Worcester Business Journal

4 Worcester Business Journal | May 1, 2023 | wbjournal.com DR. MATILDE "MATTIE" CASTIEL COMMISSIONER OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES CITY OF WORCESTER VINCENT STRULLY, JR. FOUNDER AND CEO THE NEW ENGLAND CENTER FOR CHILDREN, IN SOUTHBOROUGH P O W E R 5 0 H E A L T H C A R E Residence: Holden College: University of California San Francisco School of Medicine Castiel oversees numerous high-profile and highly important offices and services throughout the City of Worcester, from the Department of Public Health to the opioid and mental health task forces. While the vaccine equity clinics throughout the city closed at the end of March, Castiel was instrumental in leading Worcester's pandemic response and guaranteeing essential health and human services remained available to all, particularly those suffering from the co-occurring opioid epidemic and mental health crisis. Castiel ensures departments across the city are working in tandem to improve the quality of life of its residents. This means making sure programs to address homelessness and drug use, youth empowerment and senior services, veteran care and human rights are all working together to improve outcomes for those seeking services. Overarching all of this work is an eye towards equity, which is manifest in yet more of the programs Castiel manages. During the pandemic, Worcester data was launched in partnership with UMass Memorial Health, which has clarified and brought to light areas of health inequity needing attention. The COVID-19 Equity Task Force will continue on as the renamed Equity Task Force to use information to better pinpoint which communities are most in need. n How should professionals best use the power they wield? "Your power should create change and make Worcester the best it can be. Use your power and your connections to volunteer, learn, advocate for people, and help those that are underserved. No one should be homeless or die from drugs or mental health issues in our community." n Wepa: Where her favorite singer is Celia Cruz, Castiel has often been told she looks like Gloria Estefan. Residence: Boston College: Hamilton College, in New York Strully established the first NECC program in 1975, and since then has built from there to include a day school, a residential program, a classroom model for use within public schools, a consulting practice, a research center, onsite graduate degree programs, and a technology division to develop the center's curriculum to learners with autism far and wide. The model at NECC has been replicated and scaled far beyond its Southborough home, providing effective treatment and education for children with autism as far as the Middle East. NECC is one of the largest employers in Central Massachusetts and has equipped nearly 2,000 staff members with research training and applied behavioral analysis degrees. The comprehensive nonprofit publishes multiple best-in-practice research studies each year, furthering the landscape of autism education beyond its own programs, and has a walloping $113-million annual revenue, according to GuideStar. In his 48 years since starting NECC, Strully has adapted and continuously improved to further services across the region and internationally through its research programs and data-driven decision making, substantially impacting the accessibility of services for children and families. n How should professionals best use the power they wield? "Build a core of well-trained and well-educated professionals committed to your mission, who are empowered to use the skills they've been taught to continuously improve the organization. Use your power to engage people in the mission of advancing the lives of the people you are meant to serve." n Parlez-vous français?: Strully speaks French and loves to visit France and engage with French culture. PARTH CHAKRABARTI EXECUTIVE VICE CHANCELLOR FOR INNOVATION AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT UMASS CHAN MEDICAL SCHOOL, IN WORCESTER Residence: Lexington Colleges: Harvard University, Indian School of Business, Indian Institute of Technology (Banaras Hindu University), Nagpur University Chakrabarti is responsible for growing the size, financials, and reach of the UMass Chan research enterprise. He has re-structured the BRIDGE Innovation & Business Development team to use a venture approach in pursuit of the commercialization of the university's intellectual property. The UMass Chan research enterprise grows more dominant year after year, now surpassing even the flagship UMass Amherst campus's productions and trailing only the most esteemed research universities in the state. In fiscal year 2022 alone, the team Chakrabarti leads has brought in $45.6 million for the medical school through licensing revenue and services to for-profit partners. An additional $20 million came through new sponsored research by industry partners. This work has enabled multiple spinout companies from UMass Chan, including Via Scientific this year, a cloud-based product of a UMass invention. The team has developed an inverter-facing portal allowing for the checking of current patent status, appealing to stakeholders and external interests. An experienced patent-holding inventor himself, Chakrabarti has been co-author on peer-reviewed research and is dialed into the industry from multiple angles. n How should professionals best use the power they wield? "Focus your power on creating lasting, positive impact by being strategic, humble, inclusive, and open-minded to new ideas and approaches." n Sunny days: Weather permitting, Chakrabarti loves riding his motorcycle. PHOTO | MATT WRIGHT

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