RHODE ISLAND David Cipoletta '14, M.S. '19, is a born engineer- a techie who gets
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RHODE ISLAND
UNIVERSITY OF
FALL 2021
MAGAZINE
David Cipoletta ’14, M.S. ’19,
is a born engineer—
a techie who gets
things done. With
his startup, Pison,
he’s designing
revolutionary
gesture-Control and
brain wave-control
tech to help the
U.S. military, people with
ALS, and everyday
device users.
Aperture
“My role as a teacher is to help
each student discover their own
creative voice and find ways to
link it to real-world situations.”
—Kevin Gilmore ’99
“OUROBOROS OF THE SELF”
Kevin Gilmore ’99 is an instructor in URI's Department
of Art and Art History. He calls this self-portrait “a
glimpse into my process—a collage, a stage, a cycle.”
Gilmore says, “The seated figure next to the books
(including my URI undergrad art history book) is the
thinker, seer, listener, critic. The middle figure is the visual
artist and professor—the studio stool is commonly used
to teach positive/negative space. The crouched figure
is the sound-maker, the performer.”
“My role as a teacher,” Gilmore says, “is to help each
student discover their own creative voice and find ways to
link it to real-world situations.” At URI, his classes are filled
with students from various disciplines, which, he says,
“challenges me to learn about each student and change
my approach to help each one find their artistic voice.”
Gilmore, who embraces the label of interdisciplinary
artist, works in a variety of media, including paint, pencil,
camera, and sound. Doing so, he says, allows him to
change his medium to best suit his message. While
painting has long been his primary medium, he says
a paintbrush can also inspire him to tap on the canvas
or drop the brush on the floor to explore the brush's
resonant sound, and listen to the colors on the canvas.
“Seeing a brush for just a brush makes me a painter,”
Gilmore says. “Finding 100 other ways to use it makes
me an artist.” •
—Barbara Caron
Inside
UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE • VOL. 4, NO. 1 • FALL 2021
CURRENTS NET WORK F E AT U R E S
8 44
IN BRIEF CLASS NOTES 16
URI news to keep you URI alumni are amazing! GETTING IT DONE
in the know. Catch up with your
David Cipoletta ’14, M.S. ’19,
classmates and get to
and his startup, Pison, are
9 know the newest and
revolutionizing how we interact
WHY I TEACH longest-standing members
with the world around us.
of the Rhody family.
Philosophy professor
22
Doug Reed ’04 brings a
lofty subject down-to-Earth.
49
YOUR STORIES
10 An alumnus reflects on the MAKING HISTORY
BIG IDEAS. impact of men’s track and Rhody basketball player Charlie
field coach John Copeland, Lee was the first Black player to
BOLD PLANS. who retired this year. participate in a college game in
New grad school dean eyes the state of Georgia.
opportunities to attract and 50
support top applicants.
IN UNISON
11 How the Alumni of Color
26
Network became one of UNSUNG HEROES
QUAD ANGLES the University’s strongest
Tyrone Thomas ’22 on Serving essential roles in the
alumni groups.
creating a safe zone for communities they serve, today’s
voicing differing opinions. librarians are so much more
56 than keepers of the books.
CAPTION THIS
12
Stroll down Memory Lane,
RHODY SCHOLARS
Studying LGBTQ+ inclusive
check out last issue’s winners, 34
and send your best caption
practices in Finland, a for this issue! ALL AGES LEARNING
Fulbright scholar aims to Rethinking the education model
shape URI’s conversation and encouraging the participation
on inclusivity. of older adults is enriching the
Rhody community.
14
MEDIA SPOTLIGHT
URI experts are quoted in 40
the media frequently. Here
are a few that bear repeating. GOLF MEDIA GIANT
Alzheimer’s forced Tim Rosaforte
15 ’77 into early retirement; his
friends and colleagues are
RHODE TAKEN
ensuring his legacy.
As an undergraduate,
Thomas Bonneau ’21 started
a nonprofit to collect and
repurpose medical supplies.
Left, winter on the Quad.
COVER: NORA LEWIS; PHOTOS: MENA HALL; NORA LEWIS; COURTESY CHARLIE LEE; SKYE LEEDAHL; GOLF IMAGES UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 3
FROM THE PRESIDENT
“This is a resilient and fearless generation of students.”
—Marc B. Parlange
Mary Parlange and
President Marc B. Parlange
Hello, URI Alumni!
M y wife, Mary, and I are energized
and enthusiastic as we begin the
2021–22 academic year, our first at URI.
pressing issues as climate change and
environmental sustainability. I envision
stronger collaborations with universities,
Rhody alumni exhibit for their alma
mater, and I think you’ll find many points
of pride in this issue of the magazine. In
SEPTEMBER SCENES
Above left, Marc and Mary Parlange rolled up their sleeves on move-in day, greeting
We’ve been getting to know the remark- institutes, companies, and NGOs along “The Night Charlie Lee Made History,” we students and families, unloading cars, and carrying boxes. Above right, President Parlange
able extended URI community, attending the Eastern Seaboard to examine how we profile Rhody basketball player Charlie met with URI Professor of Engineering Arun Shukla, U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Lorin Selby, and U.S.
Sen. Jack Reed (R.I.) in Professor Shukla's Dynamic Photomechanics Laboratory in Kirk
college retreats, music performances, sports might preserve and protect the region’s Lee, the first Black player to participate Applied Engineering Lab. Below, a group of students joined President Parlange for a morning
events, and the Honors Colloquium; natural resources while also nurturing the in a college basketball game in the state run on the Kingston Campus.
welcoming students and families; and state’s potential as a hub for a thriving of Georgia. In our cover story, “Mind
meeting our government partners and blue—and green—economy. Over Matter,” you’ll read about how David
our phenomenal faculty, staff, and alumni. Supporting student success and culti- Cipoletta ’14, M.S. ’19, and his company,
These occasions have led to rich con- vating a safe, vibrant, and inclusive com- Pison, are creating devices that enable
versations about developing a renewed, munity is fundamental to our mission. people to control robots and computers
shared vision for URI and strengthening This has taken on new meaning in the using brain waves. Meet some of URI’s
our contributions as the state’s flagship midst of a pandemic. I met many first- Graduate School of Library and Informa-
university. In the coming months, I look year students on move-in weekend and tion Studies alumni, who are using their
forward to advancing these conversations witnessed firsthand their excitement and positions—and voices—to create informed
and to developing a university plan for optimism about a return to in-person communities and to advocate for social
URI’s future that will build on our distinct instruction. This is a resilient and fearless justice in “Librarians. Out Loud.”
