Catalyze

Latest Episodes:

Sam Lowe ’20, Scott Diekema ’19, Nicholas Byrne ’19, and Jonny Huang ’24 of recycleReality on launching a creative technology studio in New York Aug 22, 2023

Show notes

Today’s guests are Sam Lowe ’20, Scott Diekema ’19, Nicholas Byrne ’19, and Jonny Huang ’24, who Zoomed with Morehead-Cain from Brooklyn.
Sam, Scott, and Nicholas are the co-founders of recycleReality, a creative technology studio in New York that specializes in bespoke design and software solutions in music, fashion, art, and architecture. Jonny interned with the alumni this summer for his Morehead-Cain Professional Experience summer.
On this episode, the Morehead-Cains share about the early collaborations at UNC–Chapel Hill that led to forming their own company, how their different backgrounds and skillsets (computer science to communications and music) complement one another, and a music responsive light box that recycleReality plans to release within a year.
recycleReality garnered recognition earlier this year with two OBIE Awards as part of the 2022 “Breakthrough Artist” ad campaign by Amazon Music and Overall Murals. The alumni won the OBIE Craft Award for Best Illustration and a Silver OBIE Award in the Billboards category. The OBIE Awards, presented annually by the Out of Home Advertising Association of America, recognize outstanding contributions to the world of advertising and design.
Nicholas and Sam are returning Catalyze guests. The two (along with Eric Lee ’18) spoke with Morehead-Cain back in 2020 during a road trip across the country with a U-Haul-turned-mobile-recording-unit.

The episode’s intro song is by scholar Scott Hallyburton ’22, guitarist of the band South of the Soul.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.

Catalyze is hosted and produced by Sarah O’Carroll for the Morehead-Cain Foundation, home of the first merit scholarship program in the United States and located at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on Twitter or Instagram at @moreheadcain or you can email us at communications@moreheadcain.org.

Director and producer Taylor Sharp ’16 of Blue Cup Productions on his founding story, following the NBA G League through creative storytelling, and upcoming works Aug 08, 2023

Show notes

Taylor Sharp ’16 is a director and producer based in Brooklyn, New York. The alumnus co-founded the independent production company Blue Cup Productions with Holland Randolph Gallagher, a writer and director.
Taylor spoke with Catalyze at a neighborhood cafe a day after the 2023 New York City Regional Event for alumni and scholars.
Hailing from a creative household in Burke County, North Carolina, Taylor recounts his upbringing alongside two older brothers, both Carolina alumni, who immersed themselves in music and imaginative projects (Taylor’s brother, Jacob, is one of the founding members of the string band Mipso). These early explorations paved the way for his career in filmmaking.
As a Morehead-Cain Scholar, Taylor interned at the Zimbabwean nonprofit Hoops 4 Hope, experiences that informed his 2017 documentary, Hoops Africa: Ubuntu Matters. He also worked at a sports agency with Jim Tanner ’90, president of Tandem Sports + Entertainment, and in New York with Malcolm Turner ’93, then president of what would become the G League.
On today’s episode, Taylor shares other memories from UNC–Chapel Hill, how conversations at He’s Not Here (a famous haunt on Franklin Street in Chapel Hill) led to the founding of Blue Cup Productions, his work with Shaquille O’Neal and the NBA G League, and more.
Earlier this year, Taylor and John Zimmerman were inducted into the Southern Fly Fishing Hall of Fame for their humanitarian contributions within the sport. In 2012, they co-founded Casting for Hope, a nonprofit that supports women with ovarian and other gynecological cancers, which has since raised over $1,000,000 for its financial and emotional assistance, programming, and fly-fishing retreats.
A natural fundraiser, Taylor is also a Morehead-Cain Class Ambassador, collaborating with peers to support the Foundation’s annual fundraising campaigns.

The episode’s intro song is by scholar Scott Hallyburton ’22, guitarist of the band South of the Soul.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.

