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Industry-Academic Program to Grow Entrepreneurial Know-How

HomeTag "Wesleyan University"

Industry-Academic Program to Grow Entrepreneurial Know-How

November 15 2018 Innovation Destination: Hartford Higher Education 0 comments Tags: CTNext, entrepreneur, Higher Education Entrepreneurship and Innovation Fund, Quinnipiac University, The Jackson Laboratory, Unilever, University of Connecticut, Wesleyan University

This article by Jessica McBride, Manager of Research Communications- Office of the Vice President for Research, originally appeared on UConn Today October 17, 2018.

Timothy Folta, professor of management, leads a class at the Graduate Business Learning Center in Hartford. Folta is director of the Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at UConn. (Photo courtesy: Peter Morenus/UConn File Photo)

A new industry-academic initiative to increase entrepreneurial education and output among the state’s top researchers has been launched recently by the University of Connecticut, Unilever, Quinnipiac University, Wesleyan University, and The Jackson Laboratory, with funding through a grant from the CTNext Higher Education Entrepreneurship and Innovation Fund.

The goal of the initiative is to increase the number of successful ventures coming out of universities in the state; launch new products and/or business lines with corporate partners; attract investment and partnership deals for these startups and products; and improve the entrepreneurial ecosystems at these institutions to better attract and retain researchers.

“We are pleased to mark another milestone in our mission to foster entrepreneurship and innovation across Connecticut,” says Glendowlyn Thames, executive director of CTNext. “This industry-academic initiative is well positioned to increase collaboration and partnership among our state’s higher-education institutions and our state’s most important industries. We look forward to following their progress as execution and implementation begins.”

CTNext is Connecticut’s go-to resource for entrepreneurial support. Its mission is to build a robust community of entrepreneurs and to accelerate startup growth by providing access to talent, space, industry expertise, services, skill development, and capital to foster innovation and create jobs in Connecticut. Launched in 2012, the organization currently has more than 2,800 members in its network.

The new industry-academic initiative, which is part of the second funding round of CTNext’s Higher Education Entrepreneurship and Innovation Fund, will provide targeted training modules to attract and retain high-value researchers, and encourage engagement in Connecticut’s growing innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem. Program leaders anticipate that participants will come from early to mid-stage companies, including university startups, and corporate labs.

Radenka Maric, vice president for research at UConn and UConn Health, says the new initiative fills a need. She says many of the training opportunities that are currently available are primarily focused on Connecticut’s student entrepreneurs.

“While these programs are extremely valuable, they miss the distinct and high-value players in our ecosystem, namely researchers from industry and academia, and those in leadership roles who have a major impact on an organization’s culture,” Maric says. “We’re very grateful to CTNext for giving us the needed funding to provide these high-potential individuals with customized training to help their technologies turn into businesses and products.”

The program is designed to prepare aspiring entrepreneurs working as academic or industry researchers who may lack the needed business training to move high-potential innovations to market. With the proper support, program officials hope that more researchers will be better positioned to form new startups with help from existing programs like UConn’s Technology Incubation Program (TIP) or seek successful licensing deals with support from tech transfer experts at the participating institutions.

The multifaceted program will include entrepreneurship workshops and retreats for a select group of faculty and researchers interested in commercialization, as well as Connecticut-based executives and promising employees, to learn more about entrepreneurship within a corporate setting. A marquee “Presidential Executive Workshop” would bring these various stakeholders together to learn from experienced venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, investors, and executive leaders.

The initiative also seeks to integrate business mentorship and executive networks around the state to better identify, screen, match and manage mentors from within the participating organizations and beyond.

“The Jackson Laboratory looks forward to participating in the CTNext program and exploring opportunities that may rely on our intellectual property,” says BJ Bormann, vice president for translational science and network alliances at JAX. “Developing a peer group of mentors, financiers, and entrepreneurs across the state will provide us all with an excellent network, and an important forum for advice and ‘live’ commentary.”

