University of Minnesota Twin Cities | Icebreaker

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University of Minnesota Twin Cities | Icebreaker

University of Minnesota Twin Cities

University of Minnesota Twin Cities

The University of Minnesota Twin Cities is among the nation’s top public research universities offering a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs.

368 members

Contact info

Link

umn.edu

Members

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cs @ umn, eea student board intern, pres @ blockchain club

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You and I both know our food system is broken… It's your mission and passion to fix it I get it. It’s my mission, too. You build a better system; I write the words, and invite your guests to the table. And I’m the best there is. Why? Because I know your business, and I get results: • MANAGER of the WEST SIDE FARMERS MARKET (St. Paul, MN). For 6 years, I wrote all sales and email copy, and managed all our social media ⁃ Food & Wine Magazine called us “Petite but Powerful” (2019) ⁃ 120% vendor sales average increase! ⁃ 75% increase in customer traffic ⁃ 25% of customers found the market via social media (DOUBLE the MN avg: 12.5%) ⁃ Helped to build a list of 900 email subscribers in a neighborhood of 17,000 ⁃ Open rate: 25% (industry average: 23%) ⁃ 2184 Facebook page likes: all organic. Again, in a neighborhood of 17,000 people (13% of the population) ⁃ Tripled the number of vendors at the market: many of them found us via our Facebook page •. I RUN a SUSTAINABLE FOOD BUSINESS! Payshee’s Popcorn: a hyper-local, organic popcorn company. I write all the copy: social media, email, GoogleBusiness, NextDoor, Instagram, website (company stories, blog, all pages), e-commerce, product descriptions, product names/slogans, all of the branding ⁃ 108% increase in sales-per-event average from 1st year to 3rd year! ⁃ 7,000 Facebook followers (from one ad campaign) ⁃ 28.3% email open rate (industry average: 20%) • I'M an AMAZON BEST-SELLING AUTHOR ⁃ Launched 3 books to Amazon best-seller status ⁃ 10,000 Facebook followers (one ad campaign) ⁃ 9,000 Twitter followers (all organic) ⁃ In Be a Hobbit, Save the Earth, I argued that at the center of the world’s problems was our broken food system. In The End of Fear Itself, I explored our deepest fears. I know what you fear. More importantly, I know what keeps your customers and clients awake at night, and how you can dispel their anxieties. • I'M a BORN STORYTELLER: Even my non-fiction books are chock full of stories, personal stories, other people’s stories. I will tell YOUR STORY, your customers’s stories and help you find MORE of them!

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Educator, leader, PhD student, creative problem solver, builder of bridges

Kaushee Ganeshan

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I’m an enterprise technology leader who’s spent the last two decades driving transformation inside some of the most complex, high-impact organizations in Healthcare, Finance and AI startups. Along the way, we’ve led $150M+ modernization efforts, managed global teams of 1,000+, and built platforms that aren’t just functional—they actually make people’s lives easier. We’ve reshaped how customers, brokers, and teams interact with technology—whether it’s payer platforms, direct-to-consumer tools, or mission-critical backend systems. I’ve had the privilege of helping IT evolve into a true strategic partner to the business, aligning tech strategy with growth, agility, and measurable outcomes. Beyond the day-to-day, I advise startups, sit on a board, and run a 100,000+ subscriber newsletter where we explore what’s next in AI and healthcare. I believe in building systems that scale, teams that thrive, and roadmaps that actually get used. Tech should be simple, human-centered, and built with purpose. That’s what we strive for. And we're just getting started.

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MTS CPU Physical Design Engineer at AMD

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I am the Assistant Director of Economic Growth for the City of Rochester with a background in planning/zoning, federal grant administration, multifamily housing, community organization and housing inspections. I graduated from the University of Minnesota with a Bachelor's of Science in Housing Studies, with a concentration in Housing Technology.

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Geographic Information Systems Manager @ Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program | Master's Degree

Lauren Dickinson

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As an Associate Program Director at Carlson Global Institute, I have been leading the development and implementation of intercultural education strategies for over thirteen years. In Spring 2025, I will complete my PhD in Leadership for Intercultural and International Education from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, where I also earned my MA in Educational Policy and Administration. My expertise lies in creating culturally intelligent environments that foster inclusive and equitable learning experiences for students, staff, and faculty. I have trained hundreds of individuals in Cultural Intelligence (CQ) and collaborated with faculty to integrate intercultural learning into short-term program curricula. I am also a certified CQ Facilitator and Trainer, and I co-created CGI's DEI working group to support our team development. Additionally, I have managed a portfolio of short-term faculty-led study abroad programs with a corporate consulting focus, and developed marketing and social media strategies for the Education Abroad programs team. I am passionate about empowering others to navigate diverse cultural contexts and promote global understanding and collaboration.

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Giving schools tools to stop violence and bullying

Christine Tzanakis

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Vice President, Insurance Business Development

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