Support + Share Adds New Events for Student Founder Success

Oct. 12, 2023
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Ben Lemmon - Consulting Photo

Are you a student with entrepreneurial ideas?  Do you feel overwhelmed and are looking for community + resources to help you get your ideas off the ground? 

FORGE has a resource to help called Support + Share and it provides student entrepreneurs with the resources they need to succeed. 

Support + Share meets on the University of Arizona Tucson campus twice a month to support student founders balancing full-time education with starting a venture, while offering a space for students to network with others who are going through similar experiences. The program understands the challenges of being both a student and a founder, such as how to prioritize academics while developing a business and how to mix classes with the research required to build a new idea. 

This semester the program has expanded to offer bi-weekly sessions that alternate providing education and insights from community professionals and networking events where students can get one-on-one advice, resources, and tools.

Upcoming programs for Support and Share include: 

October 24th: Support + Share for Student Entrepreneurs – Networking Social 

November 14th: Support + Share for Student Entrepreneurs 

November 28th: November Support + Share for Student Entrepreneurs – Networking Social 

Past programs have addressed issues critical to student founders. The October Support + Share addressed tools and resources for the Emotional Health and Well-Being of Entrepreneurs with Daniel Lee of Horizon Mind.  Taking place on Mental Health Awareness Day, the program addressed how challenging it can be to maintain mental health while trying to balance multiple priorities and the critical need to be able to do so.  The live stream of the program can be viewed online HERE

Students facing these challenges are also encouraged to reach out directly for on-campus support resources at caps.arizona.edu   

Julie Barbier Bularzik, the FORGE Coordinator for Venture Development Education, developed and launched Support + Share. Bularzik brings her own personal experience to this program. She has opened and managed locations for an international retail company and even owns a small business in Tucson. She found incredible support from the small business community within Tucson – and knows how extremely valuable that kind of support is as a business owner. 

This program was created to provide students with the same kind of support. 

During these sessions, students team up, receive feedback, and have access to useful coaching tools and resources. Support + Share is open to student entrepreneurs at any stage of their business and can include for-profit or non-profit businesses as well as social impact organizations, side gigs, scalable startups, and more.

Students can attend on a casual basis but registration is required beforehand. The meetings provide a safe and supportive space for all students ranging from first-year to Ph.D. students. The events meet on campus every other Tuesday at STEAM FORGE (Electrical and Computer Engineering, Room 234).  

If you're a student entrepreneur, we encourage you to check out Support + Share! It's a great way to connect with other students who are on the same journey and to get the support you need to succeed. 

To find out more about participating with us at our upcoming Support + Share event, please contact Julie Bularzik at jbularzik@arizona.edu. Visit our Events Page to register for an upcoming Support + Share event.