LeanModel™ Competition Registration Deadline Extended!

 

There is still time to reach out and find student teams who you believe have what it takes to compete in the LeanModel™ Competition. The registration deadline has been extended until January 29th! This is an amazing opportunity for students to come compete against the top talent from across the globe. The LeanModel™ Competition is open to ventures created, managed, and owned by students enrolled at four-year universities from all academic levels. 

The LeanModel™ Competition rewards students for identifying and defining assumptions, testing those assumptions in the marketplace, and then pivoting their business model based on customer interactions. The LeanModel™ Competition is a regional qualifier competition for International Business Model Competition held at Brigham Young University. The winner of this competition bypasses the At-Large Round and is granted an automatic slot in the Semifinal Round of the international competition! 



Important Dates
Registration Deadline – January 29th, 2016
Competition Dates – March 4th & 5th, 2016

For more information on the LeanModel™ Competition, please check out the website or contact Kathryn Boyles at [email protected]. 

USASBE Conference a Success!

 

The United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE) held their annual conference in San Diego over January 8th-12th. Our very own Executive Director of the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center, Dr. Alex DeNoble, was the elected President of USASBE this past year. 

The theme of the conference was Entrepreneurship Everywhere: Across Campus, Across Communities, and Across Borders.Attendees immersed themselves in stimulating and thought provoking entrepreneurship research and pedagogy sessions. The hundreds of conference attendees were also able to experience the unique and thriving entrepreneurial culture of San Diego through several Learning Journeys. The Journeys included the option to participate in exploring the entrepreneurial activity in Baja California, Mexico, the craft brew industry in San Diego, as well as touring San Diego’s creative hubs in the arts and culture district. 

With the success of the 2016 USASBE conference, we invite educators and researchers to come attend our very ownCalifornia Entrepreneurship Educators Conference coming up on March 10th-12th, hosted by San Diego State University and the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center. The conference will be featuring Ted Zoller, the newly elected USASBE president for 2016, as our pedagogy keynote speaker and Heidi Neck, USASBE’s President-elect for 2017! 

For information on how to register for the conference, please contact Sara Sica at [email protected]. 

Check out the USASBE website to learn more about the organization!

 

Last Chance to Register for Golf Tournament!

The Next Generational Golf Tournament, held at the private Crosby Club of Rancho Santa Fe, is now only three weeks away! Support for this event will allow the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center to continue to build entrepreneurial bridges across the campus giving us the ability to develop more programs and most importantly, continue to develop the skill sets and knowledge of students impacted by our reach. 

Participation in the golf tournament includes lunch, golf, player reception, and an awards dinner. The player field is limited to only 120 golfers to guarantee a great golf experience. In addition, there will be a live auction featuring an exciting array of travel and leisure items, sports items, and more! All funds raised from this tournament will directly be used to fund the student entrepreneurial activity on the San Diego State University campus. We are still seeking sponsorship, foursomes and single players to play in the golf tournament! 



Golf Tournament Information:
Date: February 9th, 2016 
Location: The Crosby at Rancho Santa Fe 

For more information about the golf tournament or to register please visit our website page or contact Alissa Thompson at [email protected]

 

California Educators Conference

The 3rd annual California Entrepreneurship Educators Conference held on San Diego State University’s campus, will feature a number of leading entrepreneurship educators, researchers and thought leaders who will serve as session facilitators. The conference will be highly interactive, moving away from the typical conference layout. No tedious lectures. Every session will take you back to the classroom as we invite you to collaborate with your peers to examine how we teach entrepreneurship and conduct research today and creatively brainstorm how we might teach and research tomorrow. 

A special pre-conference discussion has been added on March 10th where we will examine the pros and cons of university incubators. This session, Incubators: Useful and Needed or Money Pit?, will feature panelists Olli Vuola from Aalto University in Helsinki Finland and Jonathan York from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Some of the key questions discussed will include: Incubator funding: How do we do it the right way?, Do we need a physical incubator space?, and How do we measure incubator success? 

Register today to reserve your spot in the California Entrepreneurship Educator's Conference! 



Conference Information:
Dates: March 10th-12th, 2016 
Cost: Full Conference $289; Single Day $189 

For more information on the conference or to register, please contact Sara Sica at [email protected]. 

Educator’s Conference is Filling Up! Register Today!

 

The California Entrepreneurship Educator’s Conference is only three weeks away! This conference is highly interactive, moving away from the typical conference layout. No tedious lectures. Every session will take you back to the classroom as we invite you to collaborate with your peers to examine how we teach entrepreneurship and conduct research today and creatively brainstorm how we might teach and research tomorrow. The conference agenda features both a Research Day and Pedagogy Day. There will also be a pre-conference panel on Incubators! 

Don’t miss your chance at attending the California Entrepreneurship Educator’s Conference. Registration is limited, and filling up fast! To save your spot register today! 

2016 Conference Information
Dates: March 10, 11, and 12, 2016 
Location: San Diego State University
Cost: Full Conference fee: $289
Single day fee: $189 per day

For information on how to register for the conference, please contact Sara Sica at [email protected]. 

20 Teams From Across the Globe Ready to Compete!

 

The 4th annual LeanModel™ Competition is only two weeks away! The LeanModel™ Competition rewards students for identifying and defining assumptions, testing those assumptions in the marketplace, and then pivoting their business model based on customer interactions. Student teams applied from 18 universities across the globe. We have accepted 20 of the top student teams to compete with their business model on the weekend on March 4th-5th, 2016! 

San Diego State University has established a global reputation over the past 26 years of providing outstanding judges for our competitions. Our judges come from the ranks of entrepreneurs, angel investors, venture capitalists and senior executives from the community that really understand the start-up mentality. This year we are excited to announce our finalist judges:Michel Kripalani , CEO at Oceanhouse Media and President of Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO),Bob Nascenzi, Chairman and CEO of Supramed, Robert Reyes, Founder of StartUpCircle, and Tatiana Saribekian, CEO of Domain Russian Investments. 

 

SDSU Students Meet with Startups in Lisbon, Portugal

Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Director and SDSU Lecturer, Bernhard Schroeder, led a group of 16 undergraduate students through the Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship course (MGT 358) while studying abroad in Lisbon, Portugal during a recent winter break study abroad program. 