assets, reaffirm our commitment to acces- generation of students, and I look forward We have much to celebrate and more
sible, affordable, and innovative education; to enhancing their experience at URI with to do. I am honored and inspired to begin
rigorous and consequential research; social new opportunities for experiential learn- this journey with you.
justice; and a diverse and inclusive com- ing, such as the creation of lab spaces on
munity of learners. Among our areas of campus that allow budding entrepreneurs
focus will be enhancing academic excel- to test their ideas. Some students have
lence by recruiting and supporting our already taken me up on my invitation to
faculty, exploring opportunities to add join me on my morning runs, and we’ve Marc B. Parlange
more graduate and Ph.D. program offer- had productive exchanges about how the President, University of Rhode Island
ings, and expanding our strategic partner- University’s administration, faculty, and
ships locally and globally. staff can support transformational initia-
Having been born right here in the tives that enable our students to execute
Ocean State, I appreciate the distinct and their big ideas.
substantial opportunities our location Finally, I have been so impressed with
affords us to study such complex and the level of interest and involvement
4 FALL 2021 PHOTOS: NORA LEWIS UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 5
Feedback
We welcome and encourage letters to the editor.
From the Editor
If you’ve read The Midnight Library by Matt Doerr would agree. Librarians are keepers,
Write to us: urimag@uri.edu Haig, or if you’re intrigued by the idea of the shapers, and caretakers of human knowledge,
Visit us and comment online at uri.edu/magazine multiverse and parallel universes, you may have culture, history, and social consciousness.
pondered the question of whether there’s a par- They are also truth-seekers and fact-seekers.
allel you, living life on a slightly different trajec- Contrast librarians with another keeper and
tory in a parallel universe. I’ve pondered that curator of the culture—social media—which FALL 2021 FEATURE WRITERS
idea endlessly. And in one of my lives, I’m sure gives users content they will click on, with T.J. Auclair graduated from URI
Gratitude for that I’m a librarian.
Librarians, said novelist Anthony Doerr in
truth being, at best, a secondary concern,
and the importance of librarians shows up
in 2002. He has covered
ROTC Training a recent CBS Sunday Morning interview, are in stark relief.
professional golf since then,
traveling to more than 70 major
Well written article (“Leaders in Training,” “the caretakers of human knowledge.” That’s I hope you are inspired by our URI librari- championships, spending 13
summer 2021). I was a 1965 Distinguished why Doerr, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of ans, as well as by student Tyrone Thomas years at Turner Sports as a writer
Military Graduate and chose infantry in Hawaii All the Light We Cannot See, dedicated his (page 11) whose podcast aims to resurrect for PGA.com. Currently, he is
with the 25th Division. I attribute my survival new book, Cloud Cuckoo Land, to librarians. the lost arts of listening and civil conversation, director of content for The
as a 2nd Lt. platoon leader fighting North Viet- In our feature story about URI’s alumni and Tim Rosaforte ’77 (page 40), who forged Caddie Network.
namese Army regulars in the Central Highlands librarians (page 26), assistant professor of an outrageously successful golf journalism
Michael Blanding has written
of the Republic of Vietnam to my ROTC train- library and information science Mary Moen, career by leading with integrity and trustwor-
ing at URI. Proud to have served with volunteer Galilee Glow? Nope. M.L.I.S. ’03, Ph.D. ’15, says, “Librarians are thiness. In this issue, you’ll meet many other
for The New York Times, WIRED,
Slate, and The Boston Globe. His
Hawaiian soldiers led by heroic noncommis-
sioned officers. And we were young.
That’s Jerusalem. unsung heroes. The stereotype that persists is
that we’re just the keepers of the books. We're
equally admirable and inspiring members
of the URI community.
book North by Shakespeare: A
Rogue Scholar’s Quest for the
—Capt. Peter C. Ewing '65 You, Rhody readers, are on your toes! Us? Not FEEDBACK GUIDELINES so much more.” We have a lot to be proud of. Truth Behind the Bard’s Work
so much, it seems. The photo by Rich Epstein University of Rhode Island Magazine
—Barbara Caron, Editor-in-Chief recently won the International
Staying Connected
welcomes letters to the editor
’91 (summer 2021), which we titled, “Galilee Book Award for narrative
addressing topics covered in the
Glow,” was from the vantage point of Galilee, magazine. We do not publish = SOCIAL SNAP = nonfiction.
URI Magazine is my favorite piece of mail to but actually shows the sunset over the village letters containing obscenities,
receive. The images and stories are captivating, of Jerusalem, which is across the breachway potentially libelous statements, Bob Herzog retired in 2018
and I love how connected I still feel hundreds of personal attacks, or known false @rhodyfootball after a 46-year career as a sports
from Galilee. Our apologies—especially to statements. All letters must be
miles and several years after graduating. Can't Rich Epstein—and thanks to our readers for Thank you to Mr. Kraft! journalist. He was an award-
signed. Letters may be edited for
wait for the next edition! clarifying this. style, grammar, typographical
winning sportswriter and sports
—Gina Sloman ’13 errors, content, and length. The Editor’s note: In October, Patriots editor at Newsday from 1976
submission of a letter to the editor owner Robert Kraft surprised the until his retirement. He has
I have been thoroughly enjoying all the
Making a Difference articles in the summer 2021 issue of URI
does not guarantee its publication.
Views expressed by readers in
URI football team with a lift to
it’s game against Towson in the
been teaching sports writing at
URI since 2019.
for Students Magazine! However, I would like to make
a correction. The photo on pages 54–55 is
the Feedback section are their
own and do not necessarily Patriots plane. Wide receivers
Marybeth Reilly-McGreen is a
Reading “The Justice League of Education” reflect the opinions or policies Paul Woods (#10, junior) and
actually a picture of Jerusalem, in South URI content strategist and
(summer 2021) brought back great memories
of the University of Rhode Island Ivory Frimpong (#84, senior)
Kingstown (not Galilee, and not Narragan- or University of Rhode Island frequent contributor to URI
show their team’s excitement on
and shows how academic and personal advising, sett, as the caption said). Only the rocks in Magazine. Please send letters via Magazine. An award-winning
the tarmac at T.F. Green Airport
student organization participation, and caring the lower left corner are actually in Galilee.
email to urimag@uri.edu. writer, she has profiled Dr.
in Warwick, R.I.
faculty all make a difference in the lives of our —Judy Everett ’72 Anthony Fauci; poet laureate
students. Excellent article. Billy Collins; Peabody Award-
—Tom Dougan, longtime URI vice president of The caption is misleading. Although the winners Christiane Amanpour
The University of Rhode Island Magazine is published by the University of Rhode Island.
student affairs (retired, 2016) picture was taken from the vantage point Copyright pending, all rights reserved.
