DEC wins prestigious Deshpande Award for Entrepreneurial Education. Tufts Venture Accelerator reaches new heights. Precollege program welcomes high school entrepreneurs to Tufts. Entrepreneurial alumni events. New website and course offerings.
The prestigious award was presented to the Tufts team at the11th Annual Deshpande Symposium. The award recognizes an exemplary commitment to, and success in, developing and offering innovative educational courses or programs that foster entrepreneurship education across an institution.
DEC was recognized for its dedication in making entrepreneurship education equitable and accessible to everyone at Tufts.
With coaching, mentorship, and determination, ourTufts Venture Accelerator teams are advancing in leaps and bounds. At the program's halfway point last week, every team has built a deep understanding of their customers; several teams have deployed their solutions in their market; and some are generating revenue, while others have acquired beta customers.
Teams presented their midpoint pitches and executive summaries on July 14, 2022, to a panel of experienced entrepreneurs as well as our pre-college students. They received timely and tailored feedback to help them accelerate their progress.
The Tufts Venture Accelerator will be wrapping up on August 18th. Sign up forDemo Dayand show your support for our Jumbopreneurs!
Students formed teams, brainstormed problems to solve, performed primary market research to understand customer needs, and then came up with solutions, culminating in a pitch on Demo Day on Friday, July 22, 2022. They also went on a field trip toMassChallengeto check out the Boston entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Students came away with a new appreciation of their own creativity and ability to innovate, as well as skills and tools to turn their ideas to action. We hope to see some of them return as first-year students at Tufts!
Alumni Updates
Techstars Boston 2022 Cohort Features Three Tufts-Affiliated Teams
MarkIt Socialis led by cofounder and CEO,Jonathan Chang, E19andBrawner Quan. They have built a Tinder-style event discovery platform to connect independent artists and performers with people looking for local in-person experiences.
LegacyShiftis led by cofounderSandra Babu-Boateng, F21. They are building a platform at the intersection of work-based learning, skills training and wellness, targeting multicultural consumers.
Hera Health Solutionsis led by DEC Entrepreneur-in-Residence,Idicula Mathew. The company produces a pharmaceutical biodegradable device that provides long-acting dosing by combining existing drugs in combination with FDA-approved structural materials.
Fall Course Spotlight: ENT193.01 "Introduction To Making"
Summer is a great time to invent new courses. The instruction team for our newIntroduction to Makingcourse,Mac CameronandElaine Chen, did some curriculum development inNolop, a makerspace open to all at Tufts.
This course is the perfect setting for students with no engineering experience to learn to print objects on a 3D printer, build simple electrical circuits, and write Arduino code to control small robots. They will learn the entrepreneurial mindset through rapid iterations. We can't wait to welcome the first cohort to our course!
DEC and the Tufts Entrepreneurial Network (TEN) Event
August 18, 2022: "Celebration of Entrepreneurship"
Tufts Venture Accelerator participants will be wrapping up their summer experience on August 18th with a Celebration of Entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurial Tufts Alumni are invited to network and celebrate with the group at the Painted Burro in Davis Square.
Techstars Boston is bringing together founders, mentors, investors, and thought leaders together in one place. At the House of Blues in Fenway on August 10th from 9:30 PM to 12 AM, companies will be sharing how they are saving lives, saving the planet, and transforming the way we live and work.
Join this unique event on August 22nd to network and spend time with hundreds of inspiring women in tech. Women who are breaking barriers, innovating, and flourishing. Info sessions, keynote speakers, and panel discussions will inspire you.