Not only did students get a full three credits for Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship (MGT 358) but they also visited incubators and met with founders in the afternoons. As a group, we also managed to get invited to a reception at the US Ambassador's house to celebrate entrepreneurship in the Lisbon region. Highlights of the trip included meeting the founders of TalkDesk and UniPlaces, which combined, received more than $50 million in funding in 2015. 

A quote from one of the students summed up the experience best, "This course and trip has completely changed my perspective of the opportunities that I can pursue in my career; it was just eye opening!" 

In the summer, students will have the chance to go on another entrepreneurial study abroad experience to Alcala, Spain led by Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Executive Director, Alex DeNoble. Students who take advantage of this study abroad trip will have the opportunity to work in multicultural teams and study entrepreneurship in a Spanish context.

 

New Advisory Board Member, Zeynep Ilgaz!

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is thrilled to announce Zeynep Ilgaz as our new advisory board member! Zeynep Ilgaz is the co-founder and President of Confirm BioSciences Inc, a leading provider of drug and alcohol testing and employee screening products and services. Under her leadership, the Company has been recognized as Best Places to work for and Fastest Growing Company list in San Diego. 

Ilgaz also currently serves as a lecturer for International Entrepreneurship at San Diego State University. She is also an advisor to the National Institute of Health, Commercialization Assistance Program. As part of her efforts to give back to the community, Ilgaz started a “We Care, People over Profit” Corporate Program within Confirm Biosciences- where a percentage of sales has been contributed to giving back to local organizations. Ilgaz received her MBA from San Diego State University in 2000, and earned her bachelor’s degree in Economics and Finance from Bosporus University, Istanbul, Turkey. 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is an entrepreneurial leader in the community due to the strategic and financial support of experienced and committed Advisory Board Members. We are seeking people who can help us achieve our strategic objectives and support us in the community. If you would like to help make a difference, please contact Alex DeNoble at [email protected] 

Help Students Connect with Local Entrepreneurs!

 

LaunchIn is held once a semester on San Diego State University’s campus with the goal of connecting students with local start-up entrepreneurs. Spring LaunchIn has two parts; a reverse panel of three local entrepreneurs where students ask questions about starting a company. After the panel, students connect with 50 local start-up companies looking for paid interns or full-time positions. For alumni and local founders, this is your chance to harvest the next crop of capable and hardworking students from SDSU and expand the talent at your company! 

As a non-profit organization, we rely on alumni and community support to help fund our programs. In order to cover the costs associated with the LaunchIn event in the Spring, the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center needs your help in raising $3500. The San Diego State University Alumni Engagement Center is holding a fundraiser to help fund LaunchIn this Spring. Please consider helping the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center in holding this event to bring entrepreneurs to our students. You can find more information by visiting the LaunchIn fundraising page. 

Your gift of any amount will help support this program! For more information about LaunchIn, please contact Sean Pierce at [email protected]. 

18th Annual L. Robert Payne Lecture Series to Feature SDSU Alumnus!

 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is proud to announce the 18th year of the L. Robert Payne Distinguished Entrepreneur Lecture Series on April 21st, 2016. This year we are pleased to present SDSU alumnus John Wilson, co-founder, President and COO of Stance. John graduated from San Diego State University in 1993 with a BA in Marketing. Six years in, Stance still makes socks (and recently launched an underwear line). The company has attracted $86 million in funding, including a $50 million series C round in March of this year. Stance received initial investment from various celebrities including Will Smith and Dwyane Wade and recently signed a deal with the NBA as the official on-court sock. Famous fans include LeBron James and Rihanna. In a startup world, crazy with competition to find a niche, Stance's founders realized theirs was hiding in plain sight. 

The lecture series brings an outstanding entrepreneur to San Diego State University to speak to and interact with students, faculty, and invited business guests from the regional entrepreneurial community. The L. Robert Payne Lecture Series was established in 1996 with a gift from SDSU alumnus Bob Payne, a successful entrepreneur and long-time supporter of SDSU and the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center. 

 

Meet Robert Mendralla, Our Newest Advisory Board Member!

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is proud to announce that San Diego State University alumnus, Robert Mendralla is the newest member to join our Advisory Board. Mr. Mendralla is recognized as a strategic thought leader, focused on the big picture with a record of diverse management experiences. Robert is currently the CEO of RM Enterprises, a company focused on the consolidation of the global healthcare industry. Since 2011, he has been serving as President and CEO of Apex Health Solutions Group, providing healthcare products, wellness programs, telemedicine solutions to companies as well as educational and governmental institutions. Robert has been a Senior Partner with RLM & Associates since 2002, a management consulting company that assists clients in all areas of technical and business processes. Robert graduated from San Diego State University with his MBA in 1994 and is proud to return to campus as an advisor. 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center at San Diego State University is an entrepreneurial leader in a thriving and diverse San Diego community. In order to build a world-class and forward thinking center, we need the financial and strategic support of experienced and committed Advisory Board Members. We are seeking alumni and business leaders who can help us achieve our strategic objectives and support us in the community by joining our philanthropic board. If you are interested in making a difference, please contact Alex DeNoble at [email protected]. 

 

Recent Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Events Were a Success!

During the first two weeks of March, the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center hosted several events on the San Diego State University campus, starting with LeanModel Competition. On March 4th-5th, 20 student teams from 15 different Universities arrived at the San Diego State University campus to compete in the business model competition for prizes totaling $18,000 in cash and in-kind prizes. Sensytec from the University of Houston took first place among the myriad of stellar startups. To view the complete list of winners, check out the LeanModel Competition website page. In addition to this competition, the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center transformed SDSU’s campus into an entrepreneurial village on Entrepreneur Day and host the 2016 California Entrepreneurship Educators Conference. 

On March 10th, for the 7th year in a row, Entrepreneur Day was held in the main Centennial walkway on San Diego State University’s campus. This was an opportunity for alumni as well as current students to showcase and sell products they have developed, creating an entrepreneurial village on campus. Over 50 companies, including 36 from our Lavin Entrepreneur program, sold products while over 15,000 students strolled through the walkway. For more information on Entrepreneur Day, check out the Entrepreneur Day website. 

