Difference between revisions of "Priorities:Pennsylvania State University Student Priorities"

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= Overview<br/> =
 
= Overview<br/> =
  
Penn State offers many Innovation and Entrepreneurship resources varying from classes, to organizations to attaining funding for entrepreneurial activities. There are over 150 classes offered in the varying areas of entrepreneurship. There are 5 minors offered in the umbrella&nbsp;topic of entrepreneurship, along with a semi entrepreneruial B.S./M.B.A program. Penn State is the home to three research centers and two entrepreneurship and innovation centers. By holding continous events such as Global Entrepreneurship week, Ultimate Trader Challenge, Hackathons, Pitch competitions, Springboard competitions, PSU covers a wide area of student interests in innovation and entrepreneurship. There are only a few areas lacking for Penn State to become a fully functional entrepreneurial school.&nbsp;
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Penn State offers many Innovation and Entrepreneurship resources varying from classes, to organizations to attaining funding for entrepreneurial activities. Its biggest contributor of growth has been the "Invent Penn State" initiative, started in 2015. It was a pet-project of the current President, Eric Barron, and has lead to buildup of entreprenuerial resources in nearly every facet of Penn State life. There are over 150 classes offered in the varying areas of entrepreneurship. There are 5 minors offered in the umbrella&nbsp;topic of entrepreneurship, as well as "Launchboxes" (innovation hubs/incubators) at every campus in the ecosystem. Lots of the growth has been spurred on by various student organizations such as Innoblue (the primary entreprenuership club on campus), HackPSU (organizes by yearly hackathons with corporate sponsors), Enactus (a project-based social entreprenuership club), and Happy Valley Capital (a VC interest club). Penn State also has pitch competitions in nearly every academic discipline for startup ideas. Lastly, Penn State has a large industrial park, dubbed "Innovation Park", for local and university startups to operate.
  
The main two areas would be Perceived and Applied strategies of entrepreneurship. Specifically, Penn State needs to improve on speaker series and connection with current entrepreneurs in the perceived strategy. In the applied strategy, students need a place to work creatively with their ideas. They also need a way to gain experience in an entrepreneurial setting.
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Although Penn State has done a great job in building up these opportunities, there are still some ways we believe we can improve. We would like to provide more inspiration for students to become entrepreneurs, provide a greater culture of entreprenuership, and increase the visibility of suitable entry points in to the community. We will carry out these goals by increasing VC presence, providing entry information to freshmen, and elevating successful entreprenuerial alumni.
  
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= <br/> =
  
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= Strategy #1: Inspiring Students to Take Part<br/> =
  
Link to Prezi overview of campus ecosystem:
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Following are an array of strategies that will fully address Gap #1 over a 2-3 year period:
  
{{#Widget:Prezis|id=r4wkf5-ryonh}}
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== Step #1: Exploring New Marketing Channels for Content ==
  
== Calling all students ==
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*Description: The current Invent Penn State marketing channels are good at keeping students engaged, however we think that we need different outreach channels if we truly want to make our ideas a success and grow the ecosystem as whole.
 +
*Some ideas:
 +
*Postering Campaign (our poster prototypes worked well)
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*Pitching at Student Organizations
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*Banners?
 +
*Pushing students to join the existing mailing list
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*Innoblue Website
  
Informational Session (come hear plans, offer feedback and help expand opportunities for all students)
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== Step #2: Alumni Centered Content ==
  
*Where: [Google Hangout On Air <a href="<a href="[http://www.google.com/+/learnmore/hangouts/onair.html http://www.google.com/+/learnmore/hangouts/onair.html]">[http://www.google.com/+/learnmore/hangouts/onair.html http://www.google.com/+/learnmore/hangouts/onair.html]&lt;/a&gt;">[1]&lt;/a&gt; or other existing meeting of students interested in I&E in Engineering.]
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*Description: We want to take stories from inspirational entreprenuerial alumni, and share them with exisiting students in an easily accesible format. We hope that by showing students what their predeccesors have accomplished, it may inspire them to take a leap of faith in to entreprenuership. We will dispurse this information through the above marketing channels.
*When: [Date, Time]
 
*RSVP: [your email address, google form, eventbrite or meetup link]
 
 
 
== Strategy #1: Perceived - Bettering Speaker Series<br/> ==
 
 
 
Following are an array of strategies that will fully address Gap #1 over a 2-3 year period:
 
 
 
Tactic #1: Outreach group, Logistics group, Marketing Group
 
 
 
*Description: Get three different groups on campus that are concentrating on promoting entrepreneurship on campus. By splitting them up into committees, it easier to mark progress. The outreach group would be responsible for reaching out to alumni and businesses, interviewing them, convincing them to speak at PSU, and knowing their availability. The logistics group would be responsible for all PSU-backend things, such as booking rooms, finding PSU availability, and confirming dates and times with speakers. The marketing group would be responsible for marketing the speakers to students to increase involvement. Each committee will have a head who is responsible for making sure that work gets done in a timely manner.&nbsp;
 
