Staff

James Boyle, Director, YEI

Jim Boyle is a co-founder and the Director of the Yale Entrepreneurial Institute (YEI), a new business/educational unit within Yale University with the sole mission of mentoring students with new venture ideas. Prior to forming YEI, Boyle was previously responsible within the Office of Cooperative Research (OCR) for the licensing and venture start-up of a number of engineering-based technologies. Prior to joining OCR, he developed and actively managed the University's largest corporate research alliance, managing a large array of both Yale and external scientists in bioimaging-based collaborations. Earlier, Boyle co-founded and grew a predictive analytics consulting practice, providing both technical and pricing guidance on new product development to a wide array of Fortune 1000 companies in the scientific equipment industry.

Boyle began his entrepreneurial career while still a Yale graduate student, developing novel instruments for characterizing trace biomolecules with the support of the National Institutes of Health, and later commercializing these devices through a wide array of OEM partnerships as part of a Yale start-up.

He holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Yale and a M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois.

Shana N. Schneider, Deputy Director, YEI

Shana N. Schneider is responsible for the communications, marketing and operations of the Yale Entrepreneurial Institute. Prior to joining YEI, Schneider was the Director of Communications and Economic Development for Yale's Office of New Haven and State Affairs and the Marketing Director for University Properties. She has produced an array of communication materials for print, web, and video as well as functioned as the liaison between members of the University and New Haven community.

Prior to her work at Yale University, Schneider assisted in launching the Institute for Educational Excellence and Entrepreneurship at West Chester University in Pennsylvania. She has also worked in the television and media industry as a producer for Agape Productions, a start-up entertainment company, and TV Guide, where she assisted in writing and producing shows that aired on networks including FOX, VH1, and Food Network.

Schneider is co-founder of the New Haven Young Professionals Association and serves on the board of the New Haven Reads Book Bank. She holds a B.A. in English from Yale University.