In addition, from March 10th-12th the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center hosted the 3rd annual California Entrepreneurship Educators Conference at San Diego State University. The conference brought in over 110 researchers and educators each day to dissect the research process and learn how to approach entrepreneurship pedagogy in interesting ways. The conference featured a number of leading entrepreneurship educators, researchers and thought leaders, including keynote speakers Heidi Neck and Howard Aldrich. To view the complete list of speakers and panelist, check out the conference website. 

 

Lavin Advisory Board Members Honored as “2016 Most Admired CEO”

San Diego company Confirm BioSciences Inc.'s Founder and Chief Executive Officer Ms. Zeynep Ilgaz received the honor of being named "2016 Most Admired CEO" by the San Diego Business Journal in the Small Business Private Company category. Not only is Zeynep Ilgaz a San Diego State University graduate, she is a lecturer of International Entrepreneurship and member of the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center’s Advisory Board. Another member of our Advisory Board and lecturer at San Diego State University, Kevin Popovic founder of Ideahaus, was a finalist for the San Diego Business Journal Most Admired CEO awards. 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is proud to have both Zeynep Ilgaz and Kevin Popovic as members of our Advisory Board. Both Ilgaz and Popovic help us achieve our strategic objectives and support us in the community. 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Welcomes New Board Member: Steve Hoffman

 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is proud to announce our new board member, Steve Hoffman. Steve Hoffman started The Iris Group in 1976 when he discovered a niche in the real estate industry - providing high quality photography of properties on the market. Steve soon moved on to developing brochures for his clients, and within six months of starting his brochure venture, moved his growing business from his apartment into a 1,200 square foot building in San Diego. Steve launched a line of postcard products that offered small runs of high quality cards at an affordable price. The success of this niche product led to a repositioning of the company and a new name - Modern Postcard. Through the years, Modern Postcard has helped over 250,000 clients grow their businesses, making us the industry leader in postcard products and solutions. 

It is through the strategic and financial support of experienced and committed Advisory Board Members that we are able to help grow and mentor our students at San Diego State University into entrepreneurs.. We are seeking people who can help us achieve our strategic objectives and support us in the community. If you are interested in becoming a part of our board of advisors, please contact Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Executive Director Alex DeNoble at [email protected]. 

LaunchIn Entrepreneur Panel and Hiring Fair a Success!

 

Last year at our Spring LaunchIn event, over 55 students were hired to internships and full time positions. This event took place on April 7th on the San Diego State University campus. LaunchIn is a startup entrepreneur event that during the Spring is not only a panel featuring three entrepreneurs, but a hiring event focused on connecting local startups and growing companies in San Diego with driven Aztec students from all across the campus. 

This semester's event brought in 22 companies looking to hire San Diego State University students into paid internships and full time positions. The entrepreneurship panel featured Alex Martinez, managing member at Growth Partner Capital, LLC, Kevin Gelfand, President, CEO, and Co-Founder of Shake Smart and Bob Dalton, Founder of Sackcloth and Ashes. Last year at our Spring LaunchIn event, over 55 students were hired to internship and full time positions. We are looking forward to receiving the feedback on how many students were hired from the event that took place this year! 

 

San Diego State University Represented in National Business Competitions!

This past semester several student teams have competed in competitions representing San Diego State University. Course Key competed in the National GSCA competition. Course Key, developed by a team of San Diego State students, allows professors who teach large classes the ability to take attendance, offer on-the-fly classroom polling or quizzes, and allows students and professors the ability to interact in and outside of class via smartphone, tablet or laptop. Course Key will also be representing San Diego State University in the upcoming California Dreamin Business Plan Competition hosted at Chapman University. Another student team, Genius, competed in the 2016 Values and Ventures Business Plan Competition hosted at Texas Christian University. This company uses wearable sensors that allow people with severe physical disabilities to use computers via brainwaves. This student team won an honorable mention and took home $2500. 

 

Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Partnered with Leading Private Entrepreneur Organization!

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center recently helped host an event in a partnership with San Diego State University’s Entrepreneur Society and the leading private entrepreneurship organization in San Diego, Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO). Founded in 1987, EO is the catalyst that enables leading entrepreneurs to learn and grow, leading to greater success in business and beyond.This event took place on April on the San Diego State University campus. The private event had 55 E.O. members in attendance along with 35 San Diego State University students, and featured Lee Asher as a speaker.

During this event students were encouraged to sit next to the E.O. members and network. After networking occurred, Lee Asher spoke about what it means to be a peak performer and walked everyone through visualization exercises. The entire event focused on constantly being out of your comfort zone, and the value behind discovering what your comfort zone truly is. 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is looking forward to helping host more events in the future with entrepreneur organizations in the community. This was a great event for our students at San Diego State University to connect and network with entrepreneurs in the San Diego community. 

Stance Founder Knocked the Socks Off Students in L. Robert Payne Lecture Series

 

On Thursday April 21st, more than 250 San Diego State students, faculty, and local entrepreneurs joined the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center to hear John Wilson, the Co-Founder of Stance, share the story of his path to success. The lecture was a part of the annual L. Robert Payne Speaker Series, in which distinguished entrepreneurs are invited to campus to share their insights. 

John Wilson, an SDSU ‘93 alum, spoke about his experiences as a successful entrepreneur and also took questions from students. Wilson discussed how the culture of your company is vital to your success. He shared how the founders of Stance created their company culture around the idea, “when you are free to perform, accountability naturally follows.” Since Stance was founded in 2009, the company has attracted $86 million in funding, including a $50 million series C round in March and initial investments from celebrities like Will Smith and Dwyane Wade. They signed a deal in April 2015 as the NBA's official on-court sock. Stance has ignited a movement of art and self-expression that has drawn athletes, performers and iconic cultural influencers to the brand – they refer to this community as their “Punks & Poets”. By underpinning its creative roots with a relentless focus on technical innovation, Stance can be found in over 40 countries on the feet of those who dare to be different. 

For more information on the L. Robert Payne Lecture Series, please contact Kathryn Boyles at [email protected] 

Entrepreneurship Continues to Spread Throughout the Campus!

 

On April 29th, the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center hosted an end of the year celebration. Lavin Entrepreneur students were joined by their mentors and Advisory Board members for an event held at Tony Gwynn Stadium to watch the Aztecs baseball team play the University of Nevada. The celebration was held in the suite behind home plate where everyone was able to network and enjoy watching the game play out! 

