Editorial Staff

Pioneer Institute, The Immigrant Learning Center Co-Produce New Weekly Podcast

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JobMakers to higlight immigrant entrepreneurs

BOSTON – Pioneer Institute is pleased to announce the launch of JobMakers, a new weekly podcast that explores the world of risk-taking immigrants who create new products, services, and jobs in New England and across the United States. JobMakers is produced in collaboration with The Immigrant Learning Center (ILC) of Malden, MA.

LATEST EPISODES:

Khamzat Asabaev Wants to Put a Smile on Your Face

This week on JobMakers, host Denzil Mohammed talks with Khamzat Asabaev, refugee from Chechnya and cofounder of SoftSmile, a software tool that helps dentists provide affordable, quality orthodontic treatment. Khamzat pursued entrepreneurship to make basic services accessible to all, after experiencing a lack of access to basic care as a refugee and a minority. Refugees like Khamzat face terrible circumstances, but through resilience and fortitude, often make significant contributions to their adopted homeland, with higher rates of employment and entrepreneurship. That means they give back far more than we gave them, as you’ll discover in this week’s JobMakers.

April Ryan Paints Her Way to Success

This week on JobMakers, host Denzil Mohammed talks with April Ryan, immigrant from Russia, founder and CEO of Red Iguana nail art products, and influencer to hundreds of thousands. April came to the U.S. from a poor town, speaking no English, but through tenacity and inventiveness, she achieved success by creating video tutorials of nail art, and developing a breakthrough product that became a bestseller in 19 countries.

Aki Balogh on How U.S. Diversity Drives Business

This week on JobMakers, host Denzil Mohammed talks with Aki Balogh, immigrant from Hungary and cofounder of MarketMuse, which created an artificial intelligence powered content intelligence and strategy platform; and cofounder of dlc.link, which aims to decentralize Bitcoin. Moving to the U.S. after fleeing post-communist Hungary, Aki and his family did whatever they could do to survive, and that included delivering newspapers and phone books, and even starting a computer repair business at 15, as a young teen.  Today, Aki is a pioneer in content intelligence technology and has created more than 90 jobs in the past eight years.

The host of JobMakers, Denzil Mohammed, directs The ILC’s Public Education Institute. His work focuses on specialized online education, research, teacher resources, and publications and events that educate Americans on the contributions made by immigrants. “TJMaxx, KraftHeinz, Goya and even iRobot were all started by immigrants,” Mohammed said. “They are and always have been net economic benefits to the United States. The entrepreneurial spirit that drove them to the U.S. extends into their drive to succeed and their higher-than-average rates of business generation. This is the real immigration narrative that should inform public discourse on immigration in the U.S.”

“The important role of immigrants as strivers, and as creators of products, services, and jobs is not told often enough,” said Pioneer Institute Executive Director Jim Stergios.  “There’s no better time to launch JobMakers and share the stories of dynamic immigrant entrepreneurs than now — as we emerge from the pandemic and turn our attention to getting Massachusetts and the country back to work.”

The guest for the first episode of JobMakers is Herby Duverné, a Haitian immigrant and CEO at Windwalker Group, an award-winning small business with more than 25 years of experience in physical and cybersecurity solutions that protect and prepare companies through custom learning and training.

JobMakers is released every Thursday at 12 pm. Subscribe to JobMakers through your favorite app, or find it on Pioneer Institute and Ricochet.

About Pioneer

Pioneer’s mission is to develop and communicate dynamic ideas that advance prosperity and a vibrant civic life in Massachusetts and beyond. Pioneer’s vision of success is a state and nation where our people can prosper and our society thrive because we enjoy world-class options in education, healthcare, transportation and economic opportunity, and where our government is limited, accountable and transparent. Pioneer values an America where our citizenry is well-educated and willing to test our beliefs based on facts and the free exchange of ideas, and committed to liberty, personal responsibility, and free enterprise.

About The Immigrant Learning Center

The Immigrant Learning Center, Inc. (ILC) of Malden, MA, is a not-for-profit organization that gives immigrants a voice in three ways: The English Language Program provides free, year-round English classes to immigrant and refugee adults in Greater Boston to help them become successful workers, parents and community members. The ILC Public Education Institute informs Americans about the economic and social contributions of immigrants in our society. The Institute for Immigration Research, a joint venture with George Mason University, conducts national and local research on the economic contributions of immigrants.

