Dave Porter P’11 P’19, owner and managing partner of one of Massachusetts’ oldest and largest financial planning firms, will receive the 2025 Elon University Medal for Entrepreneurial Leadership in recognition of his contributions to the profession and his philanthropic philosophy of “doing well by doing good.”
Elon University Board of Trustees Chair Dave Porter P’11 P’19 will be honored in April as recipient of the 2025 Elon University Medal for Entrepreneurial Leadership.
Elon University President Connie Ledoux Book and Raghu Tadepalli, dean of the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business, will present the medal on Wednesday, April 23, at 4:30 p.m. in LaRose Digital Theatre inside the Ernest A. Koury Sr. Business Center.
The celebration is open to the campus community.
About Dave Porter
Dave Porter P’11 P’19 is the owner and managing partner of Baystate Financial, one of Massachusetts’ oldest and largest financial planning firms.
In 1983, Porter began his career in the insurance industry in Philadelphia and moved to Washington, D.C., in 1992 to operate his first agency. In 1996, he relocated to Boston, where he was named managing partner of Baystate Financial, overseeing 49 advisors. Today, Baystate has over 300 financial professionals and has grown from one office in Boston to 16 major offices throughout New England.
As an industry leader and innovator, Porter directs the development of the firm’s strategic outlook. Under his guidance, Baystate Financial has been recognized as one of Boston’s top places to work by both The Boston Globe and the Boston Business Journal. In 2011, Porter was recognized as one of three “Most Admired CEOs” by the Boston Business Journal. He has been an international speaker, presenting on building financial services organizations and the convergence of banks, CPAs, insurance, and investment groups.
In 2013, Porter authored Where Winners Live, which focuses on accountability in the financial services industry and has sold over 45,000 copies.
Porter is passionate about his philosophy of “doing well by doing good.” He established the Baystate Financial Charitable Foundation in 1999, with a primary focus on supporting children’s charities in local communities. He coordinates an annual holiday toy drive to benefit children in the Department of Children and Families, which has supplied thousands of gifts to foster children over the years. In 2004, he was one of the founding members of Friends of the Children–Boston, a nonprofit that hires mentors to work with the city’s most at-risk youth.
In 2011, Porter endowed the Porter Family Professional Development Center at Elon, which provides resources to assist students in preparing for and acquiring internships, full-time employment or graduate school placement after graduation.
Porter currently serves as chair of the Elon University Board of Trustees and has served as a member since 2011. He and his wife, Jen, are the proud parents of five children, including Tim Porter ’11 and Jack Hubley ’19, and three grandchildren.
About the Elon University Medal for Entrepreneurial Leadership
The Elon Medal Award for Entrepreneurial Leadership is co-presented by the Love School of Business and the Doherty Center for Creativity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Since 2009, the award has been given to an entrepreneur who is a leader in industry and who exemplifies the values of Elon University. These values include integrity, innovation and creativity, passion for lifelong learning, and a commitment to building a dynamic community.
About the Doherty Center for Creativity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship
The Doherty Center for Creativity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship was established by an endowment gift from Ed and Joan Doherty, entrepreneurs from Saddle River, N.J., and parents of Kerry Doherty Gatlin ’07. The Dohertys have served on the university’s Parents Council, and Ed Doherty currently serves as an Elon Trustee. Their company, Doherty Enterprises, Inc., is one of the nation’s leading franchise operators of quality family restaurants, including Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar, Panera Bread and Chevy’s Fresh Mex.