'83, Hon. '95, and Vlad Duthiers
'91, Hon. '17; Pulitzer Prize-
of Galilee, the actual view shown is of the Email: urimag@uri.edu | Online: uri.edu/magazine | Phone: 401.874.5895
Toxic Critical Race Theory village of Jerusalem, on the opposite side Executive Editor: Michele A. Nota ’87, M.S. ’06, Vice President, URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement
winner Thomas Farragher '73,
Hon. '17; and Tony Award-
Equity? Social justice? “Justice League of Educa- of the breachway. Editor-in-Chief: Barbara Caron winner Andrew Burnap '13.
tion”? (summer 2021) More duplicitous code —Walter T. Burrows III ’76 Art Director: Kim Robertson
words for the divisive Marxist Critical Race Contributing Editors: Diane M. Sterrett has been
Theory that is tearing this country apart. I was doing a final read of the summer 2021 Annie Babineau, Dina M. Dionizio ’91, Dave Lavallee ’79, M.P.A. ’87, writing in nearly every medium
Indeed, academia, business, government, big- issue of the University of Rhode Island Leslie Lowenstein, Tracey Manni, Kate O’Malley, Marybeth Reilly-McGreen for more than 35 years. Her
Contributing Designer: Cynthia McMillen passion is learning and writing
tech, and the media are bending over backwards Magazine when the photo on pages 54–55
Photographer: Nora Lewis about the ocean, the environ-
to pander to the corrosive, nonempowering gave me pause: Is that Galilee, or is it Jerusa-
Illustrations: Anthony Russo ’74 ment, health care, and educa-
agenda of victimology. These reeducation lem, located on the west side of the breach- Digital Design: Laurel McLaughlin ’92 tion. Based in Tiverton, R.I.,
efforts are beginning to rival those of Commu- way? Thank you for a great publication! Editorial Board:
when not writing, she can be
nist China. —Scott Massoni ’81 Linda A. Acciardo ’77, Interim Executive Director, External Relations and Communications
found sailing Narragansett Bay
—Kendall Svengalis, M.L.S. '75 Austen Farrell, Chief Marketing Officer, URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement
and beyond.
6 FALL 2021 UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 7
Currents
uri.edu/news
Get more
= WHY I TEACH =
news at
= NEWS TICKER =
The Everyday Philosopher
= IN BRIEF = Assistant Professor of Philosophy Douglass Reed
F
NEW ENGINEERING DEAN
Murals, Old and New or assistant professor Douglass Reed very relatable human experiences. “It’s not
Anthony J. Marchese
has been named dean ’04, philosophy goes beyond reading always clear to students how philosophy
The 1950s-era murals that of the College of Plato’s Symposium or discussing Socratic relates to their lives. You hear all these
hung in the Memorial Union Engineering. Marchese virtue in a classroom. Instead, Reed sees great names, these great thinkers, and you
depicted a University of Rhode comes to URI from philosophy as something that can be, and might think, ‘Why should I care about
Island that, though accurate to Colorado State University often is, done every day. And that’s how that?’” Reed says. “A lot of times, students
the times during which it was and is expected to begin
he teaches it. “I think we, as humans, are will be able to see the connections to their
painted and to what enroll- his duties Jan. 1, 2022.
always kind of doing philosophy,” he says. own experiences, and this class draws on
ment at URI looked like more
“Philosophy comes down to asking their own personal experiences, which is
than six decades ago, looked
human questions, explaining our own really cool.”
very different than it does today.
answers to those questions, and listening Olivia Belitsos ’23, a double major in
Painted by the late Dr. Arthur GSO SHIP NAMED
to and scrutinizing other people’s answers psychology and criminology and criminal
Sherman ’50—a combat medic After a nationwide
in World War II who came to Memorial Union mural to those same questions.” justice with a minor in gender and women's
competition, the National
URI on the GI Bill and later Science Foundation’s $125 For Reed, philosophy is about being studies, took PHL110G-Honors with Reed
served as a coach and taught community and alumni, the as well as the intent of the million research vessel, curious and questioning long-held—or as a first-year student and wound up tack-
at URI—the murals depict Memorial Union Advisory murals and the era in which which will be based at URI’s even short-held—beliefs and asking the ing on philosophy as a third major because
commencement, marching Committee presented its rec- they were created. Bay Campus, has been question: Why? she enjoyed the way Reed taught it.
named Narragansett Dawn. Reed teaches a variety of courses, one “It was really engaging,” Belitsos says.
band, class reunion, and day at ommendations on the issue, And, taking advantage of
the beach scenes featuring which have been adopted by what the committee identified of which, Philosophy 110G: Love and Sex “Coming into college, topics like love and
mostly white male students. the University leadership. as a unique opportunity to (PHL110G), aims to make the field sex are a part of everybody’s lives, so it
After some questions about The original murals will be support reflection on today’s relevant to students by was really relevant. It’s unique material
OYSTER RESEARCH
the lack of diversity represented, preserved and will be displayed, diverse URI community, a new linking it to two and the way he approached it was
URI scientists have taken
the murals were covered and as part of a broader building installation will be commis-
the first steps toward
thoughtful and captivating.”
protected while the issue was renovation project. New to the sioned expressing contempo- understanding the In the course, Reed encourages students
looked at more closely. display will be some contextual rary campus life. The new mural function of oyster to pose questions like, “Does love at first
After months of discussion, language about Sherman’s will be done as part of the microbes, which may have sight exist?” and “What (if anything) is
meetings, and widely sought- service to the country, the major Memorial Union renova- implications for oyster the value of marriage?” and then grapple
after input from the URI University, and the community, tions slated to begin in 2022. health and the manage- with either side of the argument. “The
ment of oyster reefs.
answers to these questions are not
Floating a New Idea straightforward, uncontestable,” he says.
