Our Team

Shannon Clute

Director of The Hatchery

Dr. Shannon Clute is Director of The Hatchery, Emory Center for Innovation. His career has been evenly divided between academia and industry, and in both sectors he has worked at the intersection of innovation, brand strategy, and instructional design to develop scalable initiatives that improve the learning outcomes and lives of target audiences while serving a greater good.

With experience stretching from Fortune 100s to the Ivy League, Shannon is thought leader in strategy and intrapreneurship, with expertise in discovering and developing businesses with game-changing potential for industries in transition, and experience leading innovation culture development, strategy, and teams. Additionally, he is a recognized expert in defining and extending brands through innovative multichannel campaigns, publications, activations, and events.

Before coming to Emory, he served as Sr. Director, Brand and Communications for the Division of Alumni Affairs and Development at Cornell University. Previously, he held several positions with Turner Classic Movies, including Director, Business Development and Strategy, where he was tasked with building a cross-functional and collaborative culture of innovation to foster creativity and entrepreneurship in response to market disruption, and Director, Marketing and Editorial, where he built and led the marketing function. Before his time in industry, Dr. Clute was Assistant Professor at Saint Mary's College of California, and Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Kentucky, where he taught courses in French and Italian language and literature.

Shannon holds a BA in Italian from the University of Colorado Boulder, and MA and PhD degrees in Romance Studies from Cornell University.

To explore how your organization can partner with invest in The Hatchery, contact Shannon at shannon.clute@emory.edu.

Ben Garrett

Innovation Programming and Operations Manager

Ben Garrett is the Innovation Programming and Operations Manager of The Hatchery, Emory University's Center for Innovation. Ben's passion and experiences have centered on the creation and sustainability of nonprofits and social enterprises. He has been a first hire, facilitator, consultant and coach for hundreds of social entrepreneurs. These roles have afforded him the opportunity to do everything from lead strategic planning retreats, raise funds from individuals and institutional grantmakers, invent a cryptocurrency, and explore experimental pedagogies.

Prior to The Hatchery, Ben worked with Acumen as a facilitator for their social enterprise accelerator and as a community animator for their global, online Community of Social Innovators. He also worked with The Civic Accelerator (founded as a Points of Light program and acquired by Acumen), an early player in the social enterprise accelerator and investment industry. Prior to his time in the social impact space, Ben worked with multiple community development nonprofits and churches in both Atlanta and Chicago. He also founded his own consulting firm, Fractal Consulting where he works with changemakers across industries at various stages of their journey.

Ben holds a BA in Philosophy and Religion from Samford University and a Master of Divinity from the University of Chicago.

If you would like to learn more about programming partnerships, please email Ben at ben.garrett@emory.edu.

Rizky Etika

Innovation Program Coordinator

Rizky Etika is a Program Coordinator at The Hatchery, Emory Center for Innovation. Around campus, Rizky is known for her dedication to fostering creativity and artistic expression within the Emory University community. With a background of both academic and professional accomplishments, Rizky has consistently demonstrated a passion for the arts and a commitment to enriching the lives of students through her initiatives.

As the former Rosemary Magee Arts Fellow at Emory Arts, she founded ArtsLab, an initiative dedicated to providing support for students' artistic expression. ArtsLab offers free art supplies and studio space, ensuring that all students at Emory, regardless of their major or background, have the support and resources to unleash their creative potential. The studio, located in the Computing Center at Cox Hall, is a result of a partnership with Student Digital Life and TechLab.

Prior to joining The Hatchery, Rizky gained experience as a client success professional in the tech startup environment, optimizing user experiences with SaaS products. Driven by a passion for people-focused roles, fostering a positive company culture, and building lasting relationships, Rizky's dedication to the arts and technology continues to make a positive impact on the Emory community.

Rizky holds a BA, majoring in Art History and a minor in Arabic, from Emory University.

If you are a student exploring opportunities to learn about Innovation or if you have an idea for an innovative venture, contact Rizky at rizky.etika@emory.

Saya Guscott

Administrative Assistant

Saya Guscott joined The Hatchery Team in March of 2022 as the Administrative Assistant and prior to that was a Emory University COVID 19 Test Site Coordinator. During the pandemic, she helped Faculty, staff and students comfortably transition back to campus which was a very rewarding in itself. She is the mother of 2 teenagers and over a hundred houseplants. When she's not keeping busy with the kids she enjoys traveling, hiking and everything to do with nature.

For general or administrative questions about The Hatchery, please contact Saya at asaya.besay@emory.edu.