Tuesday February 2011 TechNews Knapp Entrepreneurship Center: A gateway to the business world By Harshita Iyer TECHNEWS WRITER It is said that there are two professions that are very risky to get into 7 show business and realbusiness. Neither guarantees a good result, but both can take over ones life completely. And yet, or maybe because ofthis, there is this inexplicable allure to them. Well, acting is a ditferent case, but for those IIT students who want to get into the real deal 7 entrepreneurship 7 there is hope. For some, the name Knapp Entrepreneurship Center may simply ring a bell, but for those interested in business and entrepreneurship, it could end up meaning a lot in the future. Whether you’re someone who is hoping to run a business some day, or even someone who justwants to get in7 volved in a co7op or internship, Knapp could be the answer for you. The Knapp Center began operating in June 2005, and has since been trying to create awareness about opportunities for up7and7 coming entrepreneurs. It is named after its main financier, Iules Knapp, who wanted to encourage the growth ofentrepreneurial spirit in the IIT community. There are already many entrepreneurs in IIT’s student body, but Knapp felt that more growth was necessary. In the words of its Executive Director, Nik Rokop, the Knapp Center’s main goal is to “support IIT7related entrepreneurs by provid7 ing etfective, atfordable, and expert resources to help create and grow successful commer7 cial ventures’: Knapp aims at helping students, alumni and faculty members gain access to the right resources and the right people to be able to start and grow businesses, which, as most people know, is not an easy task. To do this, the Center organizes a wide range of events every semester, including networking events and educational seminars where entrepreneurs, lawyers and managers from the business world come to IIT to talk to the students. They also have “Angel Network” events which aim to get great en7 trepreneurs to come to IIT and tell the stu7 dents their stories ofhow they got to where they are, and what the essentials to making it as an entrepreneur are. For students not directly into business, there are “App De7 signing Competitions” at KnappLab where students design applications for phones and computers in the hopes of designing the best app. This semester, Knapp has a whole range of opportunities for students. It recently inaugurated the Entrepreneurship Acad7 emy, which otfers entrepreneurship minors to students, as well as EnPROs (which are basically IPROs in which there are some el7 ements ofbusiness management involved), loads of seminars, the App Weekends (for students to come and try their hand at de7 signing Apps), as well as “extreme entree preneurship events” (you can have a look at their calendar at http://knappcenter.iit. edu/calendar/). One gets exposed to a huge array ofop7 portunities here that one would not expe7 rience otherwise. Through Knapp, one can also write for the Center, workwith compa7 nies to do market analysis and create busi7 ness plans, and even work with companies in internships and co7ops. The Knapp Center’s main goal is to make sure thatyourbig ideas can grow into real big businesses, and it will try its best to help you every step of the way. If you want more details, visit the Knapp website at http://wwwstuart. .edu/entrepreneurr ship,academy/. Anybody out there who doesn’t want to sit behind a desk forever, and would like to be the boss instead, this is the place to be! campus@technew RVAN KAMPHU s 0"" UTSAV GAND 11 Summer classes at IIT? Read on! By Ulsav Gandhi ceMpos EDITOR Many students must be considering the possibility of staying on campus over sum7 mer break. Being able to take classes while the weather is good, working ahead so that they could graduate early, retaking a class when they don’t have too many other classes to worry about, or maybe getting some hands7 on research experience are all good reasons. In any case, Chicago is an awesome city to live in during the summer, and IIT has a range of classes and services available for students from May through August. Smaller class size means closer contact with teachers and concentrated, fast7paced, to7the7point classes. For those with questions, there was a summer registration fair this past Monday on the MTCC Bridge. For those interested in summer courses who weren’t able to make it, TechNews has 0017 lected the most important information from the session. Its helpful information, but for more specific questions, students are welcome to contact the concerned department by email or in person. Housing Housing and Residential Services will be keeping State Street Village open (semi7suites in SSV Middle) for students. You can learn more about it at http://www.iiLedu/housing/ summer/. Up to s meal types are also available and required. Some great job opportunities are available for residents, such as Commur nity Desk Assistant, Team Leader, Orientation Leader and Conference Housing Assistant 7 all with application deadlines in May. Housing Scholarships are applicable for some students. For more information, contact housing@iit. edu or call x75075. 