The Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship Names Five 2021-22 Terp Startup Fellows
Two years ago the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship piloted a new program — Terp Startup Fellows, made possible by a generous donation from Bill Boyle ’81, chairman of the center’s board of advisors. Building on the success of the Dingman Center’s Terp Startup Accelerator eight-week summer program, the Terp Startup Fellows program is an effort to further accelerate the most promising student startups. These student founders have demonstrated a strong commitment to their ventures and the ability to innovate as they push towards commercialization. After positive results from the two-year pilot, the Dingman Center has named five Terp Startup Fellows for the 2021-22 academic year, an increase from 3 last year.
$1.5M Gift From Fishlinger Family Foundation to Fund Entrepreneurship Center, Career Advising
The University of Maryland will receive a $1.5 million gift from the Fishlinger Family Foundation to support the Robert H. Smith School of Business’ Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship and the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences’ Joel and Kim Feller Advising and Career Center. The first $1 million of the donation is designated to help fund the Dingman Center’s programs, operations and other initiatives that help students launch their own startups. The other $500,000 will go to the Feller Center, to endow a Fishlinger director of career planning.
Student Entrepreneurs Show Off at Terp Startup Accelerator
This summer, everyone has tried to beat the heat. But at UMD, student entrepreneurs have been hard at work showing how their ventures are just beginning to heat up. On Thursday, Maryland Smith’s Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship hosted its 7th annual Terp Startup Accelerator event, in which 16 student teams pitched their business ventures to an audience of students, faculty, staff and esteemed guests.
Cracking the Case and Succeeding in Entrepreneurship
Ryan Hogan ’13 loves a good mystery. So much so, in fact, that he has made them a career. But his success is no secret or enigma – it’s a product of years of trial and error. Hogan is co-founder and CEO of Hunt A Killer, an immersive entertainment company that creates games that challenge players to solve cases through interactive monthly subscription boxes and one-time experiences. He believes entrepreneurship is about failure and the ability to learn from each endeavor.
Pitch Dingman Competition is the Dingman Center’s signature annual Shark Tank-style competition where student entrepreneurs compete for over $70,000 in startup funding. Learn more about the competition.
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Terp Showcase is an opportunity for the UMD community to learn about Terp-founded businesses, find unique products to purchase, and network with fellow students. This year we will be hosting the showcase online in collaboration with Startup Shell’s demo day, Shell Expo. The full Shell Expo event will be held from Noon-5 p.m. and will include other networking opportunities, workshops, and roundtable discussions. The Terp Showcase portion of the event will be taking place from 1-3:30 p.m.
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Celebrate Black-owned businesses with the Dingman Center at this second annual event. Our virtual panel discussion will feature Ronnie Coleman, founder and CEO of Meaningful Gigs, and Sarah Frimpong, CEO and founder of Wellfound Foods. The panel will be moderated by UMD alumna Rashida Peterson '03, regional director at Global Fund for Women and founder of Washington, D.C. based consulting firm 1847 Philanthropic. Students will hear about the panelists' career journeys and have a chance to participate in a Q&A session with the founders.
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Dingman Fridays advising sessions will be held every Friday of the semester from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. virtually on Zoom. These sessions are open to all UMD students, staff and alumni. Venture mentors, subject matter experts, guest advisors and Dingman staff are available to listen to your idea, offer feedback and provide actionable next steps.
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On Wednesdays from 1 to 3 p.m. meet with a Dingman Center team member virtually on Zoom. During these brief 1:1 sessions, a team member will introduce you to the center and aim to match you with the resources, advisors, funding, programming, or other support you need.
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The Shatter Foundation Partners with the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship’s Ladies First Initiative
Shelly Kapoor Collins started the Shatter Fund LLC in 2017, on a mission to increase female entrepreneurship by providing female founders with greater access to capital. The venture capital firm invests exclusively in high-potential disruptive technology companies led by female entrepreneurs. The Shatter Foundation, the nonprofit arm of the Shatter Fund, aims to benefit underserved girls by providing them educational tools, grants, and mentorship to think, create and confidently innovate.