Penn State Berks to celebrate Global Entrepreneurship Week

GEW standup banners
Credit: Penn State

WYOMISSING, Pa. — As part of Penn State’s Global Entrepreneurship Week, Penn State Berks will hold a variety of events for aspiring entrepreneurs from Nov. 16 to 20. The events are sponsored by the college’s Flemming Creativity, Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (CEED) Center and the Berks LaunchBox, an incubation hub located in the city of Reading.

Berks LaunchBox hosts Latinx founders for virtual startup success event

Wednesday, Nov. 18, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
This session will be presented in Spanish and it is free and open to the public. 

Latinx founders will share their startup journey, including why they decided to start their own business, obstacles they faced along the way, and key resources that helped them launch their companies. This event is co-sponsored by the Berks LaunchBox and the Hazleton LaunchBox. The goal is to inspire new Latinx entrepreneurs in the Reading and Hazleton communities.  Panelists will include Nicol Cancelmo-Varona and Cory Dahlia Varona-Corniel, co-founders of DN Organics; Jessica Rodriguez, administrator at Manuel’s Empanadas; Jennifer Malaga, co-founder of Malaga’s Cleaning Company; and Josue Torres, founder of Azure Vista Financial LLC. Participants must register in advance and connection information will be sent via email.

Flemming Creativity, Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (CEED) Center hosts Entrepreneurship Speaker Series

Wednesday, Nov. 18, 7 to 8 p.m.
This event is free and open to the public.
Entrepreneurs will share their challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic in a webinar titled “Customer discovery-challenges during the pandemic” via Zoom. Panelists include Ryan Morris, founder of Traduki Technologies; Caitlin Morris, marketing and financial manager of Traduki Technologies; Danielle Pritz, founder and owner of Sprockety; Joseph Sinclair, founder of Verde Mantis; and Mandy Heard, general manager of Verde Mantis. This event will be held via Zoom. All participants must pre-register and meeting information will be sent to them via email.

Flemming Creativity, Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (CEED) Center hosts Open House

Thursday, Nov. 19, 6 p.m.
This event is free and open to the public.

The Flemming CEED Center and the Entrepreneurship Club will host a virtual open house to highlight the various resources that can help students with their entrepreneurial endeavors at Penn State Berks. The event will begin with videos of students sharing their entrepreneurship experiences. Representatives of the center, students enrolled in the entrepreneurship and innovation minor, and club members will discuss how the center, the minor and the club help students to develop their business ideas. The club will also talk about their experience with 3D printing. In addition, the event will also highlight the Nittany AI Challenge. There will be time for questions and discussion. To participate, visit their Zoom site: https://psu.zoom.us/j/92377156856

Berks LaunchBox offers open studio time

Appointments available Tuesday, Nov. 17, 10 a.m.–noon, and Thursday, Nov. 19, 6–8:30 p.m.
Appointments are free and open to the public.

The Berks LaunchBox is open by appointment on the dates and times listed above during Global Entrepreneurship Week. Interested parties can schedule a tour of the facility, located within the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts in downtown Reading, and learn more about the equipment available. Prospective entrepreneurs are also able to speak with a mechanical engineer about prototyping an idea. Schedule an appointment or complete this form to request assistance.

Flemming Creativity, Entrepreneurship and Economic Development Center Student Enterprise Award submissions due Nov. 20

For Penn State Berks students only.

Penn State Berks students who have an original idea for a product or service are invited to enter the Student Enterprise Award Contest. The Student Enterprise Award Contest is the Penn State Berks version of "Shark Tank": Students present their ideas for a business start-up, and the college's Flemming CEED Center presents the winning teams with the Student Enterprise Award (up to $3,000) to be used as seed funding to support an innovative student or student team in their business startup. Applications are due by 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 30, and business plans are due by 5 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 4. For more information on the award, visit https://berks.psu.edu/about-the-student-enterprise-award. For additional information or questions, contact Professor John Weber, competition coordinator, at [email protected].

About the Flemming Creativity, Entrepreneurship and Economic Development Center

The Flemming Creativity, Entrepreneurship, and Economic Development Center (CEED Center) was established in the fall of 2011 as part of the new Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building. Its mission is to inspire an entrepreneurial spirit and innovative thinking in the Penn State Berks community and to foster economic growth and development in the Greater Reading area. For more information, visit https://berks.psu.edu/flemming-ceed-center or contact Sadan Kulturel-Konak, professor of management information systems and director of the Flemming CEED Center.

About the Berks LaunchBox

The mission of the Berks LaunchBox, located in Suite 105 of the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts in downtown Reading, is to support economic development and entrepreneurship. An innovation hub of Penn State Berks, the Berks LaunchBox connects local entrepreneurs to the support, resources, and facilities that they need to build sustainable and scalable businesses with a viable plan for growth. Services include assistance with prototyping, conducting market research, and connecting with advisors. The Berks LaunchBox offers entrepreneurship workshops, co-working space for startups, Meetups focused on business development, a makerspace with 3D printers for prototyping, and special youth programs.

The Berks LaunchBox is supported by Invent Penn State — a commonwealth-wide initiative to spur economic development, job creation and student success, launched by Penn State President Eric J. Barron in 2016. For more information, visit berkslaunchbox.psu.edu or contact Michelle Hnath, Berks LaunchBox facility coordinator, at [email protected] or 610-914-7595.