Chaifetz Center for Entrepreneurship Names Two to Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame
11/11/2024
New Inductees Include SLU Benefactor Donald Ross, Alum Andrew Fehlman
ST. LOUIS - The Chaifetz Center for Entrepreneurship at Saint Louis University inducted two new members to its Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame at a dinner on Friday, Nov. 8, at the Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business.
The Hall of Fame recognizes exceptional entrepreneurs affiliated with Saint Louis University who have contributed to society and economy through entrepreneurial leadership in corporate and independent ventures, as well as in public, civic and social organizations. The 2024 Hall of Fame honorees are Don Ross, former vice chairman of Enterprise Holdings and Andrew Fehlman, CEO of Solarity Health.
“We celebrate the deep-rooted history of entrepreneurship at Saint Louis University with the hall of fame inductees,” said Lewis Sheats, director of the Chaifetz Center for Entrepreneurship. “They serve as inspiration for our students and a reminder of how entrepreneurship can impact our community.”
In addition to the Hall of Fame inductees, the Center for Entrepreneurship honored two younger entrepreneurs. Gabe Haas was honored as the Young Alumni Entrepreneur of the year and Kirti Madhu was named the 2024 Student Entrepreneur of the Year.
Donald Ross
Donald Ross, former vice chairman of Enterprise Holdings Inc., was in the car rental industry for more than 50 years.
Donald L. Ross. Photo by Tyler Merkle.
Ross joined Enterprise Rent-A-Car in 1964, only seven years after the company’s founding. He was instrumental in the company’s growth and played a key role in the development of its Car Sales and Truck Rental business divisions. Enterprise Holdings is the largest car rental company in the world, as measured by revenue and fleet. In addition, Enterprise Holdings is the most comprehensive service provider and only investment-grade company in the U.S. car rental industry.
In 1980, Ross was promoted to corporate vice president. In that role, he oversaw operations and headed up the Enterprise Car Sales functions. He was named senior executive vice president and chief operating officer in 1992, promoted to president of Enterprise in 2001 and became vice chairman in 2004.
A former member of Enterprise’s Board of Directors, Ross is also active in business, civic and community organizations throughout St. Louis. Ross is a recipient of the Order of St. Louis King Award, the highest award given by the Archdiocese of St. Louis, for providing consistent and outstanding service to the work of the church. Ross served as the 2016 Chair of the Alexis de Tocqueville Society for the United Way. Additionally, Ross served on the Appellate Judicial Commission to nominate judges for the Supreme Court and Appeals Court of Missouri for six years.
Ross is a member of the Chaifetz Center for Entrepreneurship Advisory Board.
Andrew Fehlman (CSB ’08)
Andrew Fehlman is the chief executive officer of Solarity Health. He joined Solarity in 2008 as a sales executive.
Andrew Fehlman (CSB ’08) is the chief executive officer of Solarity Health. Photo by Tyler Merkle.
He was promoted to vice president of sales in 2012 and became the company’s president and CEO in 2019.
Solarity Health is a leading provider of automated clinical data processing solutions for healthcare providers. It’s intelligent automation engine quickly and accurately identifies and analyzes healthcare patient data, no matter its source or format.
Fehlman graduated from Saint Louis University in 2008 with a degree in business administration with a concentration in entrepreneurship. He was named Alumni Entrepreneur of the Year in 2022. He also serves on the board for the American Health Information Management Association Foundation.
Gabe Haas (SSE ’20)
Gabe Haas is the co-founder of GenAssist, a company developing a regenerative biomaterial to treat Volumetric Muscle Loss (VML) and other muscle conditions.
Gabe Haas (SSE ’20) is a founder of GenAssist. Photo by Tyler Merkle.
MyoMatrix is designed to replace lost muscle tissue following severe injuries. It is comprised of proteins that mimic the natural extracellular matrix, supporting the wound and stimulating stem cells. When implanted or injected, MyoMatrix encourages the growth of skeletal muscle stem cells. These cells then differentiate into muscle cells, forming new muscle tissue as MyoMatrix absorbs.