SEVEN Talk, by Malini Moorthy ’91: “We Are Not in Golden Rock Anymore” Aug 07, 2023

Show notes

Today’s episode is a recording of a SEVEN Talk from the 2022 Alumni Forum. This talk, given by Malini Moorthy ’91, is entitled, “We Are Not in Golden Rock Anymore.” Malini is the General Counsel of argenx, a biotech company.
You can watch all of the SEVEN Talks on our YouTube channel.
More about Malini
Since 2022, Malini Moorthy ’91 has served as the General Counsel of argenx, a biotech company committed to innovating and delivering lifechanging immunology solutions to patients. She has extensive global legal and compliance experience in the pharmaceutical and medical device industries and is a devoted leader known for building, developing, and mentoring high-performing and inclusive teams. Malini is also passionate about equity, diversity, and inclusion and is leading argenx’s internal efforts to establish a formal DEI policy and programming and to champion robust sponsorship and mentorship initiatives.
Before joining argenx, Malini was the Senior Vice President & Chief Deputy General Counsel, Legal, Compliance & Government Affairs at Medtronic. Prior to Medtronic, Malini spent four years as the Head of Global Litigation & Investigations at Bayer and ten years at Pfizer where she progressed to lead civil litigation globally.
Recognized for her handling some of the most challenging and complex litigation in the life sciences industry, Malini was named a Visionary Leader in litigation by Inside Counsel magazine and selected for Lawyers of Color’s inaugural Nation’s Best List. Malini also has been recognized by the National Center for Law and Economic Justice for her service to the legal profession and to the nonprofit community, the South Asian Bar Association for her achievements as corporate counsel and Lawyers for Civil Justice for her contributions to civil justice reform.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.

SEVEN Talk, by Bruce Gellin ’77: “Serendipitous Lessons” Jul 07, 2023

Show notes

Today’s episode is a recording of a SEVEN Talk from the 2022 Alumni Forum. This talk, given by Bruce Gellin ’77, is entitled, “Serendipitous Lessons.” Bruce is the Chief of Global Public Health Strategy at The Rockefeller Foundation.
You can watch all of the SEVEN Talks on our YouTube channel.
More about Bruce
Bruce Gellin ’77 has pursued a career that’s blended medicine, science, policy, and public health with a focus on infectious diseases and pandemics. He traces all of this to his days at Carolina, where he crafted an interdisciplinary studies program in human biology. When he took a year off in the middle of medical school at Cornell (’83) as a Luce Scholar in the Philippines, he came back with a clearer picture where he was headed.
After completing a residency in internal medicine at Vanderbilt (’86), he became a disease detective in CDC’s Epidemic Intelligence Service that put him on the ground investigating outbreaks from Leavenworth Penitentiary (a foodborne outbreak of “homemade” ice cream) to New Zealand (an epidemic of bacterial meningitis).

His career in vaccines and vaccine-preventable diseases included work at Johns Hopkins and NIH and as a Warren Weaver Fellow at the Rockefeller Foundation. In 2002, he moved to Washington as an Assistant Secretary for Health and Director of the National Vaccine Program Office at the Department of Health and Human Services.
After 15 years in that post (SARS, MERS, Bird Flu, H1N1, and a growing anti-vaccine movement), he was the president of global immunization at the Sabin Vaccine Institute until last year, when he returned to the Rockefeller Foundation as Chief, Global Public Health Strategy, where he is overseeing their Global Vaccine Initiative and their recently launched Pandemic Prevention Institute.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.

From the dugout to the boardroom: Bobby Evans ’91 and his path to becoming general manager of the San Francisco Giants Jun 27, 2023

Show notes

On a spring day in Chapel Hill, Bobby Evans ’91 joined scholar host Benny Klein ’25 outside the Morehead-Cain Foundation to share about his life and career as a Major League Baseball executive. Bobby is the former general manager of the San Francisco Giants, a role he served from 2015 to 2018.
Bobby speaks about his grandmother’s pivotal advice as a high schooler, his start in baseball as an intern at UNC–Chapel Hill, the opportunities that led to the general manager role, and the highs and lows of working with the Giants. He also gives his perspective on a people-first approach to team building.