This celebration is just another example of how entrepreneurship is spreading throughout San Diego State University’s campus. Ken Gerdau, former San Diego State University baseball player and Orange County entrepreneur, started a push for the athletic department to become involved with the entrepreneur program. Through his generous gift, Mr. Gerdau has established a business and baseball scholarship with preference for an entrepreneurship student. The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is thrilled that entrepreneurship continues to become an integral component of students’ education across the campus! 

 

Student Entrepreneur Featured Start-up Business at Lavin Board Meeting

On the morning of May 18th, the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center held our 2nd quarterly Advisory Board Meeting of 2016. At every meeting a catered breakfast is provided to our Board Members. For this particular board meeting, we featured student entrepreneur, Joel Lopez, who is pursuing his Latin flavor catering business Ay, Que RicoJoel gave a short presentation after the breakfast describing how he has taken advantage of the resources on campus at both the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center and the Zahn Innovation Platform. 

Joel was recently admitted to both the Zahn Innovation Platform, and into the next cohort of the Lavin Entrepreneur Program. Joel reflected on the mentoring benefits he has received, and looks forward to continue building on this momentum. If you are interested in helping shape the next generation of entrepreneurs through mentorship or program support, please contact Kathryn Boyles at [email protected] 

 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Welcomes New Board Member: Robert Wilcox

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is proud to announce our new board member, Robet Wilcox. Mr. Wilcox is the founder of Precision Labela premium label printing and flexible packaging company. Precision Label, a solutions-oriented label printer headquartered in Oceanside CA, is a leader specializing in the Health and Beauty industry. Their commitment of "exact color reproduction" is appropriately aligned to the industry‘s customer base. Additionally, Precision Label provides brand managers within food, nutraceutical, natural products, and pharmaceutical industries with superior quality and color management technology. Mr. Wilcox, an SDSU alum, decided to join the Advisory Board in order to give back and help future SDSU entrepreneurs. 

It is through the strategic and financial support of experienced and committed Advisory Board Members that we are able to help grow, mentor, and prepare the next generation of entrepreneurs at San Diego State University. We are seeking people who can help us achieve our strategic objectives and support us in the community. If you are interested in becoming a part of our Advisory Board, please contact Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Executive Director Alex DeNoble at [email protected]. 

DYLAN KIRCHHOFER - SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT

 

Dylan Kirchhofer, an undergraduate student majoring in Mathematics with a minor in entrepreneurship and current member of the Lavin Entrepreneur Program in the 2015-2017 cohort, was named the 2016 Larry and Madeline Petersen Scholarship recipient. The Larry and Madeline Petersen Scholarship provides support to an upper division full-time student, encouraging them to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams and learn how to transform their ideas and inventions into profitable businesses. “It is the right thing to do and the right time to do it,” Mr. Petersen said. “The students should be able to control their own destiny in their professional lives. That is why it is so important for them to start gaining entrepreneurial skills while they are in college.” 

Dylan is a deep thinker with innovative ideas. His sales and marketing experience have been primarily internet based with profitable success. Passionate about the protection of the environment, Dylan continues to educate his peers on solution based ideas. He is a proven leader as captain of his basketball team and a team player in all aspects of his life. Also currently a USPA licensed skydiver and skydiving coach at Sky San Diego, Dylan has a passion for living by the motto, “live life to the fullest”. He recognizes entrepreneurship as a pathway to achieving his personal goals and making the world a better place for all. His goal for the future is to become a serial entrepreneur and positively impact the world through my endeavors. 

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TAKES STUDENTS TO ICSB CONFERENCE

 

The 61st annual ICSB 2016 World Conference was held from June 15th-18th, 2016 in the New York and New Jersey metro area, with the theme Sustainable Entrepreneurship in Society – Transforming Our World Together. The conference was attended by participants from over 55 countries. Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Director, Alex DeNoble, took four Lavin Entrepreneur students with him to attend the ICSB World Conference, including David Shadi, Garrett Wilson, Milad Hassibi, and Milovan Sibic. The four students participated in the ICSB Academy which was held directly prior to the world conference. Over the week, sessions were held at the Stevens Institute of Technology, the United Nations, and New York University. 

While attending the conference, Dr. Alex DeNoble, Executive Director of the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center, was presented with the International Council for Small Business 2016 – 2017 Presidential Award. Dr. DeNoble was presented with the award during the session held at the headquarters of the United Nations in their Great Assembly Hall. “The ICSB recognized Dr. DeNoble with this award for his innovation and creation of the California Entrepreneurship Educator’s Conference which is held at SDSU’s campus,” said Ayman El Tarabishy, Executive Director of The ICSB and professor of management at George Washington University. “The impressive program, design and mission of this unique conference offered an extraordinary opportunity for networking and an exchange of ideas between entrepreneurship academics.” 

 

LAVIN ENTREPRENEUR STUDENT WINS AT ICSB ACADEMY

Garrett Wilson, a member of the 2015-2017 Lavin Entrepreneur cohort, attended the 2016 International Council for Small Business (ICSB) Academy. The ICSB Academy provides students with a full immersion experience in the making of a new entrepreneurial venture, while exposing them to the latest developments in entrepreneurship education under the mentorship of a global team of successful entrepreneurship experts. The 2016 ICSB Academy featured 140 students from 18 different countries. Garrett was one of four students who attended from San Diego State University. 

Garrett commented on his experience at the ICSB Academy, “My time at the ICSB Conference was invaluable. I gained cultural awareness by being around people from over 18 different countries. I also learned about how my current business idea's could work in other countries. I have gained insight into how to market my companies better as well. Overall, I believe, the most valuable insight I gained as a result of the ICSB Academy is market validation.” During the academy, students formed teams which generated a business ideas which they presented in front of a group of judges. Garrett’s team won first place from the judges, solidifying him a spot in attending the next 2017 ICSB World Conference held in Argentina. Garrett’s experience at the ICSB Academy was invaluable, “I am blessed to have this gained confidence as a result of the ICSB academy.” 

