New Venture Launch Class Initiates Pilot

Sometimes our most entrepreneurial students can feel constrained by a university setting. After all, who is not familiar with famous college dropouts who went on to be successful entrepreneurs like Bill Gates, Michael Dell, Mark Zuckerberg, and Steve Jobs?

This Spring, Leeds is launching an exciting new class targeted to keep such promising students engaged. In New Venture Launch teams will compete for over $25,000 in non-equity funding over the course of the semester. This class is focused on taking our students' hard work across campus and helping them make the transition to an actual functioning venture.

“The course is not for students that want to learn about entrepreneurship; this class is for cross-disciplinary teams of students who want to launch their venture or have the experience of helping to do so,” said Jeff York, Deming Research Director and the instructor for the class.

The goal of the class is to translate an existing product, service, or opportunity into a real, functioning venture. Each venture will undertake typical business functions (legal, raising money, web presence, selling, innovation, marketing, managing cash, and managing operations) with minimal resources. The course will rely heavily on outside experts and speakers who have personal experience being or working directly with entrepreneurs and/or investors.

“We’re actively in the process of recruiting mentors from around the Boulder Ecosystem now,” said York. “They are a key component of not only delivering the class, but helping our teams make the connections they need to succeed.”

How to Apply

The course is actively seeking team applications consisting of business and non-business students (e.g. engineering, chemistry, physics, liberal arts, etc.) “We find that the best ventures are composed of individuals from multiple disciplines,” said York.

Admission is by team application only, with several meetups happening over the course of the fall. Click here to apply or join the distribution list for more information. Experienced entrepreneurs who wish to help with mentoring can sign-up here.

This course is made possible thanks to a generous gift from the Intuitive Foundation.