Bobby now serves on the national leadership council for the Positive Coaching Alliance, a nonprofit that provides research-based training materials and resources for coaches, parents, athletes, and leaders to promote positive youth development experiences through sports. The alumnus also collaborates with Because Baseball, a nonprofit founded by Kemp Gouldin ’02 that aims to “build bridges of friendship” in the Middle East using baseball.

“It’s very important not to feel the weight of the world on your shoulders alone, because no one person can manage all of that. You put good people around you.” —Bobby Evans ’91

Music credits

The first and second songs in this episode are by scholar Scott Hallyburton ’22, guitarist of the band South of the Soul.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.

SEVEN Talk, by Sophie Cho ’23: “Searching Beyond the Well” Jun 07, 2023

Show notes

Today’s episode is a recording of a SEVEN Talk from the 2022 Alumni Forum. This talk, given by Sophie Cho ’23, is entitled, “Searching Beyond the Well.”
You can watch all of the SEVEN Talks on our YouTube channel.
More about Sophie
Sophie Cho ’23 of Raleigh received her bachelor’s in public policy, business, and statistics from Carolina. During her time as a scholar, she interned with the U.S. House of Representatives and a sustainability consultancy with Amirah Jiwa ’15, sharpened her Korean langauge skills in Seoul, and embarked on various Lovelace Fund for Discovery projects, from meeting her Morehead-Cain Mentor, Dele Carroo ’99, in Los Angeles to taking singing and acting classes. On campus, you could find her singing with The Loreleis, acting in a student film, working with Kenan-Flagler’s Community, Equity, and Inclusion Board, or in the Foundation’s scholar lounge writing a paper. After graduation, she moved to Los Angeles to work as a business analyst for McKinsey & Company.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.

Seniors Spotlight: Advice and reflections from Roli Enonuya ’23 and Maggie Helmke ’23 May 12, 2023

Show notes

Maggie Helmke ’23 and Roli Enonuya ’23, two graduating scholars, joined Catalyze to reflect on their four years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Maggie and Roli share with scholar host Stella Smolowitz ’26 about their favorite classes and memories, challenges they overcame, and advice for incoming and current scholars. The seniors also share their plans following graduation on May 14.

At UNC–Chapel Hill, Maggie designed her own C-START (Carolina Students Taking Academic Responsibility through Teaching) class about poetry, while Roli was involved in the UNC Campus Y’s Helping Youth by Providing Enrichment (HYPE) program, where she served K-5 students at local community centers through social, cultural, and educational experiences.

Following graduation, Maggie will take her Global Perspective summer through the Morehead-Cain, then pursue teaching. Roli will travel to Columbia and Brazil for her Global Perspective summer, then take a consulting role in Atlanta. (Both scholars’ final Summer Enrichment Program were delayed to this year due to the pandemic.)

At the end of the episode, other members of the Morehead-Cain Class of 2023 share advice, kudos, and college memories. Thank you to Charlotte Dorn ’23, Amy Feng, McKenzie Martin ’23, and Kartik Tyagi ’23 for sharing your story!

Music credits

The intro music is by Scott Hallyburton ’22, guitarist of the band South of the Soul.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.

The Catalyze podcast is a series by the Morehead-Cain Foundation, home of the first merit scholarship program in the United States and located at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The show is directed and produced by Sarah O’Carroll, Content Manager for Morehead-Cain.

You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Instagram at @moreheadcain or you can email us at communications@moreheadcain.org.

SEVEN Talk, by Janel Monroe ’10: “Finding Freedom Through Fertility” May 07, 2023

Show notes

Today’s episode is a recording of a SEVEN Talk from the 2022 Alumni Forum. This talk, given by Janel Monroe ’10, is entitled, “Finding Freedom Through Fertility.” Janel is the strategy senior manager for Accenture.
You can watch all of the SEVEN Talks on our YouTube channel.
Janel Monroe ’10 is an inclusion, diversity, and equity practitioner who currently works as a strategy senior manager at Accenture. Prior to joining Accenture, she led inclusion and diversity at Campbell Soup Company and spent seven years in strategy consulting, focusing on talent and human potential. Janel resides in Philadelphia but enjoys traveling to warm and tropical locations, as well as internationally. Janel double majored in communication studies and cultural studies at Carolina.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.

