The Grove City College VentureLab is an early-stage business and social enterprise idea feasibility lab that provides access to seed grants and guidance to carefully screened teams. The VentureLab serves as a starting point for innovation and enables aspiring entrepreneurs to gauge the feasibility of their ideas. Real businesses have been launched, and students of all majors participate in learning how the start-up process works.
The mission of the VentureLab is to help the Grove City College campus community explore and develop new ventures based on their own original concepts.
Jake Loosararian, ’13, founder and CEO of Gecko Robotics, was an electrical engineering major at Grove City College. During his time here, he and his co-founders worked with the VentureLab to explore the commercial viability of an innovative, industrial robotic inspection device that they had developed. After graduation, Jake and his original business partners founded Gecko Robotics, taking the company through an early-stage incubator as well as Y Combinator in Silicon Valley. Today, Gecko Robotics is a thriving start-up in the Pittsburgh region.
According to Loosararian, “Grove City College honed a foundation centered on values, work ethic, and purpose. A start-up demands this from its founders. Through supporting things like VentureLab…the College has enabled and heightened the entrepreneurial spirit of me and my co-founders. The key to the College's success is top-tier professors with experience and aptitude. They just have a knack for believing in you.”
Read Jake's story.
In connection with the VentureLab, Venture U is an ongoing seminar series open to all students. Venture U focuses on the basics of starting a business, and sessions are focused on areas of interest such as legal, accounting, marketing, prototyping, and branding. Workshops are led by real-world professionals who are subject matter experts. Students from all majors and disciplines are welcome to attend these workshops.
View upcoming Venture U seminar dates.