To date, CTNext has funded 12 projects through the Higher Education Entrepreneurship and Innovation Fund. This program is jointly operated by the UConn Office of the Vice President for Research and the Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CCEI)

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Startup Genome Features Hartford in National Early-Stage Ecosystems Report

October 24 2018 Innovation Destination: Hartford Initiatives 0 comments Tags: Connecticut, CT, CTNext, early-stage, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Hartford, Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, MetroHartford Alliance, reSET, startup, Startup Genome, startups, University of Connecticut, Upward Hartford, Wesleyan University, West Hartford Chamber of Commerce

Check out the new report about Hartford’s the early-stage startup ecosystem in Hartford produced by Startup Genome with support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

Receiving national attention about all the businesses making an impact in Greater Hartford is more important than ever.

>>Read the full report

>>Read Hartford-specific findings

The new report revealed many key findings, such as:

  • Hartford’s startup experience levels are very close to the activation phase average
  • Hartford has some record of successes—generating more will help increase ecosystem size and performance
  • Hartford’s founders have more potential to meet their peers from top ecosystems beyond the city’s borders
  • Hartford’s startup landscape has an above average level of female founders
  • Hartford’s startups have more potential to strengthen global market reach and global connectedness

Special thanks to all those who completed the survey upon which this report was based. And kudos to the local partners who also helped compile this important data, including:

  • Hartford Foundation for Public Giving
  • Launch EZ
  • MetroHartford Alliance
  • reSET
  • Upward Hartford
  • Wesleyan University
  • West Hartford Chamber of Commerce

 

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Wesleyan To Kickstart Startup Incubator Course

September 11 2018 Innovation Destination: Hartford Higher Education, Incubators 0 comments Tags: Connecticut, Connecticut Innovations, CT, CTNext, entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship, reSET, startup, startups, Wesleyan University

This story by Web Editor Joe Cooper originally appeared in the Hartford Business Journal September 7, 2018.

Wesleyan University, based in Middletown, CT, now offers a startup incubator course. (Photo courtesy Wesleyan University)

Wesleyan University said it will launch its first startup incubator course next week taught by Hartford-based reSET for students from area CTNext colleges and universities.

The 12-week course at Wesleyan’s Center for the Study of Public Life will be open to any private or public college student who has an idea to start a business. CTNext, Connecticut’s quasi-public entrepreneurship booster, and subsidiary of Connecticut Innovations, is providing funding for the program.

About 20 to 25 students will be admitted and those from Middlesex Community College in Middletown will receive priority consideration for the program.

Under the program, students will participate in weekly cohort meetings that serve as classes, in addition to “practice days” for entrepreneurs to hone their theories and methods for success. Students will also spend over 10 hours a week on assignments, customer discovery and networking and mentoring sessions.

The course begins Monday and students can add or drop the course through Friday, September 14.

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Wesleyan University Upcoming Entrepreneurship Competitions

February 17 2016 Innovation Destination: Hartford Higher Education 0 comments Tags: Connecticut, entrepreneurship, Middletown, Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship, social enterprise, Wesleyan University, women entrepreneurs

Wesleyan University recently announced two entrepreneurial competitions.

SEED GRANT COMPETITION

patricelli_staticThe Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship recently announced finalists for the 2016 Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship Seed Grant Competition.

The seed fund awards fund the launch or early stage growth of a Wesleyan-connected social enterprise, project, program, or venture.

This year’s finalists include six teams of student entrepreneurs who will pitch their projects at a public event on Friday, February 26, from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. in Wesleyan’s Beckham Hall. All members of the greater Wesleyan community are invited to attend.

  • RSVP for the event.
  • Learn more about the 2016 Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship Seed Grant finalists.

DRAPER COMPETITION FOR COLLEGIATE WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS

The annual Draper Competition for Collegiate Women Entrepreneurs is hosted and organized by Smith College’s Center for Women and Financial Independence, an initiative committed to supporting innovation and entrepreneurship. The competition, which is open to women entrepreneurs and their teams, begins with a written application, due March 2, followed by a trade show and a final pitch round on April 18, 2016. The first prize is $10,000. Three Wesleyan University students made it to the trade show round in 2015.

