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- Academy Marketing Honored with Three National Awards
Graphic Design USA - American InHouse Design Awards
The Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership, and Associate Director Kimberly Sugden, were honored with three national awards from the Graphic Design USA, American InHouse Design Awards, the premier showcase for inhouse design excellence. The GD USA awards were created to recognize and inspire graphic design achievements from InHouse designers from across the nation. Over 4,000 applications were submitted to this year's competition.
>>Full article - Alumnus Louis Foreman - Executive Producer of Everyday Edisons, Inducted to the US Patent Public Advisory Committee
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez recently named three new members to the Patent Public Advisory Committee (PPAC), where they will serve three-year terms. Louis J. Foreman a University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana alumnus and friend of the Academy, proudly accepted this honor to serve on the PPAC committee.
>>Full article - Academy Supports Social Entrepreneurship Summer Institute
The first annual Social Entrepreneurship Summer Institute (SESI), was offered by the College of Business in June 2007. SESI provided local community organizations with free business training over three consecutive weekends, and thereafter placed College of Business and other undergraduate students in those organizations as unpaid summer interns. SESI’s two-part format (classes and internships) was intended to both develop the organizations’ business acumen, and to help them better accomplish their stated missions.
>> Full article - Michael Callahan Wins National Entrepreneurship Honors
Michael Callahan, the 24-year-old UIUC entrepreneur, and founder of Ambient Corporation was voted "Best Emerging Venture Investment Opportunity" taking home the first place at the 4th Annual Spirit of Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development (S.E.E.D.) competition.
>> Full article - Risa Stack Named Entrepreneur in Residence
University of Illinois Alumnus Risa Stack was named an Academy Entrepreneur in Residence because of her dedication to the field of entrepreneurship. Risa is currently a partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, one of the world’s premiere venture capital firms.
>> Full article - IdeaBounce into Student Entrepreneurship
The inaugural Illinois IdeaBounce Competition, held on March 5, 2007, kicked off National Entrepreneurship Week on the University of Illinois campus. The Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership in partnership with the Daily Illini received fifty-four unique entrepreneurial idea submissions from UIUC students.
>> Full article - Fifteen Faculty Win Entrepreneurial Honors
The Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership is proud to announce the 2007-2008 recipients of the Faculty Fellows awards. The fifteen newly elected fellows will spend the upcoming academic year teaching courses involving entrepreneurship across both the University of Illinois and Parkland campuses.
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>> View information on each Faculty Fellow - The Founder of Kinkos Speaks at Illinois
Paul Orfalea, the founder of Kinkos, told his story of entrepreneurial success to students and community members in a packed Spurlock Auditorium on November 8, 2006, as part of the "Spotlight on the Entrepreneur" lecture series. Orfalea's story is unique because he overcame dyslexia and hyperactivity to grow Kinkos from a small private shop in California, to a multi-billion dollar business.
>> Full article - Entrepreneurial Artists Make a Splash at Illinois
The Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership proudly sponsored an afternoon of artists and entrepreneurship on September 9, 2006 in the new Alice Campbell Alumni Center. Renowned artists from the Champaign-Urbana community sat on an interactive panel to discuss their start-up stories and how entrepreneurship has shaped their careers.
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Healthcare Startups in Tech Boom
The University of Illinois Foundation in partnership with the Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership, was proud to welcome James Bradley to campus and invited him to share his story of entrepreneurial success in the healthcare industry. Mr. Bradley discussed his start in corporate America and his dream to put the knowledge he had acquired to use with a business of his own.
>> Full article - Academy Launches Programs with History of Entrepreneurism and Labor Characteristics
Fittingly, David B. Audretsch delivered a review of the history of entrepreneurship in his lecture in early December, the first of the newly established Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership. According to Audretsch, the role of entrepreneurship and small business has evolved considerably since the Second World War and is considered today to be a strategic competitive investment in global markets.
>> Full article - Illinois Faculty Explain Their Entrepreneurial Drive
Marked signs of a strong entrepreneurial zeal at the U of I and surrounding Champaign-Urbana area emanated from the first panel discussion hosted by the Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership. The December session united four successful faculty members who have managed to cohesively merge their entrepreneurial drives with their passions for teaching.
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