Typical offshore wind turbines, According to Stephan Grilli, the “These kinds of questions are part of our
like those constructed off Block URI professor of ocean engineering everyday lives, and I hope that philosophy
TOP OF THE CHART
Island, Rhode Island, have fixed who leads the project, the irregular- URI classical guitar can help us think about them, and other
foundations built into the seafloor. ities of ocean waves and other professor Adam Levin questions, in a more self-conscious way.”
Because of that, they are not eco- marine factors are major challenges topped Billboard's Belitsos says Reed is succeeding in this
nomical to build in water more to the development of commercial- Traditional Classical Album goal. “Instead of just teaching us about
than 200 feet deep. A new system scale floating wind turbines. Their charts twice this year. His philosophy, he helps us engage in it,”
of floating turbines is now in operation can lead to unpredictable album with Israeli
she says. “I would 100 percent
mandolinist Jacob Reuven
development that would allow for forces on the structure, leading to encourage students to take a class
reached No. 1 in June, and
electricity generation in deeper fatigue and reduced operational life. with Professor Reed, because he
his solo album hit the top
water farther offshore where Optimizing control of the tur- spot in September. is a phenomenal teacher, and he
winds are more favorable and bines requires a method of antici- takes philosophy from being an
where conflict with other ocean pating the movement of the float- unapproachable topic to some-
users would be reduced. ing structures, and that requires thing that everyone can do.” •
To optimize the operation of real-time information about
DOLLARS AND SENSE —Grace Kelly
floating offshore wind turbines, a approaching waves. “No one is
The new Rhody Financial
team of University of Rhode Island using that information yet; they just
Education Center,
engineers–along with colleagues use the past movement of the float,” supported by the Westerly
at the University of Maine–has Grilli said. “We’ve worked for 10 (R.I.) Community Credit
been awarded a $1.245 million years on sensing ocean waves using Union, offers students
grant by the Department of a remote sensing method, so we online tools for personal
Energy to model and test a system can acquire a lot of information on budgeting, building credit,
for controlling the motion of the the position of approaching waves saving, investing, and more.
floating structures. almost instantaneously.”
PHOTOS: SANJAN MALAKALA; NORA LEWIS; AYLA FOX UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 9
CURRENTS
= BIG IDEAS. BOLD PLANS. =
A Bigger, Bolder Vision for URI’s Future
In October, the University announced that it would raise the goal of Big Ideas. Bold Plans.
The Campaign for the University of Rhode Island from $250 million to $300 million.
The enthusiasm and generosity demonstrated by the URI community—alumni, families, friends,
corporations, and foundations—have driven the campaign over $218 million, just over a year
after its public launch. This momentum, combined with the vision of President Marc B. Parlange, will
allow the campaign to do more for the University’s strategic growth in the years ahead.
= QUAD ANGLES =
Resurrecting the Art of Respectful Conversation
These days, there are plenty of topics that can lead to angry disagreement.
Can respectful conversation and real listening change the tone of contemporary discourse?
The Good Faith Idea Exchange podcast says, “Absolutely.”
By Tyrone Thomas ’22
I t started last year, in 2020, such a
crazy year for so many of us. COVID.
Ahmaud Arbery. George Floyd. And that’s
standing, but to “win” the debate at all costs.
The Good Faith Idea Exchange isn’t
about winning, but rather about thinking.
Above all else, the Good Faith Idea
Exchange delivers a message of fellowship,
of communion, with an audience from all
just the tip of the iceberg. I had my own In episode one of the podcast, I had a walks of life. No matter what listeners’
thoughts about what I was seeing on the talk with an old friend from the military. backgrounds may be, no matter the shape
news and social media. And for the first He and I don’t see things the same politi- of their paradigm, they gain content and
time in as long as I can remember, I saw cally. Yet we had a thoughtful, mature information that forces them to take a
people actually reaching out; even across conversation where we each made our step back and examine the validity of
social media I heard people having the points while listening to the other without their beliefs. It is important for people
difficult conversations and listening— name-calling, yelling, or dismissing other to understand that any issue can be dis-
T
really listening—to each other. perspectives. cussed, and perspectives shared in a
he student access pillar of the campaign and research and teaching excellence awards
It lasted for a while, but then went away. I also interview people who are mak- comfortable, safe environment.
has received transformative and generous from the URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement
I wanted that back. I wanted to talk ing a positive impact in our communities, What began as a simple idea has taken
support, making a URI education a reality for (URIFAE).
about the difficult conversations again, such as Tory Kern ’15, M.S. ’17—the on a life of its own.
some of our most hardworking and talented DeBoef is working to attract top applicants
and for people to listen to different opin- manager of a youth street outreach team If you have an idea that you think can
students. This area of the campaign also pro- across all disciplines, and to position them for
ions once more. That was how the Good at House of Hope, an agency devoted to make some kind of real impact in this
vides an opportunity to bring much-needed success at URI and beyond—students like Nick
Faith Idea Exchange was born. fighting homelessness—whom I inter- world, I hope this will inspire you to pur-
focus to graduate students. Their work can be DaSilva ’14, Ph.D. ’19, who credits the University’s
Good Faith Idea Exchange is a podcast viewed in episode two. sue it, as I did. Don’t just brush it off and
some of the most innovative, with meaningful fertile research environment as a key factor for
I launched to create an environment In episode seven, I spoke with Rich move on. You never know where it may
applications in academic and professional fields. his and his partners’ decision to launch their
where people with differing views on Norris ’09, whose family escaped civil war take you. •
Graduate fellowships provide financial aid and new drug development company, Alcinous
politics, justice, race, or most any other in Liberia. A URI graduate, he is currently
research funding for students pursuing Pharmaceuticals. In the area of the humanities,
timely topic could express their view- an assistant principal of the 360 High Tyrone Thomas ’22 is studying writing/
advanced degrees and cutting-edge ideas. They A. H. Jerriod Avant is pursuing his Ph.D. in
points and exchange ideas without the School in Providence where he advocates rhetoric and education. He is a military
are a crucial deciding factor for the top appli- English to better understand familial grief, its
rudeness or judgment often seen on cable for young people and has many initiatives veteran who is working on a post-apocalyptic
cants when it comes to choosing URI. Graduate impact on the poetry he writes, and how such
news or heard on the radio. to help at-risk youths succeed. We had an thriller titled, Forged From Fire.
student research often brings prestige and posi- deep emotions can connect people.
