McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship

👍Join Full-Time Team McFerrin

The McFerrin Center is currently seeking to fill a Communication Specialist II role who will support the many programs we host, including those for current students, former students and military veterans.

The ideal candidate has at least two years of experience working in marketing/communications with a good blend of both digital and print content creation, writing and social media management. Our team is small but mighty, so this role will have many opportunities to learn and engage along every step of our program planning and ex*****on.

A full job description including expectations/qualifications and the link to apply are available at: tx.ag/TeamMcFerrin

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While Blake Petty ’98 is approaching 27 years of professional service to Texas A&M University this fall, TODAY we’re celebrating the 12 years he’s spent with our center. Blake has seen many changes in our university and center over the years, but what hasn’t changed — and has never wavered — is Blake’s dedication to this university, his Aggies and every role or team he has served.

He IS the Aggie Core Values — Excellence, Leadership, Loyalty, Integrity, Respect and Selfless Service — represented in human form. If you know him, you’ve been on the receiving end of at least one of those qualities. You’ve likely also gotten to know the unique trademarks of Blake Petty. You’ve been welcomed by of one of his signature, booming “Howdy!” greetings; admired his cowboy boot obsession (shoutout Tecovas); or perhaps shown concern for his near-constant consumption of black coffee. This combination of Aggie Core Values paired with the flair only Blake could bring, provides us the perfect leader for whom we’re constantly grateful.

Join us in congratulating and celebrating THE Blake Petty!

Fun fact: Blake jumped in to his first EBV cohort in the summer of 2014 when he joined the then Center for New Ventures and Entrepreneurship (shown here), and we’re now preparing for our 23rd cohort of vetrepreneurs to arrive in Aggieland next month!

AGGIE 100 NOMINATIONS CLOSE MAY 31!

The deadline to nominate your business or a fellow Aggie-owned or -led business for a chance to make this year’s Aggie 100 — designed to honor the 100 fastest growing Aggie-owned or -led businesses in the world — is coming up Sunday, May 31.

More information about the program and qualifications can be found at Aggie100.com or visit tx.ag/A100Nom to nominate today.

The official 2026 Aggie 100 list and rankings will be announced Friday, Oct. 2 at the 22nd annual celebration held at the Ford Hall of Champions at Kyle Field.

💡The 2026 Texas High School Ideas Challenge, now in its 6th year and hosted by Texas A&M’s McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship, is coming up Tuesday, May 19! With a 200% increase in applications from last year, we're thrilled to announce this year's top ideas selected as finalists. Teams made up of 75 high school students from across the state of Texas will travel to Aggieland to compete with their BIG IDEAS.

💡Following a day of closed presentations, student teams will also showcase their ideas at the Crowd Fund Showcase and Awards Reception at the at 4 p.m.

💡Thank you to our prize sponsors — IgnitionTech Fire Consulting, The Catholic Action Network and James '12 and Amy Dwyer '16 — for supporting these young entrepreneurs!

💡Learn more at: tx.ag/TXHSIC26.

Entrepreneurs EXPOSED
Tuesday, March 31 | 7 p.m.

Our final Entrepreneurs EXPOSED of the spring semester will feature Logan Russell ’24, ’26 (urban and regional planning), founder of Runner’s High Cookies, a Texas cottage food bakery specializing in homemade, gourmet cookies.

Logan has been actively baking for the Bryan-College Station region while pursuing his studies at Texas A&M for the past three years. What initially started as a way to raise funds for his high school cross country team using his grandmother’s chocolate chip cookie recipe, has turned into a business that combines his passions for baking and running.

Since its inception, Logan has expanded the business to offer more than 21 cookie flavors year-round, along with cookie cake options, all available on a personalized website for local pickup and delivery.

If you’re a current Texas A&M student, you’re invited to join us Tuesday, March 31 at 7 p.m. to hear more about Logan’s entrepreneurial story!

Register to attend at tx.ag/Exposed2026.

🎉 REGISTRATION NOW OPEN: Aggie Startup Summit
📅 Friday, April 3
🕘 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
📍 Texas A&M Hotel and Conference Center
🤝 The moment you’ve been waiting for is here — Registration is now open for the 2026 Aggie Startup Summit! This summit is FOR students, BY students. We’re excited to support this student-led conference — now in its second year — designed to empower the next generation of Aggie innovators. The summit will bring together students, founders and campus leaders for a day of hands-on workshops, speaker sessions and collaborative opportunities focused on innovation, venture creation and problem‑solving. We look forward to welcoming Aggies who are ready to build, create and lead!
🔗 Register now at: tx.ag/AggieStartupSummit

Aggie 100™ Career Fair
Monday, March 30 | 2-5 p.m.
Rudder Exhibit Hall

Pick out your fit. Practice your smile. Prepare your handshake. Perfect your intro. Polish up your resume.

If you haven’t already, register for the Aggie 100 Career Fair coming up Monday, March 30, where you will have direct access to some of the fastest growing Aggie-owned or -led companies that have been recognized as an Aggie 100 company — AGGIES HIRING AGGIES! This boutique career fair is open to current students from across all colleges and majors.

Learn more and register at: tx.ag/A100CareerFair

The McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship continues to expand its role as the central driver of entrepreneurship at Texas A&M University. As demand for entrepreneurial programming grows across all colleges, we are scaling our programming, partnerships and physical presence to better serve students, faculty and founders at every stage of the innovation journey.

Last week, the McFerrin Center officially expanded our footprint to the Texas A&M-RELLIS campus with the ribbon cutting for The Texas A&M University System’s STEM Education and Research Center. This expansion will grant our student entrepreneurs access to a state-of-the-art makerspace, allowing us to strengthen our connection between innovation, creation and commercialization — while continuing to maintain an on-campus presence in our current Research Park location.

It was an exciting milestone for the center, and we were honored to have students, Advisory Council members, and our friends and benefactors, Dorothy McFerrin and Jennifer McFerrin-Bohner, present to celebrate with us!

Learn more at: tx.ag/McFerrinRELLIS

Today marks just 5️⃣ DAYS until applications for the 2026 Texas High School Ideas Challenge officially close [Sunday, March 15 at 11:59 p.m. CT]!

The Challenge — open to ALL Texas high school students with a BIG IDEA — is designed to encourage high school students to explore entrepreneurship and foster development of an entrepreneurial mindset.

If you know a high school student who should learn more and apply, send them to tx.ag/TexasHSIdeasChallenge! Finalist teams will be invited to present their ideas at Texas A&M in May.

To solve BIG problems, you need BIG ideas!

Are you a current Texas A&M student with a big idea? Find yourself thinking about how to solve problems, both big and small? Then the Ideas Challenge is for you!

Applications are set to close Sunday, March 8, so don’t wait!

Learn more about the challenge (now in its 24th year!), and apply at tx.ag/IdeasChallenge.