Already a testicular cancer survivor, Albright ’19 was attending a remote work meeting from his parents’ home in Raleigh when he experienced blurred vision, nausea and pain on the left side of his face.

Albright had a stroke caused by the bursting of an arteriovenous malformation, an abnormal tangle of blood vessels that causes problems with the connections between arteries and veins. Doctors said the rare occurrence has a 13% survival rate.

When Albright woke up after the first of two emergency surgeries, he heard a nurse talking to him in what sounded like a different language. FaceTime video calls with his family, unable to be with him because of COVID-19 restrictions, were equally difficult to understand.

“That’s where I started learning what aphasia is,” said Albright, a former Tar Heel football player who earned a business administration degree at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Aphasia is a communication disability, most commonly caused by strokes, that affects the ability to speak, understand, read and write. “All your intelligence is in your head; you just can’t communicate,” Albright said.

Doctors told him he was fortunate to be alive and at times were skeptical about his prospects of returning to his consulting job in New York City.

But the brain is malleable, and Albright was ready to bet on himself. He went through intensive rehabilitation, a “boot camp of relearning everything.” After a year, he returned to his job while still recovering, a process marked by ups and downs and frustration but also perseverance and progress.

“I didn’t realize that it was going to be a five-year journey of just working as hard as I possibly can,” Albright said. He still has the condition, but he’s now in his second year of Duke University’s Master of Business Administration program.

Albright has been so successful at regaining his language skills that he’s created an artificial intelligence tool to aid others with aphasia.

Launched earlier this year and recently added to Apple’s App Store, AphasiaGPT is a personal speech therapy assistant that helps people rebuild communication skills through AI-powered conversations, exercises and real-world scenario practice.

During the toughest times of his recovery, Albright tried to “catch” moments of hope whenever he could. He wants AphasiaGPT to provide not only practical help but also inspiration to those in the thick of a recovery.

“Just telling them what helped my journey, it gives me so much motivation,” Albright said. “I’m like, ‘Wow, I can actually change people’s lives.’”

AI for good

AI use wasn’t mainstream during the first years of Albright’s aphasia recovery.

But by early 2023, he began using AI for tasks like simplifying text, figuring out how to best phrase his thoughts and looking up word definitions.

“I started digging in, really understanding AI and seeing what could help me,” he said.

Later, as a Duke MBA student, Albright found himself asking, “What is my passion? What do I want to do in my life?”

He realized he wanted to share the technology that was helping him with his day-to-day life with other people with aphasia.

But using AI and building it are two different things. Albright and his intern, Kashish Maheshwari, got to work.

Albright’s lived experiences influenced the tool’s layout and features:

• Word Finder: Uses a webcam to help users identify things around them and also includes a dynamic dictionary.
• Recorder: Creates summaries and to-do lists from recorded audio.
• Personalized News: Summarizes current events.
• Vocabulary Builder: Organizes a master list of words with their definitions and can generate images of terms and flashcards.
• Coach: Allows users to describe what they see in an AI-generated image either by speaking or typing and receive feedback.
• Simulation: Lets users practice conversations in specific scenarios like a party.

“Tools I wish I had five years ago,” Albright said.

Over 300 people are currently using AphasiaGPT, and Albright recently spoke about it at a large speech language pathologist conference.

These health professionals are “angels,” Albright said, and he’s glad to have received positive feedback from many on his AI innovation. He’s also returned to Carolina to speak to graduate students learning to become speech language pathologists.

“The SLPs are so excited,” he said, “and it seems like their entire world is changing just because of it.”

Dreaming big

Looking ahead, Albright is bullish on the possibility of incorporating wearable technology like Meta AI Glasses into AphasiaGPT to create a more comprehensive and interactive learning environment.

He also recently submitted an application to YCombinator, a startup accelerator and venture capital firm in San Francisco.

But Albright is proud of AphasiaGPT in its current form. The app helps others with aphasia and also aids Albright with his own recovery.

