Talon Talks

Jenna is a senior vice president and financial crimes director for Wells Fargo bank. She manages a team that investigates everything from fraud to terrorist financing. She graduated from Embry-Riddle’s Global Security and Intelligence Studies program, and has a masters on international policy and terrorism from the Monterey Institute of International Studies. We discussed how she got into the work of investigating global financial crimes, and the things that keep her going in her work.

Modularity Space is developing low-cost modular satellites that can be repaired, refueled, and upgraded in space, in an effort to make the satellite industry more sustainable. Nolan Coulter is their co-founder and Chief Technology Officer.

We talked about satellite manufacturing standards, what it takes to put satellites into space, satellite maintenance and refueling needs, and the future of commercial space in an era of growing amounts of space junk.

John Maris is the rare Embry-Riddle triple alumnus: He has two masters degrees, from 1982 and 1983, and was an early recipient of an Embry-Riddle doctorate in 2017. He’s an experimental test pilot, an expert on aerodynamics, and chair of the Royal Aeronautical Society of Montreal. He also serves on the Industry Advisory Board at Embry-Riddle’s College of Engineering in Daytona Beach.

We talked about how he started his company, Marinvent, what it’s like to be an experimental test pilot, and a glimpse into the interactive discussion he’s giving on aerodynamics. To sign up for the talk, “Perspectives on Aerodynamic Drag,” happening on Feb. 18, visit the RAES Montreal website.

Stephanie Miller is executive director of technology transfer and research park initiatives at Embry-Riddle, which means she manages operations at our research park, including the Micaplex Business Incubator. She has a Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular genetics from University of Virginia; she received an MBA from Embry-Riddle in 2018.

She’s also into fast cars and vintage sewing machines. We talked about her doctoral research, the pitfalls of starting a business from an invention, and what the Micaplex does for startup businesses that incubate there.

Stacy is chair of the Helicopter Association International’s board of directors and is a helicopter captain for Executive Jet Management. She was previously a Huey and Black Hawk pilot for the US Army, then a test pilot for Sikorsky. She has flown tours, air ambulance, and done movie flying with the Screen Actors Guild.

We talked about transitioning one’s career from the military to civilian world, what networking means, and how going to Embry-Riddle for two degrees later in life helped advance her career.

Mark has been a pilot for more than 3 decades, starting with TWA. He’s still flying, now for American Airlines, and is also an author of several fiction and nonfiction books. We spoke about his early career flying 19-passenger Twin Otters in the Caribbean, to his wild checkride flying into Berlin during the Cold War. We also discussed his experience following the crash of TWA Flight 800 — his fiancée and one of his mentors were both on board — and his struggle with grief afterward, which eventually led him to write “13,760 Feet: My Personal Hole in the Sky.”

Dana is the founder and Chief Academic Officer of American High School, an accredited, entirely online high school. She is responsible for curriculum, growth strategy, culture, operations, R&D, sales, product development and launch, marketing, and overseas expansion. We discussed why she decided to start an online school in the early 2000s and how her business has been affected by the Coronavirus pandemic.

In addition to flying 737s for United Airlines, Korry Franke is an author and inspirational speaker. His book, 3 Feet to the Left: A New Captain’s Journey from Pursuit to Perspective, is a memoir which chronicles the year in his life when he faced many professional and personal struggles as United’s then-youngest captain.

We discussed his education at Embry-Riddle during and after 9/11, why he chose to stay in aviation, the nature of leadership, what happens when two airlines merge, as well as the tough times faced in that year as he and his wife were expecting a baby.

The views expressed by Korry Franke on this podcast are his and his alone, completely independent of any United Airlines affiliation.

Tim Perry came to Embry-Riddle while he was serving in the Air Force. He graduated in 1986 from our Prescott Campus with a degree in professional aeronautics and continued to serve in the Air Force during the first Gulf War. He was one of the pilots who flew the EC-135 for Operation Looking Glass.

We discussed his time in the Air Force, but also how his work in the private sector and his spiritual path led him to form Nationwide Chaplain Services and 10-41 Incorporated, two organizations which provide counseling and psychiatric services geared toward first responders.

Programming note: This episode includes some discussion of incidents that police officers and other first-responders face, and may not be suitable for younger listeners.

Danielle Rosales holding one of Space Tango’s Cube Labs.

Danielle Rosales (’18) published articles with Air & Space Magazine even while pursuing her bachelor’s degree in communications. She now works as a Marketing and Sales associate at Space Tango, which builds research and manufacturing systems into compact containers that go to the International Space Station. They streamline the process of running experiments in microgravity to develop new products for use on Earth.

Ever since she was editor-in-chief at her high school newspaper, she’s been passionate about telling people’s stories. We talked about what it’s like to write interesting features in the highly technical world of aerospace; her volunteerism streak; attending high school in Japan; and why it’s important to lift up people of color in the industry.