Business INCubatoredu at OPRF

05/15/2021

Help us provide "validation" to this team. One minute of your time provides a whole lot of help here!

As part of the OPRFHS INCubator program, our team has created a business idea that addresses the problem of "maskne" -- the acne people sometimes get after wearing a facemask all day. Your responses to this survey are anonymous and confidential. They will be used strictly for concept validation. Tha...

01/25/2021

Have you watched the pitches yet?
Some good stuff in there from some of the brightest minds at OPRF High School.
The link to watch the pitches in on our page and in the introduction of the voting form.
Please share a few minutes of your time to help us guide these young entrepreneurs.

Please help us decide which of our entrepreneurial teams has the best idea and progress so far. If you haven't already, please watch the Flipgrid Mixtape HERE: https://flipgrid.com/+prebble6463 Voting is confidential and secure. Voting will end Friday January 29, 2021 at midnight.

01/22/2021

Have you watched the elevator pitches yet?
Voting starts Monday!

Check out this Flipgrid Mixtape and the magic of student voice!

01/21/2021

Our intrepid OPRF INCubator students have made the best of online learning by presenting online Elevator Pitches!
Now we need YOUR help.
Please take just a few minutes to watch their video pitches.
Our next post on this page will be a poll -- VOTE for your favorite so we can keep this entrepreneur-ship sailing.

Check out this Flipgrid Mixtape and the magic of student voice!

12/10/2020

"Students ... learn valuable skills by working with a team to create and pressure-test a business idea. They have exposure to business leaders in their communities who mentor and provide real-world guidance, and ultimately pitch to investors who weigh in, and potentially invest in the business."

Women and Entrepreneurship: Four young women share their personal stories of achievement and growth through INCubatoredu high school entrepreneurship.

12/09/2020

We're back with and pleased to introduce another first-year mentor, Hajjar Herbert, teacher, founder, and owner of Magical Minds Studio - Creative Development.
Hajjar says, by "playing it safe and following the guidelines" and "taking it one day at a time" she is able to continue working at the studio to provide a crucial place for kids to be while their parents work.
Hajjar joined OPRF INCubator to support young entrepreneurs and shared this Khalil Gibran quote with us:
"When you reach the end of what you should know, you will be at the beginning of what you should sense."

11/30/2020

This brings us first-year mentor, Bill Planek.
President of Mastercare Building Services, Inc., Bill provides quality housing options for our community. (See more at OakParkApartments.com.)
Bill says he got involved with OPRF INCubator in order to "do something positive," and is "praying for the kids - this is tougher on them."
And while fall is his favorite season, he hopes to build a canoe in his garage this winter!
We'll look forward to an update on that this spring, Bill!

11/26/2020

just under the wire!
Caty Engel Stegemann, a first-time mentor, is the Owner and a Physical Therapist at Centre Physical Therapy.
With two kids, ages 9 and 6 at home, she continues to work at her office with proper PPE, hand washing, cleaning of all equipment after each use, temperature checks, and screening questionnaire for each patient. A valuable combination of entrepreneur and parent who's mentoring our students.
Caty became involved with our program because she enjoys "Helping students navigate the world of the entrepreneur and achieve success."
We're grateful you're here at OPRF, Caty!

11/18/2020

Instead of this week, we're going with .
Please meet Lori Meyers Claps, a four-year Mentor and Coach.
In addition to her career as Director of Partner Solutions at ViacomCBS, Lori says, "I love to help build brands and show young people how many different and exciting career opportunities exist."
Lori has coached our classes on Customer Segmentation and Market Sizing as well as mentored teams and parented an INCubator and Accelerator student!
Working from home nowadays, Lori has found that "morning workouts with a friend help make the world feel normal...and fun!"
An avid tennis player and wine enthusiast, she feels "there's nothing better than dinner with one's family."
We feel there's nothing better than an OPRF INCubator program with you in it, Lori! Thank you for your time and energy.

11/12/2020

Our first Accelerator team to launch their company is AnyJob!
The team created the business plan in last year's INCubator class, and has now put it to the test here in the OPRF community.
Need a task done?
Check out their page for the link to the Job request form.
Congratulations, guys!

11/09/2020

Welcome to .
Today we're pleased to introduce three-time mentor and long-time runner, Jim DeBeers.
Working from home these days as the founder and Chief Innovator of HydraKlick, a fitness product business, Jim runs, works out, and plans for days in the future when he can travel again -- to Rome, grazie!
Jim is also working with OPRF Team Zeta, which is building a business plan around car message displays.
Jim says, "I enjoy developing products and wanted to share my experience to help students do the same."

11/02/2020

We're back with after a long break.
This year starts by featuring the teacher without whom there would be no INCubator at OPRF.
Matt Prebble is the man who brings us all together.
As the Department Chair for Business Education, Matt says "We saw an opportunity to provide our students with a more experiential and rewarding entrepreneurship program at OPRFHS to complement the courses we were currently offering."
Working from home in Batavia, where he spends his spare time assembling the 7,000 piece Lego Millennial Falcon, Matt admits he's never started his own business, "I'm too risk-averse, which is why I love this program...I get to live my entrepreneurial aspirations vicariously through our students!"

One final quote: "I'm convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance." ~ Steve Jobs