“I’ve always said I’m in a dark tunnel,” he said, “but now I’m starting to see a light.”

“As we celebrate this remarkable achievement, let’s remember that Bell Hall is more than a physical space. It is a shared accomplishment, a testament to what we can achieve together,” said Dean Mary Margaret Frank ’92, ’92 (MAC) ’99 (PhD). “Steven D. Bell Hall stands as a place where ideas ignite, leaders emerge and the future of business education is boldly shaped. Together, we carry forward a legacy that will inspire generations of business leaders to lead the way.”

The new building is named in honor of Steve Bell ’67, who with his wife, Jackie Bell, pledged $26 million so UNC Kenan-Flagler could enroll more Carolina students who want to study business. He called his gift the greatest investment in real estate and in people he has ever made. In the 2026-27 academic year, the Undergraduate Business Program will reach its goal to admit 50% more Carolina students — over 500 majors per year.

“Bell Hall will be a place where ideas are tested, partnerships are built, and the next generation of global business leaders takes shape,” said Chancellor Lee H. Roberts. “It is a bold investment in the shared future of our students and the people of North Carolina.”

Frank extended her gratitude to all who brought the project to fruition. “This milestone would not be possible without the generosity, vision and leadership of our donors, state partners and individual champions,” said Frank. “From the $105 million funded by the State of North Carolina to over $90 million provided by private donors, this public-private partnership exemplifies the shared commitment to empowering future generations.”

A modern space

“I got my education in a building,” said William G. Seymour ’64. “These students are going to get their education in a community; that was really inspiring and worthwhile to me.”

Bell Hall doubles the space for teaching and student life, solving a chronic space shortage and enabling UNC Kenan-Flagler to admit more students to study business.

“Learning will take on a new shape in the modern facilities designed to foster collaboration and spark creativity in spaces filled with light, connections to nature and art,” said Frank.

Bell Hall was built for “the conversations that start between classes, the brainstorming sessions that run late into the night, and the teamwork that turns ideas into real change,” said Freeda Alvarez ’26.

And it’s about possibility, she said. “The light-filled classrooms, open study spaces and shared gathering spaces remind us that learning doesn’t stop when class ends. It continues in every connection we make. This building reflects who we are as UNC Kenan-Flagler students, driven and ready to lead.”

The power of Bell Hall will be fully realized when classes start there in spring semester 2026. Faculty will teach in classrooms that invite teamwork, using technology that inspires experimentation, and students’ energy and voices will fill the building.

They will gather in the Tom Kenan Café, where a large painting donated by John Townsend ’77 ’82 (MBA) overlooks the dining area from above. They’ll head outside for a class in the wooded area and study in spaces featuring North Carolina art from The Johnson Collection. They’ll visit offices that house academic programs and centers, and meet with recruiters in newly designed career spaces.

And it’s all made possible, said Frank, by a shared belief in the transformative, positive power of business education.

Read more about Steven D. Bell Hall.

The answer has implications for how smoothly the airport operates and the passenger experience.

In real-time, managers must decide when to deploy staff, what wait times to communicate to travelers and whether the airport is approaching capacity limits. They also need to run long-term planning scenarios for adding flights or making operational changes.

Adam Mersereau, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School professor and area chair of operations, joined with some colleagues to address these challenges. They wanted to create mathematical models that — paired with people-counting sensors — estimate crowding in the security area without visual headcounts.

“We saw an opportunity to solve two problems at once,” says Mersereau, who is also a Sarah Graham Kenan Scholar. “Passengers would get accurate wait time estimates so they could time their arrivals better, and the airport would get better data for staffing and long-term planning.”

Mersereau worked with professor Serhan Ziya of the UNC College of Arts and Sciences’ statistics and operations research department and faculty from North Carolina Wesleyan and Duke universities.

They used Raleigh-Durham International Airport as their test case, but their research may also help managers at theaters, hospitals and concert arenas better anticipate and manage crowds.