*Team Leader:: Entrepreneurship Speaker Overall
 
*Milestones:&nbsp;
 
*Find interested students 2/13
 
*Make committess 3/13
 
*Get a lineup of speakers 6/13
 
*Start speaker series 10/13
 
  
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= Strategy #2: Creating a Buzzing Culture of I&E around Campus<br/> =
  
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Following are an array of strategies that will fully address Gap #2 over a 2-3 year period:
  
Tactic #2: Department Board
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== Primary Tactic: Increasing VC Presence ==
  
*Description: One faculty member and one student from each department will sit on a boad to inform the other departments regarding all entrepreneurial activities including, but not limited to, speakers. Then it can be decided whether that speaker coud also visit another department, or if they could hold a meet and greet with a few students.
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*Description: We have noticed that many of the US Entreprenuership hubs have a booming VC environment to accompany the growing businesses. Our hope, is that by increasing visits from major VC partners/companies, we will enable more local/university based startups to florish. This will in turn increase our reputation as a startup university and attract more VCs.
*Team Leader:: Department Outreach
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*Ideas:
*Milestones:&nbsp;
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*Investor Bus Tours like [https://www.events.revolution.com/ Rise of the Rest]
*Find department heads who are interested, and inform them of the board 12/13
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*Elevating the few VC firms that are present at Penn State: 1855 Capital and Contrary Capital
*Get department head to suggest a faculty, who will then suggest a student 2/13
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*Work to increase Contrary Capital's presence on campus
*Hold first meeting 3/13
 
  
== Strategy #2: Applied: Bettering Innovation Spaces and Communication<br/> ==
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== Secondary Tactic: Changing the Rules ==
  
Following are an array of strategies that will fully address Gap #2 over a 2-3 year period:
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*Description: Penn State currently has a rule that no revenue generating business can be started or operated on campus. If we want to take our ecosystem to the next level, that is something that will really need to change.
  
Tactic #1: Building Two Innovation Spaces
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= Strategy #3: Increasing Entry Point Quality and Visibility =
  
*Description: By building two innovation spaces to foster two different type of businesses, students will want to venture more into entrepreneurship. For a service based business, the innovation space should be built in the business school. For a product based business, the innovation space should be built in the engineering or IST school. The product based innovation space should include woodwork and manufacturing machinery.
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There are two main tactics we plan to employ for increasing ease of access to Penn State's I&E ecosystem:&nbsp;
*Team Leader:: &nbsp;TBD
 
*Milestones:&nbsp;
 
*Talk to department heads/president of university 12/13
 
*Get student, faculty and alumni support 3/14
 
*Find donors 6/14
 
*Construct a plan with heads of the university 10/14
 
  
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== Tactic #1: Creating a Checklist ==
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<div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br/></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Description: We are hoping to create a small and easy to use checklist for Freshmen to use to explore the I&E ecosystem. We want to include this resource in the NSO materials that accepted students receive when they first arrive on campus. The checklist will be a simple flyer with little tasks that students can accomplish to "get their feet wet" in the ecosystem.<br/></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br/></div>
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== Tactic #2: Spend A Summer Day ==
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<div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br/></div><div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Description: The university has a "Spend A Summer Day" program that allows prospective students to explore academic disciplines or colleges that they may be interested in at Penn State. Given that Invent Penn State as nearly as many facets as a college, we believe that we can create an information session that students can attend which allows them to get a taste for the PSU I&E resources. Additionally, students voluntarily sign up for these session, which means we would be getting in front of the interested demographic.</div><div><br/></div>
  
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= Related Links =
  
Tactic #2: Local Career Fair
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[[Pennsylvania State University]]
  
*Description: Hold a career fair for local businesses and students interested in working during school. This allows students to interact with entrepreneurs during the school year.&nbsp;
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'''Current Fellows:'''
*Team Leader:: Mridul Bhandari
 
*Milestones:&nbsp;
 
*Get businesses involved 9/13
 
*Inform students 10/13
 
*Test run 11/13
 
*Create a sustainable plan 1/14
 
  
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[[Michael Miller|Michael Miller]]
  
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[[Hayden Long|Hayden Long]]
  
Tactic #3: Hosting Start-up/Entrepreneurial Section at Penn State's Career Fair
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'''Previous Fellows:'''
  
*Description: Penn State invites over 500 companies to recruit during the career fair, and almost none of them are small companies. Many Penn State students want to do something entrepreneurial but lack experience. By hosting a startup section, or an entrepreneurial section during the career fair, students will be able to talk to companies that they want to work for. This allows them a chance to enhance their entrepreneurial skill while ganing experience.&nbsp;
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[[Mridul Bhandari]]
*Team Leader: Mridul Bhandari
 
