Inge Milde (LA '95) was appointed interim director of the Entrepreneurial Leadership Studies (ELS) program in July, assuming the position previously occupied by James Barlow from 2012 to 2014.
Mark Ranalli, executive director and associate dean of Tufts Gordon Institute, who joined Tufts earlier this semester, said that he will be working with Milde.
"She’s got a passion for both entrepreneurship and Tufts," he said. "She’s a double Jumbo, and her passion for educating at Tufts and building the entrepreneurship program is outstanding. She also … has a unique blend of unbridled energy and OCD."
Charles Auster (A '73), chair of the Tufts Entrepreneurial Leadership Advisory Board, underscored Milde's drive in following through with projects.
"She is just relentless, aggressive in a positive way in her desire to work towards an end goal once she sets her mind on it -- expansion of a program or making something a success -- and will work night and day at it to see that that happens," he said.
Since 2011, Milde has overseen the Tufts $100K New Ventures Competition -- a business plan competition that awards Tufts-based start-ups with cash prizes and other services.
“[Working on the $100K Competition] was a great opportunity for me because I got to spend a lot time with, obviously, very entrepreneurial teams here at Tufts,” Milde said.
Auster added that Milde has had an important impact on the competition's development over the years.
"She did just a terrific job taking it from what had been started to really making it something special and really picking up the numbers -- she continues to do that," he said.
Milde explained that since she was appointed as manager, the competition has grown.
“In the going-on-four years I’ve been running the program, it has grown 500 percent in terms of applicants, and this year I’ve added a life science track to the competition because we’ve been attracting more and more applicants from the Boston campus,” she said.
Before coming to Tufts, Milde started her own company -- an agency that represented advertising photographers -- and worked as an innovation management consultant.
“I always knew that I wanted to eventually teach,” she said.
Milde -- who did her undergraduate work at Tufts and received her bachelor of fine arts degree from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in 1999 -- joined the ELS program as a professor in 2008.
Auster added that he has known Milde since she started with the ELS program.
"She’s brought a real breath of fresh air, a new vision and look to the program, and that comes from her enthusiasm ... her dedication to the students, which is a big part of what gives her enthusiasm and some of her sparks of creativity, which she also has as a great character trait," he said.
Ranalli added that he has been impressed during his time working with Milde thus far.
"She’s very effective at getting things done, and she’s willing to tackle a lot at the same time," he said. "In general, I’ve been very impressed with her, love the passion and the energy she that brings to the role."
Auster said that he believes the addition of Ranalli and the new position for Milde will help encourage the growth of entrepreneurship at Tufts.
"Between her and [Ranalli], I think we’re ... so excited with our new leadership team, and I think it bodes very well for the future and the expansion of the program as the program expands into a university-wide center for entrepreneurship," he noted.
While ELS is not offered as a major at Tufts, it is gaining popularity as an up-and-coming minor, according to Milde. The ELS minor is the second fastest growing minor at Tufts, with a 134 percent increase in students since 2007. Eleven percent of all Tufts undergraduates take at least one ELS course, she added.
“The neat thing about the ELS program is that you can come in and just take the 101 class, or you can take finance or ... leadership as stand-alone classes,” Milde said. “A lot of people will start with one or two classes and then [are] like, ‘I really like this, I’ll do the whole thing.’”
This year, the ELS department is offering several new programs. The “Experts-in-Residence” program, for example, allows students to sit down and interact with people who have experience and are experts in their respective fields, according to Milde.
“[We’re] bringing in half a dozen folks who [have] really amazing industry experience in life science, legal, financial, investment [and] start-up methodology to ... host office hours for students and faculty," she said. "Anyone who wants to can sit down and have some one-on-one time with these folks."
In addition, a new fellowship program focuses on peer-to-peer mentorship, allowing students who have had success in an entrepreneurial venture outside Tufts to assist fellow students, Milde added.
Inge Milde appointed interim director of ELS program