Haas was an undergraduate researcher working in the lab of Koyal Garg, Ph.D., associate professor of Biomedical Engineering in SLU’s School of Science and Engineering, working with the proteins that make up MyoMatrix when he decided to shift his career path from physician to entrepreneur. MyoMatrix began with a $25,000 gift from a family friend. That allowed the team to get a lab with BioSTL and start their work. Haas and co-founder Joe Beggs participated in the National Science Foundation I-Corps Program through SLU, finding 100 customers in seven weeks’ time.
GenAssist was one of four companies participating in SLU’s inaugural New Venture Accelerator (NVA) over the summer.
Kirti Madhu
Kirti Madhu is a senior at SLU, double majoring in medical sciences and women's and gender studies.
Kirti Madhu, a senior at SLU, is the founder of EMBr. Photo by Tyler Merkle.
She has participated in several programs through the Center for Entrepreneurship, rising to be the first president of SLULaunch, a newly formed student-led entrepreneurship incubator. The incubator builds on the foundation of predecessor MEDLaunch, which focused on medical and biomedical entrepreneurship, while broadening opportunities for students with interest in other businesses.
Madhu participated in MEDLaunch, designing a self-injectable naloxone patch to combat opioid overdoses. She pivoted her plan to start EMBr, which produces innovative wearable devices designed to detect opioid overdose symptoms and alert bystanders and emergency medical services (EMS) in real-time.
EMBr was one of four companies participating in SLU’s inaugural New Venture Accelerator (NVA) over the summer. This fall, EMBr was selected to be a part of the fall Cambridge Innovation Center Social Impact Cohort.
About the Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business
Founded in 1910, the Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business at Saint Louis University has shaped the future of industry for more than a century. As one of the oldest business schools west of the Mississippi, the Chaifetz School has built a reputation as a leader in business education committed to innovation, inclusion and impact and recognized with eight undergraduate and graduate programs nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report.
About Saint Louis University
Founded in 1818, Saint Louis University is one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious Catholic institutions. Rooted in Jesuit values and its pioneering history as the first university west of the Mississippi River, SLU offers more than 15,200 students a rigorous, transformative education of the whole person. At the core of the University’s diverse community of scholars is SLU’s service-focused mission, which challenges and prepares students to make the world a better, more just place.
Latest Newslink
- Turkeypalooza Helps Bring Thanksgiving Meals to St. LouisThanksgiving at Saint Louis University means preparing hundreds of meals for the St. Louis community. Turkeypalooza is SLU’s annual Thanksgiving food drive. Led by Campus Kitchen, a student-run organization that works to decrease food insecurity and waste in the communities surrounding SLU, the drive collects holiday food items that will be distributed to the St. Louis community.
- Saint Louis University Student Speaks About Student Leadership at Ignatian Family Teach-In for JusticeSaint Louis University senior Reueline Arulanandam offered her perspective on student leadership to more than 2,000 participants at the 2024 Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice. The event, held in Washington, D.C., is the nation’s largest annual Catholic social justice gathering and advocacy day.
- SLU Study: Immune Dysfunction Increases Cancer Risk in Obese PopulationsRyan Teague, Ph.D., professor of molecular microbiology and immunology at Saint Louis University’s School of Medicine, and his team are now trying to uncover the exact mechanism underlying the metabolic dysfunctions associated with obesity that directly impact T-cell function.
- SLU Students Compete in a Battle of the BridgesSLU Science and Engineering students tested their engineering skills in a timed innovation challenge building bridges out of cardboard tubes and duct tape.
- SLU to Hold GIS Day November 20Saint Louis University will host GIS (Geographic Information System) Day on Wednesday, Nov. 20. The one-day conference will feature speakers who work on GIS projects in the St. Louis region.
- SLU Study Explores the Pandemic’s Impact on Breastfeeding Practices in Historically Marginalized CommunitiesThe study, recently published in the Maternal and Child Health Journal, found that 34% of mothers said stay-at-home orders facilitated easier breastfeeding at home, stronger mother-child bonding, and extended breastfeeding duration for many women. However, the pandemic also presented significant barriers, including limited access to lactation support and heightened maternal stress.