The difficulties of counting the crowd

Mersereau’s expertise centers on operations at brick-and-mortar retailers, where managers might know what’s selling but not who’s coming in or whether the store is adequately staffed.

Airports pose a similar kind of problem, he says. Managers don’t necessarily know how many people are in a space at a point in time.

“It’s not just passengers waiting in lines, but also bags, planes and crews,” says Mersereau. “And with physical queues, it’s mostly guesswork. No one’s standing there with a clipboard tracking line length in real time.”

To come up with an accurate count, Mersereau and the team installed infrared beam sensors at the entrance and exit of the Transportation Security Administration area at the airport. Each time a passenger breaks the beam, the system logs either an entry or an exit. At any given moment, it tracks the total number of people who have entered since the start of the day and how many have left. In theory, the difference between those two figures should be about how many people are currently there.

But the system’s counts of people coming and going are inherently “noisy.” A couple walking arm-in-arm might register as one person. A big rolling suitcase might count as two. A person inadvertently leaning on the sensor can throw it off completely.

“These little errors add up, and they do so in ways that eventually make the estimates pretty useless,” says Mersereau.

The remedy lies in an algorithm that involves strategic resetting of population estimates. When the system can confidently detect when exits slow or stop through patterns in the departure stream, resetting the count to zero prevents errors from building over time.

The algorithm is most effective at smaller airports like Raleigh-Durham, where traffic naturally rises and falls. In high-traffic airports where crowds never let up, additional data, such as occasional manual counts by airport personnel, can improve performance beyond what the algorithm alone achieves, he adds.

Mersereau’s research has applications beyond TSA checkpoints and airports. It could help managers at venues with scheduled events — such as stadiums, hospitals and museums — better predict and manage crowds.

“Nobody likes dealing with long lines — not travelers, not TSA agents, not the barista behind the terminal coffee counter,” he said. “Everyone has something to gain from making the whole system more efficient.”

Read more about Mersereau’s research.

Driscoll grew up in western North Carolina. Both his father and grandfather were veterans. His father, who served in Vietnam, took Driscoll to West Point when he was in elementary school, and the visit left a strong impression. “I had these dog tags made there, which I kept,” he said.

When Driscoll entered Carolina, the University’s 2004 summer reading selection also impressed him. The book was David Lipsky’s “Absolutely American: Four Years at West Point,” which tells the story of four cadets who deployed to Iraq early in the war.

He enrolled in UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School. Even as an undergraduate, “Dan had a good sense of what he wanted to do with his life,” said Alison Fragale, associate professor emerita of organizational behavior and one of Driscoll’s teachers. “He wanted to serve in the military, go to law school and be in politics.”

Driscoll graduated in three years and immediately enlisted in the Army, about the time the surge in Iraq was happening. He attended basic training in South Carolina and soon after graduated from the U.S. Army Officer Candidate School in Georgia. In October 2009, he deployed to Iraq, where he saw combat and received the Army Commendation Medal and the Combat Action Badge.

He was still in Iraq when notified of his acceptance to Yale Law School. After arriving in New Haven, Driscoll met future Vice President J.D. Vance, then a Marine veteran leading the Yale Veterans Association. Vance told the group, “You’re going to feel like all these people are smarter than you. And it’s just not true. And so if you can just kind of make it through these first couple of months, you’ll settle in.”

Driscoll graduated from law school in 2014, joining BlackArch Partners, a Charlotte investment banking firm. He moved to Winston-Salem, working in venture capital and as a board member of a medical staffing agency, then later relocated with his family to Pasadena, California.

Through his connection to Vance, Driscoll joined the campaign as a senior adviser and then was tapped by the administration as Army secretary on Vance’s recommendation. The Senate confirmed Driscoll 66–28. He is the third UNC alumnus and eighth from Yale to be Army secretary. Other UNC alumni who have served as Army secretary are Kenneth Claiborne Royall (class of 1914) and Gordon Gray ’30.

