Founders Club at The University of Iowa

Senior Spotlight: Michael D. Simon with Clean River Solutions

Michael is pursuing a degree in Geoscience with an Entrepreneurial Management Certificate.

He discusses a few of his favorite memories with Iowa Entrepreneurship:

"My entrepreneurial highlights have been working on Clean River Solutions, competing in the Rose Francis Elevator Pitch and Business Model Competitions, as well as learning from many different entrepreneurs at Roundtable and other events."

After graduation, Michael will be enrolled in the Summer Student Business Accelerator for Clean River Solutions. He intends to continue building his company while getting involved in other entrepreneurial ventures and assisting his wife with writing children's books.

Senior Spotlight: Lyric Harris with Worthy Buck

Lyric is pursuing a degree in Enterprise Leadership and Journalism & Mass Communication

She states a few of her top highlights with Iowa Entrepreneurship are "attending an Unreasonable Conference in D.C., participating in the Iowa Start-Up Games, participating in two early-stage companies as a Co-founder."

After graduation, Lyric will be pursuing both of her companies, Worthy Buck and Asonus Tech, full-time. She will be traveling for a research trip around the world for Worthy Buck in December of 2018. And is working to develop the technology for Asonus Tech within the next two years while participating in pitch competitions for extra funding.

Senior Spotlight: Mallory Lefkowitz with FEM Power

Mallory is pursuing a degree in Enterprise Leadership.

She states that her top highlights with Iowa Entrepreneurship are "becoming apart of the Founders Club and placing at the Business Model Competition."

After graduation, Mallory is planning to move to Salt Lake City, Utah and work for an interior designer. She intend to continue building up FEM Power and selling her female-focused protein powder by this summer.

Senior Spotlight: Garik Himebaugh with Stylist Bot

Garik is pursuing an MBA, Marketing Academy.

He discusses his time with Iowa Entrepreneurship:

"The highlight of my entrepreneurial experience at the University of Iowa has been the privilege of working with Founders Club entrepreneurs as their coach and mentor. They are a consistent source of learning and inspiration for me, and I look forward to seeing their future growth."

After graduation, Garik will be enrolled in the Student Business Accelerator program at the University of Iowa for Stylist Bot, a virtual personal stylist that takes the pain and mystery out of online shopping. He plans to grow his company into a profitable business while serving its deeper mission of growing the market for sustainable-sourced fashion.

Senior Spotlight: Caroline Edmunds-Diez with Kulture Vaccine

Caroline is pursuing a degree in Enterprise Leadership with a Certificate in Fundraising and Philanthropy Communications.

She discusses her time with Iowa Entrepreneurship:

"A few highlights of my entrepreneurial journey would include becoming a member of the Collegiate Entrepreneurial Organization and becoming an Executive Board Member for two local non profit art organizations. The most exciting part has been watching my company gain revenue, and win prizes in competitions, but especially watching the community come together to support new ideas."

After graduation, Caroline intends to continue selling merchandise across the state of Iowa and further serving her Board Member positions for non-profit art organizations. She will be using Kulture Vaccine to promote local art and music while giving a voice to those brave enough to rebel.

Senior Spotlight: Karl Hamouche with Swim Smart

Karl is pursuing a Master's degree in Medicine.

He states that one of his entrepreneurial highlights within Iowa Entrepreneurship is "jumping into the business world and starting my company!"

Currently, Karl is doing his radiology residency training in Wichita for 5 years. He intends to continue to grow Swim Smart with new products and training aides to get swimmers their "Ah Ha" moments.

Senior Spotlight: Erin Mary Maurer with Lucky Trove Vintage

Erin is pursuing a degree in Enterprise Leadership with a Certificate in Writing.

She highlights her experiences with Iowa Entrepreneurship

"I've loved working as the intern for the Founders Club as well as developing my own company within the organization. It's so special to be able to network with fellow student entrepreneurs and find out how we can make the Founders Club even better! A few of my highlights within the program include heading Iowa's first Collegiate Entrepreneurs' Organization chapter, participating and assisting with the creation of The Startup Games, pitching and judging at Ideastorm, going to the Okoboji Entrepreneurial Institute, professional trips with The University of Iowa Sigma Nu Tau, completing my capstone project by maximizing the potential for a small company on the RAGBRAI route, and being an assistant director for last summer's Student Business Accelerator. I'm beyond thankful for my professors, mentors, and peers that have helped me along my entrepreneurial path!" -Erin

After graduation, Erin will be working in downtown Chicago with CDW Corporation as an Account Representative. She plans to balance her full-time position while revamping her brand at Lucky Trove.

Senior Spotlight: Sonnie Wooden with Sonnie Studios

Sonnie is pursuing a degree in Art.

He discusses his favorite highlight at Iowa Entrepreneurship:

"An entrepreneurial highlight for me was making my first dollar. There was something innate about making your own money, by creating something. I found myself addicted by the journey and thrill of something new. From that moment on, I knew I would never want to work for anyone else again." - Sonnie

After graduation, Sonnie will be attending the University of Pennsylvania for a Masters of Fine Arts while also studying at the Wharton School of Business with his mentor. For his company, he plans to collaborate with more local businesses to bring creative consulting to the forefront.

Check out the ✨spark✨ that ignites at the Founders Club within Iowa Entrepreneurship!

Iowa JPEC Founders Club Founders Club is a business program for students pursuing the creation of a startup while attending The University of Iowa. Open to all UI students, this bus...

Senior Spotlight: Nathan 'Norm' Althoff with HeadsIn

Nathan is pursuing a degree in Health and Human Physiology with an Exercise Science track and a minor in Psychology.

He discusses a few of his entrepreneurial highlights:

"Highlights for me are forming a business and going through the entrepreneurial process because I thought I’d be the last person to ever start a business. Getting to work with great people and having amazing resources available from Iowa Entrepreneurship for our business has been a terrific experience."

After graduation, Nathan plans to work in Cedar Rapids assisting with the rehabilitation of patients with traumatic brain injuries and training athletes. For HeadsIn, he plans to continue customer discovery and is focused on creating a marketable product in the near future.

Senior Spotlight: Malik Salsberry with TravelBox

Malik is pursuing degrees in Enterprise Leadership and Psychology.

His most recent entrepreneurial highlight with Iowa Entrepreneurship is from the Student Business Summer Accelerator.
"It was an amazing experience where I learned so much from so many great entrepreneurs there. This summer program was a mix of classroom and real-world experience where we could be learning about business models one day and out doing customer discovery the next!" -Malik

After graduation, Malik will be accepting an internship with Grow: Johnson County, a non-profit that maintains organic farming practices and assists in helping alleviate food disparities across Johnson County.

Senior Spotlight: Amanda Burrell with White Ivy Events

Amanda is pursuing a degree in Entrepreneurial Management. She notes some of her entrepreneurial highlights while at Iowa that include: placing in the Business Model Competition, Hawkeye Innovation Expo (winning People's Choice), and the Rose Francis Elevator Pitch Competition.

After graduation, Amanda will be pursuing White Ivy Events full-time in Iowa City, Iowa. She plans to expand her company across the Midwest while building a team of designers and planners to serve more happy couples!

"I have loved being able to teach other women about entrepreneurship and event planning by bringing on multiple interns over the last year. I am so grateful for the support of Iowa Entrepreneurship and all the advisors to the Founders Club at The University of Iowa!" -Amanda