0n7c—smpus labs Many openings are available on campus, be it at Keating Hall, Galvin Library or the MTCC. Students can check with the Student Employment Office for on7campus job oppor7 IN tunities and for professors interested in start ing research internships. There are also many opportunities available for those able to work otf7campus, including co7op programs, and the CMC is happy to discuss any possibilities with students. Contact cmC@iit.edu or call 312.567.8000. They are located on the Upper Level of Galvin Library. Keating Hours of operation for Summer 2011 are yet to be announced, though in the past there have been extended hours on summer week7 ends and recreation classes like Yoga and Tai7 Chi. Study Ahmad Always an unforgettable way to spend all or a part of your summer, there are a wide range of Study Abroad programs available. Classes may be taken anywhere (even a few blocks away from your home, far, far away from HT!) and get transfer credit to IIT. The International Center (Main Building 4th floor) is a great place to learn about these programs, especially scholarships such as the DAAD Rise Study in Germany Scholarship or the Gilman Scholar7 ship for Study Abroad for US citizens/certified permanent residents. Contact Ashley Sinclair, Coordinator of Study Abroad and Cultural Programs, at asincla1@iit.edu The Office of Student Life (which is con7 sidering the option of organizing student ac7 tivities with other summer programs in the city), Student Counseling Services, the Student Center for Diversity and Inclusion, Office of Spiritual Life & Service Learning and Student Health Services are some of the other otfices whose services will be open to students during summer term. You can View whim of your desired elnsso we ofizvzd during the summer on your myHT portal and tontuct your udvism for your PIN onee registration starts on April 4. Keep in mind there is a limit to the number oferedithoursyou can register for over summer session. ATIONAL CORNER By Ting‘ting Han TECHNEWS warren fi‘fi 5115 . fififl . $2. igflégro 75?] , itmlflfiilflfi§§fl§fi€§ , fifiéAfifi , fi‘fiEEEEE’Q‘fiHS EEPEUCEE, Efi, EH, fig, filil, fafi LXZtEfiKEEI, fiflflifi, 3]??ng , Rfifiifififiaifiififlo fififi§hfiéufiéfikfifigifii El ( EHMi ) 79in fig»: , §¢$ZD§£F€BE iRifiW5+:i&§R~1fi , Wfié’lififi’ggfl , 13%) fi‘fifi’wfifi , fifixfiflfilfifi, i‘éiia}, #WfiE, EE¥$FS fi‘lllilkfifi , Pfififlfitfiéfitfiflfifi¥fiwfifi¥1fifimiflt§¥m>fi§ , 79”] *7Ffilii173o égifigfllfi , "Z“Ellfli" , Hildfi9l¥31ffifi§A£|§l§5§b§i #1335? , Efi‘fififififlfié , mfiidflififi , fixfi¢r§o fi‘FXE’WSX , rifsinfififi : fiifi , $2413 , fifldw , ERIE; , fiifi , fifii , 33A +Z$ifio Rifiififi9l7l<fii|il§i§lififigfiéA , Elltfi‘fiifififizu fiMIITifiLETER¥E§7E it9ll£¥$ifi¥75fiéfifi§§ This Chinese New Year around the world and on campus In Chinese society, the onset of spring is a very important holiday. In mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia, the Lunar New Year is a statutory holiday. Traditionally, every Chinese New Year has a corresponding animal and the twelve Earthly Branches, as a symbol of that year, known as the Zodiac. New Year’s preparations include prepared poultry meat, steamed buns, fried twisters, etc The family eats “reunion dinner” and people who study and work away from home come back to see their family. Besides the New Year, the Victory Festival and the Lantern Festival are some of the other festivals celebrated. However, many people, such as me, could not go home for Chinese New Year. and did not get to see their loved ones this holiday season. We at IIT, however, had our own small celebra7 tion amidst the blizzard, and we made dumplings, organized activities for Chinese students and recreated the atmosphere ofthe Spring Festival, so that foreign students could learn more about the Eastern tradition. Photos by Ton Trleu