“I think one of the reasons Dan’s hearing wasn’t as contentious as others is that he’s very relational,” said childhood friend and Carolina roommate Bert Ellison ’08. “He wants to reach out and meet as many people as he can and know them, and not just in terms of politics.”

Driscoll faces many challenges. In 2022 and 2023, the Army fell short of recruitment goals by 25%. Driscoll said he hopes to modernize warfighting capabilities and improve the quality of life for soldiers and their families.

Will he succeed?

“I’ll always bet on Dan Driscoll because Dan’s a really smart guy who’s also really kind and humble at heart,” said Fragale, who wrote his law-school recommendation and attended his wedding. “He doesn’t have a big ego. He can look at a situation and say that it doesn’t have to be this way and be creative about figuring it out.”

Read more about Driscoll.

Something about the structure, the discipline and the drive of those around him resonated so deeply with him that he later enrolled there.

McElroy often brought fellow cadets home during school breaks, where they met his high school friends. “There would always be tension and conflict,” he says. “I always found myself as more of a peacemaker, seeing the good points made by both sides.”

Those moments stuck with him. Today he is a clinical assistant professor in the organizational behavior department at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School. McElroy studies how affective polarization — the growing dislike and distrust of people with different political views — affects the workplace. He also explores how multicultural experiences shape leadership.

“I think a lot of the lessons I learned in the military translate nicely into the business world,” he says.

From the Army to academia

After graduating from West Point in 2010, McElroy became a field artillery officer and completed airborne school at Fort Benning, Georgia. Then he became a U.S. Army Ranger, completing tours in Afghanistan and Italy.

“Being 23 years old and leading soldiers — many of whom were older than me — was a huge challenge and a very humbling experience,” McElroy shares. “You’re leading people from all walks of life, and I quickly realized that I couldn’t communicate with everyone the same way.”

Eager to improve his leadership skills, McElroy enrolled in an MBA program at the University of Virginia after completing his service in 2016. That experience shaped his interest in figuring out how to bridge divides.

One book — “The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion” by Jonathan Haidt — struck a chord, and McElroy decided to pursue a doctorate focused on political ideology in the workplace — not a popular business school topic at the time.

Then he saw Haidt on a train in New York City. The renowned social psychologist encouraged McElroy to pursue the research — and even offered to help with his doctoral applications. “Without that, I don’t know if I’d be where I am,” McElroy said.

Culture, conflict and connection

McElroy was drawn to Kenan-Flagler faculty like William Maddux, who became his adviser.  Maddux’s research delves into how cultural experiences shape creativity, leadership, morality and decision-making in the workplace.

McElroy focuses his research on countering the dislike and distrust of those with opposing political beliefs. These days, he says, nearly 75% of employees are having politically charged conversations in the workplace. “We want to provide managers with a framework to foster a culture where people feel safe expressing differing views.”

His findings suggest that multicultural experiences such as studying abroad often lead to more open-minded perspectives, a deeper understanding of personal identity and a greater ability to form meaningful connections with others.

McElroy also coaches his executive MBA students to be good listeners. In one session, students bring in real leadership challenges they’re facing. “We focus on truly understanding the problem, actively listening — and they start solving it themselves just by talking through it.”

He believes this same approach can transform political conversations. When people listen with the intent to understand rather than debate, they’re better positioned to resolve conflict and build trust.

“I’d love to live in a world where we could talk about our experiences and our beliefs from a place of curiosity,” he says. “That’s the direction I hope my research continues to explore.”

For seven years, the Army was Austin’s life. He joined after earning a bachelor’s degree in business from Arizona State University in 2016. After serving in the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division, based in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Austin later was selected to join the Rangers as an infantry officer.

