sasha-temerte

C!ub app connects students with clubs for more effective communication

C!ub app and Fabio Xie

How many platforms do you use for club communications? GroupMe, Teams, Slack, email, Instagram, and iMessage all at once for different organizations?  Do you find it frustrating to keep track of it all?

Or perhaps you’ve struggled to join clubs because you couldn’t find updated information about them on your university website? Couldn’t make the club fair? Received no response to an email asking if a club still exists?

C!ub is a startup that aims to fix these issues through a mobile app platform that helps students find clubs, easily organize the list of clubs they’re involved with, and helps clubs communicate with their members. C!ub also allows students and organizations to discover other clubs around the country.

C!ub was founded by Fabio Xie ’23, studying Environment, Sustainability, and Policy and Political Science at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs and Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises at the Martin J. Whitman School of Management, who began his entrepreneurial journey by engineering a practical solution to a problem that he and friends faced on a daily basis.

His team consists of 14 other talented and passionate students who are developers and designers from a myriad of North American universities, in addition to Syracuse University students working in marketing. Although the students are from five different time zones, they have still successfully met every single week for over the past 14 months, demonstrating their commitment to the team and startup.

Recently, C!ub launched its second MVP for users from more than ten student organizations at Syracuse University to collect feedback for their next prototype.

In the future, C!ub hopes to expand its reach to institutions globally, allowing high school and college students and clubs from all around the world to connect and communicate more effectively than ever before.

To learn more about the app, check out its website and other pages. You can also read more about the startup at this article.

Story by Sasha Temerte ’23, LaunchPad Global Fellow; photo supplied

Civilian Medical Response aims to educate the public on how to respond to medical emergencies

Each year 600,000 Americans suffer from cardiac arrest and 795,000 from strokes. Most of these situations occur outside of a hospital, yet programs for public education on how to handle these emergencies are underfunded or nonexistent.

Emergency preparedness can be the difference between life and death, so it’s important to be prepared. However, while family, friends and bystanders are often the first people on the scene of a medical emergency, they’re also the same people who don’t know how to react.

As a firefighter and EMT, Jared Anderson has seen first-hand the lack of knowledge the average person has on how to respond to emergency situations — a safety problem that can be easily addressed by educating the public.

A bioengineering major in Syracuse University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science, Jared Anderson hopes to facilitate this education in a non-disruptive and accessible way.

To do so, he founded Civilian Medical Response, a nonprofit company that will provide innovative, hands-on workshops that teach the skills necessary to respond to medical emergencies.

The issue with most emergency preparedness courses is that they are often taught in a manner that is unengaging, inconsiderate of people’s time or costs significant money. Civilian Medical Response aims to change this by meeting people where they are and offering workshops that are not only free of charge but also that maximize material retention and time efficiency.

Thus far, he has already developed a preliminary curriculum with the help of emergency response experts and is working on recruiting potential workshop hosts. In the future, he hopes to also offer certifications for people and organizations to demonstrate their preparedness in the face of medical crises.

Long-term, Jared hopes the startup will change the landscape of emergency response education, leading to a more prepared public.

Story by Sasha Temerte ’23, LaunchPad Global Fellow; images supplied

Innovation Law Center office hours at the LaunchPad on November 17

people at a conference table

Need help understanding how to protect ideas or creative works? Confused about patents, trademarks and copyrights?  Join us for this week’s Innovation Law Center Office Hours on Wednesday, November 17 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at this Zoom link.

The Syracuse University Innovation Law Center + New York State Science & Technology Law Center (NYS STLC) is partnering with the LaunchPad to host office hours for innovators and inventors interested in commercializing their ideas. Hear insights from law student Jake Goldsmith and ask questions on anything related to the technical, legal, and business aspects involved in bringing new technologies to market.

If you can’t make it this week, there will be more office hours in the spring semester from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the LaunchPad on these days, hosted by these law students:

Thurs. Jan 20: Hilda Frimpong
Wed. Feb 2: Al Michalenko
Thurs. Feb 17: Hilda Frimpong
Wed. March 2: Alyssa Christian
Thurs. March 24: Alyssa Christian
Wed. Apr 6: Chris Henley

While the SU Innovation Law Center does not file for or prosecute patents, and does not provide legal advice or opinions, the LaunchPad can refer inventors and entrepreneurs to IP law firms to implement patent, trademark, copyright filings, licensing agreements and other legal work.

