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Oct.
28, 2002 |
John J. McDonnell '61 Named Rensselaer Entrepreneur
of the Year
John J. McDonnell Jr. '61 has been named the William
F. Glaser '53 2002 Rensselaer Entrepreneur of the Year by the
Severino Center for Technological Entrepreneurship at Rensselaer's
Lally School of Management and Technology. McDonnell is the founder,
chairman, and CEO of Transaction Network Services (TNS) in Reston,
Va. He is the 13th recipient of the award.
A celebration in McDonnell's honor will be held
at the Heffner Alumni House from 7:30 to 9 a.m. on Friday, Nov.
8. The morning will begin with a networking reception, followed
by a keynote address delivered by McDonnell from 8 to 9 a.m. Both
events are free and campus is urged to attend.
"Jack McDonnell is a superb exemplar of the
entrepreneurial spirit," said Rensselaer President Shirley
Ann Jackson. "We note with pride that his achievements model
well that hallmark of a Rensselaer education: the application
of science to the common purposes of life."
McDonnell founded TNS in 1990, and spent the decade
developing and broadening his company's service of providing fast,
reliable data communications for credit card transactions. He
sold TNS to Internet service provider PSINet in 1999, and then
purchased it back again in 2001. His success has been the subject
of several Washington Post articles and was featured in a leading
Washington, D.C.-area trade publication.
Immediately prior to launching TNS, McDonnell
was president and CEO of Digital Radio Network Inc., an access
bypass carrier for point-of-sale transactions. He received a bachelor
of science degree in electrical engineering from Manhattan College
and a master's degree in electrical engineering from Rensselaer.
The William F. Glaser '53 Entrepreneur of the
Year award recognizes successful entrepreneurs and role models.
The program also brings the world of entrepreneurship into Rensselaer
classrooms where honorees share wisdom, experience, and encouragement
with students. Past winners include Paul Severino '69, founder
and chairman of Bay Networks; William Mow '59, founder of Bugle
Boy Industries; and Nancy Mueller, founder of Nancy's Specialty
Foods.
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