This story by Anna Zarra Aldrich, Office of the Vice President for Research, was originally posted on UConn Today April 14, 2021.

Over the last few years, Hartford has become home to a fast-growing innovation ecosystem. Through a new grant from Launc[H]artford and CTNext, the University of Connecticut will take advantage of this growth by partnering with other Hartford-area colleges to expand entrepreneurial opportunities for students.

Ignite Hartford is a new program UConn is leading in partnership with Trinity College and Goodwin University to develop a series of educational workshops and pitch nights for student entrepreneurs.

“In our conversations with other schools, we realized there’s so many opportunities for students to engage in entrepreneurship,” says Jennifer Mathieu (Murphy) Director UConn’s Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CCEI).

Ignite Hartford will highlight entrepreneurship in higher education. Many institutions like UConn and its partners on this project are actively creating opportunities to support students’ entrepreneurial endeavors and expose them to the exciting world of startups.

Ignite Hartford will culminate in a live, virtual pitch event in May where students from partner schools can propose their ideas for seed funding.

“It’s nice to connect our campuses together and showcase Connecticut in general,” says Jennifer. “It shows what schools are doing and how we create a space for students to be creative and innovative.”

Read the complete story at UConn Today.

School of Business students at Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation CCEI in Hartford on June 18, 2019. (Photo courtesy Sean Flynn/UConn)