Ask us your questions — don’t let confusion or uncertainty about the legal aspects of startups stop you from pursuing your idea!

If you’d like to schedule a particular time during this session, please e-mail us at LaunchPad@syr.edu

Innovation Law Center office hours at the LaunchPad on November 4

people at a conference table

Need help understanding how to protect ideas or creative works? Confused about patents, trademarks and copyrights?  Join us for the next Innovation Law Center Office Hours on Thursday, November 4 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at this Zoom link.

The Syracuse University Innovation Law Center + New York State Science & Technology Law Center (NYS STLC) is partnering with the LaunchPad to host office hours for innovators and inventors interested in commercializing their ideas. Hear insights from law student Jake Goldsmith and ask questions on anything related to the technical, legal, and business aspects involved in bringing new technologies to market.

If you can’t make it this week, there will be another office hours event this semester from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on November 17, hosted by Jake Goldsmith.

While the SU Innovation Law Center does not file for or prosecute patents, and does not provide legal advice or opinions, the LaunchPad can refer inventors and entrepreneurs to IP law firms to implement patent, trademark, copyright filings, licensing agreements and other legal work.

Ask us your questions — don’t let confusion or uncertainty about the legal aspects of startups stop you from pursuing your idea!

If you’d like to schedule a particular time during this session, please e-mail us at LaunchPad@syr.edu

Patchwork launches platform for users to share and discuss content without leaving the page

two student founders in front of a light wall
Patchwork co-founders Paul Hultgren and Jackson Ensley

Have you ever read an article that you knew you had to send to a friend? If so, you probably copied and pasted the link, emailed it to yourself to open on your phone, then texted it to your friend? Or perhaps you found the perfect paragraph on medieval art for your group history project, but you had to upload the link to a shared Google Doc then struggle to explain which paragraph you were looking at? Or maybe you have read a list of “Top 10 Restaurants Near You” and had to screenshot #5 and #8 to send in your group chat?

With Patchwork, a startup venture incubating in the Syracuse University LaunchPad, content sharing is quick, easy and intuitive. Patchwork is a Google Chrome extension that allows you to share written content and hold conversations without ever needing to leave the original web page.

Its founders — Jackson Ensley, a marketing management major at the Whitman School of Management, and developer Paul Hultgren who is the LaunchPad’s inaugural Innovator in Residence — came up with the idea after realizing there is no streamlined way to discuss content online while viewing it.

As the founders explain, we live in a time where the internet is focused on integration and engagement, making it more important than ever before to have a platform that allows people to share content quickly and collaborate more efficiently. Patchwork does just this by letting users open a chat panel on the side of their screen and refer directly to specific quotes on a page.

Until now, this form of discussion has been reserved to platforms dedicated to serving academic scholars, but Patchwork makes discourse about digital information more social, fun and accessible to anyone.

In future years, Patchwork also hopes to encompass additional integrations that would allow users to share content to platforms such as Slack or Twitter.

By creating a more engaged and connected web of internet readers, Patchwork will transform the way we view information, one shared link and quote at a time.

Story by Sasha Temerte ’23, LaunchPad Global Fellow

Next Innovation Law Center office hours at the LaunchPad on October 20

people at a conference table

Need help understanding how to protect ideas or creative works? Confused about patents, trademarks and copyrights? Join us for the next Innovation Law Center Office Hours on Wednesday, October 20 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at this Zoom link.

The Syracuse University Innovation Law Center + New York State Science & Technology Law Center (NYS STLC) is partnering with the LaunchPad to host office hours for innovators and inventors interested in commercializing their ideas. Hear insights from law student Cierra Thomas and ask questions on anything related to the technical, legal, and business aspects involved in bringing new technologies to market.

If you can’t make it this week, other upcoming office hours this semester will be from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the LaunchPad on these days, hosted by these law students:

Thurs. Nov 4: Jake Goldsmith
Wed. Nov 17: Jake Goldsmith

While the SU Innovation Law Center does not file for or prosecute patents, and does not provide legal advice or opinions, the LaunchPad can refer inventors and entrepreneurs to IP law firms to implement patent, trademark, copyright filings, licensing agreements and other legal work.

Ask us your questions — don’t let confusion or uncertainty about the legal aspects of startups stop you from pursuing your idea!

