Fellows
Davenport College has an active and enthusiastic Fellowship. Davenport’s Fellowship includes Fellows (distinguished Faculty and Staff at the University) and Associate Fellows (often Davenport alum or people who have made important contributions to New Haven and the larger society).
Jason Strong
Sr. Associate Athletic Director
Biography
Jason Strong joined Yale Athletics in June 2018 and was promoted to Senior Associate Director of Athletics for Compliance and Student-Athlete Development in July of 2022. His responsibilities include oversight of the Athletics Compliance Office, education and monitoring, amateurism, recruiting processes and waiver requests of Ivy League and NCAA regulations. His role also includes oversight of the student-athlete development area. He is responsible for coordination of resources and programming for the improved development and support of student-athletes.
Mr. Strong enjoys spending time with his wife, two children, and dog at home and is a devoted fan of the Yale Bulldogs!
Contact Information:
Kenneth A. Thomas, MD, JD, FACOG
Doctor of Medicine, Attorney at Law
Biography
I have been in the independent solo private practice of general OB/GYN since July 1, 1985. I also obtained a JD from Quinnipiac University School of Law in 2011 and passed the Connecticut Bar in June 2011 but am not presently practicing law. My father, RAdm. Gerald E. Thomas was Master of Davenport from 1991 until 2001 and I have been a Davenport Fellow since then. My initials, as well as those of my two siblings, are visible on the globe in the corner of my father's portrait in the Davenport dining hall.
Contact Information:
Gerald Torres
Professor of Environmental Justice and Professor of Law
Biography
Gerald Torres is a Professor of Environmental Justice at the Yale School of the Environment and a Professor at Yale Law School. He is the former Association of American Law Schools President and has taught at Stanford and Harvard Law Schools. Professor Torres served as Counsel to the Attorney General on environmental matters and Indian affairs at the U.S. Department of Justice. Professor Torres served on the Board of the Environmental Law Institute and the EPA's National Environmental Justice Advisory Council and was the founding chairman of the Advancement Project. He is board chair of EarthDay Network and a trustee of the Natural Resources Defense Council. He was a consultant to the United Nations on environmental matters. Torres is a life member of the American Law Institute and the Council on Foreign Relations. I am the father of two wonderful, grown children. My wife, Frances, and I recently celebrated our 40th anniversary. I am a musician (professionally recorded and performed) and a published poet. I enjoy the outdoors and feel most comfortable in the woods.
Contact Information:
Joe Tsai
Chairman, Alibaba Group
Biography
Yale College ’86, Yale Law School ’90
John Tully
Sterling Professor Emeritus
Biography
After finishing postdoctoral studies, I joined the research area of Bell Laboratories, where I developed theoretical models to predict how atoms and molecules move and exchange energy during chemical reactions. In 1996, I left Bell Labs and joined the Yale faculty where I led a research group to further advance theoretical understanding of chemical events on the atomic scale. My deceased wife Mary and I had 3 children and 6 grandchildren. I have always been active (but not excellent) in sports, e.g., as an undergraduate spending countless hours playing touch football on the Davenport College courtyard. In later years I played tennis and racquetball, and was a volunteer coach of soccer, basketball and baseball.
Contact Information:
Steve Victor
Research Associate and Lab Manager in Archaeology
Biography
I was a resident tutor in Winthrop House, Davenport’s sister college at Harvard, where I earned my doctorate in History of Science. I taught at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia and at Wayne State University in Detroit. Moving into museum work, I began an internship in material culture at the Yale Art Gallery. I worked at various museums dealing with industrial history in the Northeast until I started work at the Yale Alumni Association managing educational travel programs for alumni. That wide-ranging travel kindled my interest in archaeology, and I started taking Yale courses in archaeology. While taking courses and seminars, I began working on archaeological excavations. Now I am a part-time researcher and manager of an archaeological lab at Yale. My wife and I moved to New Haven in 1977, and we have lived in the Science Hill neighborhood, near Edgerton and East Rock parks since 1979. My wife was a librarian at Sterling library for many years. We have two grown children, both married, and two grandchildren. My hobbies include cooking, brewing beer and making cider. My wife and I love the out-of-doors and enjoy hiking in both the US and Europe. I have run beer tastings for Davenport, and I learned to do letterpress printing and taught that art in Davenport.
Contact Information:
Agnes Vignery
Associate Professor in Orthopaedics and in Cell Biology
Biography
My time at Yale has been an amazing trip in exploring research themes and collaborating with faculty members
The students continue to bring joy to my life and keep me awake! I am a mother and a grandmother, a tennis player and a swimmer
Contact Information:
David Vogel
Head Coach of Men's Rowing
Biography
Three decades as a rowing coach began as coach of the Lightweight Men's Crew from shortly after graduation until 1989 when I became the Coach of the Heavyweight Men. For much of that time I also held the position of Assistant Director of the Yale Alumni Association. I helped to lead the effort to build Yale's new Gilder Boathouse. Before retiring I spent my final 7 years at Yale as a front line fundraiser. I was captain of the Lightweight Crew as a senior in Davenport. I spent time post Yale racing for the US National Rowing team. I live nearby Woodbridge where we raised two daughters and I am currently a Selectman in the town. In retirement I am involved in several volunteer efforts and I continue to row and race in master's competitions.
I received my Bachelor of Arts from Yale College in 1971.
Contact Information:
Charlotte Wang
Yale World Fellow - Founder and CEO Equota Energy
Biography
Charlotte Wang is an expert in AI data-driven energy management and sustainability, with professional experience in clean energy and smart grid in China, the United States, Germany, and Russia. She is a serial entrepreneur and founded EQuota Energy in 2014. An AI-based data analytics SaaS company, EQuota provides grid management, energy optimization, and carbon management for energy intensive manufacturers and utilities to improve grid stability, reduce energy consumption, and carbon emission. EQuota serves utility groups, steel, chemical, and coal mining in China and Middle East and was listed as a Technology Pioneer by DAVOS and named to the APAC 25 by Cleantech Group. Charlotte is also the senior advisor for the International Energy Agency and UN Energy Group.
Nick Wantsala
Kenya S. Flash Resident
Biography
Nick Wantsala is a librarian with over ten years of experience working in Access Services. From 2018 to 2023, he worked at the Robert W. Woodruff Library at Emory University, where he served as a Library Coordinator for Access Services, Student Supervisor, and Research Specialist. Throughout his undergraduate career at the University of Cincinnati, he worked at Langsam Library and strengthened his dedication to librarianship by becoming a Technical & Equipment Specialist. He earned his master’s degree in Library and Information Studies from the University of Alabama in 2023. During his graduate work, Nick was a member of the Society of American Archivists and helped create and develop “Archives & Communities,” a podcast series in which archivists from across America share how they entered the profession. With a deep passion for librarianship, student involvement, and community engagement, he uses his creative ideas and initiatives to bring those communities together.
Nick earned his B.A. in Communications from the University of Cincinnati in 2015 and his M.A. in Library and Information Studies from the University of Alabama in 2023.