Research Bureau, Massachusetts Education & Career Opportunities, Inc., the Worcester Redevelopment Authority, Dress for Success, and United Way of Central Massachusetts. What advice would you give up-and-comers? When stress gets to you, do kickboxing – or something that pushes it out of you. I like to mow the lawn and trim my trees and hedges! Woman of many talents: I love construction, using power tools, scuba diving, and my three grandchildren. DR. DAVID A. JORDAN PRESIDENT SEVEN HILLS FOUNDATION & AFFILIATES, WORCESTER Residence: Worcester Colleges: Medical University of South Carolina, Clark University, Salve Regina University, University of Rhode Island Seven Hills Foundation extends far beyond its Worcester base, to 160 locations in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and seven countries abroad, with more than 4,000 employees and a budget of $223 million. Jordan oversees it all, helping Seven Hills meet the needs of those with physical, behavioral, lifestyle and cognitive challenges. But he's also busy elsewhere, including at Clark University, where he's been an adjunct professor for 13 years and serves as its social entrepreneur-in-residence at its Graduate School of Management. Jordan says he values teaching young men and women about the world and each person's responsibilities to global social issues. What advice would you give up-and-comers? Be self- aware in prioritizing some part of your life to acts of selflessly giving back. We can all do one small thing to improve our world – so just do it! So he attended four colleges: I'm the first member of an extended Portuguese family growing up in Newport, R.I. who ever attended college. LAURIE LESHIN PRESIDENT WORCESTER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE, WORCESTER Residence: Worcester Colleges: Arizona State University, California Institute of Technology If a college president might be assumed to be stuffy, or for the head of a technical college to be a man, Leshin – the head of Central Massachusetts' largest school with 5,150 full-time undergrads and a $485-million endowment – flips both of those on its head. Leshin is the first female head of WPI at a school that was male-only for much of its history. To boot, she has nearly 6,300 who follow her prolific tweeting, including selfies with students, and an eye-catching bright red Tesla. Leshin, WPI's president since 2014, has advocated for better pre-collegiate outreach to students and for more female students to join male- dominated STEM fields, with a record 44-percent women in last year's incoming class. In 2017, she opened a small WPI outpost in Boston's Seaport District. What advice would you young up-and-comers? Surround yourself with inspiring and effective colleagues and work together to have an impact. No major problem can be solved by a single person. Find mentors and – possibly more importantly – kick down the door for someone else. Out of this world: She has an asteroid named aer her.

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