If you’d like to schedule a particular time during this session, please e-mail us: LaunchPad@syr.edu

Carlos Magdaleno ’23 on his growth as a video creator

Lost in the crowd, Carlos clicks his camera into manual mode. He raises his arms above the herd, turning in circles to capture a 360-view of the dancing bodies and smiling faces. As he films, the camera swallows up the bellowing roar of the singing and cheering.

Later that same night, Carlos’s eyes dart between monitors to edit the concert footage. The computer is one he built himself — one that can handle the magnitude of the processing speed his video editing demands.

On Carlos’s wall are five photographs: a drone shot of the beach, city streets, the setting sun, a dreamy waterfall, and a beloved image of Syracuse University’s Crouse Hall. Although the five images are very different, they echo a unifying theme: Carlos’s love for capturing the moment, whether that moment is peaceful nature or the hustle and bustle of people living life.

Carlos Magdaleno, an advertising major in the Newhouse School of Public Communications, picked up a camera for the first time his senior year of high school and never put it down.

“Once I got behind the camera, I fell in love with it,” he said.

Now, he is a 2021 – 2022 Zaccai Foundation Fellow for Syracuse University’s Blackstone LaunchPad, where he films content to promote entrepreneurship on campus. Outside of Blackstone LaunchPad, Carlos is also involved with the University Union production team, where he can capture the energy of student life.

But Carlos’s knack for videography didn’t come naturally nor was he taught the basics in school. His passion fueled his initiative to teach himself how to film and edit by watching hours of instructional videos and putting the craft into practice.

“It wasn’t easy to do. There are hours behind the scenes, hours I put in that nobody notices,” he said.

Carlos also experienced difficulties as a first-generation college student coming from a background where traditional education is taken more seriously than a career path as a creative in the digital sphere. He initially began as a computer science major before realizing the work left him drained and unfulfilled. Quickly, he turned back to his creative calling.

Carlos explained that creativity is not something that can be taught, and that’s what shapes someone into an innovator.

“You can teach someone the fundamentals of a skill or equipment, but what they create after that is up to them,” Carlos noted. “You have to stand out, especially in a digital world full of content that repeats and imitates. When you take inspiration from something, you need to add your own spin on it to make the content your own.”

As he improved, Carlos began to reach out to people to get involved with moments he was hoping to capture, but his focus is still on perfecting the craft, creating things he finds beautiful and putting his work out for the world to see.

The previous summer was Carlos’s first major project: filming two festivals in California and a concert for Snoop Dogg. The opportunity was monumental because it was the first time someone had reached out to and put faith in Carlos to work on the video production for such a popular event.

Carlos especially loves filming for concerts because of the potential to capture the energy of an audience: “While shooting, I try to soak in all the energy, then do my best to bring that to life through the edits of both the visuals and sound.”

Down the road, Carlos hopes to either work for a production company or run one of his own. For the time being, he is working on developing reliable connections with people and building a brand for himself as a creator.

“I want to create things and build something for myself that I can be proud of,” Carlos said as he reflected on how far he’s already come.

Looking back, Carlos regrets how much time he spent worrying about what people would think of him, so he advises other creative entrepreneurs to refrain from this same concern: “Honestly, people don’t care that much, so just do what you love.”

“Put yourself out there and keep going,” he added with a smile.

Carlos’s latest photo and video projects can be found on his Instagram, @cjmagdal.

Story by Sasha Temerte ’23, LaunchPad Global Fellow; photo supplied

Announcing our first ever virtual IDEAS Competition with $1,000 prizes for top campus winners and a chance at a $10,000 grand prize

Do you have an early stage idea? Do you need funding to work on it? Or maybe just some motivation to act on it? The Blackstone LaunchPad is pleased to announce our first ever virtual Ideas Competition. The program is designed for students who are brand new to the world of innovation and have very early-stage ideas. The new signature program, supported by cash prizes through the Blackstone Charitable Foundation, is designed to help encourage students to take the first step with a simple and easy chance to compete virtually for campus awards, as well as the opportunity to move on to a network-wide round. The competition is completely virtual, so Syracuse students from any discipline, as well as those studying abroad, are welcome to participate.  Applications are already open and are due by October 21. It’s simple, easy and fun.

Here’s how it works:

  1. Participants will need to select from one of the following four tracks:
  • Social and Climate Impact: Sustainability, education, human rights, poverty alleviation, racial and social justice
  • Health & Life Science: Biotech/sciences, health & medical science, healthcare
  • Consumer Products & Services
  • General 

2. After selecting a track, there are just a few questions.  You will be asked to briefly describe your idea, your target customer, a plan to generate revenue, your passion and your leadership potential.

