Institute Leadership

Regnier Institute Team

Bryan Boots
Managing Director for Applied Research, Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Associate Teaching Professor – Henry W. Bloch School of Management
bootsbr@umkc.edu

Bryan Boots serves as Associate Teaching Professor with the Bloch School of Management, and Managing Director for Applied Research on entrepreneurship with the Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation. In his time at UMKC, Bryan has coached and mentored hundreds of rising entrepreneurs in the Kansas City region and beyond.

He teaches classes on product development, technology entrepreneurship, and technology management, among others. Bryan also leads the Regnier Institute’s portfolio of applied research into entrepreneurship and innovation. This new initiative is aimed at helping university-based entrepreneurship centers, entrepreneurship support organizations, startups, and entrepreneurial ecosystems to better understand the forces driving or inhibiting entrepreneurial activity. This includes five pillars: better understanding goals and motivations of entrepreneurially-minded students; better understanding the role of mentors and mentorship in the entrepreneurial development process; better understanding university-based entrepreneurship programs and centers; better understanding entrepreneurial networks and entrepreneurial ecosystems; and sponsored research with regional startups or innovation-driven corporations. Previously, Bryan led the Regnier Institute’s portfolio of Venture Creation programs, which includes the Entrepreneurship Scholars (E-Scholars) program, competitions, mentorship programs, and technology commercialization.

Bryan has started his own ventures, has worked as an employee or consultant with startups, and worked in product development with Garmin. His most recent venture, Growth Map Consulting Group, helps organizations identify and implement opportunities for innovating in their industries.

PhD – Systems Engineering – Colorado State University – research areas: applied network science, complex adaptive systems, cybersecurity, software engineering
MBA – Entrepreneurship and Finance – University of Missouri-Kansas City
MS – Engineering, focus in electrical and digital communications engineering – University of Arkansas

Phillip Gonsher Regnier Institute Portrait

Phillip Gonsher
Assistant Director – Mentor Program Coordinator
Curriculum Coordinator
gonsherp@umkc.edu

Phillip Gonsher has responsibilities in the nationally acclaimed Entrepreneurship Scholars program, extending to Coordinator of Curriculum for the undergraduate Entrepreneurship academic programs. He a full time instructor at UMKC Bloch School, teaching courses in the Entrepreneurship and Marketing Departments with a focus on Entrepreneurial Marketing, Creativity and Innovation and survey entrepreneur courses. Phillip holds a BA in Management from Ottawa University, a M.L.A. from Baker University, M.A. in Business from Webster University and a M.A. in Marketing from Webster University. He completed a 24-year career with Sprint in leadership marketing positions. Phillip started his career as an entrepreneur in Phoenix, Arizona in the retail soft goods clothing industry.

Andy Heise
Managing Director – Arts Entrepreneurship, Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Assistant Teaching Professor, Entrepreneurship & Management Department
Bloch Executive Hall 329C
heisea@umkc.edu
(816)235-2625

Andy Heise is Assistant Teaching Professor in the Entrepreneurship and Management Department and Managing Director in the Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the Henry W. Bloch School of Management at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He also heads the Entrepreneurial Studies program at Kansas City Art Institute through a unique partnership between the UMKC Bloch School of Management and KCAI. Andy has worked with visual and performing artists on business and entrepreneurship skills for over 10 years. He is co-founder and co-host of Arts Entrepreneurship Podcast: Making Art Work.

Adam Larson
Bloch Executive Hall 329
adamlarson@umkc.edu

Adam Larson joined the Regnier Institute in 2023 as Assistant Program Manager. He earned a BBA with Emphasis in Entrepreneurship from the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 2021 and is currently pursuing an MBA at the University. Adam previously served as Operations Associate for Techstars Kansas City and has worked with early-stage startups located around the world.

