UT will again provide faculty, students, and community members with tools to start and grow their own businesses through the fall Vol Court program, which begins September 25.
Vol Court is a series of one-hour workshops which will run through November 6. The final session will be a pitch competition where top presenters or teams will win cash prizes and valuable free business services.
The seven-part series will be held at 5:15 p.m. on Tuesdays in Room 201 of the James A. Haslam II Business Building. The Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, housed in College of Business Administration, is hosting the sessions.
Vol Court will offer participants the opportunity to learn from entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and business experts. The agenda has been revamped to use the latest in entrepreneurial education emerging from Silicon Valley.
During the final pitch session, the top presenting individual or team will win $1,000 and the second-place team will win $500. Students attending Vol Court will have the opportunity to better prepare themselves for the upcoming campuswide Undergraduate Business Plan Competition.
Session topics are:
- September 25: Customer Discovery and Validation Model; Entrepreneur Speaker Panel
- October 2: The Business Model Hypothesis, Part 1: Business Model Canvas
- October 9: The Business Model Hypothesis, Part 2: Making Money; Resource Assessment
- October 16: Testing Your Hypothesis With Customers
- October 23: Finding Investors at the Right Time
- October 30: Preparing the Pitch
- November 6: Pitch Competition
Vol Court is sponsored by the UT Federal Credit Union, the UT Research Foundation, and Pershing Yoakley and Associates.
To learn more about the presenters, sponsors, and each session, visit the Vol Court Facebook page.
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CONTACTS:
Joy Fisher (865-974-0520, joy.fisher@tennessee.edu)
Lola Alapo (865-974-3993, lola.alapo@tennessee.edu)