3. Once you have prepared your answers, the application itself will only take a few minutes to complete.

4. The top track winners of the campus round will each take home $1,000. Then, four finalists from each campus will advance to the network round to compete for an additional $10,000 and coaching by experts to develop branding, technology and product strategy.

Eligibility guidelines:

  • Must be a current student (undergraduate or graduate-level) ​ 
  • Must be a “founder/co-founder” (i.e., the person with the original idea) 
  • Must be in the earliest stages, meaning just at the idea stage and have just started thinking about it
  • Must apply as an individual or in teams of two​

Key dates:

  • October 4:  Applications open for campus round
  • October 21:  Deadline to apply for campus round.  Apply here.
    • All applications must be submitted by 11:59PM ET on Thursday, October 21
  • October 23:  Fun team building event at Bird Library, “Startup in a Day” (watch for details)
  • October 25 to November 15:  Campus deliberation period
    • Applicants will be evaluated and scored 
  • November 15:  Campus awards announced
    • Winner from each track across each school will be announced
    • Campus winners will be invited to the finalist network round, competing against the 46 schools in the LaunchPad network
  • December 1: Deadline for LaunchPad network round finalist participation and a chance at $10,000

This competition is particularly geared to first time entrants.  Are you part of a Syracuse Learning Community?  Are you taking a EEE class in Whitman and working on an idea for a class project?  Are you taking an IDS class in the iSchool and working on ideation?  Are you exploring a digital media platform in Newhouse?  Are you playing around with an idea related to sports entrepreneurship or food entrepreneurship in Falk?  Are you a VPA student thinking about launching a career as a creator?  Are you a Maxwell student thinking about impact engagement and how you can make a difference in the world?  Are you an education student thinking of ways that system could be improved through programs or new technology?  Are you a School of Architecture student who has an idea about a design project?  Or, an Engineering and Computer Science who has been drawing product ideas in a notebook, or fooling around with an idea for a new app? 

We want to hear from you, even if it is just the earliest seed of an idea.  Because that’s where creativity and innovation start — at the very beginning of a journey.

We’re excited to discover some of the best ideas germinating on campus. Submit them here for a chance to win cash awards for the top ideas.

For questions, email launchpad@syr.edu.

Story by LaunchPad Global Fellow Sasha Temerte ’23

Meet the 2021-2022 LaunchPad student team

group of students in front of the LaunchPad in Bird Library
Some of this year’s new LaunchPad student team gather in front of the LaunchPad. This year’s team is bigger than ever, thanks to generous support by donors to SU Libraries. They are subject matter experts, mentors and outreach and engagement specialists.

Welcome to an exciting year of innovation brought to you by a dynamic new Blackstone LaunchPad at Syracuse University team.  Thanks to generous donor gifts to SU Libraries, this year’s student team has been expanded to 28 paid roles as mentors, subject matter experts, outreach and engagement specialists, and ambassadors for diversity and inclusion.  Meet the new 2021 – 2022 student team here.

This year’s team includes Global Fellows, Blackstone LaunchPad Community Managers, Rubin Family Innovation Mentors, Launchstars, Todd B. Rubin Diversity and Inclusion Scholars, a Hunter Brooks Watson Scholar, a Hult Prize Campus Ambassador, an Innovator in Residence, and Zaccai Foundation Fellows.

LaunchPad Global Fellows are subject matter experts in various disciplines such as engineering, software and data management, industrial and interaction design and product development, graphic design, web design, UX-UI, all forms of digital media and content development, as well as marketing, sales and finance. 

2021 – 2022 LaunchPad Global Fellows include:

  • Alesandra (Sasha) Temerte ’23, Maxwell, economics and Arts and Sciences, writing and rhetoric
  • Jack Lyons ’22, Whitman, marketing management and Newhouse, advertising
  • Matt Keenan ’22, Whitman, marketing management
  • Claire Howard ’23, Maxwell, economics and international relations
  • Selim Dangoor ’23, Engineering and Computer Science, computer science

Blackstone LaunchPad Community Managers work on outreach and engagement through new technology platform initiatives coming soon, such as Startup Tree. 

