Much partnered with the University of Illinois to host a mentorship workshop for more than 50 student entrepreneurs in the iVenture Accelerator. Attorneys from across the firm met with leaders of the 16 startups admitted to iVenture’s eighth cohort, which includes students from 30 fields of study.
The day kicked off with a presentation by Craig Bradley, chair of Much’s Startups & Venture Capital group and one of Chicago’s leading advisors for emerging companies. Afterward, students were able to meet one-on-one with attorneys, gaining key legal insight on starting a business, fundraising, and navigating the venture capital arena. Craig Bradley, Pat Brennan, Mary Hays, Harlan Kahn, Rebecca Kanter, Kevin Noonan, Marc O’Brien, Dave Schmidt, Jeff Schwartz, and Julia Turk served as mentors.
The workshop wrapped with a formal pitch by each startup team, when we welcomed experts from some of the city’s top firms to serve as panelists. Students received valuable insight from Ryan Brown of Chaifetz Group, Steve Miller of Origin Ventures, and Courtney Trunk of Motivate Venture Capital.
Launched in 2015, iVenture provides opportunities for student-led startups to create economic and social value by supporting them with knowledge, funding, and access to world-class University of Illinois resources and alumni. Since its inception, iVenture has incubated 100 ventures led by 250 student entrepreneurs who have gone on to raise more than $100 million for their work and created over 300 full-time jobs.