Let’s start with a basic tenet of entrepreneurial mindsets: The bigger your network, the bigger the opportunity for success. For the individual entrepreneur, or their team, this is certainly the case. People know other people and those people know things…and even more people.
Call it “Six degrees of separation (or Kevin Bacon)”or call it whatever you want, the statistical truth is hard and fast. Once you start telling your story, speaking about your work…the numbers game takes over and you’ve a much better chance of success at realizing your idea, bringing a product to market, or growing your organization.
The same is true for teachers. The more we discuss our work, the more we engage with personal learning communities or fellowships, the more our work grows and, more important, the more our students’ work gets noticed.
Of course, this takes a good deal of courage and confidence on the part of the teacher and the students. And as with anything, the more work we put in, the more courageous and confident we grow. In a real sense, “the work is the win.”
So it was with great courage and confidence (after a lot of work) that our NOVA Lab classes–45 students in all, 29 total projects–boarded a bus for a short trip to Ursinus College, a small liberal arts school in our district that, it just so happens, has a real and burgeoning Entrepreneurship program.
Led by entrepreneur Maureen Cumpstone, Ursinus’ program has helped countless students bring their ideas to the world and go on to great success. We first met Ms. Cumpstone in the summer of 2022 while acting as a panelist for the Ursinus HS Entrepreneurship competition. In the years since, we have developed a working relationship that allows Ursinus students in the entrepreneurship program to provide feedback to NOVA Lab student projects.
And last week, after an enlightening and tremendously eye-opening session by the Ursinus admissions department, and an amazing overview by four Ursinus entrepreneurship students on their journeys and the benefits of their entrepreneurial endeavors, NOVA Lab students broke into two groups and presented their projects to panels of Ursinus students for feedback.
None of this learning occurs without the connections we established. And none of it occurs without work… the work of students, the work of teachers and mentors, and the work of the Ursinus students. And because there is no learning more impactful than experiential learning, this was an amazing experience for our students. We’ll be reflecting and revising our projects even further.
Thank you Ms. Cumpstone. Thank you Ursinus students, especially Tyler Griffith. Thank you Ursinus College.
We are already planning our return.
Innovation Lab 