“I will always be appreciative of the skills, the relationships and the experiences I had in the Army. I grew up a lot during that time,” he says. “Coming out of Afghanistan, I looked at everything that I set out to do in the military and all of my goals and felt like I was able to check that box and close that chapter in my life. That’s when I started laying the groundwork for my MBA. I had all these business aspirations that had been on hold. I said to myself, ‘Man, let’s just go ahead and realize some of those.’”

(Submitted photo)

Transitioning from the military is rarely easy but continuing his business education was Austin’s next mission. Austin enrolled in the Full-Time MBA Program at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School right after his service ended.

“I had people in the past tell me that I could always go and do an MBA, and honestly I didn’t think I knew exactly all that entailed,” he says. “And when I learned about the opportunities that come with an MBA, I said, ‘OK, this is it. This is the endgame. This is what I need.’”

As Austin learned, the UNC Kenan-Flagler, and especially its MBA Programs, have a strong reputation for supporting active duty military, veterans and their families through groups such as the UNC Kenan-Flagler Veterans Association. For the past several years, military-affiliated students have made up about 10% of the school’s overall MBA enrollment.

“What really drew me to UNC was that I kept on hearing how collaborative everybody is and how willing they are to help one another,” he says. “That support has been instrumental for someone like me coming from something you knew for so long and into something so different and so unknown. It’s a different world, but it’s one that’s easy to walk through with so many people by your side.”

Austin quickly came into his own at UNC Kenan-Flagler. A Vetter’s Dean Fellow, he served as vice president of private wealth management in the UNC Investment Management Club and landed a summer internship with JPMorgan Chase’s private bank in Atlanta.

“At UNC Kenan-Flagler, you’re going to get an absolutely incredible experience with some of the smartest people you’re ever going to meet,” says Austin. “You’re going to have the whole community behind you and they’re going to push you to help you become the best version of yourself.”

That summer internship led to a full-time job as a banker at JPMorgan Private Bank in Atlanta. There, after moving six times in seven years, he can finally settle down with his wife, Julia, and start the family they’ve long wanted. That’s the next challenge that Austin is more than ready for.

“Here’s when some of the turbulence stops, and here’s where we can start enjoying things a little bit more,” says Austin. “The ball is in my hand for the next step. I get to shape it however I want.”

“It was quite an endorsement,” Lawrence says.

Under Lawrence’s leadership and now as UNC Executive Development Government and Defense Sector senior director, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School has expanded the number of custom-designed government programs from three in 2013 to 32 in 2025.

To support this growth, the team expanded to include two additional program directors, Patrick Martin, a retired U.S. Navy captain, and Amy Parker, former chief learning officer at the Veteran Affairs and retired member of Senior Executive Service.

Clients representing all branches of the military have taken UNC Executive Development programs focused on such topics as organizational leadership, addressing emerging challenges and strategic thinking. These programs are carefully crafted for different levels of responsibility, from general officers and senior civilians to mid- and senior-level staff.

The Government and Defense Sector focuses on four areas:

• Leader development
• Business acumen (Understanding Defense Industry)
• Data analytics
• Supply chain complexity and disruption

Clients invest in UNC Executive Development programs to address organizational challenges and lay the groundwork for successful futures. They leave with new, inspired mindsets. The programs also make a deep impact on government and defense budgets.

An official told UNC Executive Development leaders that the Navy has saved more than $7.4 billion across multiple projects over 12 years through strategies learned in Understanding Defense Industry, one of UNC Executive Development’s longest-running programs. This program is now delivered across all military services and select government agencies that deal in major contracts with defense industry companies.

“We’re helping our clients learn new ways of looking at problems, situations and environments that are an essential part of becoming a more effective leader,” says Lawrence, who joined UNC Executive Development following a 30-year Army career and a few years in corporate roles. “It’s about increasing their capacity to step outside of their comfort zone and widen their scope.

“We want them to walk away from any session with a toolkit and framework that can immediately be put into play.”

