Hopkins Connect: Office Hours Social

Kurt Knower

Kurt C. Knower studied electronics at a technical high school in Connecticut, and because college was not an option due to family finances, enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, serving five years working on electronic secure communications installation and maintenance. After completing his tour of duty, he earned a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources Management/Environmental Education and Park Management, while working as a park naturalist, thus making him a first-generation graduate in his family. Following graduation, he began his teaching career, including a residential juvenile delinquency center, a private middle/high school where he developed curriculum for, and taught all 6 grades of sciences, a public school at risk youth program, and public high school where he taught engineering tech, environmental science, earth science, chemistry, and physics including AP physics. During this time, Kurt attended JHU’s counseling master’s program and focused on school counseling. Realizing he could better utilize his counseling skills in the classroom working with his students than in a school counselor’s office, Kurt stayed in the classroom until his retirement in 2021. However, as a lifetime learner and teacher, he continues to expand his knowledge and share his knowledge with others, and to help people through tough times in their lives. Over his career, Kurt has stressed the importance of teachers, educational staff, and parents to know and understand adolescent behavior and classroom management, and to remember to practice self-care and take care of yourself physically and mentally, because if you are not healthy you cannot help others.

Oluwakayode (Kay) Jasanya

Oluwakayode (Kay) Jasanya is a product and innovation strategist passionate about technology, education, and financial inclusion. He has completed product internships at Morgan Stanley, Oracle, and VMware, and gained venture capital experience through Motivate Ventures, HBCUvc, and SupplyChange Capital. He is building Bracket, a fintech–edtech platform that helps students learn financial literacy through gamified, personalized experiences. Oluwakayode has also led data-driven civic projects, including illegal dumping mitigation in Baltimore. He blends product thinking, strategy, and social impact to create scalable, people-centered solutions that empower the next generation.

Amer Mallah

Amer has been building tech teams and delivering innovative software solutions for over two decades, with expertise spanning software development, cloud infrastructure, and the organizational skills needed to create high-performing technology organizations. His experience ranges from writing code to shaping strategic vision, fostering engineering cultures that balance technical excellence with business outcomes. Invita Health provides critical software solutions for blood centers, organ procurement organizations, DNA tracking, and hospital implant management. Amer graduated Hopkins in 1998 with a Computer Science and Biology double major and is passionate about mentoring the next generation of technologists and leveraging technology to improve critical healthcare operations and save lives.

Michael Pryzby

Michael Pryzby has supported both NASA/GSFC and DARPA over the past 30+ years as a government contractor. Michael Pryzby is currently a Mission System Engineer for the Landsat Next Mission. He was previously a Project Instrument Systems Engineer for the Landsat 9 Mission, the OSIRIS-REx Mission (asteroid sample return), the lead Spacecraft System Engineer for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, and the lead Spacecraft Bus Systems Engineer for the DARPA Phoenix Mission (robotic servicing of satellites.) Prior to those efforts, Michael supported the Space Shuttle program for over ten years developing secondary payloads for the Shuttle’s cargo bay. He was a contributing author on the Space Mission Engineering: The New SMAD (university textbook for aerospace programs.) He has a BSME from Virginia Tech and a MS in Systems Engineering from Johns Hopkins University. He is a current ambassador to the JHU Whiting School of Engineering and a contributing member the JHU Alumni Council Champion Committee (emeritus council members). He previously served six years on the Johns Hopkins University Alumni Council and Executive Committee. He is an avid supporter of both the JHU FLI and OneHop mentor programs (founding super mentor). He is a proud recipient of the Johns Hopkins Heritage Award for outstanding service over an extended period to the progress of the university.