 

Kevin Popović Named Director of Idea Lab

Kevin Popović, lecturer in the Management department at San Diego State University and Lavin Entrepreneurship Center board member, was appointed as Director of the Zahn Innovation Platform (ZIP), Idea Lab, effective July 11th, 2016. In this role, Kevin Popović will work with university leaders, faculty, students, and community partners in the establishment, organization, and management of a new design thinking-based laboratory. He will be designing and launching the new Idea Lab. 

Kevin is the Founder of Ideahaus, an award-winning creative communications agency that helps B2B, B2C and Non-Profit organizations build their brands and increase sales. As a Communications Director, Kevin lead CEOs, C-Level Sales & Marketing Directors through a proven communications planning process to develop a strategic plan for their branding, advertising, marketing, events, public relations and social media. In 2010, Kevin was ranked #43 in Fast Company's The Influence Project measuring the "most influential people online."​ In 2013, his book "20YEARS Communications: 20 Leaders, 20 Questions, 100's of Lessons"​ was published by Transmedia. Additionally, Kevin has been a lecturer at San Diego State University in creative thinking in both the College of Business and the College of Extended Studies. 

 

LAVIN ENTREPRENEUR PROGRAM ACCEPTS LARGEST COHORT FOR 2016-2017!

The Lavin Entrepreneur Program is an amazing and leading program for undergraduate students across the San Diego State University campus.This two year co-curricular program is organized around a "Lean" framework that advocates dynamic business modeling based on "out of the building" assumptions testing. Lavin Entrepreneurs are selected from among sophomore undergraduate students moving into their junior year from all seven colleges on SDSU’s campus if the students have demonstrated entrepreneurial passion and talents. This program was established in 2008 from a generous gift by Dr. Leonard H. Lavin. 

This year the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center experienced the largest number of applicants for the Lavin Entrepreneur program. Over one-hundred applications were received for the new 2016-2018 cohort. Of these applications, 31 new Lavin Entrepreneurs were chosen. This is one of the most diverse cohorts that we have experienced. There are students represented from four out of the seven colleges on campus and 14 different majors, including the College of Sciences, College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts, College of Business Administration, and the College of Arts and Letters. The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is busy finding mentors for each new Lavin Entrepreneur. 

If you are interested in contributing your time to make a difference and mentor one of our Lavin Entrepreneurs, please contact Emerson Redd at [email protected]

Save The Date! - California Entrepreneurship Educator Conference 2017

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The 4th Annual California Entrepreneurship Educator Conference will take place on March 10th & 11th, 2017 on San Diego State University’s campus! In addition to the main portion of the conference, a pre-conference panel and conference welcome event will take place on March 9th in the late afternoon! Registration for the conference is now OPEN! Reserve your spot today by visiting the conference webpage. 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is busy starting the preparation and planning of events, topics, and speakers for the conference. For now, please check out last year’s conference agenda for a full profile of events, keynotes, and speaker panels. You can also view a video highlighting conference events and speakers at this link. 



For more information on the conference or help registering, please contact Kathryn Boyles at [email protected] 

 

Successful SDSU Alums Making a Difference!

 

With the incoming of the Lavin Entrepreneur Center’s largest Lavin Entrepreneur Program cohort this semester, we have been busy matching each of our students with their own mentor. The Lavin Entrepreneur Program is a two year commitment, filled with four classes, mind-shifting exercises, opportunities to create and sell a product, as well as mentoring and coaching. The incoming 2016-2018 cohort has 31 students across 12 different majors on campus. Each of these students was paired with a mentor based on compatibility and business sector. The mentor portion of this program has always been a large success. 

The relationships and impact that our mentors have on our Lavin Entrepreneur students go further than just the program. Nick Slettengren, a Lavin Entrepreneur from the original cohort, was matched with his mentor Thom McElroy, Co-Founder of Volcom, during his time in the program in 2009. Slettengren and McElroy still have kept their mentor relationship to this day. Today, Slettengren is now running a $7 million dollar company, Power Digital Marketing, heavily crediting his mentor relationship with helping guide him to point he is at now. The Lavin Entrepreneur program has also had the overwhelming support of Zeynep Ilgaz, Founder and CEO of Confirm BioSciences, in mentoring our Lavin students. Zeynep Ilgaz not only worked in the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center while attending San Diego State University, but she is also a lecturer in International Entrepreneurship and current Lavin Entrepreneurship Center board member. 

If you are looking to make a difference and have a personal long-lasting impact on with San Diego State University’s next generation of entrepreneurs, please contact Alex DeNoble to find out more information about our mentor program at [email protected] 

 

Entrepreneur Society Brings Van’s Executive to Campus

San Diego State University student organization Entrepreneur Society (ES) had a very special guest speaker event on September 7th in the Aztec Student Union. Doug Palladini, Global President and General Manager as VANS, Inc. and an Aztec alum, came onto the campus to share his business insight and experiences throughout his successful career. 

The room was packed full with over 200 students to hear Palladini speak. Palladini highlighted the fact that he does not define VANS as solely a shoe company, "We are a creative expression company that makes shoes. It’s a fundamental difference. It allows you to be so much more.” In being a creative expression company first, VANS has been able to create a long-lasting brand loyalty with their customers. The Entrepreneur Society is working tirelessly to connect SDSU student with successful entrepreneurs through opportunities such as this. By bringing successful entrepreneurs, like Doug Palladini, to the campus, students are exposed to people that they may never have had a chance to hear and learn from. 

For more information on Entrepreneur Society and the opportunities they have in bringing entrepreneurs on campus for the students, please visit their website at: http://entrepreneur.sdsu.edu/ 

 

Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Student Intern Joins Top Accountancy Firm!

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center at San Diego State University thrives on helping both students and emerging company executives succeed in their entrepreneurial dreams. That is why the staff here at the Center is comprised of student interns. One of our outstanding interns, Deion Reynolds, just graduated in May with his Bachelor's of Science in Accountancy with a minor in Entrepreneurship . Reynolds worked with the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center since May 2015 as our Finance and Accounting Specialist. He credits his time in the center for helping him improve his time management skills, having had to learn to balance the vigorous accounting course load with his tasks at the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center. Reynolds said, “I was forced to have a high attention to detail to minimize errors. The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center also gave me a chance to enhance my communication and networking skills.” 

