Youth Stories

Ivraj Seerha, Bellwethr; Alexandra Wooden, Idle Smart; Kevin McPherson, Bellwethr; and Alex Tran, Five Elms

Venture for America fellows bringing diversity of thought to KC tech, investment firms

Venture for America fellows are flocking to Kansas City, said Kate Loar. “Venture For America’s initial Kansas City champions: the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Pepper, KCRise Fund, and Super Dispatch set the groundwork for growth in KC,” noted Loar, VFA director in St. Louis and Kansas City. “We’re excited to expand the local VFA cohort…

Andrea Savage, Salem Habte, Mark Babcock, Alec Rodgers, and Ali Brandolino, UMKC Enactus

UMKC Enactus team kicks open front door to Kansas City innovation scene with final four win

As the number of teams left standing in the Enactus U.S. nationals started to dwindle, members of the competitive entrepreneurial development program’s team at the University of Missouri-Kansas City rode a pulsating wave of excitement and emotion, recalled Ali Brandolino. “I started crying,” added Brandolino, UMKC Enactus vice president of operations. “It was the most…

University of Missouri-Kansas City’s Enactus team; Photo courtesy of Darcy Howe

‘Legendary’ UMKC Enactus team earns spot in national entrepreneurship finals

The University of Missouri-Kansas City’s Enactus team is the fourth most impactful in the country, declared Ben Williams. “At UMKC Enactus, we take the world’s greatest challenges into our own hands, channeling our power as students, advocates, and entrepreneurs,” the team told a crowd gathered Tuesday at the Kansas City Convention Center, as they took…

DeepLens, Regnier Venture Creation Challenge

UMKC awards students $75K in prizes at Regnier Venture Creation Challenge

Student startups are growing rapidly on the University of Missouri-Kansas City campus, said Bryan Boots. Such acceleration has been further propelled thanks to the recent distribution of $75,000 in prize money, awarded to a series of winners of the Regnier Venture Creation Challenge Competition May 2-3, split across events at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation…

Hyped from high school: Blue Valley teens among startup cash winners at K-State challenge

Four Overland Park high school students have landed cash infusions totaling more than $7,000 for their ongoing startup ventures. Local winners of the Kansas Entrepreneurship Challenge — supported by Network KS, sponsored by the Kansas Masonic Foundation, and hosted by Kansas State University — included: Drone Estate founders Austin Jones and Hunter Vasquez, Blue Valley West…