2021 – 2022 Blackstone LaunchPad Community Managers include:

  • Kelly Davis ’21; Whitman; entrepreneurship and emerging enterprises and Newhouse; television, radio and film
  • Claire Howard ’23, Maxwell, economics and international relations
  • Justin Gluska ’23, Engineering and Computer Science, computer science
  • Michael Young ’22, Whitman double major in finance and real estate

Rubin Family Innovation Mentors serve as peer advisors to a portfolio of student startups, coaching them on strategy and venture development.  They are funded through a generous gift from the Rubin Family Foundation.

2021 – 2022 Rubin Family Innovation Mentors include:

  • Bruno Gonzalez Hauger G ’22, Whitman, entrepreneurship and emerging enterprises, and ’21, Whitman entrepreneurship and emerging enterprises and Newhouse, advertising
  • Kelly Davis ‘21; Whitman; entrepreneurship and emerging enterprises and Newhouse; television, radio and film
  • Ben Ford ’23, Whitman, marketing management and iSchool, data analytics
  • Jackson Ensley ‘22, Whitman, marketing management
  • James LePage ’22, Whitman, real estate and entrepreneurship

Launchstars are multi-talented subject matter experts who will provide “Startup Studio” assistance to student ventures and also help with mentoring

2021 – 2022 Launchstars include:

  • Brandon Henry ’24, Maxwell, economics
  • Diego Luna ’22, Arts and Sciences, biotechnology
  • Fardin Nasir ’23, Whitman, marketing management
  • Andrew Kim, ’24, Whitman, marketing management and finance
  • Alexandra Santangelo, ’23, VPA, industrial and interaction design
  • Josh Alter, ’22, Whitman, finance

Todd B. Rubin Diversity and Inclusion Scholars, also funded through a generous gift from Todd B. Rubin ’04, Architecture, work to broaden diversity and inclusion outreach and programming, expand participation in entrepreneurship by underrepresented groups and support the University’s commitment to diversity and inclusion.

2021 – 2022 Todd R. Rubin Innovation and Diversity Scholars include:

  • Ze Zing ’22, Whitman, finance and business analytics
  • Natalie Lui ’22, Visual and Performing Arts, fashion design and history

Hunter Brooks Watson Scholars are supported through a generous gift from the Hunter Watson Memorial Fund.  It is Inspired by Syracuse University’s Remembrance Scholar program, and was established as a way to honor the life and entrepreneurial spirit of Hunter Brooks Watson, a Syracuse University student who passed away after injuries suffered in a tragic 2016 distracted driving car accident. The Syracuse University Hunter Brooks Watson Scholar peer mentors students and builds the pipeline of innovative students who exemplify the “spirit of entrepreneurship.”

The 2021 – 2022 Hunter Brooks Watson Scholar is:

  • John Ramza ’23, Whitman, business analytics

The Syracuse University Hult Prize Campus Ambassador helps organize the campus Hult Prize competition at Syracuse University.  It is part of a global competition that is often referred to as the “Nobel Prize” of student impact entrepreneurship.

The 2020 – 2021 Syracuse University Hult Prize Campus Ambassador is:

  • Claire Howard ’23, Maxwell, economics and international relations

Innovator in Residence is a talented visiting entrepreneur who is incubating in the LaunchPad while providing technical assistance and mentoring to LaunchPad student ventures.

The 2021 – 2022 Innovator in Residence is:

  • Paul Hultgren, serial entrepreneur co-founder and lead software developer of Popcycle, ModoSuite and Patchwork

Zaccai Foundation Fellows are interdisciplinary subject matter experts and peer mentors supporting the Intelligence ++ inclusive design and entrepreneurship program in partnership with InclusiveU and the VPA School of Design

2021 – 2022 Zaccai Foundation Fellows include:

  • Season Chowdhury ’23, Engineering and Computer Science, computer science
  • Sydney Grosso ’23, Falk, public health and Maxwell, policy studies
  • Carlos Magdaleno ’23, Newhouse, advertising
  • Samba Soumare ’24, Maxwell, international relations
  • Songyn Shi, G’22, architecture

Together, the LaunchPad team provides multi-disciplinary skill sets and expansive services to help all members of the Syracuse University community explore innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship, and build professional and personal skill sets to succeed.

