Stories & Updates

Calling all innovators, entrepreneurs, and changemakers! Get ready to celebrate creativity, groundbreaking ideas, and entrepreneurial spirit at the University of Delaware’s Blue Hen Innovation Fest on December 5. This exciting new festival is a unique opportunity for UD students, alumni, and community members to connect, collaborate, and showcase their entrepreneurial journeys. Whether you’re an aspiring founder, a seasoned innovator, or someone curious to learn more about the future of entrepreneurship, this event has something inspiring for everyone!

The Venture Development Center was packed Wednesday night for the 2024 Fall Pitch Party. The event, designed for students new to pitching, provided a stage for innovative ideas, a space for networking, and a showcase for student startups. Everyone who participated received a $20 gift card, while the top 3 received monetary prizes in recognition of their outstanding presentations and concept potential.

Do you have an idea for a new product or service?  The Fall Pitch Party will occur at the Venture Development Center on Wednesday, October 23 from 6 pm-7:30 pm. The Pitch Party is a unique event tailored for UD students who are new to the experience of pitching ideas.

Horn Entrepreneurship welcomed the second cohort of Innovation Delaware (InDE) Fellows. The cohort hails from both inside and outside of the University of Delaware with research interests ranging from health equity for low-income mothers to nanoparticles to enhance disease detection and treatment. Read on to meet the second cohort of InDE Fellows.

Over the past year, University of Delaware’s community of brilliant entrepreneurs and innovators continues to shine, leaving a trail of impressive achievements in their wake. From securing vital funding through investments and grants to earning top honors in awards and competitions, UD students, faculty, and alumni consistently push the boundaries of excellence. Their hard work and ingenuity have garnered well-deserved recognition from notable figures and publications alike. Below, we celebrate their remarkable accomplishments, categorized by the incredible contributions of the students, alumni, faculty & staff, and the Horn National Advisory Board.

Entrepreneurs at every stage of their journey have access to a wide array of resources at UD. One such resource is the NSF I-Corps @ UD Propelus program, which trains teams in evidence-based entrepreneurship over four weeks. Meet the teams in Propelus Cohort 1.

Horn Entrepreneurship’s Enrichment programs enhance the college experience by bringing students into a supportive community of like-minded peers while helping them gain valuable skills, experiences, and connections outside the classroom.

(This article was written by Kevin Tritt and originally published on the Lerner blog)

Lerner graduate student Saviour Anyagri establishes an organization to provide schooling for students in Ghana

For Saviour Anyargi, earning his MBA in business analyticsthis spring from the University of Delaware was one more accomplishment in his quest to provide equitable educational opportunities for children across the globe or in his homeland.

Summer Founders: Demo Day 2024 

On August 15, 2024, the teams from Summer Founders showcased their ventures at Demo Day. Summer Founders is a 12-week pre-accelerator program where students are tasked to search for  repeatable and scalable business models that are able to solve both commercial and social problems. The students were granted a stipend during this program and were also given weekly mentoring and education sessions. The flexible structure of the program allows each team to achieve unique goals. Demo Day is the conclusion of Summer Founders, providing teams the opportunity to present their projects, demonstrate how the program has influenced their work, and connect with community members, peers, and mentors while sharing their summer progress on their venture.