The 2023-2024 school year marked the exciting return of the Cultivate program, offering students within the College an opportunity to cultivate their entrepreneurial skills. Through Cultivate, student teams embarked on a journey to create their own business ventures from scratch. They developed comprehensive business plans, conducted consumer research, crafted budgets, designed branding strategies, and honed their pitching skills for the chance to win up to $2000!
With a range of activities throughout the year, students immersed themselves in the entrepreneurial process. They attended informational sessions to refine their business ideas, seized networking opportunities to connect with potential mentors, and ultimately competed in the final pitch competition.
The program saw remarkable participation, with over 45 students from within the College joining in to explore their entrepreneurial spirit and bring their business concepts to life.
| Date | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 09/11/2024 | Cultivate Interest Session | Learn more about CultivateMeet Potential Teammates |
| 09/25/2024 | Unleash Creativity | Brainstorm IdeasJoin a Team |
| 10/16/2024 | Idea Expansion | Network with Mentors, Industry Professionals & Experienced Entrepreneurs |
| 10/30/2024 | Pitch Design | Learn more about marketing, budgeting, and creation of a pitch to move forward your idea forward |
| 11/01/2024 – 11/14/2024 | Connect with Mentors | Meet with your mentor to finalize your pitch for seed funding |
| 11/20/2024 | Seed Funding Pitch | Pitch your innovative idea for the chance to receive up to $500 in seed funding! |
| Jan 2025 | Develop Business Storyboard | Learn how to develop a commercial to advertise your business idea |
| Feb 2025 | Pitch Practice | Participate in a full run-through of your pitch to receive constructive feedback prior to the final competition |
| 03/12/2025 | Cultivate Competition | Present your business idea to a panel of judges and compete for up to $2000 in prize money! |
| Late March 2025 | Launchpad Application | Apply to participate in the University Launchpad competition |
| Late April 2025 | Grow | Students will be provided resources to continue growing and improving their idea while also being challenged to think about how to make this experience transferable on their resume. Guest Speaker (Paula Beecher) |
