Partner Feature: Jason Lovins
“…a great experience for students”
Startup Weekend Shawnee State helps students give their skills an entrepreneurial edge!
In 2019, the SSU Kricker Innovation Hub brought the first Techstars Startup Weekend to Portsmouth. Startup Weekends are three-day events (held in hundreds of cities across the globe each year) where aspiring entrepreneurs experience life as a startup company over the course of 54 hours.
At Startup Weekend Shawnee State, students pitch ideas, form teams, learn how to build a minimum viable product, and then pitch their business in front of a panel of experienced local judges.
Jason Lovins, an Assistant Professor of Marketing at SSU, has been an integral partner on Startup Weekend Shawnee State since its inception.
Participants pitch in front of Jason Lovin’s marketing students at Startup Weekend 2022. Students are given feedback and ideas to help further their business pitches.
“Startup Weekend is truly a great experience for students,” said Jason. “During the weekend, my marketing seniors form a panel so that participating teams can present to that panel and receive feedback. The students are great at asking challenging and thought proving questions about the teams’ ideas…it helps reveal the teams strengths and weaknesses while also giving them the advice they need to have a better chance at winning the competition.”
Jason says the experience is invaluable for both his students on the panel and those that choose to compete during Startup Weekend.
“It’s so helpful for my students. We all learn by evaluating others and offering advice. So, it is really a win-win.”
This year’s Startup Weekend will take place March 31st to April 2nd. Jason and his team of marketing students will once again participate and guide competing teams in their effort to craft an effective pitch.
Make student ideas stand out
“Teams of competing students should be ready to make their case with actual numbers and real research,” explained Jason. “That helps them to build an argument and informs the judges that their ideas are valid and could really work. They must demonstrate that they are effectively meeting a need or solving a problem.”
Jason urges all students and faculty to consider participating in Startup Weekend.
“The Kricker Innovation Hub is a very powerful asset to our entire community - not just the university. This is because of its role in helping to encourage new ideas that are born and can grow right here, independently in our area.”
Students may register here. For questions, email Entrepreneurship Program Coordinator Derrick Parker.