Brenton DeBoef, dean of the I’ve noticed that the past 20 years of honest talk about the education system Find Good Faith Idea Exchange at
tive coverage for the University, as well. URIFAE will be working closely with DeBoef
URI Graduate School cable news networks and 12 years of and community involvement in these goodfaithideaexchange.com or on podcast
This year, Professor Brenton DeBoef was and University leadership to take URI’s graduate
social media dominance have fostered a uncertain times. platforms.
named dean of the URI Graduate School. programs to the next level through fellowships
culture of rudeness and ignorance—a cul- I never would have imagined this
DeBoef has earned numerous honors, including that will help brilliant emerging scholars bring This story was originally published in the
ture of people “debating” by interrupting podcast would gain such popularity so
an early career award from the National Science their biggest ideas to life. • URI Feinstein College publication, Educators
each other, talking over one another, not quickly. It has only inspired me to keep
Foundation, the Pfizer Green Chemistry Award, —Austen Farrell & Innovators, fall 2021 issue.
communicating to arrive at a better under- going and do more.
10 FALL 2021 PHOTOS: NORA LEWIS; JOE GIBLIN UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 11
= RHODY SCHOLARS =
Pushing the Boundaries
of Inclusion
Doctoral student Meg Jones was awarded a Fulbright grant to study
LGBTQ+ inclusive practices in teacher education programs in Finland. She
hopes to put what she learns there to work at URI when she returns, to
push inclusivity beyond the basic notion of acceptance.
W hen Meg Jones learned that
Danielle Dennis, her major pro-
fessor at the University of South Florida,
certificate. After a couple of false starts,
she obtained her bachelor’s degree from
the College of Central Florida and her
was headed to Rhode Island to become master’s degree at the University of South
director of URI’s School of Education, she Florida in Tampa.
knew she had to go, too. Dennis encouraged Jones to apply for
Now a URI doctoral student in educa- the Fulbright. “I met Meg when she was a
tion, Jones received a prestigious Fulbright student in the University of South Florida
grant to conduct research at the University Master of Arts in Reading Education pro-
of Helsinki in Finland on global approaches gram. Her ideas, and the way she con-
to LGBTQ+ inclusion in teacher prepara- veyed them through her writing, stood
tion programs. out to me, so I encouraged her to consider
a Ph.D. program. The path she took into
A focus on social justice higher education provides her with a
“Finland is idealized as having one of the unique perspective on education, and
best education systems in the world,” says I believe the Fulbright will propel her
Jones. “Yet when surveyed, queer youths in work as an advocate for LGBTQ+ youths,”
Finland are facing similar rates of discrimi- says Dennis.
nation, mental health issues, and suicide “I dropped out of high school; I
ideation as queer youths in the United States. dropped out of community college—not
“The University of Helsinki has a mas- because of lack of academic ability. It was
ter’s level teacher education program that just life. It has been a bumpy road, but now
is focused on social justice and changing I’m sitting here somehow as a doctoral
education. I will be looking at what is student, I’ve received a Fulbright award,”
happening in this program to help push says Jones. “I’m certainly not a traditional
the boundaries of what we think of as applicant by Fulbright standards.”
inclusion,” says Jones. “It’s such a unique
teacher education program—and a Giving back to URI
unique educational and political system. Jones feels strongly that what she learns in
There’s a lot to be learned there.” Finland can be put into action at URI.
Jones notes the importance of moving “We are known for our Gender and
beyond acceptance. “These are integrated Sexuality Center and for inclusiveness,”
lives and cultures and experiences that she says. “I have felt very supported by the
should be normalized and represented. Not faculty; everybody seems interested in my
just because you might have queer students work. Being a student here, doing this
in your classroom—but for all students.” research, and also choosing to be out
In Helsinki, Jones will collect research about my own sexuality and relation-
Fulbright scholar Meg Jones at URI’s
and work on her dissertation, but she also ships—being unapologetic about it—has
Gender and Sexuality Center. At URI, hopes to collaborate with her colleagues put my research on people’s radar, and it’s
Jones has been active in the Graduate there to publish internationally. Ulti- been embraced. Yet there is always more
School’s Diversity and Inclusion Badge mately, her hope is to return to URI and work to do and more to learn.”
Program and facilitated a session on replicate the study. Now, says Jones, “I fully intend to
“invisible” sexual orientations, come back to URI and say, ‘OK, here’s
specifically asexuality, bisexuality, and
A unique educational path what I know’—to give back. I want URI to
pansexuality. She’s also participated in
the University’s Safe Zone Project, a
A nontraditional, first-generation college become a leader in the conversation And I
training program that covers issues student, Jones initially dropped out of want other schools in the states to come visit
affecting the LGBTQ+ community and high school before obtaining her GED us because this is where it’s happening.” •
PHOTO: NORA LEWIS; BLACKBOARD ARTISTS: KATIE RIEDY AND TAYLOR OLIVEIRA how best to be an ally. —Dawn Bergantino ’94
12 FALL 2021 UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 13
CURRENTS
= MEDIA SPOTLIGHT =
You Can Quote Me RHODE TO A DEGREE
Long-Term Goal
A career that combines
The creator of CholeraMap, a mobile app that warns people in philanthropy, entrepreneurship,
The creator of hurricane
developing countries about contaminated medicine, and sustainability.
forecasting models used by the
water sources, on the potential expanded use of similar apps: National Hurricane Center, Research Experience
the U.S. Navy, and others, and Funding
Just think: what if we had an app like this to alert the on how warmer ocean Bonneau was awarded a URI
public in the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic? It would have temperatures contribute undergraduate research grant
to more intense hurricanes: and used it to lead a small team in
helped the public understand high-risk regions, but also list
studying the environmental and
recommendations on how to protect themselves. “Hurricanes draw humanitarian implications
—Ali Shafqat Akanda, URI professor of engineering
energy from the ocean, of recovering medical supplies.
The Boston Globe
and if the ocean tempera- Best Campus Study Spot
“I’m giving away my secret spot,
ture is higher, then hurri- but the end of the CBLS building wing
canes become more has great views and a secluded area
The co-author of a recent survey about how the public views the intense. We’re also seeing to work and study with friends.”
legitimacy of Supreme Court decisions on that hurricanes are Best Campus Lunch Spot
how dissent impacts trust: “The Quad!”
intensifying more rapidly,
“ Our research suggests that popular constitutionalists
evaluate the court and interpret its actions quite differently than do
going from a Category 1 = RHODE TAKEN =
Formative J-Term Class
“Ethical Problems in Society and
to a Category 3 or 4
Called to Serve
Medicine (PHL314) encourages students
legal traditionalists. For one group, a dissent is a troubling sign of within a day or two.” to think critically about complicated
politicization. For the other, it is a promising signal of representation.
