Student entrepreneurs on two Philadelphia campuses have a major new resource thanks to the Blackstone LaunchPad Philadelphia, a new partnership between Philadelphia University, Temple University and the University City Science Center. The LaunchPad centers offer mentoring, coaching and other innovative co-curricular support for student entrepreneurs.
The program, developed by the University of Miami, has grown to include 14 campuses in six regions, bringing a total of 350,000 students into its network. The goal is to help students view entrepreneurship as a mainstream career path and drive regional economic development.
According to Zoe Selzer McKinley, executive director of the Blackstone LaunchPad at Philadelphia University, the 3,600-student school is the smallest in the Blackstone network. But what it lacks in size, it more than makes up for in entrepreneurial gusto.
“Philadelphia University's approach to education is collaborative, multidisciplinary and engaged in the real world, making it an ideal platform for entrepreneurship,” says McKinley. “The Blackstone LaunchPad builds on [the school's] unique approach to innovation education by providing our students a coaching program tailored to their entrepreneurial needs.”
The center had its official ribbon cutting this month, but has been operational since February. Among the student projects already in the pipeline are an online magazine (crowdfunding is being used to support a print version), a surf and snowboard company, a baseball equipment concern, fashion-related businesses and Milkcrate, an app for sustainable urban living that will launch in August.
The Blackstone LaunchPad at Temple University is housed on the first floor of the Howard Gittis Student Center and run by Executive Director Jaine Lucas and Director Marilyn Barry.
As the regional partner for Blackstone LaunchPad Philadelphia, the Science Center supports the programs at both Philadelphia University and Temple, and will develop and manage a Venture Coaching Network open to LaunchPad students. The Science Center is also identifying ways to support student entrepreneurship in the Greater Philadelphia region's broader collegiate ecosystem.
Source: Zoe Selzer McKinley, Blackstone LaunchPad at Philadelphia University, and the University City Science Center
Writer: Elise Vider