Nicholas S. "Nick" Zeppos

NICK ZEPPOS JD plans to gather next week with about 30 Vanderbilt University alumni and investors to discuss a new grassroots effort to increase meaningful opportunities for interpersonal connections among VU alumni interested in advancing entrepreneurial ventures, investing and related initiatives.

Zeppos is not only Vanderbilt's chancellor emeritus and a University Distinguished Professor of law and political science, he is also a professional business advisor and sometime investor.

Interviewed earlier this week, Zeppos confirmed that this initiative--advancing stepwise under the working title "NU"--is a personal initiative, rather than a Vanderbilt program.

Zeppos said that numerous considerations have contributed to his pursuing the NU initiative, including:

• The continually growing talent, reputation, attractiveness and impact associated with Vanderbilt and Greater Nashville communities;
• This region's genuine and sustained emphasis on true collaboration and value-producing reciprocity in development, business and related undertakings.
• The fact that, for all our progress, we must yet repair a "gaping hole" he perceives in the "connective tissue" that is prerequisite for connecting business founders, investors, mentors, advisors and other professionals and resource providers.

Zeppos added that venture capital investments, recruitment of limited partners, etc., are and are likely to remain extremely decentralized and inefficient.

Thus, entrepreneurial founders, investors and other stakeholders should continually expand their influential networks across regions, nations and the world at-large.

Asked whether NU's efforts might in any way be redundant relative to other local programs, Zeppos acknowledged that he and his collaborators continually gather knowledge of other actors old and new.

In a demonstration of resolve, he added simply: "I wouldn't be doing this unless I saw a real gaping hole" in this context.

He added that his sense of things has been tuned not only by his prior career, but also by his recent years' work as an advisor to startups and in private equity circles. Zeppos does not disclose his personal investments.

His advisory roles include:

TCV in Menlo Park, Calif. (advisor)

Civitas Learning in Austin, Texas (board member)

Enttor in New York City (advisor)

Laptis Learning in Cambridge, Mass. (advisor)

PC3 Precision Care Coordination Consultants (advisor)

Soxton AI in New York City (advisor)

Ben Wong MBA

Zeppos confirmed he is collaborating on the NU effort with Benjamin Wong MBA, a Vanderbilt and Stanford alumnus.

Wong's affiliations include Nashville-based Elysian, an AI-native third-party administrator.

VNC guessing via coPilot

The NU (or "Nu"?) symbol currently merely signals the emergence of 'something new', but may be carried forward when or if the organization is formalized as a business or nonprofit, said Zeppos. 

Nu, we note, is an ancient Greek letter or symbol, and the Zeppos surname is Greek in origin, but that could be a red herring.

Some formalization of identity may come soon, given that Zeppos said his team plans to launch a website and a podcast in the near future.

The evolving NU community concept will be up for thorough discussion during the meeting planned Jan. 12 within the VU residential hall that the university in 2019 named Nicholas S. Zeppos College, in honor of his contributions to VU's advancement.

Although next week's invitation-only gathering is at capacity, Zeppos said he welcomes hearing from those interested in becoming involved in future NU programs via his long-standing email address, available here.

A native of Milwaukee, Zeppos, 70, and his wife, Lydia Zeppos, reside in Davidson County. They have two adult sons.

Some of his many achievements while chancellor of Vanderbilt are chronicle here, here and elsewhere.

Those who subscribe to Zeppos's emphasis on community and connectedness in venture and other realms will find reinforcement in watching his brief interview 16 years ago with one of the nation's legendary journalists, John Seigenthaler, a former editor in chief of The Tennessean. That interview is on YouTube.

In January 2008, this reporter, then aboard NashvillePost, reported on signals that, in hindsight, proved to be harbingers of the Zeppos chancellorship.

A month after that speculative report--on a Saturday 18 years ago--this reporter and then-colleague Walker Duncan reported Zeppos's appointment to the helm. VNC

.last edited 1624 8 January 2026