” —Isaac Ginis, URI professor
THOMAS BONNEAU ’21
moral topics and incorporate the
diverse perspectives of others.”
—Christopher M. Parker, URI assistant professor of political science of oceanography
T
Scholarships
homas Bonneau’s preferred pace? ined. The closest organization willing to
The Washington Post supercomputingonline.com Rhode Island National Guard
Lightspeed. take the supplies was in Maine. tuition waiver and URI one-year
Bonneau ’21 postponed college for a “It’s actually a common thing in health M.B.A. merit scholarship.
semester for Rhode Island Army National care: Supplies are thrown away because of
On the impact of the University of Rhode Island on its students: Favorite Professor
Guard basic training. But he graduated federal regulations, institutional proto- “College of Business marketing lecturer
early by taking Winter J-Term and sum- cols, or supply surplus," Bonneau says. Scott Asadorian not only mentored me
"(URI is positioned to) make a difference in the lives of so many people, to bring mer classes. This fall, he started URI’s “I recognized the worldwide need for as I was starting my nonprofit, but also
them to campus and watch them succeed, one student at a time." one-year M.B.A. program and plans to go supplies. I also knew the environmental inspired me to find my guiding
to medical school after that. impact of health care in the U.S. One principles and mission.”
—Marc B. Parlange, president, University of Rhode Island As an undergraduate, Bonneau also research article I read said that if health Words of Wisdom
The Providence Journal started a nonprofit, America’s Recoverable care in the U.S. were its own country, it “Make introspective reflection part
Medical Supply (ARMS), which collects would be seventh in carbon emissions. of your everyday life. And ask yourself
and repurposes medical supplies. I knew something had to be done.” what your passion is and how you
can use it to serve others.”
Bonneau, a combat medic in the Bonneau’s garage is now filled with
On his recently published study that detected On the rise of artificial intelligence On the potential demise of the five- Rhode Island Army National Guard, says boxes of supplies—from simple catheters URI Degree
PFAS chemicals in the air of kindergarten in the agriculture industry, and day workweek as the pandemic has B.A. 2021, biology. M.B.A. in progress.
the idea for the nonprofit came to him and blood transfusion kits to EKG
classrooms, university offices and concerns about the impact employees considering how they
laboratories, and at home: on biodiversity: can take back more of their time: while doing a routine inventory of medi- machines. He and a couple of other URI
cal supplies. “We had set aside hundreds students have collected 8,000 pounds
“Our study shows that indoor air, “Machines dramatically “Maybe the life I was of pounds of surplus supplies to be of supplies thus far. Bonneau has built in a 12-mile run with a 50-pound ruck-
including dust, is another source of reduce the diversity of insect leading that seemed thrown away. We were just going to dis- relationships with clinics and partners sack on your back—alters your perspec-
exposure to potentially harmful life, microbial life, and flora inevitable, and never- card viable medical supplies, and it made who redistribute the supplies to overseas tive on what you can do, he says, adding,
me think, ‘This doesn't seem right.’ organizations for clinical and educational “If I can do that, I can do this.
forever chemicals. In fact, for children and fauna. That is farming changing, maybe I don’t “I brought it up with my chain of com- purposes. “If you’re really passionate about
in homes or schools with old PFAS- and the agro-ecosystem and want that. (It’s a kind of ) mand. I asked if I could collect and Bonneau says the highlight of ARMS something, you make it work,” Bonneau
treated carpets, inhalation may be the entire cultivation pro- spontaneous realization by donate the supplies to a local organization since its founding has been reallocating asserts. “I've been able to accomplish a
even more important than dust as cess being shaped to meet millions of people that for humanitarian aid. They said, ‘Private, 3,000 pounds of respiratory supplies and decent amount at URI. And I haven’t had
an exposure pathway.” the needs of the machine.” they could do better.” do whatever you want.’” personal protective equipment to India to sacrifice things like my grades to pur-
That initial haul was several hundred through a local third party to alleviate the sue nonprofit work. URI made it possible
—Rainer Lohmann, URI professor —Patrick Baur, URI assistant professor —Erik Loomis, URI associate professor pounds of medical supplies. Finding a local COVID-19 crisis. to combine my interests and to contribute
of oceanography of food innovation and policy of labor and U.S. environmental history organization ready and able to receive the Asked how he manages it all, Bonneau to the common good.” •
SciTechDaily.com Wired Vox bounty proved harder than Bonneau imag- smiles. Basic training—which culminates —Marybeth Reilly-McGreen
14 FALL 2021 PHOTO: NORA LEWIS UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 15
Mind
Over D
avid Cipoletta ’14, M.S. ’19, sits in a
conference room in a downtown
Mat
Boston office with walls of exposed
brick. Around his wrist is a black plastic
device that looks like nothing so much as a
Casio calculator watch from the 1980s. A
grid of shiny electrodes on its underside, he
explains, captures tiny electrical pulses on
his wrist, responding to movements of his
ter
hand. “Every time you lift your finger, you
can see the electrical activity changes,” he
says, pointing to red, orange, and green hori-
zontal lines that jump up and down on his
Android screen as he lifts his index finger up
and down.
“Now, let’s say I want to use a camera
app to take a picture,” he says, opening the
app on the phone. “I can just swipe up.” He
With his company, Pison, lifts his finger up and down again, and the
phone snaps a picture, as if by magic—but
David Cipoletta '14, M.S. '19, that’s only the beginning of what he’s able to
do. With more gestures, he can switch to
is creating devices video or turn the flash on or off. “So then,
how do I apply the same set of gestures to
that allow people to another function?” he continues, switching
to a music app. “I can play, pause, raise the
control computers volume, and switch to the next song with-
out touching the screen,” Cipoletta says,
and robots with their moving his finger in various configurations
as the app obediently responds to his ges-
brain waves. tures like a musician playing to a conduc-
tor’s baton.