Get new episodes of JobMakers in your inbox!

Black Box Budget: Late, Loaded, and Lacking Transparency

Joe Selvaggi talks with Pioneer Institute’s Senior Fellow in Economic Opportunity Eileen McAnneny about the features and flaws of the recently passed 2024 Massachusetts state budget now waiting for Governor Healey’s approval.

Dr. Peter Wood on Diversity and Anger in America

This week on The Learning Curve, Dr. Peter Wood, president of the National Association of Scholars, discusses the invention of the modern concept of diversity, the history of U.S. Supreme Court rulings on the concepts of diversity and race in college admissions, and how a culture of anger seems to pervade American life.

Sabotaging Strategic Success: How Price Controls Could Imperil U.S. Pharma Industry

Joe Selvaggi talks with Pioneer Institute’s Director of Life Sciences Initiative Dr. Bill Smith about the policies that drove biopharmaceutical company from Europe to the U.S., and how proposed, similar price controls in President Biden’s Fair Prices Act could distort incentives away from innovation and threaten the success of a thriving and vital U.S. industry.

UConn’s Prof. Manisha Sinha on The Slave’s Cause: A History of Abolition

This week on The Learning Curve, UConn Professor Manisha Sinha discusses the influential figures and seminal events that created the abolitionist movement. She describes the legacy of the transatlantic slave trade, Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad, the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment, and other key moments in the fight to end slavery.

Local Elections Matter: City Governance Driven by Those Who Show Up

Joe Selvaggi talks with Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney and candidate for Boston City Council’s 8th District Montez Haywood about the city council’s role in local governance and the salient issues at stake in the July 25 special election.

Pulitzer Winner Tamara Payne on the Life and Legacy of Malcolm X

This week on The Learning Curve, guest cohosts Alisha Searcy and Mariam Memarsadeghi interview Tamara Payne, award-winning biographer, about Malcolm X. They delve into his early life, rise in the Nation of Islam, civil rights movement involvement, pilgrimage, assassination, and ongoing legacy debate. Ms. Payne concludes with a reading from her book.

Diagnosing Debilitating Debt: Are We Undertaxing or Overspending?

Joe Selvaggi talks with Cato Institute’s Director of Tax Policies, Dr. Adam Michell about the sources of recent record levels of deficits and debt to understand a policy path toward fiscal sustainability that is politically viable.

Johns Hopkins’ Dr. David Steiner on Teaching Wisdom in Schools

This week on The Learning Curve, guest cohosts Charlie Chieppo and Alisha Searcy join Dr. David Steiner for a wide-ranging discussion about the importance of education as a means of transmitting enduring wisdom to young people.

Adam Ozimek: Immigration Policy Is Innovation Policy

The United States is built on all kinds of immigrants with all kinds of skills and experiences. While politicians might have us believe immigration is a divisive issue, the fact is Americans across the political spectrum agree at least on this: High-skilled immigrants are good for the country, and we need more of them.

Court Compels Colorblindness: Harvard Told No Exceptions for Equality Under Law

Joe Selvaggi speaks with Thomas A. Berry of Cato Institute about the Supreme Court’s ruling in Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard College, its impact on affirmative action, and what comes next for colleges seeking to ensure diverse enrollments.

Pulitzer Winner Stacy Schiff on Samuel Adams & American Independence

This week for the Fourth of July, the Learning Curve interviews Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Stacy Schiff, who explores the American revolutionary Samuel Adams. She discusses Adams’ background, religion, and formative intellectual development, including the influences that Greco-Roman history, the Bible, and Enlightenment thinkers had upon his life and political thought.

Cara and Gerard on Their Time with The Learning Curve

This week on The Learning Curve, Cara Candal and Gerard Robinson close out their time as long-time cohosts of the podcast by sharing highlights and memories from over the last several years. They reflect upon the state of education reform, the growth of school choice, parental empowerment, the impact of the Great Books, and the wisdom of many well-known and influential guests.