Stories & Updates

Following much deliberation, the finalists for Hen Hatch 2022, the University of Delaware’s much-anticipated premier startup competition, have been selected. The submissions this year have been from a wide range of industries, colleges, and interests, truly showing that the spirit of entrepreneurship can be found anywhere. This year’s teams made it hard on our semifinal judges, but we have managed to narrow it down to a few particularly promising and innovative startups we are proud to showcase in the final round.

The Horn Hen of the month article series is a brand new series dedicated to highlighting Horn students that are inspiring others and impacting their community. One nominated Horn student will be chosen each month and a written feature will document their hard work and progress as they go through their time at Horn.

This article is part of a series celebrating the 10^th anniversary of Horn Entrepreneurship by highlighting alumni, their stories and accomplishments.  

Back in 2012, when Ben Rapkin took his first entrepreneurship class, instructor Dan Freeman, the founding director of Horn Entrepreneurship, asked him to restart the Entrepreneurship Club. 

Horn Entrepreneurship and E-club will host the Fall Pitch Party on Wednesday, October 26, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. in the Venture Development Center. The Fall Pitch Party is designed for those new to pitching an idea, with students sharing startup concepts to an audience of their peers and a panel of judges composed of recent entrepreneurial alumni. This year's event is particularly special, as we return to an in-person format for the first time in years. Advance registration is required for both spectators and presenters. Register by October 19. 

Fourteen teams advanced to the semifinal round of Hen Hatch, UD’s premiere startup funding competition. Three semifinalists from each track (pre- and post-revenue) will advance to the 2022 Hen Hatch Final Round which will take place on Dec. 1 at the Audion. Rewards of startup cash and prizes will total $50,000 with additional in-kind gifts. 

More than 150 students from ten high schools joined together to participate in the EntreX Lab Delaware Connect design sprint, a timed competition in which students address a problem and pitch a solution to a panel of judges.

Calling all Blue Hen student entrepreneurs: apply to University of Delaware’s premier startup funding competition, Hen Hatch. This program is a once-a-year opportunity for UD students to put their best ideas forward and compete for a portion of a $50,000 prize pool. The submission deadline is September 16.

Horn Entrepreneurship reaches far beyond the confines of the University of Delaware and through an unexpected lens - the Diamond Challenge. This global youth entrepreneurship competition engages more than 1800 teens annually from more than 30 countries. Leading the Diamond Challenge is a new team member at Horn, Maggie Nelson.

This article first appeared on the blog for Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics on May 24, 2022.  Lavar Thomas's graduate studies include an M.S. in International Studies and his work on his social startup, Leaders of the Free World with the opportunities available through UD's Horn Entrepreneurship.

Many great innovations, societal changes and inventions begin with the question, “what if…?” Fourteen Delaware Innovation Fellows (DIF) hailing from 11 majors presented answers to their “what if” questions at the 2022 DIF Innovation Showcase. Their answers were the basis of their capstone innovation project and the culmination of work completed during their three-phase fellowship.