Richard Dino


Do You Have What It Takes To Be An Entrepreneur?

Frank Amaefuna, pictured, wants to create a business to provide concussion protocol for high school students. (Devin Basdekian/UConn School of Business)
Frank Amaefuna, pictured, wants to create a business to provide concussion protocol for high school students. (Devin Basdekian/UConn School of Business)

More than 300 Sign-up for iQ Kickoff As Entrepreneurship Takes Root at UConn

When he was a high school lacrosse player, Frank Amaefuna took a slash from an opponent. Although he was wearing a helmet, his head smacked the ground hard. Continue Reading


Curating Startup Innovation at UConn Innovation Quest with Special Guest Rich Dino

CTStartup Podcast– The CTStartup Podcast is back for its third season with a new format, new host, and new interviews focusing on the startup ecosystem in Connecticut.

We start off Season 3 interviewing Rich Dino, an associate professor at UConn and the director of the Innovation Quest program aimed at helping young students and startups bring their business ideas to life.


‘UConn Students Can Chase Their Dreams’

Keith Fox '80, addressing attendees at the 2017 iQ Awards dinner this past spring. (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)
Keith Fox ’80, addressing attendees at the 2017 iQ Awards dinner this past spring. (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)

Students’ “Insatiable Appetite” to Invent Led Entrepreneur Keith Fox ’80 to Champion Innovation Quest

Before he became a senior executive at Apple, or helped Cisco grow to “The Worldwide Leader in Networking for the Internet,” Keith R. Fox ’80 was a newly minted UConn business graduate embarking on a journey to become an entrepreneur. Continue Reading


Unique, Creative Startups Win $30,000

2017 Innovation Quest Awards

Innovation Quest Tops Participation Record; Winners Present Vastly Different, Creative Startup Ideas

The winners of this year’s Innovation Quest (iQ) competition had a unique set of people to credit for inspiring their success, including:

  • A friend with a teddy bear tattoo, emblazoned with his ex-girlfriend’s name;
  • A waitress who was trying to handle a mad-house of customers during a blizzard, when the rest of the wait staff didn’t show up;
  • A little brother who leaves his EpiPen home because it is too bulky to carry;
  • Americans who have very polarized beliefs about political events, depending on which news source they follow.

Continue Reading


Over 200 Would-Be Entrepreneurs Seek Mentoring, Business Advice

Freshman Michael Mayo has dreams of building a roller-skating business adjacent to his alma mater, New Britain High School. (Devin Basdekian/UConn School of Business)
Freshman Michael Mayo has dreams of building a roller-skating business adjacent to his alma mater, New Britain High School. (Devin Basdekian/UConn School of Business)

“It’s Not a Passive World”

Freshman Michael Mayo has dreams of building a roller-skating business adjacent to his alma mater, New Britain High School. His goal would be to afford students some much-needed recreation while also offering them classes and hands-on knowledge about how to run a business. Continue Reading


‘Just Go For It!’

When senior Andrew Carroll graduates in May, he will have completed a triple major, and his resume will include a semester of education abroad and additional world travel that gave him a new, bolder perspective. (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)
When senior Andrew Carroll graduates in May, he will have completed a triple major, and his resume will include a semester of education abroad and additional world travel that gave him a new, bolder perspective. (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)

Three Majors, World Travel, Research Highlight Senior Andrew Carroll’s UConn Years

No regrets.

When he enrolled at UConn four years ago, Andrew Carroll ’17 didn’t know exactly what the future would offer, but he was determined to get the most out of his college experience.

When he graduates in May, he will have completed a triple major—in economics, psychology and management—and his resume will include a semester of education abroad and additional world travel that gave him a new, bolder perspective. Continue Reading


2016 iQ Winners

Elizabeth “Liz’’ Pouya, a rising senior majoring in physiology and neurobiology, who ultimately hopes to become a physician, presents her idea to prospective investors. (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)
Elizabeth “Liz’’ Pouya, a rising senior majoring in physiology and neurobiology who ultimately hopes to become a physician, presents her idea to prospective investors. (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)

“I Was Surprised That Someone Hadn’t Invented This Yet”

UConn senior Stephen Hawes debuted as an entrepreneur several years ago, working diligently to perfect his first invention: a wrist-mounted, propane-driven flame thrower.

His parents worried that their son, a mechanical engineering student, would burn down their home.

But Hawes persisted, and brought his prototype to an engineering conference in New York City. There, he saw a company demonstrating artificial appendages for children missing fingers.Continue Reading


‘I’ll Be a Husky Forever’

Morgan Tuck (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)
UConn women’s basketball player and management major Morgan Tuck (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)

Basketball Star, Management Major Morgan Tuck Bids Adieu to UConn, Prepares for WNBA

For fans of UConn women’s basketball player Morgan Tuck, the moment that brought tears to their eyes happened with less than two minutes remaining in the Husky’s NCAA Championship game Tuesday night.

Tuck and her basketball sisters, Breanna Stewart and Moriah Jefferson, exited the court together—their fourth consecutive, record-breaking championship assured—and embraced each other. A look of pure joy splashed across Tuck’s face. Continue Reading


Student Ideas Become Reality at Innovation Quest Workshop

The Daily Campus – Having an idea and turning it into something real is the premise behind the world’s greatest achievements, from jets that fly around the world to electric cars. At the second Innovation Quest workshop at the University of Connecticut School of Business lounge, students began to make some of their ideas into a reality.


UConn Launches 5th Innovation Quest

Students, alumni, and mentors gathered on Feb. 22 to launch the 5th Annual Innovation Quest.  (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)
Students, alumni, and mentors gathered on Feb. 22 to launch the 5th Annual Innovation Quest. (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)

Students, Teams, Ideas Soaring to New Levels, Mentors Say

Graduate nursing student Samantha Nesbeth wants to find a way to use genetics, instead of hair transplants, to help men and women regrow thinning hair.

“When you lose your hair, you see yourself as a different person,” said Nesbeth. “You don’t know who you are without hair. It can be disabling and depressing. Your hair is part of who you are,” said the Meriden native, who is planning a career as a nurse practitioner specializing in dermatology.Continue Reading