By Michael Blanding The device is the flagship product of
Cipoletta’s company, Pison, a startup that
could one day revolutionize how we inter-
act with the world around us—allowing us
to control our environment with simple
hand gestures. While controlling a camera
and music player with a flick of the finger
may seem like a cool trick, the company has
more serious ambitions. Cipoletta founded
it five years ago with Massachusetts Institute
of Technology grad Dexter Ang to develop
technology that might give independence
to people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
(ALS), otherwise known as Lou Gehrig’s
disease, a progressive neurodegenerative
disease that gradually leads to loss of con-
trol over the body’s muscular system.
PHOTO: NORA LEWIS UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 17Left, David Cipoletta '14, M.S. '19, co-founder Pison's flagship product, a device that uses
and CEO of Pison, in Pison's Boston, Mass., offices. electrodes to capture tiny electrical pulses
on the wearer's wrist. The device could
revolutionize how we interact
with the world, allowing people
to control their environment
with a simple hand gesture, or
even the intention of a gesture.
A person with ALS could essentially an exceptional work ethic, holding down bridge, Massachusetts-based other things,
just think of moving their finger, and the simultaneous jobs for the school’s com- Charles River Analytics he wanted
electrical pulses in their wrist could trans- puter department, at a private security (CRA), designing under- to create a
late that intention into action, turning the camera company, and cleaning boats water unmanned vehicles. way for his
page of an eBook or opening a webpage on weekends. “I just always wanted to “It was one of the hardest mother to
without any need for them to actually work—it’s fun for me,” he says. Mean- jobs I ever had,” he says of indepen-
move their body. As the company has while, he rented a two-bedroom apart- the work, which involved piloting dently turn a
developed the technology, it has found ment, converting one bedroom into a underwater robots from boats in page in an e-book. “There
other applications, including new tools for workshop, complete with workbenches, Narragansett Bay and San Francisco are a lot of problems a person
soldiers on the battlefield, for whom it electrical equipment, and 3D printers. “I Bay. “You’ve got a robot you cannot see or with ALS might have that we could fix,”
could mean the difference between life just always loved tinkering with stuff and talk to; you just have to hope your algo- Ang says. “How does she call me when
and death. building things,” he says. In his spare rithm works,” he says. At the same time, she wakes up and needs to get dressed?
Cipoletta began tinkering with elec- time, he built himself a working clock and he pursued a master’s degree in electrical How does she open a book or click on a
tronics at a young age. He moved to the experimented with smart plugs and home and electronics engineering at URI, tak- website? The digital world should not be
United States from China at age 12, along automation. ing five years to complete the degree. “It limited by a person’s physical capabilities.”
with his mother, who holds a doctorate in Cipoletta began at URI with two really helped me figure out how to solve Though his mother died in 2015, Ang
electrical engineering and got a job majors, electrical engineering and com- complex problems,” he says, “which continued to pursue the idea to help
designing software for a video camera puter science. But due to a computer helped me directly in my work.” His mas- others. He honed in on the idea of using
company. Growing up in Glocester, glitch, he ter’s thesis electrical pulses in the skin to help people
Rhode Island, Cipoletta was encouraged discovered, advisor, Pro- with ALS perform tasks, essentially allow-
by his mother and stepfather (who also to his "David is pragmatic; he focuses on fessor Fred ing them to control objects through brain
worked in technology) to explore his delight, that what is possible and what isn't, Vetter, signals. When Cipoletta’s colleague
interests. Rather than explicitly teaching he was able asking, 'How are we actually remembers mentioned his work to Ang at a fraternity
him, his parents challenged him to find to pick up a going to Do it and get it done?'" him as “one reunion in early 2016, Ang called him
answers to questions himself. “They third major, —Giuseppe Stuto, investor and former Pison COO of the stron- right away to tell him about his idea. Two
always said, you are capable to do many computer ger students weeks later, Ang visited Cipoletta at his
things on your own.” And they were right. engineering, as well. “My advisor was sup- I’ve ever worked with. He was so motivated apartment, where Cipoletta had already
By searching on internet forums, he posed to block me, but I was never and knowledgeable that I didn’t need to built a working prototype for the idea,
taught himself to code in Pascal and blocked,” he says with a mischievous grin. ‘advise’ him much—I sort of stayed out of complete with electrical tape holding
began designing websites for pay when he Cipoletta took summer classes to fulfill the way and let him make progress.” wires against the skin. “A lot of people in
was just 16. the requirements for all three majors— It was a class taught by Professor Kunal the world say they are going to do some-
While Cipoletta was still in high giving him a unique understanding of Mankodiya on wearable technologies that thing, but do they actually do it? No,” says
school, his mother got him an internship entire systems, from analog electrical sig- first led Cipoletta to explore devices that Ang. “But he had done it. So, I under-
at her company doing data entry, remov- nals to software applications. “I was inter- could help people with ALS. Initially, he stood right away that he both loves tech,
ing duplicates in the database and sending ested in understanding how to make was focused on creating eyeglasses that and follows through on his word.”
emails to clients. Cipoletta wrote a script things work from beginning to end,” he could help someone control a robotic arm The two joined forces to create Pison
that allowed him to automate the work says. For his capstone project at URI, he using eye-tracking technology. Having (named after Ang’s mother’s cat, with Ang
and complete it in just a few days. “They created a fully automated system for a difficulties with the project, however, he as chief executive officer and Cipoletta as
thought that was my whole summer,” he company conducting DNA sequencing, showed it to a colleague at CRA, who chief technology officer. Along with a few
says. “They said, ‘We don’t have work for enabling technicians to check whether the happened to be in a fraternity with Dexter other engineers, they first pitched the idea
you anymore.’” They transferred him to sequencing had been completed correctly Ang, an MIT mechanical engineer who to MIT Sandbox, a student-innovation
warehouse management, and again he by measuring electrical properties in the was also exploring technology for ALS. fund, which gave the team $25,000 to
created software to automate the task. “I resulting fluid and running it through a Ten years earlier, Ang’s mother had been pursue it. The following year, the ALS
was just very focused on how to do my computer algorithm. diagnosed with the disease, and Ang quit Association gave the company $100,000
job more effectively.” After earning his undergraduate his job in finance to return to MIT to out of money raised from its famous Ice
At URI, he continued to demonstrate degree, Cipoletta took a job with Cam- explore assistive technologies. Among Bucket Challenge. Cipoletta and Ang
18 FALL 2021 PHOTOS: NORA LEWIS UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 19Left, David Cipoletta Left, Pison staffers at work in the company's
demonstrates Pison's wrist device, Boston, Mass., offices.
using it to control a robot with
wrist gestures.
contracts with Google, Samsung, and Mit-
subishi to create devices that might ulti-
mately be used in home or business situa-
tions. Ultimately, its experience may allow
it to compete with those bigger companies
in the consumer space.
