MASON CITY, Iowa— The NIACC John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center hosted Venture School Launch Day on Thursday, March 24, 2022. The Spring 2022 Venture School cohort competed in person after attending classes virtually for 7 weeks of training, customer discovery, and developing their business model alongside local entrepreneur coaches. A panel of judges [Matt Curtis, Wayne’s Ski & Cycle; Megan Peterson, MP Home Design; Jeff Potts, 2020 Creative LLC; and Katie Wold, Three on the Tree] selected First, Second, and Third Place winners, and one Honorable Mention award.
First Place – Dr. Tara Nichols DNP, Maters of Comfort Private Practice, Mason City IA. Awarded $1,500 prize.
Second Place – Josh Jeske, Terraform Tillage, Eldora IA. Awarded $1000 prize.
Third Place – Sadie Yunek, The Ruff Life of Pets, Mason City IA. Awarded $500 prize.
Honorable Mention – Grant Maulsby, Boxx Scaffolding, Clear Lake IA. Awarded $250 prize.
The University of Iowa Venture School is a premier statewide program for entrepreneurs and is built from a streamlined curriculum developed by the National Science Foundation I-Corps at Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley. Venture School emphasizes real-world entrepreneurship and innovation based on leading edge curriculum. Teams will accelerate the startup process by testing their business model hypotheses immediately. They get out of the building to talk to customers, partners, and competitors, rather than relying on statistics and secondhand market research.
Each team is assigned a local entrepreneur as their coach. On Launch Day, participants compete for seed money with the top team winning $1,500. In addition, eligible teams may compete for cash awards at the state level during the Venture School Launch Day at EntreFEST in Iowa City on June 9-10, 2022. The cost for the course is $299. Contact Mary Spitz at mary.spitz@niacc.edu with questions. If you are a local entrepreneur interested in becoming a Venture School coach, please contact Candi Karsjens at candi.karsjens@niacc.edu. To apply for the Fall 2022 cohort, visit www.venture-school.com and select the Mason City cohort in the dropdown menu.
The NIACC John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center is the expert in rural business innovation and success. In partnership with North Iowa’s Small Business Development Center, together we provide tools, support, and resources to Iowa’s entrepreneurs. We counsel both new and existing local businesses, from Main Street to industry leaders. We’re growing Iowa’s entrepreneurial culture through grade school initiatives, college and community programs, and business training and development. Contact the NIACC Pappajohn Center at 641-422-4111, pappajohn@niacc.edu or www.pappajohncenter.com.
North Iowa Area Community College, founded in 1918, is a nationally-recognized, two-year college located in central North Iowa. With approximately 3,000 career and transfer students, the College has been recognized by the Aspen Institute as a leading community college in the nation. NIACC welcomes students from across Iowa, Minnesota, the nation, and the world. The College has served as a leader in student-centered learning, community engagement, and collaborative leadership for more than 100 years. Choose NIACC First.
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