Student entrepreneurs celebrate Global Entrepreneurship Week

5 p.m., Nov. 18, 2013--In honor of Global Entrepreneurship Week being marked Nov.18-24, and in spirit of the upcoming holidays, the University of Delaware’s Horn Program in Entrepreneurship asked young entrepreneurs what they are thankful for.

The program also invites the UD community to respond to the question, “What are you thankful for?” by sharing on Facebook and Twitter using the hashtag #ThankfulTrep.

Campus Stories

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As it neared time for the processional to open the University of Delaware Commencement ceremonies, graduating students and faculty members shared their feelings about what the event means to them.

Doctoral hooding

It was a day of triumph, cheers and collective relief as more than 160 students from 21 nations participated in the University of Delaware's Doctoral Hooding Convocation held Friday morning on The Green.

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VentureBeat app

Russell Sonenclar, senior in the College of Arts and Sciences, is thankful for the VentureBeat app. He said he reads it on a daily basis and attributes a great amount of his success to it, and great advice for a young entrepreneur is to read anything and everything related to startups. There is a lot of valuable information out there, and Sonenclar uses this app to gather it all in one place with the tap of a button.

Lean Startup Method

Austin Crouse, a junior in the College of Engineering, along with Sonenclar and many other young aspiring entrepreneurs, is grateful for being taught the Lean Startup Method through the Horn Program’s curricular and co-curricular activities. The Lean Startup Method teaches young entrepreneurs a scientific approach to inventing and managing startups with the goal of producing and distributing the desired product to consumers as quickly as possible, spending the least amount of money up front.

Mentorship

Greg Starr said he, like many young entrepreneurs, is thankful for having mentors. Without mentorship, the success of entrepreneurial businesses would not be possible. Mentors act as a support system for these ambitious individuals and provide guidance through their entrepreneurial endeavors. Finding that one vital person to act as a mentor can make all the difference. 

Collaborative space

Young entrepreneurs value having a place where they can let their creative juices flow and collaborate with business partners and mentors, said Danny Auerbach, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences. These areas provide a physical location for entrepreneurs to transfer their business ideas from mind to paper and map out how to get their plans in motion. Entrepreneurial students on the UD campus are looking forward to the opening of the Horn Program’s new Venture Development Center in the spring semester, where they’ll be able to take advantage of resources that will help them launch their entrepreneurial ideas. 

Entrepreneurial community

The entrepreneurial community has an incredibly supportive culture at UD and students say they value the ability to bounce ideas back and forth and receive constructive criticism from one another. Ben Rapkin, president of the Entrepreneurship Club, said he is thankful for the dedicated, passionate and supportive community of entrepreneurs at the University. The success of great entrepreneurs is dependent on the unique type of community they come from. 

Article by Erin Gray and Christina Droppa