Reynolds has developed an incredible skill-set during his time with us that he will continue to build upon. He is currently in the midst of preparing for the CPA exam, which he will sit for the first portion in October. Reynolds has also accepted a position to start working at Considine & Considine, an accounting firm located in downtown San Diego as a Staff Accountant in Auditing. The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is grateful for the incredible work that Reynolds has accomplished during his time at the Center, and is very proud of where his career is taking him! 

 

Remembering Richard L’Heureux

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is saddened to have learned of the passing of one of our Lavin Entrepreneur students, Richard L’ Heureux. Richard L’ Heureux was a member of our 2014-2016 Lavin Entrepreneur Program cohort. He was pursuing a Computer Science degree in the College of Sciences, with minors in Social Psychology and Interdisciplinary Studies. 

The L’Heurex family have invited anyone who wishes to post a memory of their time with Richard at http://www.richardlheureux.com. His family has also set up two accounts for those wishing to honor Richard’s legacy, which can be found at this link. 

Our thoughts and deepest sympathy goes out to his family and friends.

Original Founder of Entrepreneurship Center Gives College of Business $25 Million Endowment!

 

San Diego State University announced the largest philanthropic gift in the history of the university. Local philanthropist and San Diego Padres executive chairman Ron Fowler and his wife, Alexis pledged a $25 million endowed gift to SDSU’s College of Business Administration. Ron Fowler was one of the original founders of the Entrepreneurial Management Center in 1986, now renamed to the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center. This extremely generous gift will, among other things, provide scholarships and professorships, develop a lecture series, and provide international experiences and expand programming for SDSU business students. To honor the years of support the Fowler’s have committed to SDSU, the college has been renamed to the Fowler College of Business Administration. 

To learn more about Ron Fowler’s endowed gift, please check out this article from SDSU NewsCenter. 

First Speaker Announced for California Entrepreneurship Educator Conference!

 

The 2017 California Entrepreneurship Educator Conference planning has begun! The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is busy preparing for our most innovative conference yet. The conference will consist of two and a half days of interactive sessions involving dynamic topics of entrepreneurship education and research, featuring a number of leading entrepreneurship educators, researchers and thought leaders who will serve as session facilitators throughout the conference. 

Dr. Rebecca J. White has been selected as a speaker for the 2017 California Entrepreneurship Educator Conference. White is the Walter Chair of Entrepreneurship, Professor of Entrepreneurship and Director of the John P Lowth Entrepreneurship Center at the University of Tampa. She received her MBA and Ph.D. from Virginia Tech. Her primary research and teaching interests are in opportunity recognition, entrepreneurial mindset and competency based education in entrepreneurship. Under her leadership the entrepreneurship program at the University of Tampa was named the 2016 Model Undergraduate Entrepreneurship Education Program by the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE), the 2015 Excellence in Teaching and Pedagogical Innovation Award from the Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers (GCEC) and was named the 2014 Outstanding Emerging Entrepreneurship program by USASBE. In 2015, she was named a Justin G. Longenecker Fellow of USASBE. Dr. White has more than 25 years of experience in education, training, coaching and mentoring. 

Don’t forget to mark your calendars and register for the 2017 California Entrepreneurship Educators Conference today!! 

For more information on the conference or help registering, please contact Kathryn Boyles at [email protected] 

 

New Lecturer for Lavin Entrepreneur Program!

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is thrilled to announce that Robert Schulte has joined as a lecturer for the Lavin Entrepreneur Program for the 2016 fall semester cohort. Schulte is a very successful serial entrepreneur with more than 20-years experience leading entrepreneurial ventures from ideation to acquisition. Schulte currently is the Founder and CEO of LumaTax, Inc. In addition, Schulte is also a San Diego State University alum, graduating with a M.S. in Entrepreneurship in 2005. Schulte has regularly given back to SDSU and the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center since he graduated. He currently also lectures in the graduate MBA program teaching entrepreneurship and has been a mentor in the Lavin Entrepreneur Program. The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is thrilled to have someone teaching in the Lavin Entrepreneur Program with so much experience, and know that the students will benefit greatly from his background in entrepreneurship!. 

The Lavin Entrepreneur Program is an exciting academic two-year, two-cohort “honors” entrepreneurship program for undergraduate students from all seven colleges across SDSU’s campus. Students are chosen based on perceived entrepreneurial talents, and receive a variety of benefits and learning experiences. These experiences including an individual mentor for the duration of the program, special entrepreneur private sessions, site visits to emerging growth companies, an entrepreneur speaker series, and industry expert panel support. During this two-year program, Lavin Entrepreneur students take four courses, one per semester designed to expose them to the entrepreneurial process. 

 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Welcomes New Board Member Tamara Romeo

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is pleased to welcome Tamara Romeo as our newest Board Member! Tamara Romeo is not only a successful local business owner and mentor in our Lavin Entrepreneur program, she is also a San Diego State University alum! San Diego Office Design was founded by Romeo with one goal in mind: to design office environments that visually reflect the cohesiveness of that company’s brand. Blending her background in brand marketing and environmental psychology, Tamara founded a company that succeeds in creating integrated brand-centric office environments that send a clear message of value while delivering a high return on investment. 

Romeo joined the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center’s Advisory Board to help further the presence of female entrepreneurs within the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center programs and San Diego State University. Romeo elaborates on why she decided to join, “As an SDSU alumni, I can see the tremendous value that an early focus on entrepreneurship can foster. Although entrepreneurship wasn't 'en vogue' during my time on campus, I believe the opportunity and exposure early in one's academic career can open doors to possibilities much earlier along the career path. I was never afforded a glimpse into an entrepreneurial woman's journey, and I am happy to provide that for the Lavin students. Additionally, having a few business owners that are 'in the trenches with the millenials' on the advisory board gives the team a broad knowledge base to draw from. 

It is through the strategic and financial support of experienced and committed Advisory Board Members that we are able to help grow, mentor, and prepare the next generation of entrepreneurs at San Diego State University. We are seeking people who can help us achieve our strategic objectives and support us in the community. If you are interested in becoming a part of our Advisory Board, please contact Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Executive Director Dr. Alex F. DeNoble at [email protected]. 

Lavin Center Receives GCEC Award!