The Competition for Collegiate Women Entrepreneurs is designed to help undergraduate entrepreneurs hone their business plans and elevator pitches. To get help with your application or pitch, make an appointment with Makaela Kingsley, the Director of the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship or Jennifer Roach, the Civic Engagement Fellow.

  • Read FAQs about the Draper Competition for Collegiate Women Entrepreneurs (PDF)
  • Learn about judging criteria by competition round (PDF)

 

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Social Impact and Entrepreneurship at Wesleyan University

October 13 2015 Innovation Destination: Hartford Higher Education 0 comments Tags: Connecticut, entrepreneur community, entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship, innovation, social entrepreneurship, Wesleyan University

The Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship provides students and alumni with workshops and training, specialized counseling, networking services, grants and incubator workspace on the Wesleyan University campus. The Center aims to support students and alumni interested in creating and sustaining programs, businesses and organizations that advance the public good.

In May 2011, the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship was established through a gift from the Robert and Margaret Patricelli Family Foundation. The Center receives ongoing support from Propel Capital, Newman’s Own Foundation and a number of Wesleyan alumni and parents.

ENTREPRENEURIAL PHILANTHROPIST

“Bob Patricelli is both a business leader and a thoughtful philanthropist,” noted Makaela Kingsley, Director of the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship. “He and Margaret were the Center’s earliest benefactors and they continue to support its growth.”

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for the Patricelli Center

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for the Patricelli Center

Bob Patricelli, Chairman and CEO of Women’s Health USA, has a long association with Wesleyan University. He and many members of his family graduated from the University and he served on the Board of Trustees for 15 years.

“At Wesleyan, there are many socially motivated students who have decided that they want to make the world a better place,” Patricelli said. “This has been true for a long time, it’s not a recent phenomenon. What is new is the interesting blending of social objectives and business structures. I have been exposed to that concept through my board membership on Newman’s Own, which is a classic example of a company earning profits with commercial products and giving it all to charity,” he emphasized.

“All of those pieces came together in this idea developed with leadership at Wesleyan that we should try to create a center that would channel these already existing drives on the part of students into a structure that could provide them with training and networking support, link them with the large alumni body that is also into such ventures, help them get summer internships for learning experiences, and actually try to assist them before and after they graduate in launching new social enterprises,” Patricelli explained.

“There are other such centers in universities around the country,” he added. “This isn’t original with us at Wesleyan, but we think it is very much in the DNA at Wesleyan.”

BUSINESS ENTREPRENEURSHIP WITH A SOCIAL IMPACT FOCUS

Patricelli noted that the Center is a subset of business entrepreneurship. “It’s business entrepreneurship with a desire for social impact, which is a significant element of startup activity these days. This is an example of actually trying to teach kids how to do it.”

“The Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship was a natural fit for the university,” Kingsley agreed. “Wesleyan has always attracted students, faculty and collaborators who are interested in social impact and entrepreneurship. We’re not a business and engineering school per se, but we tend to graduate alumni who are trailblazers and innovators of various kinds.”

Makaela Kingsley is Director of the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship.

Makaela Kingsley is Director of the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship.

Like Patricelli, Kingsley is also a product of Wesleyan University. She graduated with her Bachelors in 1998, left Connecticut to work at the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts for a few years, and then returned in 2000 to work at the University, primarily with alumni, for 12 years before becoming involved with the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship two years ago. “I didn’t come to the Center with a business background, but my relationships with the extended Wesleyan and Middletown communities have been key to my work here,” she said.

Kingsley claims that her work with Wesleyan University alumni was definitely an asset. “In this space of entrepreneurship or social entrepreneurship, it’s critical to be able to build relationships, make connections, leverage the networks you’re part of and find resources more quickly because of who you know.”

ENTREPRENEURIAL RESOURCES FOR STUDENTS

As director of the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship, Kingsley’s role is primarily running the programs that benefit the students. The Center’s programs fit into three major areas: workshops and training, grants and advising, mentoring and networking.

