Mohawk College Newsroom

Media release: Mohawk and Government of Ontario officially launch project to support entrepreneurial students

Tue, 12 May 2015 19:16:18 -0400

HAMILTON (May 12, 2015) – Students who dream of creating their own jobs are getting a helping hand from the Province of Ontario and Mohawk College.

SURGE connects entrepreneurial Mohawk students with community resources, offers mentorship and career coaching and runs year-round on-campus workshops, events and competitions. SURGE is a project of Mohawk’s On-Campus Entrepreneurship Activities (OCEA) program, an initiative of the Government of Ontario under the Youth Jobs Strategy and managed by Ontario Centres of Excellence.

Mohawk is officially launching SURGE by hosting a speed networking event for students, alumni and local entrepreneurs. The event will feature two Mohawk alumni -- the Hon. Ted McMeekin, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and Vanh Kalong, owner of the My Thai chain of restaurants -- along with the student winners of SURGE’s Pitch It To Win It Challenge.

What: SURGE official launch and free speed networking event for entrepreneurs

When: 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. May 13

Where: The Arnie student pub, Mohawk College Fennell Campus

QUOTES:

“Fostering the entrepreneurial spirit among students is a key component of Ontario’s Youth Jobs Strategy, through programs that help transfer their ideas and skills to the marketplace while creating rewarding careers. By partnering with colleges and universities to support entrepreneurship, we are ensuring our province’s business leaders of tomorrow are getting the support they need to succeed today.”- the Hon. Reza Moridi, Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities and Minister of Research and Innovation.

“Giving young entrepreneurs opportunity in this competitive global economy is what this is all about. It’s great to be part of the synergy created by bringing together Mohawk’s fine minds with mentors, together turning great ideas into implementable great ideas. Congratulations and continued success.” –The Hon. Ted McMeekin MPP, Ancaster Dundas Flamborough Westdale.

“Ontario Centres of Excellence is pleased to be able to deliver this project as a trusted partner of the Government of Ontario. I look forward to putting our years of experience in connecting academia and industry, and our on-going support of young entrepreneurs to good use in making this initiative a tremendous success.” - Dr. Tom Corr, President and CEO of Ontario Centres of Excellence, which manages Ontario’s Campus Linked Accelerators (CLA) and On Campus Entrepreneurship Activities (OCEA) programs.

“Nearly 86 per cent of Mohawk students get jobs within six months of graduating. We’re here for those students who dream about creating their own jobs and launching their own businesses. We help flatten a steep learning curve by bringing students together and introducing them to mentors and the wealth of resources available at Mohawk and in the community.” - SURGE project coordinator Karen Reiner with Mohawk College’s McKeil School of Business

Mohawk College educates and serves more than 22,500 full-time, part-time and apprenticeship students at three campuses in Hamilton. For the fifth consecutive year, Mohawk is ranked number one among all colleges in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area for overall student satisfaction.

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For more information about SURGE and the speed networking event for entrepreneurs, contact:

Karen Reiner

Project Coordinator. McKeil School of Business, SURGE

(905) 575-1212 ext. 3209

Karen.reiner@mohawkcollege.ca

The Startup Kids free screening Jan. 17 at Mohawk College

Thu, 10 Jan 2013 11:49:57 -0500

On Thursday, Jan. 17 at 7 p.m. in the McIntyre Performing Arts Centre at Mohawk College, kitestring creative branding studio, Innovation Factory, Fullerton Media, and Mohawk will present a free screening of The Startup Kids.

The screening is open to all established and aspiring entrepreneurs in the Greater Hamilton Area.

The Startup Kids is a documentary about young web entrepreneurs in the U.S. and Europe. Founders of Vimeo, SoundCloud, Kiip, InDinero, Dropbox, Foodspotting and many others talk about how they started their company and their lives as an entrepreneur.

The movie is made by two Icelandic entrepreneurs, Vala Halldorsdottir and Sesselja Vilhjalmsdottir, who founded their first company shortly after the economic collapse of Iceland and wanted to motivate other young people to become entrepreneurs.

Mohawk Magazine: iPhone app helps local literary festival get the word out

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 12:55:23 -0400

Want to know where your favourite author is going to be speaking during Hamilton’s gritLIT literary festival next month — there’s an app for that. Go to Mohawk Magazine to read about a team of students at Mohawk's iDeaWorks applied research, innovation and entrepreneurship lab that created an iPhone app for April's gritLIT literary festival in Hamilton.

Mohawk College announces new initiative to invest in student start-ups

Mon, 07 Feb 2011 17:06:47 -0500

The Hatchery is a new initiative at Mohawk that invests in student start-ups. Think of it as an incubator for entrepreneurs in the making. Four groups of students will each be awarded seed money to bring their innovative business ideas to market. But first they have to pitch their ideas to the Mohawk Dragons’ Den.

Here’s how it works:

The Hatchery Pizza Mixer
On Wednesday, February 9, 2011, from 4 to 6 p.m. entrepreneurial students and faculty will get together in the Collaboratory to discuss their ideas, find out more about The Hatchery and ENJOY SOME REFRESHMENTS.

Brainstorming Workshops
We’re here to help you along the way. Entrepreneurial students with innovative ideas can participate in weekly Brainstorming Workshops, where we’ll teach you how to develop a solid business plan and grow your ideas enroute to commercialization. Participants are encouraged to work in trans-disciplinary groups of 2-5, so students from different programs can collaborate with business students to form the basis for a successful start-up.

Brainstorming Workshops are held on Wednesdays, 12-2pm, from February 16to March 16, 2011.

Mohawk Dragons’ Den
In March 2011, students will present their business plan to a panel of Mohawk faculty members and successful entrepreneurs. The top four teams will be selected to participate in The Hatchery Incubation program and will receive seed money to invest in their venture.

The Hatchery Incubation Program
From May to August , 2011, The Hatchery will provide students with the resources and support they need to bring their ideas to market.

Students will:

Learn how to start a small business

Receive support, advice, mentorship and entrepreneurial training

Network with faculty, industry partners and experienced entrepreneurs

Receive all of the profit from their venture

How to Apply

We’re looking for full-time second or third year students from a range of programs with innovative business ideas.

If this sounds like you, please join us at The Hatchery Pizza Mixer on Wednesday, February 9, 2011.

Dates to Remember

The Hatchery Pizza Mixer: Wednesday, February 9, 2011, 4-6pm
Brainstorming Workshops: Wednesdays, February 16 – March 16, 2011,12-2pm
Mohawk Dragon’s Den: March 2011
The Hatchery Incubation Program: May—August, 2011

For more information contact dennis.angle@mohawkcollege.ca.

Watch the YouTube video . . .

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkGyRyI6SSI]