Miniseries on sustainable farming in North Carolina, Pt. 3: Carolyn Roff Henry ’87 of Tryon Mountain Farms Apr 21, 2023

Show notes

For Earth Day, we’re releasing a three-part miniseries on sustainable farming in North Carolina.
Elias Guedira ’26 and Stella Smolowitz ’26 of the Morehead-Cain Scholar Media Team traveled to Tryon (Polk County) to understand more about the food we consume and those who produce it.
The two co-hosts spoke with representatives of a farmer’s market, the founder of a creamer, and Carolyn Roff Henry ’87 of Tryon Mountain Farms. The alumna moved back to her hometown to take over the family business after a career in the food industry.
On this episode, Carolyn shares how she and her husband, Tracy, have found a niche through their specialization in seasoning salts and simple syrups, as well as the importance of stewarding native species while exploring new flavors. She also shares advice for how anyone can support local agriculture.
After graduating from Carolina with a bachelor’s in English, Carolyn worked with Cargill Incorporated in Food Sales. The alumna earned a master’s in food science from North Carolina State University and a Postgraduate Diploma in Commerce from Lincoln University in New Zealand. She worked as a food scientist at Sealed Air Corporation before building Tryon Mountain Farms.
Special thanks
The Scholar Media Team trip (the first of its kind!) was made possible by Carolyn, who hosted the scholars for the visit. Thank you, Carolyn, for your hospitality and support!

Music credits
The intro music is by Scott Hallyburton ’22, guitarist of the band South of the Soul.
How to listen
On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.
The Catalyze podcast is a series by the Morehead-Cain Foundation, home of the first merit scholarship program in the United States and located at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The show is directed and produced by Sarah O’Carroll, Content Manager for Morehead-Cain.
You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Instagram at @moreheadcain or you can email us at communications@moreheadcain.org.

Miniseries (extra!) on sustainable farming in North Carolina: Sights and sounds of Tryon Mountain Farms, with co-hosts Elias Guedira ’26 and Stella Smolowitz ’26 Apr 21, 2023

Show notes

For Earth Day, we’re releasing a three-part miniseries on sustainable farming in North Carolina.
Elias Guedira ’26 and Stella Smolowitz ’26 of the Morehead-Cain Scholar Media Team traveled to Tryon (Polk County) to understand more about the food we consume and those who produce it.
The two co-hosts spoke with representatives of a farmer’s market, the founder of a creamer, and Carolyn Roff Henry ’87 of Tryon Mountain Farms. The alumna moved back to her hometown to take over the family business after a career in the food industry.
In this audio tour, Elias and Stella describe the sights and sounds of the farm while feeding bananas to Carolyn’s goats.
Up next: On Carolyn’s episode, she shares how she and her husband, Tracy, have found a niche through their specialization in seasoning salts and simple syrups, as well as the importance of stewarding native species while exploring new flavors. She also shares advice for how anyone can support local agriculture.
After graduating from Carolina with a bachelor’s in English, Carolyn worked with Cargill Incorporated in Food Sales. The alumna earned a master’s in food science from North Carolina State University and a Postgraduate Diploma in Commerce from Lincoln University in New Zealand. She worked as a food scientist at Sealed Air Corporation before building Tryon Mountain Farms.

Special thanks
The Scholar Media Team trip (the first of its kind!) was made possible by Carolyn, who hosted the scholars for the visit. Thank you, Carolyn, for your hospitality and support!
Music credits
The intro music is by Scott Hallyburton ’22, guitarist of the band South of the Soul.
How to listen
On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed.
The Catalyze podcast is a series by the Morehead-Cain Foundation, home of the first merit scholarship program in the United States and located at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The show is directed and produced by Sarah O’Carroll, Content Manager for Morehead-Cain.
You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Instagram at @moreheadcain or you can email us at communications@moreheadcain.org.

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