David Kafafian

David Kafafian is the COO of Clasp (clasp.com), a company focused on addressing clinical healthcare talent shortages by drawing more students into key fields and incentivizing retention through student loan repayment. At Clasp, David oversees all partnerships, product, operations, and finance functions, ensuring that Clasp's loan-linked hiring programs operate at enterprise scale. David previously worked in JPMorgan’s M&A group, advising Fortune 500 companies on strategic transactions and capital strategy, and in IBM’s Watson Analytics Group, where he designed AI-driven solutions for large banks and insurance companies using alternative data and advanced analytics. He recently served as a primary negotiator representing employers and business on the U.S. Department of Education’s AHEAD Negotiated Rulemaking Committee, contributing to federal rulemaking affecting institutional accountability and Workforce Pell. David holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School and a A.B. from Lafayette College.