WYOMISSING, Pa. — Each spring, Penn State Startup Week powered by PNC brings together the best and brightest Penn State student and alumni entrepreneurs and innovators for a weeklong celebration of what happens when Penn State’s inspired doers put their ideas into action.
As part of this year’s Startup Week, Penn State Berks will host a variety of events — including keynote speakers, workshops, networking and more — from March 20-24. All Startup Week events are free and open to the public.
Penn State Berks events are sponsored by the Flemming Creativity, Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (CEED) Center on campus and the Berks LaunchBox, located within the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts in downtown Reading.
Mentoring Panel Webinar: CEED Center Sets the Stage for Team Mentoring
Monday, March 20, 12:15–1:15 p.m.
This event is free and open to the public but advanced registration is required. Two student startup teams, GroupIt and Streamline Charging, will discuss the benefits of the CEED Center’s Customer Discovery Lab and its team mentoring approach. The panel will be moderated by Sadan Kulturel-Konak, director of the CEED Center and professor of management information systems. GroupIt members on the webinar include Berks students Timour Almakaev and Mason Fontana; and University Park students Matt Christianson, Jess Gordon and Josh Perrine, along with academic mentor Abdullah Konak, distinguished professor of information sciences and technology, and business mentor Timothy Hillert, CEO and founder of BenXchange. Streamline Charging members include Berks students Melanie MacKinnon, Nathan Vreeland, and Mark Yazemboski and University Park student Jonathan Smith, along with faculty mentor Kathleen Hauser, assistant teaching professor of engineering, and business mentor John Gatto, principal and CEO of JGO Services LLC. Hosted by the CEED Center.
Augmented Reality to Design Warehouses
Monday, March 20, networking: 5:30–6:15 p.m., demonstration: 6:15–7 p.m.
Beaver Athletics and Wellness Center, Room 103 (networking), Room 131 (demonstration)
This event is free and open to the public but advanced registration is required. In this interactive talk by Sabahattin Gokhan Ozden, assistant professor of information technology at Penn State Abington, he will present a new tool that uses augmented reality to create warehouse layouts, including the famous Fishbone layout. He will discuss the benefits of using nontraditional warehouse designs, and will give a brief demonstration of the web tool that generates these layouts using augmented reality. Hosted by the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers Reading chapter and the CEED Center.
Flemming CEED Center Open House
Monday, March 20, 6–7 p.m., Flemming CEED Center, Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building, Room 111
This event is free and open to the public and registration is not required.
The Flemming CEED Center provides many resources to help with entrepreneurial endeavors, including prototyping. Participants will learn about these resources and how the CEED Center is engaging students from various degree programs. Hosted by the CEED Center.
3D Printing Workshop
Wednesday, March 22, 12:15–1:15 p.m., Flemming CEED Center, Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building, Room 111
This event is free and open to the public and registration is not required.
In this workshop, participants will learn how to use 3D printers for prototyping their business ideas, an important step when assessing and refining a product and obtaining more accurate market feedback. Hosted by the CEED Center
Berks LaunchBox Makerspace Open House
Wednesday, March 22, 6–8 p.m., Berks LaunchBox, located within the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts
This event is free and open to the public and registration is not required.
The public is invited to learn about the Berks LaunchBox equipment and to meet the LaunchBox staff. Attendees will learn something new and take home a free, completed laser-cut project. Hosted by the Berks LaunchBox.
Private Bits: Privacy, Intimacy, and Consent Virtual Workshop
Thursday, March 23, 2–3 p.m. This event is free and open to the public but advanced registration is required. This privacy workshop introduces algorithmic matchmakers, digital lovers, and virtual friends; explores how consent applies to digital bodies; and discusses the impact of technology on relationships and well-being, with a focus on the entrepreneurs and startups driving the growth of sex tech. It will be presented by Sarah Hartman-Caverly and Alex Chisholm, both reference and instructional librarians in the Thun Library. Hosted by the Penn State Berks Thun Library and the CEED Center.
Pivot or Press On: The Key to Startup Success — Panel Discussion and In-Person Networking Event
Thursday, March 23, networking: 6–6:30 p.m., panel discussion: 6:30–7:30 p.m., networking: 7:30–8 p.m., Berks LaunchBox, located within the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts
This event is free and open to the public but advanced registration is required. How do you recognize when it’s time to move on from a failing idea or business without feeling like you’re giving up? This panel discussion features three business owners who have had to learn from failure, pivot, and make hard choices to build sustainable and profitable businesses: Lucine Sihelnik, co-owner of the Great American Creamery Company; Justin Spannuth, vice president and COO of Unique Snacks; and Adrean Turner, CEO of Turner Coaching, Training & Consulting, LLC. The event will be moderated by Jobany Bedoya, owner of Red Tie Affairs and Diversity Mixers. Hosted by the Berks LaunchBox.
For more information about Penn State Startup Week, view the full schedule of Startup Week Events.
About Penn State Startup Week powered by PNC
Penn State Startup Week powered by PNC is a University-wide event that takes place every spring and brings some of the leading minds in entrepreneurship and innovation to Penn State campuses across the commonwealth. By connecting students with innovative alumni and pioneers who are achieving success in a variety of disciplines — through startup initiatives of their own, or with new ventures in already established organizations — Penn State Startup Week inspires students to go beyond what is expected of them and expand their minds to think more broadly in whatever career path they choose.