 

The GCEC organization holds an international conference annually. This year the 2016 International GCEC Conference was held September 29th through October 1st in Rochester, New York, co-hosted by the University of Rochester and Rochester Institute of Technology. Each year the organization recognizes the top entrepreneurship program in eight different categories. This year, there were 92 very competitive entries. We are extremely proud and excited to announce that the SDSU Lavin Entrepreneurship Center was presented with the 2016 Exceptional Activities in Entrepreneurship Across Disciplines award! Receiving this recognition from peers representing some amazing universities is very rewarding. 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is currently an active member of the Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers (GCEC). The GCEC was established in 1997, and today stands as the premier leadership organization addressing the emerging topics of importance of the nation’s university based centers for entrepreneurship. This organization allows for universities to network, benchmark and explore how to best promote entrepreneurship education and new venture creation. The GCEC has more than 225 University-based entrepreneurship centers in membership. 

First Speaker Announced for California Entrepreneurship Educator Conference!

 

The 2017 California Entrepreneurship Educator Conference will be featuring Dr.Ronald Mitchell as the Research Day keynote speaker! Mitchell is Professor of Entrepreneurship, and holds the Jean Austin Bagley Regents Chair in Management in the Jerry S. Rawls School of Business at Texas Tech University. In addition, he is the Francis G. Winspear Distinguished Visiting Scholar in Business and Public Policy at the University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, and also is a Fellow at the Wheatley Institution at Brigham Young University. Dr. Mitchell also has served as a jointly-appointed Professor of Public Policy and Strategy at the Guanghua School of Management at Peking University, Beijing, China (1999 – 2002). His current academic mission centers on the problems and possibilities in opportunity emergence, and it focuses on better understanding the core systems and institutions of society that enable greater human capacity and liberty. To learn more about Dr. Ronald Mitchell, as well as our other session leaders, please view our 2017 session leader page. 

2017 Conference Information:
Dates: March 9th, 10th, and 11th, 2017
Location: San Diego State University
Cost: Full Conference fee: $299
Single day fee: $199 per day

Don’t forget to mark your calendars and register for the 2017 California Entrepreneurship Educators Conference today!!

For more information on the conference or help registering, please contact Kathryn Boyles at [email protected] 

Fall 2016 Internship Programs Review

Each semester the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center connects students with internship opportunities that will further develop their skill sets and professional competencies while providing companies talented interns. These internships provide students the opportunity to build a relationship with an experienced professional who will not only lend advice, knowledge, and insights, but also guidance and support as they build their professional careers. The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center offers students two types of internships: For Profit Internships and the Qualcomm Non-profit Internships. For Profit Internships and the Qualcomm Non-profit Internships. 

This Fall semester the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center has placed three students in our For-Profit Internship program. There are students working at HNM Systems, Navigate HCR, and Histogen. We have also placed seven students in the Qualcomm Non-Profit Internship Program. There are students working at Arts for Learning, Mountain Lion Foundation, Build a Miracle, Epilepsy Foundation, and Promises2Kids. In addition, there are Qualcomm employees who assist the non-profit organizations. 

If you are interested in hiring an intern for your business or non-profit organization for the upcoming Spring semester, please contact Cyrus Mostashari for more information at [email protected]

 

Student Profile - Lavin Entrepreneur Milovan Simic

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center’s Lavin Entrepreneur Program is seen as an Entrepreneurship Honors Program at San Diego State University. There are currently 51 students in two cohorts. One of these students, Milovan Simic is in the 2015-2017 cohort. Milovan came to San Diego State University in 2015 as a transfer student. He will graduate in May with a Bachelors in Business Administration and Management. Milovan came into the Lavin Entrepreneur Program having just started his own business, Bamboo Tranquility, in July of 2015. Bamboo Tranquility is an online luxury bedding business that sells bamboo sheets. Milovan’s business has rapidly grown during his time in the Lavin Entrepreneur program, now doing more than $200,000 in annual sales. Throughout the Lavin Entrepreneur program Milovan has been able to learn from his fellow Lavin students and use the mentor connections he has made in the program to assist him in his business. Milovan said, “The Lavin program has really helped expand my knowledge of practical business skills and continually encourages me to think bigger. They brought in mentors and speakers that showed me you don't have to be a genius to be a successful entrepreneur.” Once he graduates he will continue to put his efforts into Bamboo Tranquility with the goal of creating more profitable eCommerce businesses in the future. 

The Lavin Entrepreneur Program is an amazing and leading program for all undergraduate students across the San Diego State University campus. This two year co-curricular program is organized around a "Lean" framework that advocates dynamic business modeling based on "out of the building" assumptions testing. Throughout the program, we challenge students to describe, design, invent, and "pivot" their business ideas. 

If you would like to support or learn more about this program, please contact Alex F. DeNoble at [email protected]. 

Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Selected as Finalist for National Award!

 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center has been selected as a finalist for the United States Association of Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE) Excellence in Entrepreneurship Education National Model Undergraduate Program Award! This award is given to a college or university that have developed and currently still offers high quality and innovative programs for the purpose of educating and training future generations of entrepreneurs. The award is given to the finalist with exemplary programs that reflect innovation, quality, comprehensiveness, sustainability, transferability, depth of support, and impact. 

Dr. Alex F. DeNoble, Executive Director of the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center, will be traveling to the annual USASBE Conference held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from January 19-22, 2017. DeNoble will be representing San Diego State University and the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center at the 2017 USASBE Conference to give the finalist presentation. Award winners will be announced on January 21st, 2017 at the Entrepreneurship Education Awards Ceremony and Party of Excellence. 

LaunchIn: Students Meeting Startup Founders

 

This past November, The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center in partnership with the SDSU Entrepreneur Society held our Fall LaunchIn program. LaunchIn is a startup entrepreneur event that happens both in the Fall and Spring semesters. In the Fall, LaunchIn is a panel featuring three entrepreneurs. Students can ask the panel any questions they have about their experience starting a company. This Fall LaunchIn was a huge success with over 150 students in attendance, leaving only standing room for the event! The three visiting entrepreneurs were Boian Spassov, founder of Locbit, Jenny Amaraneni, founder of Solo Eyewear, and Jon Tucker, founder of Help Flow. All three of these local entrepreneurs are San Diego State University alumni who worked with the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center while attending SDSU. This event is special in that it allows our students the opportunity to talk to three successful entrepreneurs who were recently in their place as a student at SDSU. Students walk away inspired that they have the ability to create a company just as these three entrepreneurs did. . 

