Andy Greenfield ’74 presents to the class
Colgate University’s 6th annual Thought Into Action (TIA) Entrepreneurship Institute Student Incubator class of 2014/15 recently kicked off with great enthusiasm from both entrepreneurs and mentors. The new crop of startups combines fresh ideas with ambitious growth plans.
Bob Gold ’80 networks over lunch with Daniel Luntzel ’17
TIA helps entrepreneurs master the “craft of doing” and transform concepts into enterprises. Most important to the ‘culture of doing’ is stressing to entrepreneurs that even if they are on the right track, they are going to get run over if they just sit there. TIA founder Andy Greenfield ’74 credits the program’s success and rapid growth to the incredible commitment of the alumni, parent, and community mentors. He often reminds participants that “a one person band makes limited music … the TIA mentors enable entrepreneurs to turn ideas into reality.”
The incoming student incubator class consists of 91 entrepreneurs comprising 40 new and 10 returning ventures. They each hope to build upon TIA’s past successes including the acquisition of Trupoly by a publicly traded company, the acceptance of Chicory into the Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator, and the growth and accomplishments of Lakota Children’s Enrichment, Inc.
The returning ventures in this year’s class are:
Rachel Rosensweig ’15 and Kirsten Halvorson ’15 pitch to the class
- Age Together is a website that makes it easier for seniors and their families to find the resources necessary as they age.
- Aviation Club provides exciting and educational aviation activities to Colgate students.
- Eco Campus provides carbon-neutral paper at a competitive price.
- HUGS provides alumni, students, and parents the opportunity to purchase local merchandise and gift packages.
- On Giants’ Shoulders (OGS) utilizes videoconferencing to match high school/college student mentors with elementary and middle school students in underserved neighborhoods.
- Sapling Advisory revolutionizes the lead generation space starting with financial advisors.
- Scholastic TVs is a television rental business serving the college market.
- Space Race will change the way study space is reserved on campus.
- The Clothes Line is a consignment store for college campuses.
- Vern is a socially responsible fashion brand that hand makes apparel using traditional weaving techniques.
Greg Dahlberg ’98 works with Viktor Mak ’15 on Vern
Greg Dahlberg ’98 is a TIA Mentor and leads the marketing team at a VC backed SaaS technology company that was acquired in 2013. He is a proven entrepreneur with experience building results driven teams that drive revenue growth, increase brand awareness, and create engaging content. Greg received his MBA from Cornell University and his BA from Colgate University.