Support the Center

Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation programs and activities depend on gifts and endowments. Since no tuition dollars are used, the center relies heavily on alumni and friends to support its efforts. To make a contribution, please visit the online giving page and select “Support the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship” from the dropdown menu.

You can read testimonials from student entrepreneurs Grace Lee, '10, and Rebecca Wenngatz, '10, as well as Bob Gillespie, current Evening student, about the value of supporting Chicago Booth's entrepreneurship education.

Sponsor Programs and Events

We invite you to become involved with our wide array of programs and events, including:

• Edward L. Kaplan, '71, New Venture Challenge
  The Edward L. Kaplan, '71, New Venture Challenge is the premier business competition at Chicago Booth. Read more about how you can support this dynamic competition.
• SeedCon (Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital Conference)
  SeedCon lets Chicago Booth students explore and learn about entrepreneurship through keynotes, panel discussions, and workshops featuring leading professionals in the fields of entrepreneurship and venture capital.
• Entrepreneurial Internship Program
  This summer internship program provides Chicago Booth first-year full-time students the opportunity to intern with emerging entrepreneurial companies in traditional and socially conscious arenas.
• Private Equity Conference
  This conference gives Chicago Booth students the opportunity to learn more about the private equity and venture capital industries. The event's title sponsor is Beecken Petty O'Keefe & Company, but we rely on other sponsors to subsidize costs.
• Venture Capital Investment Competition
  The Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC) is a daylong, school-wide investment competition that provides students the opportunity to play the role of venture capitalists to real-life entrepreneurs. 
• Private Equity and Venture Capital Lab
  The Elfman-Wareham Private Equity and Venture Capital Lab allows Chicago Booth students to learn firsthand about the private equity and venture capital industries. Through the combination of an intensive internship at a private equity or venture capital firm and an academic course, students become active participants in the analysis of real-world investment decisions made by seasoned investors and also learn to apply their academic frameworks to their internship experiences.
• Sterling Partners Investment Thesis Challenge
  The Sterling Partners Investment Thesis Challenge (SPITC) provides student teams the opportunity conceive and propose an original investment thesis; selected teams then work with mentors at private equity firms over three months to develop an investment thesis based on proprietary research and recommend an execution strategy.

Support Students

The Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation educates future entrepreneurs, and your contribution can affect their development in the following ways:

• Scholarships
  The Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation awards various scholarships and fellowships to entrepreneurial students, including the Herman Fellowship for women in entrepreneurship and the Vashee Promising Entrepreneur Award.
• Travel and Lodging Support
  Students have the opportunity to participate in a number of nationally known business competitions during their time at Chicago Booth. The Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation subsidizes travel costs to minimize the financial burden on students.

Other Ways to Give

For more ways you can support entrepreneurship at Chicago Booth, email Ellen Rudnick, executive director of the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Thank You to Our Sponsors and Supporters

The Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation would like to thank our donors, sponsors, and host companies for their support of our many programs and activities throughout the year. Without their support, these programs would not be possible.

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University of Chicago Booth School of Business • Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation
5807 S. Woodlawn Avenue • Chicago, Illinois 60637 U.S.A
Phone: 773.834.4525 • Fax: 773.834.4046 • Email: polskycenter@chicagobooth.edu