We are now planning for our Spring LaunchIn event. We will again feature a panel of three entrepreneurs for the students to interact with. In addition, the event in Spring includes a start-up hiring fair. Spring LaunchIn hosts over 40 local startup companies in search of taking on SDSU students as interns/employees. For alumni and local founders, this is your chance to harvest the next crop of capable and hardworking students from SDSU. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to expand the talent within your company! 
If you are interested in have your business participate in Spring LaunchIn, please contact Cyrus Mostashari at [email protected] 

SDSU Social Entrepreneurship Students Help at Local Middle School

San Diego State University students enrolled in Professor Michael Sloan’s Management 455 course , Nick Gierut and Justin Mitchell, helped out at local High Tech Middle Media Arts School. Jordan Templeton’s 7th grade class was doing a semester long project this Fall on the topic of racism. The project description was for the students to create merchandise that would encourage productive dialogue about race and racism. In conjunction with Real World Scholars, students had to spearhead an Education Corporation (or Edcorps) and use an e-commerce platform to sell their merchandise and use their profits as they choose to deepen the conversation about race. In addition to the student-run business, students also partook in dialogue about race and racism themselves. This project is part of R.E.A.L. Talk. It was founded by the 2016-2017 seventh grade class at High Tech Middle Media Arts in San Diego under the guidance of teachers Jaimee Rojas and Jordan Templeton. All of the products are designed by seventh grade students, with the goal of sparking dialogue that inspires new ways of thinking, shifts people’s perspectives, and makes the world a better place. 

Professor Sloan brought both Gierut and Mitchell to visit Jordan’s classroom and help evaluate and provide feedback for the students projects.The students sat with each team and critiqued what they had, and helped give ideas for improvement. Mitchell commented, “It was a revelation to see how similar our processes are in helping students develop their business ideas. The only difference between these students and SDSU students is the experience level.” The SDSU students spoke highly of the level of ambition and innovative ideas the High Tech Middle students showed, and spoke of how inspiring it was to see young students attacking a social injustice. It is gratifying to see students embracing social entrepreneurship at such an early age. With programs and projects such as this one in our local community, the next generation of students at SDSU will be prepared and ready to embrace social entrepreneurship in helping to make their world a better place. 

To learn more about High Tech Middle Media Arts, please check out their website. To see more on what SDSU is doing with social entrepreneurship, check out this website.

 

Two More Session Leaders Announced for Educator Conference!

The 2017 California Entrepreneurship Educator Conference is set to be our most innovative conference yet! The conference will consist of two and a half days of interactive sessions involving dynamic topics of entrepreneurship education and research, featuring a number of leading entrepreneurship educators, researchers and thought leaders who will serve as session facilitators throughout the conference. 

Dr. Craig S. Galbraith has been selected as a session leader for the Research Day of the conference. Galbraith is currently a Professor of Entrepreneurship and Technology Management at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, and Director of the UNCW Office of Innovation and Commercialization which oversees UNCW’s Entrepreneurship Center, the UNCW Office of Technology Transfer, and the university’s incubator spaces. Dr. Galbraith received his Ph.D. from Purdue. He also holds a graduate degree in molecular biology and received his MBA from San Diego State University. Prior to joining UNCW he was on the faculty of Purdue University and the University of California, Irvine. Dr. Galbraith has published over 100 academic articles in journals such as the Strategic Management Journal, Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Business Venturing, the Journal of Small Business Management, the Journal of Technology Transfer, and Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice. He has been the cofounder of several start-up enterprises including firms in the biotechnology and marine shipping sectors. Dr. Galbraith is also an active angel investor with the Wilmington Investor Network. His consulting focuses on business valuation and technology commercialization. 

Dr. Jill R. Kickul has been selected as a session leader for the Pedagogy Day of the conference. Kickul joined USC Marshall School of Business in August 2016 as a professor in the Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies and Research Director in the Brittingham Social Enterprise Lab. Before joining USC, she was the Director of the social entrepreneurship program at New York University Stern School of Business. Kickul's primary research areas of interest include innovation and strategic processes within new ventures, micro-financing practices and wealth creation in transitioning economies, and social entrepreneurship. She is the co-author of numerous books, and has published more than 100 publications in entrepreneurship and management journals. Her work on entrepreneurship education development and curriculum design has been nationally recognized and supported through the National Science Foundation (NSF), Coleman Foundation Entrepreneurship Excellence in Teaching Colleges Grant and was named by Fortune Small Business as one of the Top 10 Innovative Programs in Entrepreneurship Education. 
To read Galbraith and Kickul’s full bio and see our other session leaders, please view the conference session leader webpage. 

Don’t forget to mark your calendars and register for the 2017 California Entrepreneurship Educators Conference today!!

If you have any questions or would like more information on the Conference, please contact Kathryn Boyles at [email protected] 

 

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Gains a New Board Member!

The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center is pleased to announce our new board member, Mitch Patridge! Mitch Patridge is Chairman of ClearBalance® and is an SDSU alum. As a successful serial entrepreneur for more than 30 years, Mitch has a broad background in banking, portfolio acquisition, management, servicing centers, real estate and healthcare financial services. Mitch led the acquisition of ClearBalance in 2003 and has since grown the company and its offerings of consumer-friendly patient loan programs. ClearBalance has served more than 4 million patient accounts for hundreds of health systems, clinics and physician practices nationwide. Recognized as an authority in healthcare and consumer finance, Mitch has been featured extensively in the healthcare trade media and has published several articles. 

Before acquiring ClearBalance, Mitch was active in California real estate and high tech. He co-founded American Custody Corp., a national buyer of non-performing mortgages and REO. He later sold the business to GMAC/RFC. Mitch also co-founded Insight Electronics, a division of the Memec Group PLC, which was later acquired by Avnet Electronics. 

It is through the strategic and financial support of experienced and committed Advisory Board Members that we are able to help grow, mentor, and prepare the next generation of entrepreneurs at San Diego State University. We are seeking people who can help us achieve our strategic objectives and support us in the community. If you are interested in becoming a part of our Advisory Board, please contact Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Executive Director Dr. Alex F. DeNoble at [email protected].