Coleman Center Staff

 Raman Chadha, Executive Director & Clinical Professor

Raman is Executive Director of the Coleman Entrepreneurship Center and on the faculty of DePaul's highly ranked academic program in entrepreneurship, teaching Entrepreneurship Strategy, New Venture Management, and Innovation & Technological Change. Prior to joining DePaul, he ran his own consulting firm for eight years, through which he helped over 200 entrepreneurs start, grow, and manage their companies. Raman is a frequent contributor to online and traditional media outlets covering entrepreneurship and small business, and is very active in Chicago's entrepreneurial community.He earned his MBA in Entrepreneurship and Marketing from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, and his BA in Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

April Lane (MBA ’06), Associate Director

Originally working at the Coleman Center as a MBA consultant, April received her MBA in Entrepreneurship in June 2006. In her role, April is responsible for growing the consulting business, managing client relationships, and managing the MBA consultants while continuing to work with clients. April received her bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan, and has a strong background in entrepreneurship and marketing.

Stephanie Furlan, Marketing & Outreach Manager

Stephanie is responsible for managing the Center's marketing and communication efforts, planning and managing various events and programs, and building and maintaining the Coleman Center's strategic partnerships. She is a current DePaul MBA student, and attended Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN where she received her bachelor's degree in Communications. Prior to working for the Coleman Center, Stephanie was an Account Executive at the Chicago White Sox where she coordinated fundraising groups and other large group outings.

Amy Bretz, Membership Services Coordinator

Amy is responsible for coordinating the Coleman Center’s Membership Program, delivering valuable networking, educational, and promotional opportunities to entrepreneurial ventures around Chicago. She also helps support the Center’s staff and other initiatives, particularly the growing Blueprint student-entrepreneur program. Amy graduated from Augustana College in May 2007 with a double major in Public Administration and Political Science. She loves working at DePaul where "honesty, hard work, and integrity really matter." Amy feels lucky to help make a difference in the lives of students and entrepreneurs in the area.

Bruce Leech (MBA '81), Executive Consultant

Bruce founded CrossCom National, Inc. in 1981, a company that achieved $90 million in annual revenues. CrossCom installs and services voice and data systems for large US retailers like Walgreens, CVS, Kohls, Kmart, and TJ Maxx. Bruce also expanded CrossCom into the UK and supported both US and UK retailers. In 2004, Bruce sold a majority interest in the firm to a private equity group, and continues to serve on CrossCom's Board of Directors. Bruce is Co-Founder of evolve, LLC a membership organization of business owners working on their value creation and business transition strategies. Having been through this process himself, Bruce is able to provide insight into this very important area in the life of the business owner. Furthermore, he serves as an advisor to several companies and is involved with a number of non-profit organizations and educational institutions. Bruce earned his bachelor's degree from Michigan State University, and an MBA from DePaul University. He is also Chairman of the Advisory Board for the Coleman Entrepreneurship Center at DePaul.

David Jackson, Executive Consultant

David is Evanston Advisors' Chief Operating Officer where he is responsible for strategic planning, operations, and relationship management. Prior to joining Evanston Advisors in 2001, he owned FirstChoice HealthCare, a middle-market home health care company. David's business plan for rapid growth and significant competitive advantages led to a two-part sale of the business in 1996 and again in 1998. Since that time David has been an active business investor and professional business advisor sharing his knowledge and experience with other successful business owners. As a way to give back to the community, he continues to be involved with many non-profit and charitable efforts. David earned bachelor degrees in Business Administration and in Public Policy from Carthage Collage.

Dr. Harold P. Welsch (MBA ’68, COM ’66), Founder

Dr. Welsch has been active in entrepreneurship development for more than two decades as an educator, consultant, researcher, entrepreneur, author and editor. He is well known for his research into the privatization of centrally planned economies, entrepreneurship career paths, strategic planning, ethnic entrepreneurship, and problems encountered by small businesses. Dr. Welsch has held the Coleman Chair in Entrepreneurship at DePaul since 1989.

Becca Berkenstadt, Marketing Intern

Becca enthusiastically joined the Coleman Center team as Marketing Intern in the summer of 2009. She is a DePaul undergraduate student majoring in marketing and management and recently had the pleasure of studying abroad in Madrid, Spain.  In keeping with the the spirit of the Center, Becca began her own social media consultancy in 2009, drawing on her previous experience as Client Service Representative at Networked Insights, a social media solutions-based company. In addition to her professional work experience, Becca is a leader on the DePaul campus as President of Students for Entrepreneurs, an undergraduate organization that helps to raise scholarship funds for entrepreneurial students.  Becca plans to use her experience at the Coleman Center to expand her business and create an endowment fund for Students for Entrepreneurs.