“I leverage my alumni connections in all pieces of what I do,” Kingsley explained. “For instance, alumni donate their time and talents to come back to campus to offer workshops. Wesleyan graduates judge our grant competitions. Of course, in the advising piece, we use a lot of alumni as well as community partners, Wesleyan parents and friends of the University as mentors or advisors to provide counseling to undergraduates.”

While its priority is for undergraduates, the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship is available to anyone in the entire school. “We certainly have alumni who take advantage of some of our programs, although they are not currently eligible for our grants,” Kingsley noted.

“We’ve had faculty and staff who have tapped in a little bit. I’ve even had people from outside the Wesleyan community plug in for one thing or another. But our priority is to support students.”

Whether it’s through mentorship, workshops or training, many Wesleyan University students are involved with the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship in one way or another.

“We are engaging about 10% of the Wesleyan student body, which is about 250 to 300 students,” Kingsley confirmed. “Some of those people may attend one workshop or one training if there’s a topic that’s especially interesting to them. Others may receive multiple grants from the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship or come in for advising once a week.”

STARTUP WEEKENDS

In addition, the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship offers enrichment grants to students seeking to attend conferences or similar enrichment experiences. For example, in 2014 and 2015, a dozen students received funding to participate in Startup Weekends in Hartford and New Haven.

“Some went with their own ideas to pitch; others listened to pitches and joined a team that inspired them,” Kingsley explained. “Kehan Zhou and Julian Compagni-Portis used their time at Startup Weekend New Haven to incubate their idea for TechBucks, an upcycling company that reduces electronics waste among college students.”

Another student, Alex Garcia went to Startup Weekend Hartford with an idea for a peer-to-peer language learning app and “he ultimately merged with a team working on a peer-to-peer study app,” says Kingsley.

“These weekends provided a significant learning experience for Wesleyan students, and we are excited to be hosting Startup Weekend here at Wesleyan this fall.”

DEFINING SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP

The term “social entrepreneurship” doesn’t necessarily have one widely accepted definition, and Wesleyan University has its own way of defining it.

“Wesleyan takes a very broad definition of ‘social entrepreneurship.’ You certainly don’t have to be an entrepreneur launching a new venture, for instance,” said Kingsley.

“We firmly believe that not all students will be best serving the greater good by starting something new. Many of them should be learning skills and best practices so they can support existing organizations as interns, employees, volunteers or partners.

“We work with some students to figure out how we can do a pilot program that may or may not ever become a new venture. They still consider themselves entrepreneurs because they’re innovating strategies, just not full-out programs,” Kingsley continued. “We really want to ensure that our work doesn’t just favor students who are going to launch a venture.”

WHAT MAKES THE PATRICELLI CENTER FOR SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP DIFFERENT?

The Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship differentiates itself in other ways, too. Kingsley noted that some similar centers at other colleges and universities use a fellowship model that identifies the most promising students on their campuses and helps incubate those particular students, or those students’ ideas.

“At Wesleyan—at least so far—we’ve been very deliberate about not limiting our services to just a group of fellows or apprentices. Instead, we open all of our programming to all students at all times.”

STUDENT INSPIRATION AND INNOVATION

Kingsley is both committed to and inspired by Wesleyan University’s students. “They are incredibly passionate about tackling social issues. They’re super smart. They may need to learn some of the nuts and bolts of how to operate in a business or professional environment, but they look at the world through a critical lens and they have both the hearts and the heads to try to fix problems. I admire them and I love working with them. They’re great fun.”

ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND SOCIAL IMPACT IN CONNECTICUT

Kingsley said it’s hard to choose the best thing about being a part of Connecticut’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

“There’s a really vibrant ecosystem through organizations like reSET and the MetroHartford Alliance. The University of Connecticut, Yale University and other academic institutions have key players as well. I have found that it was easy to make connections and people are eager to be supportive and develop partnerships. We are lucky to be a part of this community."

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