“The Libraries is grateful to Todd for his continued support for Syracuse University’s innovation hub and encouraging diversity and inclusion,” said David Seaman, Dean of Syracuse University Libraries and University Librarian.  “The LaunchPad is an incubation environment for students from 116 countries around the world to grow and flourish. It provides experiential opportunities for innovative students to interact with a variety of people from different backgrounds, with different interests, from all the academic disciplines across campus. This type of learning significantly compliments what they learn in a classroom, helping them understand how to become thoughtful and engaged citizens and change-makers.”

Story by Sasha Temerte ’23; photo by LaunchPad staff

Meet Sophia Sparrgrove ’22, president of Syracuse’s Entrepreneurship Club

outdoor portrait of a woman

In the basement of the Whitman School of Management at 8pm every Monday, dozens of students gather in Lender Auditorium to network with fellow entrepreneurs and listen to guest speakers. Entrepreneurship Club — better known as eClub — is dedicated to encouraging the spirit of entrepreneurship on campus by connecting students with successful entrepreneurs, local businesses, and workshop events that teach valuable skills like ideation and pitching.

Sophia Sparrgrove, this year’s president of eClub, explained that being part of the club is deeply inspiring and has shaped her trajectory as a Syracuse student in the entrepreneurship field. Outside of eClub, Sophia is heavily involved with Delta Sigma Pi, a professional business fraternity that has also taught her important leadership skills.

Sophia has had an entrepreneurial streak since she was an elementary school child in Virginia, where she was selling handmade cards and jewelry, opening a restaurant for her family in her very own kitchen, and keeping a running list of business ideas on her phone.

Now, she is majoring in Marketing in addition to Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises through the Whitman School of Management. Beyond this, she is pursuing a nutrition minor to supplement her passion for the business she hopes to ultimately open — a spiritual-themed smoothie shop that inspires customers to reflect on their health, happiness, and wellbeing.

“We’re losing touch with the world around us, especially with the rise of technology leading us to be wrapped up in our phones, so I want to create a space where people can feel back in touch with themselves and their community — a space to have experiences and meet people,” Sophia explained.

She is also committed to opening a business that’s sustainable. “A lot of pressure is put on consumers to be sustainable,” Sophia said. “But 80-90% of these emissions are from corporations. So, to create real change, we need to create sustainable corporations.”

As someone who doesn’t own a business quite yet, Sophia emphasized that eClub isn’t just for students who currently have a business idea — it’s for anyone who generally has an interest in entrepreneurship. Being part of the club helped Sophia develop her confidence, come up with new ideas, improve her pitch for Whitman capstone, learn to network, and pursue her goals.

“That said, this is a great time to start your own business, while you’re a student,” Sophia added, referring to the limitless number of resources and funding available on campus, such as eClub or Syracuse University’s Blackstone Launchpad & Techstars.

Sophia also noted that although people often feel as though they need to start a scalable, tech-based business, eClub is open to students with all kinds of ideas. One of Sophia’s favorite past speakers, the founder of XO Taco and Original Grain, provided her with insights that will someday help her start her own brick-and-mortar shop.

“We have speakers in tech, in food, in anything really. So, you can relate to those special interests and determine the direction you want to take in the future,” Sophia stated.

This year, Sophia is aiming to get students more actively involved in the club to feel part of a community rather than only hosting events where students watch speakers. Especially after the previous year’s semester on Zoom, Sophia believes it’s important to engage students through workshops, challenges, pitches, and mini competitions.

When asked what she believes it means to be an innovator, Sophia said, “An innovator is someone who is thinking ahead to the future, where things are going and how they can fit into that. Not everyone can do this because so many people are resistant to change. Innovators are those who are excited about those changes and want to be a part of them.”

Following this year, Sophia plans to work for a startup or small company with a nutrition focus, where she can take an entrepreneurial approach to marketing. Once she has experience under her belt, she will then take the leap on starting her dream business.

In the meantime, she encourages aspiring entrepreneurs to keep an open mind. “Do a lot of listening and reading,” she said. “A lot of entrepreneurship classes can be jarring because they focus on how businesses fail, but that’s why you need to listen to the experiences of other entrepreneurs — to learn from them and their failures. That’s why eClub is so important too.”

To join eClub, email Sophia at snsparrg@syr.edu or fill out this form. The first meeting of the year will be Monday, September 27th at 8pm in Lender Auditorium, which is room 007 in the Whitman School of Management.

Story by Sasha Temerte ’23, LaunchPad Global Fellow; photo supplied