Nexus Maine - The Most Wonderful Time of The Year
Prepare yourself. Startup Maine Week is coming!
Happy Monday, Nexus friends! A few updates for you this week.
We have made a some updates, most notably the fact that new Slack community members have to answer a small form before joining to help us maintain the quality of this group as it grows. We are accepting members from surrounding states within a reasonable distance from Maine to join the community, so long as they are recommended by an existing Nexus member. Why? The more people can view Maine as a hub of builders in New England, the better we all are!
We are also working on a brand new website with the help of our friends at SideSea (thank you Alex Morse).
To say it again, Startup Maine is incredible. Katie and team have organized an incredible week of programming, with many Nexus members participating in panels and speaking sessions. We encourage you to grab a ticket and to participate.
Lastly, if you know anyone great for this group, please send them here to apply.
Baxter the Moose is getting ready for Startup Maine Week like "winter is coming" in Game of Thrones. Style of Pixar.
What’s in this newsletter
Reminder: Nexus Member Directory
Event Highlights
Jobs & Talent
Member Spotlight: Ben Welbourn
Reminder: Nexus Member Directory
If you haven’t already, please fill out our new Nexus Member Directory! Our goal is for Nexus members to more easily connect with each other by highlighting similar industries, jobs, and interests in a simple interface.
Event Highlights
May 13: Maine JS Meetup
May 15: Innovation, Workforce, and Research Conference (IWRC)
May 16: Maine Entrepreneur Summit
May 19: The Founder Residency Venture Showcase
May 19-22: Startup Maine Week!
Register Here and check out the programming for the entire week
May 20: Nexus Maine Coffee Meetup
Kickstart your day at Startup Maine Week by joining us for coffee at 8:00am on May 20th. No registration needed. Maine Center, 300 Fore St. (Living Room)
May 21: Women Connect- A Nexus Maine Community (coffee networking meetup)
Small group convos on topics you care about: leadership, burnout, motherhood, entrepreneurship, and more. No prep needed—just show up, grab coffee, and dive in. Maine Center, 300 Fore St. (Living Room) at 7:30 am.
May 22: Bitcoin Pizza Day! Blockchain Maine Meetup
May 28: Dirigo Labs Pitch Competition
June 18: Nexus Maine Happy Hour
These are coming back! Location TBD
Check out our Events Calendar Link in Notion for more. Are you an event owner? Submit your event here to be added to the calendar!
Nexus Jobs & Talent
Hiring:
MedRhythms is hiring an operations associate
Nexus Contact: Brian Bousquet-Smith
Maine Initiatives is hiring a Director of Finance
Nexus Contact: Rumbi
Loop is hiring a VP of engineering
Nexus Contact: Chelsea Allen
UDisk is hiring a growth marketer
Nexus Contact: Josh Lichti
Retego is looking for a Chief of Staff.
Nexus Contact: Jason Cianchette
Game Plan Tech is hiring across a variety of engineering roles
Nexus Contact: Bo Bergstrom
SkillSoft is hiring an engineering manager
Nexus Contact: Reed Laverack
FYI - There are more postings in the #Nexus-Jobs channel in slack. If you are looking for great talent or considering your next move please reach out to Jimmy and George and we’ll help connect you!
Member Spotlight: Ben Welbourn
Career/Bio Overview
I’m an EdTech leader who’s launched venture-backed orgs in early childhood, K-12, and higher education. As Co-Founder of Verto Education, I helped build a global company that redefines the freshman year of college experience, allowing students to begin their education abroad with Verto and seamlessly transfer to over 100 partner universities. I was in the seat from $0 to $30M annual revenue, serving thousands of families and partners with a dedicated team of over 200. I’m most proud of Verto’s commitment to inclusion; 1/3 of its students are the first in their families to attend college. Five months ago, I joined Schola to reshape how the company supports preK-12 charter schools with student recruitment, enrollment, and retention.
Why Maine?
My wife and I have lived in Ohio, Boston, New York, and the wrong Portland (Oregon). I spent every summer growing up on Highland Lake in Bridgton before my parents moved there full time, and Abby and I got married on Peaks Island when we lived in Boston. We consistently found ourselves looking northeast, and getting stuck on the west coast through COVID confirmed it: Maine is home. My parents are getting older, and it’s been amazing to see our son with his grandparents. It’s been a huge bonus to learn that there’s a real economy and entrepreneurial ecosystem forming here in Maine too!
Away from Keyboard:
My wife, son, dog, and I are on the coast, a lake, or mountain every second we get. Last summer, I bought a dumb old convertible that fits everybody, so getting out there is more fun now too. We’ve settled in the Deering Center neighborhood in Portland, and LOVE the community here. It’s backyard party season again, so come on over.
Let’s Talk:
Email: bcwelbourn@gmail.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/benwelbourn/
Thank you for making this community special, everyone! See you on Slack.
George & Jimmy
Thank you to our sponsor Maine Technology Institute for supporting Nexus Maine.
