Galileo Staff
Administrative
Neda Essa
Neda is a CPA with over 18 years of leadership experience in Customer Success, Operations, Finance, SaaS, EdTech, and Fintech. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan-Dearborn and brings a forward-thinking approach to her role. Renowned for her innovative mindset, Neda has streamlined company processes, implemented groundbreaking automations, integrations, and AI technologies, redefining efficiency standards.
Galileo Advisors
Our advisory board comprises a diverse array of educators, technologists, and industry experts, all united by two common goals: a shared commitment to fostering the most exceptional learning experiences globally and a firm belief in the crucial role of children as the architects of our future. We are fortunate to have the support of this distinguished group.
Learning
Dr. Rebecca Bergee
Dr. Bergee is a research consultant and statistician. She earned a BS in Applied Mathematics with a minor in Statistics from the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg. After her undergraduate coursework, she served two years in the Peace Corps and earned a MS in Statistics and a PhD in Systems Modeling and Analysis from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Hannah Hafez-Nofal
Hannah is public school teacher in Metro Nashville at Norman Binkley Elementary School. She has taught various grades and subjects for the 9 years. As an eighth grader, she volunteered to help a second grade teacher, discovering her calling to teach. Hannah earned a BBA and MA in Teaching from Belmont University.
Dr. Tiffany Hodge
Dr. Hodge serves as the Senior Director of Data & Evaluation at the Martha O’Bryan Center in Nashville, TN. She received her BA from DePauw University and her MA from Indiana University-Bloomington. She earned her Ph.D. in Islamic and South Asian Studies from Emory University and taught at the university level for several years.
Becca Wilson
Becca serves as the Norman Binkley Elementary Parent Teacher Association President. Most importantly, she is mother to her seven year-old son, Asher, wife to her musician husband Josh, and an obsessed dog-mommy to their Maltipoo, Ellie. Becca earned her BA in Organizational Communications from Middle Tennessee State University.
Operating
Brian Carlson
Brian has worked in a variety of industries but predominantly in health care. Brian has managed operations for a 70+ physician practice, helped build a radiology billing company from start up, and most recently helped to build a national PE backed radiology company. Brian earned a BS in Finance as well as Consumer Affairs from The Ohio State University.
Rashed Fakhruddin
Rashed is an engineering leader with Nashville Electric Service (NES). He also is a engaged and active social leader in the Nashville community. He earned a Bachelors in Electrical Engineering and Mathematics from Vanderbilt University and Masters in Electrical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Dr. Shirah Foy
Dr. Foy is a Professor of Entrepreneurship, Strategy & Innovation at Toulouse Business School in France. She earned a BBA in International Entrepreneurship from Belmont University, an MSc in Strategy from Aalto University, and a PhD in Management of Technology from the EPFL.
David Frederiksen
David's career path and passions came together when he founded and launched PatientFocus in Nashville, TN. He is a founding board member of Leadership Healthcare and is the founder and past president of the Vanderbilt Healthcare Alumni Association. He received his MBA from Vanderbilt University.
Ritchey Graham
Ritchey is a business development executive, specializing in the healthcare supply chain and procurement capabilities. She earned a BS in Human Ecology and MBA in Healthcare Leadership from The University of TN at Knoxville.
Seth Granda
Seth Granda is a Senior Associate attorney with the law firm of Frost Brown Todd LLP. He primarily advises and defends corporate clients in labor and employment matters in and out of court. Seth worked in both public and private sectors with small to medium size firms before entering "big law" in late 2022. Seth is a double graduate of Belmont University where he obtained a B.S. in History and later his J.D. from the College of Law.
Dr. Jose Gonzalez
Dr.Gonzalez is a man of many hats. He likes it that way. He teaches at Belmont University. He is also one of the co-founders of Conexión Américas, a Nashville-based nonprofit organization dedicated to building a welcoming community and creating opportunities where Latino families can succeed.
Eric McGinnis
Eric earned a degree in Architecture at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He was hired by EOA Architects in Nashville, TN in 2011 and was elevated to Associate in 2018. After nearly 10 years at EOA Architects, Eric started Comma Designworks in 2020.
Jonathan Murrell
Jonathan is the co-founder at The Escape Game.
Bassam Omar
Bassam's background is in SaaS platform businesses. Bassam holds a Bachelors in Business Administration and International Management from Cabrini University.
Jim Rosenberg
Jim works with purpose-driven leaders to realize their vision for mission and financial impact. He holds an M.B.A. from Stanford University Graduate School of Business, and a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania
David Servodidio
David is a co-founder and partner at VetVerifi, Inc., a data verification company that powers the pet economy and enables instant, verified proof of vaccination for our furry friends. Previously, he has served in leadership roles across marketing, revenue, and strategic planning across several different organizations from healthcare technology to CPG.
Jeff Smith
Jeff Smith is a successful MBA and CPA senior leader with over 25 years of experience. During his career he has worked in public accounting, leasing, for profit education, construction, and healthcare industries. Jeff works for John Muir Health in the San Francisco Bay Area. Jeff earned a BS in Accounting from Brigham Young University as well as an MBA in Healthcare Leadership from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.
Rami Nofal
Rami has held finance roles in healthcare across founder-owned, investor-owned, post-bankruptcy, roll-up, start-up, and scale-up environments. Rami earned a BS in Economics and BBA in Finance as well as an MBA. He did a fellowship through The Edmond de Rothschild Foundation at the University of Cambridge. Rami also served in the US Peace Corps.
Richard Thompson
Richard is a Finance and Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) healthcare professional with a broad range of experience in multiple healthcare sectors. Richard completed his BS in Mathematics at Belmont University in Nashville, TN and most recently completed an MBA with the University of Memphis.
Technology
Jason Beaty
Jason is a technology executive with over 20 years experience across the military, education, and healthcare industries. Jason earned a BA in Education from Tennessee Technology University.
Timothy Dobbins
Tim sits at the intersection of data, science, technology, and business; and uses them to build machine-learning powered solutions. He's also a principal and founder of Gridsearch Consulting and advisor to multiple startups. Tim earned a BA in Economics from Belmont University.
Ali Jamal
Ali is a Product Leader, Growth Expert, Data Scientist, Corporate Strategist, & Angel Investor. He is the Founder of First Check Ventures, an investment firm that invests in early stage startups across the globe. Ali has a Bachelors in Economics and a Masters in Statistics from Stanford University.
Waleed Nofal
Waleed is a Technical Solutions Engineer for Epic Systems. Waleed earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He will start his MS in Computer Science at the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2024.
Louae Tyoan
Louae started his career at Lockheed Martin as an embedded systems developer for flight simulators, he now leads a team of researchers at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI). Louae earned his BS in Computer Engineering and MS in Computer Science from the Georgia Institute of Technology.