Collaborative spirit

UNC Kenan-Flagler faculty who teach in the programs are flexible as well, adapting content for groups very different than the undergraduate and graduate students they teach.

When the chief of staff of the Army asked the team to include a large block of ethics instruction in its general officer program, Lawrence reached out to a faculty member whose research focuses on the determinants and consequences of power within companies.

“We talked about topics like what happens to someone psychologically as they rise up an organization’s ranks and how attaining more power and authority can change people in ways they may not recognize,” says Lawrence. “I thought it was potentially powerful and different.”

The program designed for the Army was so successful that they began offering it to all military branches.

“It takes a special ability to engage with leaders who are tackling real-world problems in their organizations,” says Lawrence. “UNC Executive Development faculty from UNC Kenan-Flagler are very carefully selected and are the critical piece to our success.”

Lawrence’s work is also personal. His older son is an Army intelligence officer serving in Europe.

“One day he might be standing on a hilltop somewhere, and you can well bet that I’m hoping that whoever’s making the decisions has had the benefit of learning from our programs,” says Lawrence.

Read more about Lawrence’s leadership.

“We want to show that research is attainable for all,” said Jose Cuc-Reyes, LRI student ambassador. “When we asked students what they thought about research, they immediately jumped to lab coats, magnifying glasses and microscopes. Research can be so much more than that.”

The initiative is in its third year. Students learn about research through workshops, mentor relationships and cohort bonding activities. These help students focus on growing personal relationships along with learning communication and collaboration skills.

“We’re building architects for the future to eventually build a ladder for other scholars to follow and prove that research is attainable for everybody,” said Carolina Castro-Perez, another LRI student ambassador.

Students are paired with a faculty member from a field that interests them, then develop an idea for a research poster session. They meet several times throughout the session to work on the presentation, while also working on reflection writing and have conversations with other scholars about the research process.

LRI students represent a range of research, working with mentors from UNC Adams School of Dentistry, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, UNC School of Education and UNC School of Social Work.

“My favorite part has been seeing the growth of these scholars,” said Cuc-Reyes. “I’ve loved seeing students succeed who feel like they haven’t been able to make the most of their Carolina research experience prior to this.”

“This program is rooted in community and the feeling of belonging,” said Castro-Perez. “Research can be intimating and challenging for them, but they realize they belong here and their voice matters in their field of research. They learn to make the uncomfortable, comfortable and that’s the beauty of this program.”

For Salo, the path to leadership in the accounting profession began with uncommon clarity.

“I took accounting in high school and really liked it,” she says. “It felt intuitive to me—something others found difficult came easily, and I saw that as a sign.”

That early interest led her to seek out the best business education possible at UNC Kenan-Flagler’s Undergraduate Business Program, followed immediately by the Master of Accounting Program.

At UNC Kenan-Flagler, Salo quickly found professors who would shape her future.

“C.J. Skender made intro to accounting exciting — even at 8 a.m.,” she remembers. “And Wayne Landsman completely changed my career.”

Landsman encouraged her to apply for a post-graduate technical assistant position at the FASB after completing the MAC Program in 2003. That one-year postgraduate experience launched her career in financial accounting and reporting practices.

After the FASB, Salo joined KPMG, working in the global accounting firm’s advisory and audit practices, including a rotation in its audit quality and professional practice group.

She then earned a prestigious fellowship with the Office of the Chief Accountant at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington, D.C., before returning to KPMG in New York in 2015 as a partner. But when the opportunity arose in 2020 to return to the FASB as its technical director — a rare, high-impact role overseeing the FASB’s standard-setting activities and staff — Salo couldn’t say no.

“I actually loved being an audit partner, which not everyone can say,” she says. “But the FASB role was too interesting and impactful to pass up.”

She served in that capacity for four years before being appointed vice chair of the board in 2024. Salo brings a uniquely holistic perspective to her leadership at the FASB — combining experience as an auditor, a regulator and now a standard-setter.

