How did VentureWell contribute to your leadership development and your professional trajectory?
The VentureWell community has had an outsized impact on so many aspects of how I work, how I teach, and how I strive to lead. Whether it’s the exceptional colleagues I meet and learn from at VentureWell conferences and workshops, the NSF I-Corps™ National Faculty Training I went through, or the inspirational mix of professionalism, fun, and camaraderie I’ve witnessed with so many VentureWell team members, these are all formative pieces I’ve gleaned and incorporated into my life today!
What’s the biggest change or milestone your institution or venture has experienced since participating in VentureWell programming?
At VentureWell conferences, I found myself fully engaged in sessions that actively got me up and about and that were truly interactive, collaborative, and all about maximizing everyone’s sharing and learning. That drastically better conference experience started me on an ongoing journey to continually strive to find ways to raise the bar even higher for collaborative gatherings by constantly listening and observing and by constantly experimenting and iterating.
Looking back, what advice would you give yourself at the start of your journey?
In 2003, David Barbe made University of Maryland (UMD) one of the original partners in VentureWell’s Invention to Venture workshops for students, faculty, and regional entrepreneurs and investors. From that fruitful collaboration, UMD steadily grew its innovation & entrepreneurship (I&E) ecosystem with campus-wide programs. Today, half of all undergraduates enroll in an I&E course each year, and UMD has been a Top 10 College for Entrepreneurship for 10 straight years.