Women Who Reign: Dr. Fon Powell, PhD

“People of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.” — Leonardo da Vinci

Tell us about yourself along with a fun fact!
Hi! My name is Fon Powell. I’m currently a management consultant at a large company in New York City. I recently earned a PhD in Computational Neuroscience from Cornell University where I was a Ford Foundation Fellow and US Amgen Scholar. I have a B.S. in Neuroscience from Duke University. During my years as a full-time Neuroscientist, I used graph theory, complex statistics and machine learning to build predictive mathematical models of how neurodegenerative diseases, like Alzheimer’s, spread throughout the human brain. I’ve also presented and authored research on neural disorders like Depression, Autism, Schizophrenia, Huntington’s and Anorexia. During my PhD program, I invented and filed a patent for a medical device to measure daily salt intake at home using a plastic stick and mobile app. Subsequently, I founded and was the CEO of a startup company developing the technology for nearly 3 years. Me and my early-stage company (called S.A.L.T. — Sodium Analyte Level Test) were featured by the National Women’s Business Council, Project Entrepreneur, AT&T and also won a grant from the city of New York for a clinical trial.