Skip to main content
Connecticut College
  • About Connecticut College
  • Academics
  • Admission & Financial Aid
  • Alumni & Life After Conn
  • Athletics
  • Campus & Community
  • Career Preparation
  • Human Resources
  • Student Experience
  • Calendar
  • News
  • Directory
  • Library & IT
  • CC Magazine
  • Site Map
CamelWeb

Three alumni named to 2019 Forbes 30 Under 30 list

Ipek Bakir ’12 was honored by Forbes for helping award over $5 million in education grants.

A portrait of Ipek Bakir ’12
  • Home 
  • Home 
  • News 
  • News Archive 
  • 2018 
  • 30 under 30

Three alumni named to 2019 Forbes 30 Under 30 list

For the second year in a row, three alumni from Connecticut College have made the Forbes 30 Under 30 list: Ipek Bakir ’12, James Finucane ’13 and Daniel Shoukimas ’13 have been named to the list of the world’s brightest young entrepreneurs, leaders and stars for 2019.

Bakir, who majored in government and self-designed a second major in urban studies at Conn, is considered a rising star of the education-focused Overdeck Family Foundation. She is a founding member of a major nonprofit that screens edtech products. At the Foundation, Bakir guides investments in student-centered school models, high-quality professional learning programs, and school capacity for monitoring and collecting data. Her Innovative School portfolio has helped award over $5 million in grants reaching over 200 school and 75,000 students.

“My work at the Foundation focuses on ensuring every child has access to an education that meets both academic and socio-emotional needs,” Bakir said.

Finucane, who majored in mathematics, and Shoukimas, who majored in art history, are two of three co-founders of mPharma, a healthcare startup that manages pharmaceutical inventory on behalf of mom and pop pharmacies across Africa. Headquartered in Ghana, mPharma serves close to 30,000 patients each month across a network of over 150 pharmacies and has $12 million in funding.

A portrait of James Finucane ’13
A portrait of Daniel Shoukimas ’13

James Finucane ’13 (left) and Daniel Shoukimas ’13 are two of three co-founders of mPharma, a healthcare startup that manages pharmaceutical inventory on behalf of mom and pop pharmacies across Africa.


“I am grateful that mPharma is being recognized for the achievements that my colleagues have all worked very hard to realize,” Finucane said.

Shoukimas added, “We at mPharma are all quite honored to be recognized on the Forbes list, in that it’s a reflection of the efforts of each of us to make medicine more accessible and affordable in the developing world. We're hoping the added visibility will help us to continue pulling Africa’s best talent into our ranks.”

The trio joins a growing number of Conn alums who have appeared on the 30 Under 30 list. Jazmine Hughes ’12, Aditi Juneja ’12 and Emily Callahan ’11 were named to Forbes 30 Under 30 for 2018. The three Conn alumni featured work in the media, law and policy, and energy industries.

Molly Hayward ’10 was recognized in 2017 for founding the innovative startup company, Cora, and made the list in 2013 in the law and policy category for her work as an advocate for immigrant youth and victims of child trafficking.

Each year, Forbes selects its 30 Under 30 winners from more than 10,000 nominees in the United States, Europe and Asia. The recognition of these three Connecticut College graduates in the same year is representative of the outsized impact Conn's alums are having in a wide range of fields. The College had more alumni named to the Forbes list than any of its NESCAC peers.



Four years to your career. Learn more



December 18, 2018

Related News & Media

Recent News

Justin Finkel ’25 named D3CA Region I Student-Athlete of the Year

Justin Finkel ’25 named D3CA Region I Student-Athlete of the Year

Campus News

July in Pictures

July in Pictures

Campus News

Connecticut College
270 Mohegan Avenue
New London, CT 06320
admission@conncoll.edu
1 (860) 447-1911
Web Privacy Policy Web Accessibility Notice
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn
  • TikTok
  • CC Mobile CC Mobile

NOTICE OF NONDISCRIMINATORY POLICY

Connecticut College is an equal opportunity employer. The College complies with all federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and ordinances prohibiting discrimination in private post-secondary education institutions. The College does not discriminate against any employee, applicant for employment, student, or applicant for admission on the basis of the following protected characteristics: age, citizenship status, color, creed, disability (physical or mental), domestic violence victim status, ethnicity, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information (including family medical history), lawful source of income, marital status, national origin (including ancestry), pregnancy or related conditions, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, veteran or military status (including disabled veteran; recently separated veteran; active-duty, wartime, or campaign badge veteran; and Armed Forces Service Medal veteran), any other status protected by federal, state, or local law.