Ylana Lopez oversees programs and events at the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship. The Trust Center offers more than 60 entrepreneurship and innovation courses across campus, a dedicated entrepreneurship and innovation track for students pursuing their MBA, online courses for self-learners at MIT and around the globe, and programs for people both affiliated and not affiliated with the Institute. As assistant director, academics and events, at the Trust Center, Lopez leads an array of programs and events, while also assisting students and faculty members.
After graduating from Rutgers University, Lopez conducted research in human-computer interaction at Princeton University. After Princeton, she worked for the health care software company Epic Systems, in quality management and user experience. While at Epic Systems, she was simultaneously working on a startup with two of her friends, Kiran Sharma and Dinuri Rupasinghe. One of the startup co-founders, who was an MIT undergraduate student, applied for them to take part in the Trust Center’s flagship startup accelerator delta v, and the trio was accepted.
Delta v is a highly competitive entrepreneurial program, with 20 to 25 startup teams accepted each year, which runs annually from June to August. At the end of each month, there is a mock board meeting with a board of advisors consisting of industry experts specifically curated to support each startup team’s goals. Programming, coaching sessions, workshops, lectures, and pitch practices take place throughout delta v, and the program culminates in September with a demo day in Kresge Auditorium with thousands of people in attendance.
Prior to delta v, Lopez decided to leave her full-time job to focus solely on the startup. Once she and her partners went their separate ways, she was looking for a career change, which led her to reflect on her formative summer at MIT. In spring 2023, Lopez applied for an open position at the Trust Center to be an academic coordinator. Soon after, she was offered and accepted the role, and a year later was promoted to assistant director for academics and events. Lopez’s time at MIT has come full circle as her current position includes being a co-director of delta v. Like many of her colleagues who are serial entrepreneurs, Lopez has also started a design studio on the side in the past year called Mr. Mango, providing creative design services for film and music industries.
Lopez has always loved education and planned to become a teacher before deciding to enter the field of technology. Because of this, she describes working at MIT, and being a staff member in the Trust Center, as having the best of both worlds. While delta v is the flagship accelerator, Lopez also supports shorter programs including MIT Fuse, a three-week, hands-on startup sprint that takes place during Independent Activities Period (IAP), and t=0, a festival of events that kicks off each school year to promote entrepreneurship at MIT. In addition to delta v, other programs are available to those outside of MIT, as the Trust Center sees the value of bringing together an ecosystem that is not solely composed of those at the Institute.
At the core of the Trust Center is the belief that entrepreneurship is a tool to change the world. The staff also believe entrepreneurship can be taught, and is not just for a select few. Lopez and her colleagues are highly collaborative and work in an office space that they affectionately call “the bullpen.” The office layout and shared nature of their work mean that no one is a stranger. With at least two events per week, late nights can turn into early mornings, but Lopez and her colleagues love what they do. She is grateful for the growth she has had in her time at the Trust Center and the opportunity to be a part of a motivated, fun, and talented team.
Trust Center managing director Bill Aulet, the Ethernet Inventors Professor of the Practice of Entrepreneurship, cannot sing Lopez’s praises enough. “In my now almost two decades running this center, I have never seen anyone better at really understanding the students, our customers, and translating that back into high-quality and creative programs that delight them and serve the mission of our center, MIT Sloan, and MIT more broadly. We are so fortunate to have her.”
Soundbytes
Q: What is your favorite project that you have worked on?
A: This semester we piloted the Martin Trust Center Startup Pass. It is an opportunity for startups, regardless of what stage they are in, to have a daily, dedicated workspace at the Trust Center to make progress on their ventures. We set aside half of our space for what we call “the beehive” for startups to work alongside other founders and active builders at MIT. It’s great for students to sit alongside people who are building awesome things and will provide feedback, offer support, and really build a community that is entirely based off the spirit and collaboration that naturally comes to entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship can be lonely; therefore, a lot of our efforts go toward helping build networks that make it less so. In just one semester, we’ve already created a community of over 80 founders across MIT!
I’m also excited about revamping one of our rooms into a creative studio. We noticed that startups could benefit from having a space that has capabilities for creating content like podcasts, photography, videography, and other types of creative work. Those things are important in entrepreneurship, so we are currently cultivating a space that any entrepreneur at MIT can utilize.
Q: How would you describe the MIT community?
A: We have such a wonderful community here. The Trust Center supports all of MIT, so we have many programs that allow us to see a lot of people. There can be silos, so it’s great that we bring people together, regardless of their backgrounds, experience, or interests, in one place to become entrepreneurs. The MIT community is a group of inspiring, passionate people who are very welcoming. It’s a very exciting community to be a part of.
Q: What advice would you give someone who is starting a job at MIT?
A: If your day-to-day is typically in one office or setting, over time it can be easy to find yourself in a bubble. I highly recommend breaking out of your bubble by making the effort to meet as many people outside of the group that you work with directly as possible. I have met a number of people across different departments, even if we don’t have much direct overlap in terms of work, and they have been incredibly helpful, gracious, and welcoming. You never know if an introductory or impromptu conversation with someone might lead to an awesome collaboration or new initiative. It’s great being in a community with so many talented people.