“The strength of our capital markets depends on transparency and consistency,” she says. “Our job at the FASB is to provide guidance that presents the economics of transactions in a neutral, unbiased way. We don’t decide whether a transaction is good or bad. We make sure it’s clearly understood by investors.”

Salo draws on her diverse career experiences to evaluate potential standard-setting activities and balance the needs of different stakeholders. “At a very high level, preparers are concerned about cost. Investors want more transparency. Regulators want consistency,” she says. “Our job is to weigh all that and make the best decision we can for the system as a whole.”

Accounting isn’t about crunching numbers for Salo — it’s about understanding systems, analyzing implications and communicating clearly. “We’re not just historians of financial activity,” she says. “We’re translators of economic reality.”

It’s a responsibility she takes seriously — and one she traces back to her early days in Chapel Hill. “The education I got here prepared me to think deeply and lead confidently,” she says. “And I’ve never forgotten where it started.”

Salon returned to Carolina to address the MAC Class of 2025, urging the graduates to stay curious and courageous. “You’re stepping into a profession with enormous influence and responsibility. We are the ones who champion transparency, uphold ethics and turn data into decisions. But more than that, we are stewards of trust. When I look out into this room, I don’t just see future accountants, I see future leaders. So carry that responsibility with you. Lead with it and grow with it.”

Brandwein says giving back feels natural because UNC was pivotal in helping him find his calling. After several years working in finance, he arrived at Kenan-Flagler to explore what might come next. By graduation, the bagel shop idea that had long been on his mind had become a real company. His Carolina experience –– from faculty mentors who opened doors, classmates who workshopped ideas and local business owners who offered advice –– shaped his career and informs how he shows up now.

Brandwein arrived at Kenan-Flagler with a background in real estate, expecting to continue down that path. He recalls sitting down with Jim Spaeth, a Kenan-Flagler faculty member with expertise in real estate finance, and saying he was thinking of going in a different direction.

“In an instant, he grabbed a yellow legal pad and said, ‘Cool, what are you interested in?’ And it’s been like that ever since,” Brandwein said. “That’s the reason why I started and stayed in Chapel Hill. It’s because of the people. People here will go out of their way for you.”

After all the support he received from the University community, Brandwein feels an obligation to pay it forward.

“We’re involved in as many ways as we can be,” he said. It can be as small as donating bagels to a club event, or as big as making hundreds of Carolina blue bagels to hand out on the first day of classes, as Brandwein and his team did this fall at the Old Well alongside Chancellor Lee Roberts.

Bagels and coffee supplied by Alex Brandwein’s Chapel Hill bagel shop help give Carolina graduate students a space to unwind and connect at Grad Café. (Kelly McDaniel/The Graduate School)

Brandwein’s support also takes the shape of sharing hard-won lessons. He has been a guest speaker for classes in Kenan-Flagler and several other UNC schools. This fall, he will give a guest lecture for MAPS students on starting a business, covering topics like defining a problem, understanding a market, differentiating a product and making a successful pitch. It’s the practical, step-by-step version of his own path, distilled for students who are weighing ideas of their own.

Brandwein is proud that his team can contribute by sharing his expertise and enthusiasm, fueling a morning study session, or offering a pick-me-up during a stressful time. “If we can show up in a small way to add that special something to a moment, that’s what we want to do,” he said.

He’s quick to point out that offering support to graduate students doesn’t require a storefront or a slide deck. It starts with raising your hand. “Reach out to The Graduate School office,” he said. “They’re always ready to collaborate and listen to ideas. One conversation and you’re going to walk away with next steps.”

Sometimes that means a classroom visit or a mentorship match. Sometimes it’s as simple as a dozen bagels and a little encouragement during a busy week.

There are many ways to give back to Carolina. For Brandwein, it’s a mix of time, experience and carbs. “What started as a meeting with The Graduate School turned into a partnership,” he said. “Bring an idea, and people here help you build it.”