Experiential Learning Accelerators

Meriden Veteran Goes from Military Service to Entrepreneurship

Posted on by Melissa Ferrigno

Record-Journal- When Gulaid and Davina Ismail’s second child Issaq was born three years ago, the child suffered from acid reflux so badly he threw up often. The couple was going through plenty of infant clothes.

“We were constantly changing clothes and throwing them out when they get stained,” Davina said. “So we asked ourselves ‘why don’t we start making clothes ourselves?'”

Gulaid Ismail, a U.S. Marine who served seven months in Fallujah, Iraq, was able to get some assistance from Veterans Administration programs and the couple soon started Dribblebabies, a baby and toddler web-based store for parents five years after his honorable discharge.

How Veterans Can Sign Up for Entrepreneurial Training Through College Initiatives

Posted on by Melissa Ferrigno

New York Post- Last year, Army Reserves veteran Dr. Stephannie L. Addo-Zuniga was knee-deep in the trenches on a daily basis from 8 a.m. to midnight, relying on her tenacity and perseverance to pull her through.

This wasn’t army bootcamp, but an intense learning initiative offered through Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities at the University of Connecticut.

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‘Bootcamp’ Helps Meriden Veteran to Put His Life Back Together

Posted on by Melissa Ferrigno

Record-Journal- Since returning from a two-year tour of duty in Iraq a decade ago, Rafael Castro has been trying to piece his life back together. Not long after his return, Castro, of Meriden, was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. In April, he was laid off from his job at a car dealership.

Cosmo Editor: “Develop It to Scale”

Posted on by Melissa Ferrigno

Stamford Advocate – To hear Joanna Coles tell it, any discussion about women’s entrepreneurship is inextricably linked to broader issues of women in the workplace and all the facets that go into a story of success or struggle: work-life balance, fair compensation, effective communication and assertiveness..

Joanna Coles of Cosmopolitan to Speak at Women’s Entrepreneurship Forum

Posted on by Melissa Ferrigno

Connecticut Magazine – Women helping and inspiring other women—that is the crux of the Women Entrepreneurs Empowerment Forum, which will take place at the UConn Stamford Campus on Friday, Sept. 18. It will be a day full of networking opportunities, informative workshops and a keynote talk for women entrepreneurs in Connecticut and Greater New York.

UConn Launches New Entrepreneurship Program

Posted on by Melissa Ferrigno

Hartford Business Journal – Q&A talks about Accelerate UConn, a new entrepreneurship program at the University of Connecticut, with Michelle Cote, managing director of UConn’s Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation, and UConn business professor Timothy B. Folta.

5 Resources for Turning Veterans into Entrepreneurs

Posted on by Melissa Ferrigno

Milwaukee Community Journal – Is the solution to joblessness among veterans, entrepreneurship? Career experts think so. According to the Small Business Administration, military veterans are almost twice as likely as non-veterans to start their own business, but their unemployment rate stands at 6.7 percent as of February, and has been consistently higher than the national average.