Press Releases

El Paso Times (TX)

12 college teams will pitch business ideas to reach "Super Bowl" of business plans

March 1, 2009
Section: Education
Business

Vic Kolenc / El Paso Times

EL PASO -- Some El Paso leaders and educators hope a venture competition for college students from Colorado to Chihuahua City, Mexico, will do for El Paso what venture competitions have done for Austin and other communities. "Hundreds of communities around the world are using these contests" to breed high-tech startups, said El Paso businessman Larry Peterson, a co-founder of the Camino Real Angels, an El Paso group that invests in startup companies, and chairman of the mayor's economic advisory council.

Entrepreneurship tour stops by UTEP

March 10, 2009
Section: Business

David Burge / El Paso Times

EL PASO -- Aspiring entrepreneurs can get inspired through workshops, speakers and a speed networking event when the national Extreme Entrepreneurship Tour visits the University of Texas at El Paso later this month. The event, 3 to 7 p.m. March 24 at the Magoffin Auditorium, is free and open to the public. The tour is put on by VenturePort.org and Inc. magazine; local sponsors are the UTEP Kauffman Campus Initiative and the UTEP Collegiate Entrepreneurs’' Organization.

"This isn't just for young people," said Diego Rico, a member of the Collegiate Entrepreneurs' Organization. "It's for anyone who wants to turn their passion and hobby into a business."
Information: www.regionalidentity.com/eet.
David Burge

UTEP sets out to expand entrepreneur education

May 21, 2008
Section: Business

David Burge / El Paso Times

The University of Texas at El Paso has big plans to expand its entrepreneurial education offerings through a new campus initiative. The Kauffman Campus Initiative has been created with a goal of reaching every student on campus with some form of entrepreneurial instruction, officials said.

The program, which has been carved out of the Centers for Entrepreneurial Development, Advancement, Research and Support, is being funded by a $2.1 million grant from the Kauffman Foundation, which is based in Kansas City and promotes entrepreneurship in the United States.

"Right now, we reach about 100 students a semester with entrepreneurship classes," said David Novick, associate provost and director of the UTEP Kauffman Campus Initiative. "We're planning to reach 10,000 students a semester by next spring."

Conference on Hispanic Entrepreneurship to Inspire Local Community

May 4, 2009

Media contact: Laura Cruz
University Communications
The University of Texas at El Paso
915-747-5977 or 915-252-2226

The University of Texas at El Paso will host the Celebrating Hispanic Entrepreneurship Conference May 18-19 at the Union Building East, Tomás Rivera Conference Center.

Sponsored by the Kauffman Foundation, the conference will bring to light research on Hispanic entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship education, evidence in entrepreneurship success, and initiatives in technology transfer and innovative enterprises at UTEP.

Seating is limited for the free conference and people are encouraged to register at www.utep.edu/conferences. Registration ends Wednesday, May 13. 

“Attending the Celebrating Hispanic Entrepreneurship Conference will be invaluable to anyone interested in finding success outside of the mainstream,” said Santiago Ibarreche, Ph.D., Center for Hispanic Entrepreneurship director. “Regardless of your field, whether you are a business person, scientist, engineer, or student, you will walk away with a new perspective on entrepreneurship.”

Conference attendees will choose from a variety of panels on notable research topics ranging from the role of entrepreneurship in the Latino community to the importance of promoting innovation and creativity within the education system.  An oral history project that captures the success stories of local entrepreneurs also will be presented.

Lunch and dinner are provided on the second day. More than 150 people are expected to attend.