We're ready to capitalize your ideas in energy, together.
The Rice Alliance team is a group of individuals with a passion for empowering startups to achieve their visions. We see ourselves as a mix of like-minded thinkers and doers, who empower you to do what you set out to do (and then some). We will surround you with the best people, skills, tools and program to set you up for success. We strive to achieve a culture of advocacy that demonstrates an unyielding commitment to enabling the entrepreneurial pursuit of our founders.
LEADERSHIP TEAM
A long-time Rice Alliance team member, Kerri has over a decade of startup acceleration experience through her leadership roles with the OwlSpark and SURGE Accelerators. She has extensive experience in setting strategic direction, establishing priorities, and leading a portfolio of initiatives that maximize and drive startup success. Since joining Rice University in 2004, Kerri has played a lead role in enabling entrepreneurship, building capacity, and accelerating the formation of a number of tech-enabled startups.
An experienced research scientist and teacher, Matthew Peña is the Associate Director of the Rice Alliance Clean Energy Accelerator, where he acts as a liaison and guides transformative clean energy startups through a structured training program. Matthew, a serial entrepreneur, is also a mentor to OwlSpark and Red Labs Accelerator startups, and runs the Rice Alliance "Oppstart" program.
An experienced educator and program manager, Chelsea is the Program Director of the Clean Energy Accelerator, where she manages the day-to-day operations and mentor connections for the participating startups. Chelsea has worked in the Houston innovation ecosystem for the last five years, collaborating with startups, mentors, and academic institutions. Chelsea also leads and manages the educational programs at the Ion District.
PARTICIPATING EXECUTIVES IN RESIDENCE (XiRs)
The XiR supports early stage clean energy startups through key milestone development and enables access across our network of advisors and service providers that enable progress toward commercialization.
Lynn is a transformational leader driving innovation, fostering collaboration, and balancing stakeholder priorities to create sustainable success. With experience spanning R&D, P&L leadership, and strategic marketing, Lynn brings holistic perspectives - seeing big picture and critical details.Passionate about advancing sustainable energy, materials, and processes, Lynn understands the technical, economic, and societal complexities involved. Expertise includes R&D, commercialization, ESG leadership, digital transformation, agile innovation, change management, talent development, DEI, strategy execution, and market analysis.
John is an accomplished energy industry executive who has dedicated his 32-year career to tackling some of the sector’s most critical emerging challenges. His journey spans global upstream oil and gas, technology, and strategic leadership roles with ExxonMobil, Schlumberger, and Southwestern Energy.
Since leaving his corporate role in 2020, John has focused on helping early stage companies succeed by mentoring and advising entrepreneurs on customer discovery, product development strategy, strategic partnership opportunities, fundraising and building scalable businesses. His interests include all facets of energy transition, including improving efficiency, reducing the environmental impact of legacy energy sources, and development of economically viable, scalable alternatives.
He is a co-founder of Revolution Turbine Technologies, a waste energy recovery technology aimed at decarbonizing natural gas operations. He is a member of SWAN Impact Network, a Texas-based angel network. John has served as a CEA mentor since 2020, and is also a member of the Houston-based Global Energy Mentors. He holds a bachelor’s degree in geology from Dartmouth, a masters from Rice, and has completed executive education coursework at SMU’s Cox School of Business.
David is a senior executive with deep expertise in advancing clean energy innovation, technology commercialization, and strategic growth. With extensive experience in oilfield and refining technology, sustainability, and venture capital, he has led breakthrough research and development initiatives, external technology partnerships, and portfolio management. David is recognized for fostering innovation and safety cultures, guiding startups through technical diligence, and shaping investment strategies in the energy transition. He brings a strong track record in mentoring founders, team development, change management, and customer engagement, leveraging his technical leadership to accelerate the commercialization of cutting-edge clean energy solutions.
Dev is a seasoned operations executive with over 24 years of experience in the chemicals and energy sectors. As Principal Consultant at The Dragonfly Ventures since July 2022, he advises startups and established firms on operational excellence and strategic growth. Previously, Dev served as Vice President of Operations (Quality, Health, Safety, & Environment) at Solugen, where he enhanced safety protocols and operational efficiency.
MORE THAN 80 INVESTORS AND ENERGY CORPORATIONS MAKE UP OUR NETWORK
