Archives for May 2014

Member Spotlight: Gratitude Initiative

The Innovation Underground is honored to introduce their newest non-profit member, Gratitude Initiative (GI). GI’s mission is to provide college scholarships and educational support to the children and families of military service members, veterans, disabled veterans, and those killed in defense of our country. Over a decade of conflict and involvement in two wars has placed a stress on military and veteran households that is unparalleled in our nation’s history. GI and its supporters strive to ease some of the burden on these patriot families by helping their children achieve life-changing opportunities through education. Their main activities are:

1. Award scholarship funds to children to attend college or technical school to help make their future dreams come true without the burden of many years of school debt.

2. Provide educational services and support to help military children achieve their educational and career goals.

3. Raise awareness and provide services to help children cope with the challenges brought on by having a mother or father deployed overseas for military service or dealing with the disability or death of a parent due to combat action.

4. Host summer camps at affiliated universities for high school students to help bolster college readiness, celebrate being a teenager, and relieve some of the burdens brought on by the weight of a family involved in war.

The Innovation Underground Team joined forces with Gratitude Initiative last summer after serving together as mentors for the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities.

To learn more about GI, visit our members page.

HireOurHero.com Honors Heroes With Employment

US Disabled Veteran and entrepreneur, Brandon Bunch, has launched Hire Our Hero ­ a platform to help homeowners and citizens at large hire trusted professionals in their community such as realtors, plumbers, and electricians. This marketplace seeks to honor our Heroes’ service by increasing business opportunities and additional income

Bunch is a member of the Innovation Underground, a technology small business incubator located in Historic Downtown Bryan Texas. A year ago, Bunch founded Hire our Hero after attending the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities, part of the Center for New Ventures and Entrepreneurship offered through the Mays Business School at Texas A&M University. Today, Hire Our Hero is pleased to begin the recruitment of local “Heroes.”

Brandon Bunch served in the Marine Corps from 2000 to 2004 and now serves as a firefighter paramedic in Austin.

The Innovation Underground is a privately owned business incubator located in Historic Downtown Bryan, Texas. The Innovation Underground was established in 2011 by AdventGX . Since it’s founding, The Innovation Underground has successfully graduated four start­up companies and remains at full capacity with current small businesses while also continuing to support new clients through virtual, off­site incubation.

The Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities is a one week program offers training in entrepreneurship and small business management to post­9/11 veterans with disabilities resulting from their service to our country. EBV at Texas A&M University is a significant collaboration on our campus between the Center for New Ventures and Entrepreneurship and the Center for Executive Development and Mays Business School.

Relevant Web Links:

­ Hire Our hero: ­ hireourhero.com
­ Innovation Underground: ­ iu.adventgx.com
­ Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities: ebv.tamu.edu

 

SEAD Academy To Host Entrepreneurship Camp for Kids

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SEAD Academy is pleased to announce the addition of NEST Kids to their summer programming. NEST Kids is a one week crash course in entrepreneurship. Using the project management tools of today’s technology leaders, the NEST Kids staff will guide teams of children ages 12-16  as they turn ideas into prototypes.

NEST Kids was founded by NEST’up, a technology accelerator program and incubator space located in Wallonia, Belgium. NEST Kids Co-Founder, Marc Lainez, has served as an instructor and project mentor since it’s founding in 2013. This summer Marc has joined forces with the Innovation Underground team in Historic Downtown Bryan to put on the very first US edition of NEST Kids.

The Innovation Underground is a privately owned business incubator located in Historic Downtown Bryan, 216 W. 26th Street. The Innovation Underground was established in 2011 by AdventGX . Since it’s founding, The Innovation Underground has successfully graduated four start-up companies and remains at full capacity with current small businesses while continuing to support new clients through virtual, off-site incubation.

SEAD Academy is a project that aims to integrate Science, Engineering, Art and Design into camps and classes for kids grades K-12. SEAD Academy was founded in 2013 by the AdventGX. Last summer, SEAD Academy hosted 150 students as they participated in immersive interdisciplinary classes.

NEST Kids is a one-week course for children aged 12-16 and will run from June 23-27. This program gives participants the opportunity to learn from experts and software developers. Kids will use tools from the startup world to bring ideas to life. NEST Kids aims to help children express their creativity and develop their ability to solve the problems that surround them.

 

Relevant Web Links:

– SEAD Academy –http://bit.ly/SEAD-Summer

– Innovation Underground – iu.adventgx.com

– NEST Kids – http://www.nestup.be/