Manoj J. Chacko

YASMINE MUSTAFA

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AWARD FOR DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI

Yasmine Mustafa believes ROAR found her, not the other way around. She draws upon her experience as a refugee, discovering she was undocumented, and working in unsafe conditions to lead the Company in its mission to empower and protect others. She has over 15 years of leading technology companies, having sold her first company, 123LinkIt, to a Silicon Valley firm in 2009.

She is fueled by a passion to leverage technology for good, previously launching a non-profit to help women learn how to code in a safe, judgment-free zone.

Her role as a leader and advocate has been recognized by the BBC, CNBC’s Upstart 100, and the City of Philadelphia, among others. She loves to speak at conferences to inspire others and she is a 2x TEDx speaker with a roster of speaking credits that includes SXSW and CES.

In her free time, Yasmine enjoys spending time with friends and family, and being outdoors as much as possible, whether it’s biking around Philadelphia, hiking or hammocking, and traveling. She sits on the board of the Philadelphia Alliance for Capital and Technologies.

TWENTY-FOURTH ANNUAL IT AWARDS

PATRICK COZZI

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INNOVATOR AWARD

Patrick is the Chief Platform Officer at Bentley Systems, where he leads the open software platform for digital twins of the built and natural environment, enabling a global ecosystem of software developers.

He is the founder and former CEO of Cesium, joining Bentley in 2024 via acquisition. He is an EY Entrepreneur of the Year Greater Philadelphia Award Winner for building Cesium into the leading 3D geospatial software company.

Patrick has received multiple industry awards for his contributions to geospatial and 3D computer graphics open standards including 3D Tiles and glTF. He is an inventor on 10 US patents and has authored, edited, or contributed to 10 books.

He is the co-founder of CreateAccess, a nonprofit to increase opportunities in technology for young people in under-resourced communities through exposure education to 3D creation.

In real life 3D, Patrick is an avid martial arts student, having grown up in the storied Upper Darby Boxing Gym and having earned a 2nd-degree black belt as an adult.

He earned a Master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania, where he also taught GPU Programming & Architecture for almost a decade. He received a CME from Harvard Business School Executive Education.

Patrick serves on a variety of nonprofit boards for national security and economic growth.

TWENTY-FOURTH ANNUAL IT AWARDS

CHRIS KEARNS

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LEADER AWARD

Chris Kearns is Senior Vice President for Enterprise Applications at Kyndryl. Kyndryl is the world’s largest provider of IT infrastructure services with thousands of enterprise customers in more than 60 countries. Chris and the Enterprise Applications teams are responsible for enterprise applications across the firm, spanning front office lead-to-quote processes, back office quote-to-cash operations, and corporate support functions. He is a champion for innovation and operational excellence with experience overseeing core platforms for financial services, customer relationship management, marketing, procurement and other corporate operations.

Prior to joining Kyndryl, Chris held executive leadership roles at Corning Incorporated, NBC Universal, the Vanguard Group, Leidos, and Lockheed Martin. Chris has over 25 years of industry experience in IT and IT services. In prior roles he was the global head of Workplace Services, the global head of data center engineering and was responsible for leading a $700M+ information technology business with 2,000+ employees serving U.S. Department of Defense customers. His expertise spans operations and cyber defense of critical national infrastructure, management of private datacenters and high-performance computing centers, migration and security of cloud computing, and mission and enterprise application management.

Chris holds a master’s degree in information science from Pennsylvania State University and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Scranton. He serves on the Industrial Advisory Board to the Engineering Department at the University of Scranton.

TWENTY-FOURTH ANNUAL IT AWARDS

Data Science & AI @Temple Symposium

The Institute for Business and Information Technology (IBIT), in collaboration with the Fox School of Business and the Office of the Vice President for Research, is proud to host the inaugural Data Science & AI @Temple Symposium. This campus-wide, grassroots initiative brings together researchers from across Temple University who are using—or interested in using—data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence in their scholarship.

Organized by the DS-AI@Temple network, the symposium is designed to foster meaningful connections across schools and disciplines. The goal is to help researchers learn about one another’s work, break down academic silos, and spark new collaborations that lead to interdisciplinary teams, shared workshops, innovative research initiatives, and competitive large-scale grant proposals.

The symposium will take place on March 12, 2026, from 12:00 PM to 6:30 PM at Alter Hall (Fox School), MBA Commons, 7th Floor. Whether you are building AI models, working with large datasets, developing new analytical methods, studying the societal impacts of AI, or exploring how AI can enhance your research program, this event offers a valuable opportunity to connect and collaborate.

Registration is free and required to assist with planning for food, seating, and poster space.

Learn More…

Spring 2026 Mentoring Session with Andrea Anania Stewart and Gregg Price

During the Spring 2026 term, the Institute for Business and Information Technology (IBIT) hosted two mentoring sessions bringing together 15 Management Information Systems students at various stages of their academic journey. The sessions featured two distinguished industry leaders: Andrea Anania Stewart, Retired Executive Vice President & Chief Information Officer of CIGNA and member of the IBIT Advisory Board, and Gregg Price, Managing Director at Deloitte Consulting. These sessions provided students with invaluable exposure to executive-level perspectives on technology leadership, consulting, and career development, bridging the gap between academic learning and real-world professional experience.

Students benefited from direct access to senior executives, gaining insights into leadership, innovation, and career development. The sessions were not only informative but also energizing, highlighting the power of mentorship in shaping future professionals.

We extend our sincere thanks to Andrea and Gregg for their continued support and dedication to Temple students. Their contributions help make the mentoring program a cornerstone of student engagement and professional growth.