Carey Business School Alumni Receive Recognition for Distinguished Service

The Johns Hopkins Alumni Association recognized six Carey Business School graduates for their distinguished service to the university and to the greater community. The Johns Hopkins Alumni Association represents more than 241,000 graduates from across the university. The awards were presented January 27 during the association’s annual awards ceremony.

“We are extremely proud of our alumni award recipients, and I commend them for their service to the university and the community,” said Alex Triantis, dean of the Carey Business School. “These graduates truly exemplify the Carey values of relentless advancement, boundless curiosity, unwavering humanity, and collaborative leadership.

This year’s recipients include:

Libi Sprow Rice
Community Champion Award

Libi Sprow Rice received the Community Champion Award, which recognizes outstanding contributions that address critical social, economic, and environmental needs. Rice leads communication, marketing, branding, and external affairs for the Executive Leadership Council (ELC), the membership organization for the highest-ranking Black executives in corporate America, which strives to create opportunity for Blacks in business at all levels and to positively impact businesses and communities. Rice has also been a champion of the Dr. James Calvin Scholarship at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, which helps support Carey students from underrepresented communities. She is also a charter member of the Ambassador Donor Program for the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture and past board member of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC).

Ted Sniffin
Distinguished Alumnus Award

Ted Sniffin received the Distinguished Alumnus Award, which honors alumni who exemplify the Johns Hopkins tradition of excellence. As a Fortune 500 business leader, Sniffin has led business strategy and market development for companies serving U.S. defense and civil agencies. As an executive vice president and partner with Booz Allen Hamilton, he led business development for the company’s U.S. defense, intelligence, and civil agencies, and was recognized with the Washington 100 award as one of “the most influential and impactful executives of consequence at the intersection of government and industry.” He subsequently served as a managing director, leading global business development for Amazon Web Services worldwide public sector business. In 2021, he co-founded Bird Dog Capital, LLC, with his wife, Ann Powell Sniffin, attorney-at-law, to focus on real estate investment and revitalization.

Bryan M. McMillan
Heritage Award

Bryan M. McMillan received the Heritage Award, which honors alumni who contribute to the progress of the university and activities of the Alumni Association. McMillan has been an avid supporter of Johns Hopkins since graduating from the Carey Business School with an MS in Business Management and an MBA. He made his first gift to Johns Hopkins before his graduation and has been a consecutive donor for nearly 20 years. In addition to his philanthropic support, he has been an active volunteer for the school and served as the inaugural chair of the Dean’s Alumni Advisory Board and most recently as secretary for the Johns Hopkins Alumni Association. He was among the first alumni to join Carey’s Business Leadership Society and NEXT Mentorship Program.

Elyse Heob and Elizabeth Galbut
Outstanding Recent Graduate Award

Elyse Heob and Elizabeth Galbut were recipients of the Outstanding Recent Graduate Award, which recognizes recent graduates (within 10 years) for outstanding achievement or service as professionals or volunteers.

Elyse co-founded ClearMask, LLC with three fellow Johns Hopkins alumni, and together they designed the world’s first FDA-cleared and CE-marked fully transparent surgical mask. They have sold nearly 20 million masks worldwide since April 2020, enabling staff at hospitals, schools, governments, and businesses to connect and see faces while wearing a mask that provides medical-grade protection. Their work has been featured by Forbes 30 under 30, the Wall Street Journal, the Journal of the American Medical Association: Surgery, and many more. While their mask is particularly relevant today with COVID-19, the product’s concept was sparked by a co-founder who was born profoundly deaf and realized the need for this product when she was unexpectedly left unable to communicate with her surgical team.

Elizabeth Galbut was recognized in 2018 by Forbes as one of “30 under 30 in Venture Capital.” Galbut started A-Level Capital while she was still a student at Carey Business School. Today, A-Level Capital has grown into two separate venture capital funds that support start-up companies founded by Johns Hopkins students and graduates. Additionally, Galbut founded SoGal Ventures, which was the first female-founded venture capital firm in the Los Angeles area. SoGal Ventures’ first fund raised more than $15 million and has earned coverage from CNBC, BBC, Reuters, Fortune, Forbes and news outlets others.

Ruby B. Harvey
Public Service Award

Ruby B. Harvey received the Public Service Award, which honors alumni who have brought credit to the university through public service. Harvey recently retired as executive director of the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) where she was responsible for programs that promote small business participation in Veterans Administration procurements especially service‐disabled veteran- and veteran‐owned small businesses. She was a member of the United States Senior Executive Service and has more than 25 years of leadership experience. In 2018, she received the first annual Excellence in Innovation and Competitiveness Award from the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Recently, she joined Carey’s Dean’s Alumni Advisory Board and has been engaged as a speaker on panels and as a mentor to students.

With more than 25,000 business alumni living, working, and innovating around the globe, Carey Business School is a hub of influence and opportunity. To learn more opportunities and activities for Carey alumni, visit https://carey.jhu.edu/alumni.