WE EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATION OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP LEADERS TO CREATE SOLUTIONS WITH IMPACT

WHO WE WORK WITH

We strive to make entrepreneurship an essential part of the Brown experience for our students, alumni, faculty, and the Providence and local community.

STUDENTS

We offer opportunities to pursue problem-solving of all kinds and equip students to think big in and outside the classroom. Join our student-run club Brown EP, take our Entrepreneurship Certificate, apply to our signature startup internships, meet with expert mentorship, or launch your idea through grants.

ALUMS

Over 500+ alum give back to the Nelson Center and the entrepreneurship community. Alums can also join communities like the Brown Entrepreneurship Alumni Group and the Brown Angel Group.

FACULTY

We bring together multi-disciplinary faculty from across the University and all over the world to explore research and to think critically of entrepreneurship in different contexts. Our faculty run initiatives like the Venture Capital Inclusion Lab and host global conferences focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion in entrepreneurship.

COMMUNITY

We partner with Providence and the local community to make entrepreneurship resources more accessible. Whether that is hosting Practico Innovation and CareerDevs or supporting student-run programs such as YEP! (Young Entrepreneurs of Providence), who work directly with local high schools to provide access to workshops, hands-on activities, and mentor relationships for those looking to learn about entrepreneurship.

WHAT WE DO

We believe entrepreneurship is a process for solving problems. We provide curricular, co-curricular, and venture support to help our community to have impact at scale.

An Accessible Approach to Problem-Solving

We teach entrepreneurship as a structured process and equip students with the tools they need to solve big problems. Take a class or consider our Entrepreneurship Certificate.

Events that Inspire

We host events open to anyone interested in exploring entrepreneurship. We focus on interdisciplinary collaboration and diversity, equity, and inclusion. Register to attend an upcoming event on our events calendar.

Grants

We guide and provide access to venture support opportunities and connect students to resources beyond the Nelson Center. Learn more about our grants here.

Research

We support faculty, researchers, and graduate students who investigate and critique entrepreneurship through conferences, events, and courses. Meet our research faculty, apply to our graduate student research funds, or become a Nelson Center Tech Fellow.

Mentoring

We foster inclusive and constructive mentorship, exposing ventures to a wide range of experience and support to help their venture get to the next level. Learn about our Entrepreneurs in Residence, our Peer Entrepreneurs in Residence, and Mentoring in Focus resource page.

Educational Experiences

Intern at a global startup in Stockholm, Berlin, and Tel Aviv or explore an ecosystem through our Synapse programs.

WHY WE DO IT

To create solutions with impact. We support a community of problem solvers to think differently; think bigger.

Intus Care

Intus Care (2020 BVP first place winner, 2019 B-Lab Alum), founded by Robbie Felton ’21, Evan Jackson ’21, Sam Prado ’21, and Alex Rothberg ’21, is a healthcare analytics platform that synthesizes financial, clinical, and administrative data to identify, correlate, and visualize trends in long-term care facilities. It does this by integrating with electronic health records, claims, and accounting software to highlight clinical risks in patients and insightfully display organizational data.

Omena

Omena, founded by Francesca Raoelison ‘22 (2021 BVP Finalist, 2019 B-Lab), is a global nonprofit organization that seeks to break the cycle of emotional abuse within families and communities through support, education, and advocacy. It empowers children and young adults with the social and emotional tools to nurture a generation with greater self-esteem and inner strength.

Kerja.io

Kerja.io, founded by Tim Wijaya ’22 (2022 BVP Finalist), and part of the Fall 2021 Community Lab (Co-Lab) cohort, is a curated Handshake for Southeast Asia that connects the best companies with the best people. Kerja.io is focused on helping Indonesian companies in the tech, finance, and consulting sectors simplify the hiring process. Kerja.io now has 200+ corporate clients including Bain, BCG, Oliver Wyman, Citibank, Strategy&, TikTok, and six regional unicorns.

TechWise

Maddie Peters ’23, Maggie Baker ’24, and Jennifer Wang ’24 are founders of TechWise, a website designed to teach technology and internet skills to senior citizens through interactive modules. They are alums of Innovation Dojo, a semester-long student-led workshop series designed to challenge first and second-year students at Brown and RISD to think differently about innovation and entrepreneurship. As the 2021 Dojo Demo Day winner, TechWise received a $250 explore grant to continue work on its venture.

Cloud Agronomics

Cloud Agronomics, founded by Alex Zhuk, Jack Roswell, and David Schurman (2018 BVP Finalist), is a geospatial imaging and analytics company creating a living map of global agriculture. It provides next-generation analytics on crop performance that changes the way the industry looks at crop yields, pricing, and other critical decisions related to food.

Intimately

Intimately, founded by Emma Butler ’20 (2020 BVP Second Place Winner, 2018 B-Lab), is an online retailer that sells undergarments and lingerie for women with disabilities. Intimately believes all women deserve to have access to comfortable undergarments that they can easily put on and makes the shopping experience more inclusive for women everywhere.