*Milestones:&nbsp;
 
*Talk to companies to gage interest 10/13
 
*Talk to career fair administration 11/13
 
*Talk to Engineering and IST department heads for a push to career fair administration 12/13
 
*Contact startups and entrepreneurship companies 2/13
 
*Hold a test run 3/13
 
*Construct sustainable plan 5/13
 
  
== Other<br/> ==
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[[Category:Student Priorities|p]]
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[[Category:Student Priorities]]
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[[Category:Student Priorities]]
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[[Category:Pennsylvania_State_University]]
 +
[[Category:Student_Priorities]]
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{{CatTree|Pennsylvania_State_University}}

Latest revision as of 20:01, 5 June 2020

Overview

Penn State offers many Innovation and Entrepreneurship resources varying from classes, to organizations to attaining funding for entrepreneurial activities. Its biggest contributor of growth has been the "Invent Penn State" initiative, started in 2015. It was a pet-project of the current President, Eric Barron, and has lead to buildup of entreprenuerial resources in nearly every facet of Penn State life. There are over 150 classes offered in the varying areas of entrepreneurship. There are 5 minors offered in the umbrella topic of entrepreneurship, as well as "Launchboxes" (innovation hubs/incubators) at every campus in the ecosystem. Lots of the growth has been spurred on by various student organizations such as Innoblue (the primary entreprenuership club on campus), HackPSU (organizes by yearly hackathons with corporate sponsors), Enactus (a project-based social entreprenuership club), and Happy Valley Capital (a VC interest club). Penn State also has pitch competitions in nearly every academic discipline for startup ideas. Lastly, Penn State has a large industrial park, dubbed "Innovation Park", for local and university startups to operate.

Although Penn State has done a great job in building up these opportunities, there are still some ways we believe we can improve. We would like to provide more inspiration for students to become entrepreneurs, provide a greater culture of entreprenuership, and increase the visibility of suitable entry points in to the community. We will carry out these goals by increasing VC presence, providing entry information to freshmen, and elevating successful entreprenuerial alumni.


Strategy #1: Inspiring Students to Take Part

Following are an array of strategies that will fully address Gap #1 over a 2-3 year period:

Step #1: Exploring New Marketing Channels for Content

  • Description: The current Invent Penn State marketing channels are good at keeping students engaged, however we think that we need different outreach channels if we truly want to make our ideas a success and grow the ecosystem as whole.
  • Some ideas:
  • Postering Campaign (our poster prototypes worked well)
  • Pitching at Student Organizations
  • Banners?
  • Pushing students to join the existing mailing list
  • Innoblue Website

Step #2: Alumni Centered Content

  • Description: We want to take stories from inspirational entreprenuerial alumni, and share them with exisiting students in an easily accesible format. We hope that by showing students what their predeccesors have accomplished, it may inspire them to take a leap of faith in to entreprenuership. We will dispurse this information through the above marketing channels.

Strategy #2: Creating a Buzzing Culture of I&E around Campus

Following are an array of strategies that will fully address Gap #2 over a 2-3 year period:

Primary Tactic: Increasing VC Presence

  • Description: We have noticed that many of the US Entreprenuership hubs have a booming VC environment to accompany the growing businesses. Our hope, is that by increasing visits from major VC partners/companies, we will enable more local/university based startups to florish. This will in turn increase our reputation as a startup university and attract more VCs.
  • Ideas:
  • Investor Bus Tours like Rise of the Rest
  • Elevating the few VC firms that are present at Penn State: 1855 Capital and Contrary Capital
  • Work to increase Contrary Capital's presence on campus

Secondary Tactic: Changing the Rules

  • Description: Penn State currently has a rule that no revenue generating business can be started or operated on campus. If we want to take our ecosystem to the next level, that is something that will really need to change.

Strategy #3: Increasing Entry Point Quality and Visibility

There are two main tactics we plan to employ for increasing ease of access to Penn State's I&E ecosystem: 

Tactic #1: Creating a Checklist


Description: We are hoping to create a small and easy to use checklist for Freshmen to use to explore the I&E ecosystem. We want to include this resource in the NSO materials that accepted students receive when they first arrive on campus. The checklist will be a simple flyer with little tasks that students can accomplish to "get their feet wet" in the ecosystem.

Tactic #2: Spend A Summer Day


Description: The university has a "Spend A Summer Day" program that allows prospective students to explore academic disciplines or colleges that they may be interested in at Penn State. Given that Invent Penn State as nearly as many facets as a college, we believe that we can create an information session that students can attend which allows them to get a taste for the PSU I&E resources. Additionally, students voluntarily sign up for these session, which means we would be getting in front of the interested demographic.

Related Links

Pennsylvania State University

Current Fellows:

Michael Miller

Hayden Long

Previous Fellows:

Mridul Bhandari


Related links