Conor O'DonoghueFrom his humble beginnings in the West Cork town of Clonakilty, Ireland, Conor graduated from the local high school with flying colors and a firm grounding in several technical fields, most notably the award of the gold medal for best national performance in technical graphics.
Following in his father’s footsteps he went on to earn a Bachelors of Civil and Environmental Engineering at University College Cork, graduating in 2012. His academic excellence was recognized on a number of occasions with both entrance and continuing scholarship awards. Conor also spent his junior year studying abroad at the University of California Irvine, where he made Dean’s Role of Honor all three semesters. Throughout his undergraduate education he was immersed in a wide variety of engineering fields including structural, transportation, computational modeling, wastewater treatment, alternative energy, and environmental engineering to name but a few. During his final year, Conor was part of an interdisciplinary biomedical design class with Dr. Padraig Cantillon-Murphy, where he was introduced to the world of entrepreneurship. Students from the School of Medicine and several engineering departments at UCC worked collaboratively with Cork’s practicing surgeons to design innovative solutions to genuine clinical problems. Conor’s work resulted in the invention of a novel laparoscopic retractor which won 2nd place in a UCC Entrepreneurship Society Business Plan Competition and was awarded the John F. Burke Prize for Biomedical Innovation. The invention also received a grant from Enterprise Ireland in summer 2012. Through a research masters at UCC, the product has been further developed, with a European Patent filed for the intellectual property. Upon graduation from University College Cork, Conor was awarded a Naughton Fellowship to pursue his newfound entrepreneurial interest through the ESTEEM Program at the University of Notre Dame. Conor recently graduated from this one-year Masters in Entrepreneurship, which focuses on bringing emerging Notre Dame technology from concept through to commercialization. The program offers graduates with STEM related education the perfect opportunity to master the fundamental business concepts required to be a successful entrepreneur. During his year at Notre Dame, he participated in the McCloskey Business Plan Competition at Mendoza College of Business where he played pivotal roles in two successful ventures, Green Bridge Growers and Torigen Pharmaceuticals. Upon graduation from his Masters, Conor joined enFocus visionaries and became a Michiana Venture Fellow, implementing the skills learned through the ESTEEM Program to make an impact on the city of South Bend. His broad knowledge base in several civil engineering fields are complemented by the business education received at Notre Dame, providing Conor with a firm foundation on which to spearhead bold ideas in the community. Outside of work, Conor is an avid surfer. Separated from the coast here in the Midwest, his former days of competing in triathlons allowed him to resurrect his other hobbies of swimming, biking and running. |
Daniel Lewis
Alan Barrett
Khoa Huynh
Conor O'Donoghue
Claudia Anewalt
Lex Dennis
Brett Ensor
Melissa Davidson
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