GlobeNewswire: UBet, a Decentralized Sports Prediction Market, Raises $2.7M Capital

ECON-GB 2362 Economics of Creativity and Innovation: In this course, we will examine why some people, industries, and countries are more innovative than others. Course topics will include, but are not limited to the effects of patents, copyrights, immigration, social inequality, and education. The focus will be on policies made at the federal, state, and local levels, and on the implications of these policies for creative individuals in business, the arts, as well as science and invention. Discussions will touch upon the goals of policies and the extent to which the intention, implementation, and ultimate effects of policies align with these intentions. Students will learn to independently evaluate evidence on the effectiveness of alternative policies. They will be able to identify environments and policies that encourage innovation and creativity. Class sessions are a mixture of lectures, a guest lecture, and student presentations of existing research. Assessment will be based on these presentations and on a final project.

BSPA-UB 44 Innovations and Strategies for Building a Progressive Social Enterprise: Sustainable Business & The New Economy, taught by Jeffrey Hollender, Co-Founder and former CEO of one of the most successful sustainable brands - Seventh Generation - explores the future of sustainability and sustainable business, the role business plays in concentration of money and power, and how "net-positive" business can contribute to a world of greater justice, equity, and wellbeing. This class assumes that in some manner you desire to be an active contributor to a just, equitable, and regenerative world. That is my definition of a "social entrepreneur." The course is committed to equipping you to be more effective in that pursuit.

Social Entrepreneurship & Sustainable Development: "Social entrepreneurs play the role of change agents in the social sector, by adopting a mission to create and sustain social value (not just private value), recognizing and relentlessly pursuing new opportunities to serve that mission, engaging in a process of continuous innovation, adaptation, and learning, acting boldly without being limited by resources currently in hand, and exhibiting heightened accountability to the constituencies served and for the outcomes created." (Honoring the late Greg Dees dubbed the father of social entrepreneurship education) What is the way that societies improve and solve problems? What is the purpose of business in society? Is there a role for markets and business in issues of civic good, justice, equality, education, environment, health or collective action? Current economic principles, which underpin our trust in markets are not value neutral. Therefore, how we design “market solutions” to problems should be the focus of vigorous and open debate. Social entrepreneurship is a concept that has re-focused us on the meaning of the goods and social practices we value as citizens in a global society. The purpose of this course is to provide students with the essential conceptual frameworks and tools for creating successful social entrepreneurial ventures, initiatives, programs or partnerships that seek to tackle global poverty and collective action problems. Social Entrepreneurship, loosely defined as entrepreneurial activities with an embedded social purpose, is about using entrepreneurial skills to craft innovative responses to address social problems. It aims at social impact, but does not exclude economic wealth creation. Thus, it is not limited to the non-profit or social sectors but seeks to mobilize and align interests of diverse stakeholders in the social, public and private sectors by creating non-financial incentives for collective action. Social Entrepreneurship involves recognizing that social problems are potential opportunities for collaboration, building on existing social networks, harnessing market forces that combine and mobilize resources, inciting positive change in various domains, and designing solutions for sustainable development. Social enterprise, an organizational subset of social entrepreneurship, is a hybrid model for social value creation that is multidimensional and dynamic, moving across various intersection points in the society. A social enterprise is created to achieve a stated vision and mission aiming to solve a state or market failure, where success is measured by both financial sustainability and social impact. Social entrepreneurship and social enterprise represent a paradigm shift in our thinking about sustainable economic development, one that is beginning to have a profound impact on how products are designed and services delivered to poor and marginalized populations at home and abroad. The course will cover a broad range of cutting-edge social enterprise and social entrepreneurship strategies from around the world. Students will interact with guest social entrepreneurs, policy makers, thought leaders and investors to ensure they gain a comprehensive understanding of this dynamic field, and challenge themselves as agents of social change working in development. Through individual and group exercises, using case studies and mixed media, students will explore the common strategies and pitfalls in creating community-driven, scalable social ventures. Students will collaborate and share their learning in the classroom and online using a new social platform, L2O, within a closed community for this course and an open community on social innovation. The course looks at social entrepreneurship and social ventures through their entire life cycle – from ideation, through start-up to scaling and exit to policy-making – with an emphasis on how market considerations and financial instruments are critical to achieving social and financial goals. The materials we will cover place a strong emphasis on the need for a deeper understanding of the range of human motivations, moving from material self-interest to altruism and gift to duty and obligation to strong reciprocity and cooperation. Students will complete a team project, either their own venture or a project for a social enterprise client, over the term of the course. They will receive constant constructive feedback from their peers and instructor throughout the semester in the classroom and on L2O.

TCHL-UE 1153 Creative Curriculum: Entrepreneurship and Fundraising (Offered Spring '23): What is the value of an idea? How do we frame ideas to convince others of their value? Students explore methods of fundraising for educational projects, including grant writing, crowdfunding, and community engagement; analyze successful grant proposals, Kickstarter campaigns and events; and discover ways technology has enhanced small-scale fundraising. Students craft their own fundraising pitch around a new creative product, project or need. This course offers a fun and engaging way to gain experience in educational fundraising—a crucial skill for any future educator.

REMU-UT 1401 Developing a Business Pitch For Your Music Venture (Offered Fall '23): The mission of the Professional Development Program is to provide professional development training, mentorship and relevant learning experiences for Recorded Music students in their senior year, to prepare them for independent careers as musicians, performers and founders, and to assist them in their pursuit and competition for jobs and leadership roles in the music industry. The PDP curriculum is organized around every student’s creation of a customized music business venture which, defined broadly, could be a start-up, live music event, career launch as a performer or songwriter, or job search. PDP is execution-focused and is meant to publicly convey each student’s personal/intellectual and artistic journey and who they are as an artist/entrepreneur/person at this stage of their career. The focus is on the acquisition of professional skills such as written and verbal communication, personal branding -online, in-person and through communications, and making a powerful first impression, as well as the creation of an e-portfolio website that will enable the student to stand out and more quickly land career -enhancing opportunities and jobs.

CSCI-GA 3812 Info Tech Projects: This is a capstone course that connects students directly with real-world information technology problems. The goal of this course is to teach the skills needed for success in real-world information technology via a combination of classroom lectures and practical experience with large projects that have been specified by local “clients.” The typical clients are primarily companies, but can also be government agencies or nonprofit organizations. Each project lasts for the entire semester and is designed to involve the full software project life cycle. Examples of such projects are development of software to solve a business problem, including specifying requirements, writing and testing prototype code, and writing a final report; and evaluation of commercial software to be purchased to address a business problem, including gathering requirements, designing an architecture to connect the new software with existing systems, and assessing the suitability of available software products.

CSCI-GA 3033 Spec Top Computer SCI: Blockchain and Its Applications:

CSCI-GA 2830 Lean Launch Pad:

CSCI-GA 2810 Design and Innovation: OPEN ONLY TO GRADUATE MS-CEI students.