“A lot of these older equipment manu-
facturers take longer to develop a product
because they’re not really focused on the
worked well together. “Dexter is the from beginning to end, including captur- the circuit board to fit all the technology they are wearing gloves, and the stylus user today,” says Stuto, who recently left
quintessential visionary and dreamer who ing the electric signals, digitizing them, for signal capture, processing, and shield- doesn’t even work,” Cipoletta says. Pison to launch his own venture capital
has that relentless desire to push bound- and then translating them through soft- ing interference into a small watch-like Making those situations even more firm. “A start-up doesn’t have that liberty.
aries,” says Giuseppe Stuto, an early angel ware. Making the gestures perform space. “I really enjoy designing the cir- perilous, looking down at their portable It needs to be focused on real users.” By
investor who met the duo in 2018, and actions, however, is not quite as simple as cuits,” she says. “It’s like a puzzle to see screens while marking the target, creating a product today for the military,
later joined the company as chief it sounds. To properly decode the signals, how intricately I can fit things in.” increases the chance that they may be Pison hopes to gain valuable experience in
operating officer. “David is prag- the device must filter out electromagnetic While Pison was initially focused on shot by an enemy while they are preoccu- designing a working product before any
matic; he focuses on what is possi- interference in buildings to isolate the rel- developing a device to help people with pied. By contrast, with a gesture control competitors. “The DOD space is a good
ble and what isn’t, asking, ‘How atively weaker signals from the body. In ALS, Ang and Cipoletta quickly realized device, they could simply point at an environment for us to build up some cash
are we actually going to do it and the case of ALS, it’s even more difficult that the market for accessibility products enemy and automatically mark the loca- and develop our technology before we go
get it done?’” since the pulses are so much weaker com- wouldn’t be big enough to make the com- tion on a map through Bluetooth, show- out to compete more broadly.”
In the conference room at Pison, pared to a person without ALS. pany viable in the short-term. “A lot of Recently, Ang
Cipoletta turns over the device on his “Our origins are in ALS, so the quality venture capital companies and investors stepped down as
wrist to reveal a grid of 16 small metal of what goes into designing the device is aren’t interested in funding this disability "For me, the gratification comes from CEO to become
electrodes, which sit against the device better than if we had designed it for able- access business because the market is too helping people, and knowing that chief innovation
wearer’s wrist. As they move their fingers, bodied individuals,” says Tanya Wang ’13, small,” Cipoletta says. On the other hand, people find a need for what I make." officer, interfacing
pulses of electrical energy travel through who met Cipoletta while working as a developing for the consumer market, for —David Cipoletta, co-founder and CEO of Pison with external part-
their nerves as their muscles move. The technician in the biomedical engineering example, risked competition from bigger ners to drum up
device measures the difference in electri- lab at URI. “I would suggest that makes it players, like Google, Microsoft, and even ing their fellow soldiers where to fire new business opportunities, while Cipo-
cal potential between electrodes for each better for all other applications as well.” entrepreneur Elon Musk’s startup, Neura- without taking their eyes off the target. letta has taken over as interim CEO. He’s
gesture. It then uses a machine learning Wang took courses with Cipoletta while link. In searching for other markets, they Another application Pison is exploring hoping that within the next five to 10
algorithm to identify the unique electri- he was studying for his master’s degree. hit upon one customer in urgent need of is drone control. For example, at a check- years, the company will achieve its original
cal pattern for each movement to con- On the first day of one class, they were the technology, whom they could also point where a drone is used to investigate dream of creating devices to help people
vert it into a specific action performed competing neck-and-neck on an icebreaker serve exclusively—the U.S. Department of a suspicious vehicle, a soldier would typi- with disabilities such as ALS, at the same
by a computer app or a robot. Defense (DOD). cally need to look down at a remote to time it starts to tackle products for the
The device works for people “For the general public, this kind of pilot the device. But if an enemy vehicle consumer market.
with ALS because their brains A person could just think of thing is a ‘nice-to-have,’” Cipoletta rammed through the checkpoint, it could Whether creating devices to help a per-
still send electrical signals moving their finger, and the explains. That is, it’d be fun to be able to take precious time for a solider to react son with a disability become more inde-
through their nerves, even electrical pulses in their take a picture or change your music with and bring a weapon to bear. “If you are pendent, a soldier survive in a war zone, or
though the muscles don’t the flick of a finger, but it’s not a necessity. able to control the drone by pointing, you an average person change the television
respond, allowing the device to
wrist could translate that “For a soldier, it’s a ‘must-have.’” That’s are ready if something runs the roadblock channel, Cipoletta is motivated by the idea
intercept them and hack them intention into action. because a soldier in the battlefield is and comes at you,” Cipoletta says. that he can create devices that people can
for its own purposes. “The mus- weighed down with heavy equipment—a With this dual strategy of developing use in the immediate future to make their
cle is almost like the output to a speaker, activity to see who could build the highest pack, a radio, body armor. In an urban an immediate device for the military, as lives better. “Many engineers spend all
but it’s the wire that is sending these structure out of hard spaghetti strands, environment, however, they may face well as a longer-term goal of creating their time on research and development
pulses,” says Cipoletta. “We’re just trying and he told her he was going to start his incoming fire from a building and need to solutions for ALS, Pison was able to raise for things that are never used,” he says.
to tap into the wire to identify these elec- own company one day and hire her. point out to fellow soldiers where the $7 million in series-A funding this past “For me, the gratification comes from
trical signals, and then train them to per- “In my mind, it was this crazy joke,” enemy is shooting from. Typically, that spring, bringing its total funding to $11 helping people, and knowing that people
form a different output.” she says. Nevertheless, he did hire her as means looking down at a device around million. Even as it works on these ambi- find a need for what I make. That’s just the
Cipoletta’s unique background has an electrical engineer in 2016; her job their neck and trying to mark a target on tious twin goals, the company continues best feeling an engineer can have.” •
helped him design the device’s system now is to help design the schematics for a GPS map with a stylus. “A lot of times, to explore other options, with ongoing
20 FALL 2021 PHOTOS: NORA LEWIS UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 21You can also read
