Each Design Catalyst participant is paired with a volunteer mentor for the duration of the program. Mentors provide invaluable one-on-one guidance, helping emerging entrepreneurs refine their skills, clarify goals, and strengthen their business strategies.

Design Catalyst mentors play a critical role in supporting creative entrepreneurs as they build sustainable, financially viable businesses. Mentorship opportunities range from six-month weekly or bi-weekly commitments to single, industry-specific conversations, offering flexible ways to engage.

Your expertise can make a meaningful difference in an entrepreneur’s journey.

MEET THE MENTORS

Jason Tranchida
Owner and Creative Director at LLAMA product and Headmaster Magazine

Liz Welch
Founder and Creative Director of Anyhow Studio

Mike Zucker
Mike Zucker Consulting

MEET THE INSTRUCTORS

Kristine Merz (she/her) is a versatile entrepreneur and expert in human-centered research and design, passionate about driving impactful transformations in people’s lives. As the founder and president of Orange Square, a certified WBENC woman-owned business, she has been delivering award-winning brand transformations for over 23 years, using tried-and-true methods to help organizations discover, define, and deliver new brand strategies and identities. She is also the author of “Shift,” a book that explores how to lead change through human-centered innovation. In addition to her entrepreneurial endeavors, Kristine serves on the Board of Farm Fresh RI, demonstrating her commitment to the community, striving towards a shared vision of a better, more equitable future for all.

Dwayne Keys works at Compass Working Capital, a non-profit organization dedicated to ending asset poverty with a focus on Black and Latina women-led households specializing in HUD’s Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program. Dwayne joined Compass as a financial coach working one-on-one with Compass clients, worked as a Financial Coaching Manager supervising a team of financial coaches, and is currently the Director of Programs, Multifamily in which he oversees Compass’s partnerships and growth of FSS with multifamily owners. Prior to joining Compass in 2017, he spent 13 years working in for-profit banking and financial services, holding roles in customer relationship management, service, and sales. Dwayne is also the Managing Director of D Key Solution, a consulting firm he launched in 2015 that provides services in meeting facilitation, community engagement, and change management with low-to-moderate income Black and Brown communities in areas such as zoning, urban planning, preservation, community development, neighborhood revitalization, small businesses, and overall economic inclusion. Dwayne attended Johnson & Wales University where he earned his A.S. in Retailing, B.S. in Marketing and M.B.A. in International Trade. He is an Accredited Financial Counselor® (AFC®), certified in Financial Social Work and is pursuing his designation as a Certified Associate in Program Management (CAPM). For over 20 years Dwayne has advocated on behalf of historically excluded communities for economic justice and full inclusion in economic prosperity, with a focus on eliminating poverty, preventing displacement, and supporting anti-racism initiatives.

Blake Johnson (she/her) is a Rhode Island native, born and raised in Providence. She completed the 3+3 Program at Roger Williams University, earning her undergraduate degree in Legal Studies and Philosophy, cum laude, in 2019, and her Juris Doctor from Roger Williams University School of Law in 2021. During law school, she concentrated on business and transactional law, participated in the Business Start-up Clinic, and served as a Student Ambassador as well as Vice President of the LGBTQ+ Alliance.

Blake is licensed to practice law in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New York. Her legal practice centers on small business advising, cannabis policy, and transactional work in the arts and entertainment industries—an area she is especially passionate about. She is also an attorney with the Rhode Island Small Business Development Center through the University of Rhode Island’s business development program, providing strategic legal guidance to entrepreneurs and growing businesses.

Blake serves on several boards and committees committed to equity and the arts. She was appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate to the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts (RISCA), is Vice President of the Cannabis Policy Coalition, and serves on the Development Committee for the Women’s Fund of Rhode Island. She is also a member of the Rhode Island Women’s Bar Association.

Outside of her legal career, Blake is the founder and co-owner of Black Dragonfly Events LLC, a full-service event planning and design company specializing in milestone celebrations of fewer than 100 guests. Her company is known for creating intimate events that feel larger than life through curated details and elevated experiences.