Alex Matlack
Assistant Teaching Professor, Henry W. Bloch School of Management
Assistant Director, Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship & Management
matlacka@umkc.edu

Alex Krause Matlack serves as an Assistant Teaching Professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s Henry W. Bloch School of Management and as the Assistant Director at the Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship & Management, Matlack plays a pivotal role in shaping the next generation of entrepreneurial leaders. She directs the University’s flagship accelerator program, Entrepreneurship Scholars, a competitive program which helps students and community launch ventures; and teaches courses in entrepreneurship and organizational behavior. She is pursuing a doctorate at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, with an expected completion in 2025. Her research focuses on women entrepreneurs acquire resources in the context of the political ideology of the entrepreneurship ecosystem they are building their venture in. She is also conducting sponsored research on partisan behavior in online social networks. Matlack previously worked at Techstars, where she managed the Techstars Kansas City accelerator, which involved mentoring and investing in numerous early-stage businesses, with a particular emphasis on social ventures. She also worked as a consultant for the Techstars Ecosystem Development team, expanding angel capital networks and fostering university-community partnerships in Buffalo, NY, and Louisville, KY. Before her time at Techstars, Matlack worked at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, where she played a key role in initiatives related to diversity in entrepreneurship, sustainability, ethics, and equitable entrepreneurship. Her academic journey began with a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and a Master of Science in Organizational Behavior, Systems, and Analytics from New York University, equipping her with the expertise to create more effective organizations and drive meaningful change. Beyond her professional commitments, Matlack serves on the board of TEDxKansas City, advocating for the power of ideas worth spreading. She lives in Kansas City with her husband, son, daughter, and English Bulldog.

Laura Moore
Sr. Program/Project Coordinator
moorelk@umkc.edu

Laura Moore joined the Regnier Institute in June 2018 as the Program/Project Coordinator. She earned her M.P.A. from the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s Bloch School and a Bachelor in Business Administration from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Laura previously spent 11 years at the Girl Scouts in various positions related to program & training development/delivery and operations management.

Ben Williams
Managing Director – Venture Creation Programs
Associate Teaching Professor – Department of Entrepreneurship & Management
williamsbenj@umkc.edu

Ben Williams is the Managing Director of Venture Creation Programs for the Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at UMKC and Associate Teaching Professor for the Department of Entrepreneurship and Management. He joined the University of Missouri-Kansas City in August 2013 while pursuing an M.B.A. Ben holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Drury University, an M.B.A. from UMKC and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Connecticut School of Law. His professional background includes work with several small businesses and startups.

Pat Welsh
Assistant Teaching Professor
welshjp@umkc.edu

Pat Welsh is an Assistant Teaching Professor of Entrepreneurship and Finance at the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s Henry W. Bloch School of Management. Pat earned an MBA in Finance from St. Louis University and a BSBA from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Pat has over 30 years of experience as a business professional prior to joining UMKC. He’s held roles in finance, management and strategy at numerous high-tech corporations. Pat was also on the ground floor of building a world-class corporate venture capital fund during his tenure at Sprint. The fund invested in early-stage technologies and built strategic partnerships with a myriad of innovative companies. Pat developed close relationships with venture capitalists and start-up companies; structured equity deal terms; and maintained board observer seats on numerous companies. These experiences provided significant access to the business dynamics that make the difference between success and failure for business startups.

In addition to teaching, Pat assists with UMKC’s E-Scholars and Regnier Venture Creation Challenge programs to help mentor students in developing their concepts into potential business ventures.

Cross Campus Advisory Board

Eric Anderson
Office of Technology Commercialization

Jim Baxendale
UMKC Innovation Center

Elijah Gowin
Art & Art History Department

Andrew Granade
Conservatory

Gregory King
School of Computing & Engineering

Peter Koulen
Biomedical Sciences & Medicine

Adam Larson
Conservatory

Yugyung Lee
Computing & Engineering

Tony Luppino
Law
Senior Fellow for the Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation

Carol McArthur
Dentistry

Jill Meyer
UMKC Innovation Center

Mark Nichols
Medicine

John Spertus
Medicine

Paul Tosh
Arts and Sciences

Ye Wang
Arts and Sciences

Gerry Wyckoff
Medicine and Pharmacy

HENRY W. BLOCH SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT

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