In her free time, Blake enjoys reading, baking, amateur photography, cosplay, and traveling. She shares her home with her beloved turtle and is deeply connected to her family and community.

C. Alexander Chiulli represents varied businesses, non-profit organizations, emerging companies, educational institutions, management and consulting organizations, and individuals. Often serving as outside general counsel, Alex regularly assists clients on formation, corporate, contract, governance, employment, regulatory, policy, governmental, real estate, insurance, transactional, and general liability matters. Alex additionally devotes a significant portion of his practice to advising clients on intellectual property, entrepreneurship, Internet, privacy and information, non-profit, and First Amendment law. An experienced litigator, Alex regularly appears before state and federal courts and agencies in Rhode Island and Massachusetts on wide-ranging civil, appellate, and administrative matters, as well as before the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. Before law school, Alex worked for Fortune 500 and start-up businesses in the areas business development, project management, and market research.

Galen Mooney is the founder of Local Creative, a top website design studio for creative entrepreneurs, building custom websites that help them attract and book more of their ideal clients online. She teaches small business owners how to bring together their website, social media, email, and SEO into a clear, sustainable marketing approach that supports their business for the long term.

With over a decade of experience, Galen has worked with hundreds of small business owners to elevate their online presence and simplify their marketing. She’s been featured by industry leaders like Showit, Squarespace, HoneyBook, Innovation Studio, and General Assembly, and is known for creating strategies that blend personality-driven branding with practical, results-focused execution.

Matt Cavallaro is multi-disciplinary designer living and working in Providence, RI.

Matt graduated from the Industrial Design program at RISD in 2010 and began teaching in 2014. He has taught a variety of classes within the Experimental+Foundation Studies Department and Industrial Design Department, ranging from Spatial Dynamics, Design Principles, Cast Iron, Investment Casting, and Machining on manual mills and lathes.

Matt often teaches what he is most familiar with – the world of product design and development. He’s been a part of designing both hard and soft goods, but his expert knowledge lies within the realm of cast iron. His professional practice is primarily centered around managing two of his own companies (centered on cast iron goods), Nest Homeware and Ares Iron.

Matt’s personal interests are broad and varied – from space exploration to archaeology, ancient materials and mythology to primitive survival skills. Matt is compelled by beautiful things in the world and aspires to create more.

Wendy Lawton is a trusted communications and fundraising professional who helps mission-driven organizations build stronger brands, tell compelling stories, and create the tools they need to move their work forward. Known for her integrity, clarity, and curiosity, she brings a practical, hands-on approach to every project, jumping in alongside teams to get the work done, on time and on budget.

Throughout her career, Wendy has worked as both an employee and consultant with organizations including Brown University, the American Institute of Architects, Oregon Health & Science University, Rhode Island Public Broadcasting, and climate nonprofits ranging from emerging organizations to established national leaders.

Over the course of her career, Wendy has helped raise more than $20 million, created and strengthened organizational brands, and built social media and media relations programs from the ground up. She has shepherded stories from initial concept to national coverage, including placements on 60 Minutes and in The New York Times. Having worked both as a reporter and a communications professional, she brings a unique perspective to crisis communications and understands how to navigate challenging moments from both sides of the story.

Chris Donovan is a community organizer who uses storytelling and public art to build relationships, inspire, and make real magic in everyday life. The heart of Chris’ work is finding the fun in the serious, and taking the fun seriously.

With more than a decade of experience as a stage manager in the performing arts, Chris is no stranger to working behind the scenes to transform chaos into order. He now uses those talents to create meaningful, joyful moments of collective experience throughout Rhode Island.

He serves as Community Organizer of PechaKucha Providence, Board Chair of The Avenue Concept, Development Manager at WaterFire Providence, and a board member of Providence Drum Troupe. He was also the creator of the RI Statewide Scavenger Hunt while serving as the Director of Communications and Events at Leadership Rhode Island. Across these roles, he builds platforms for people to share stories, activate public space, and imagine new possibilities for their communities.