{"id":21705,"date":"2024-02-15T20:13:42","date_gmt":"2024-02-15T20:13:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/160-news\/?p=21705"},"modified":"2026-04-16T21:26:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T21:26:08","slug":"how-it-started-how-its-going","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/news\/2024\/02\/how-it-started-how-its-going\/","title":{"rendered":"How It Started, How It’s Going"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Erin Peterson<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Macalester\u2019s Idea Lab on the library\u2019s second floor is a bustling space: students map out ideas on dry-erase boards, flip through books on innovation, and talk energetically with one another around small tables. The lab opened in 2017 as home to the Department of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and it\u2019s where students go to take advantage of Macalester\u2019s robust offerings on entrepreneurship, ranging from guest lectures by visiting alumni entrepreneurs to the ten-week MacStartups competitive business incubator program that helps students transform innovative ideas into reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s no question that entrepreneurial thinking is having a moment, particularly among young people. A Junior Achievement USA national survey published in 2022 found that 60 percent of teens are more interested in starting their own business than working a traditional job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Macalester, students are encouraged to pair their entrepreneurial drive with a grounding in the liberal arts, says Jody Emmings, director of entrepreneurship and innovation. Some fifty-three classes from seventeen disciplines have used the Idea Lab to help students pursue innovative thinking in their coursework. \u201cWhen students have \u2018aha\u2019 moments in the classroom, we give them opportunities to explore questions and pursue experiential learning opportunities,\u201d says Emmings. In the 2022-23 academic year alone, that included 135 classes, workshops, and events in the Idea Lab, with twenty-seven faculty partners representing twenty different departments. Nearly 1,800 students visited the Idea Lab as part of their coursework.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The point, she says, is not necessarily for students to launch the next billion-dollar company (though she does encourage students to aim high). It is instead to help them build skills that will benefit them long beyond their time on campus. \u201cStudents who are graduating in an uncertain world cannot easily predict their future, so they need to know how to create it,\u201d she says. \u201cThrough entrepreneurship and innovation programming, students are able to generate and test their ideas to create something that does not yet exist. The learning that happens in the experimenting, practicing, and reflecting helps them build the entrepreneurial mindset and courage that allows them to build the future they want.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To see how these lessons play out beyond Macalester, we asked seven young alumni who have participated in entrepreneurship and innovation programming to share what they learned\u2014and how those lessons continue to resonate years later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rachel Stromsta ’19<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How It Started<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Rachel Stromsta had been interested in social justice issues even before she arrived at Macalester. So when she learned about the Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship course, she enrolled. \u201cThe focus on the process of building and facilitating growth in nonprofits stood out to me,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The class led her to intern for a semester with a local advocacy organization on criminal justice reform initiatives, including around meaningful employment opportunities. Then, she joined MacStartups to support efforts to combat hiring bias and structural barriers in the Twin Cities. In her final year at Macalester, she worked with Lutfe-E-Noor Rahman \u201918 on a Live It Fund project that addressed the challenge of unsafe travel to school for girls in Bangladesh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The work required her to design proposals, craft budgets, and collaborate with others who had different perspectives and ideas. \u201cThese were all components of Macalester\u2019s entrepreneurship program that challenged me to think creatively,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How It’s Going<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Stromsta, who earned her degree in political science with a concentration in human rights and humanitarianism, was most recently a program officer for the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., that works to support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide. She has supported the Institute\u2019s programs to promote peaceful and inclusive democratic processes, including through an international election observation mission for Nigeria\u2019s 2023 presidential polls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The mix of academic courses and entrepreneurial programming Stromsta took at Macalester has helped her develop in her career. She appreciates what she learned in her academic coursework, and regularly uses the skills from her entrepreneurship experiences: taking initiative, collaboration, and networking to get support. \u201cSo much of my work in MacStartups and the Live It Fund have instilled a drive to keep learning in my career.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Rachel<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zach Jordan ’22<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How It Started<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is a therapy technique that\u2019s commonly used to treat trauma-related disorders\u2014but that has typically relied on clunky physical technology. When Zach Jordan experienced the technique with a therapist in high school, he suspected that software tools might be a better solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He built a simple first version, EasyEMDR, for him and his therapist to use, then put it out on the internet in 2016 for anyone who wanted it. The demand for the tool, which is designed to lead patients to move their eyes in specific ways while processing traumatic memories, quickly grew to more than he could handle. \u201cMy intention wasn\u2019t to build a company,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But while Jordan was at Mac, he decided to take an introductory entrepreneurship course with [former director and entrepreneur in residence] Kate Ryan Reiling \u201900. \u201cKate was very good at pushing people to get started on an idea and follow through on it,\u201d he says. \u201cShe made me realize that turning my work into a business and scaling it up could help me build a better tool with more infrastructure\u2014which would ultimately be beneficial for end users.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How It’s Going<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Jordan’s company grew steadily for years\u2014until March 2020, when COVID-19\u2019s stay-at-home orders led to explosive growth as therapy appointments moved online. Today, he leads a team of contractors to support the software, which is used by more than 10,000 therapists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jordan says he is particularly proud that he has embedded his own values into the company\u2019s DNA. \u201cWe donate a minimum of 10 percent of all of our profits to charity, we give [the tool] away for free to anyone who can\u2019t afford it, and we use our platform to talk about social issues that create trauma in the world,\u201d he says. \u201cOur goal is about more than creating great EMDR tools\u2014it\u2019s to address trauma more broadly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Ay\u00e7a<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kiante Miles ’20<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How It Started<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Slam poetry\u2014a combination of poetry and performance\u2014had always been a way for Kiante Miles to articulate his most complicated feelings about the world. He found particular solace in the art after he arrived at Macalester, which felt politically and culturally distinct from his Oklahoma home. Miles wanted to introduce other young people to the art form that helped him process his emotions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the help of the Live It Fund and MacStartups, he developed \u201cStay Woke Poetry,\u201d a program that taught the basic skills of slam poetry to high school students in Minnesota and Oklahoma. He helped students write and perform their own poems, which also were compiled and published in a physical book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Miles says that the work taught him the importance of building something that was designed to last. \u201cIt was never about \u2018How do I get rich quick?\u2019\u201d he says. \u201cIt was about coming up with creative solutions to complex problems, having a moral compass, and creating something sustainable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How It’s Going<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Now a data engineer at Hagerty, a membership organization for car lovers, Miles has maintained an entrepreneurial mindset. He recently started his own company on the side, Miles of Art, which is designed to support and grow the Black presence in digital careers, whether that\u2019s graphic art or software engineering. It\u2019s a need he\u2019s seen firsthand since entering the workforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He launched the endeavor with the same care he did with his slam poetry ventures, including an eye toward making impact now\u2014and carefully managing his funding and energy so that he can continue to do so for years to come. \u201cMacalester was great at instilling a sense of care about others,\u201d he says. \u201cMy goal is to put [this venture] in a good place so I can help a lot of people not just now, but ten years from now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Kiante<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Juliette Myers ’17<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How It Started<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When Juliette Myers decided that she wanted to pursue a career as an artist, she knew she\u2019d need more than just talent to succeed. \u201cIt required understanding entrepreneurship and business,\u201d she says. \u201cThat led me to MacStartups.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through the ten-week program, Myers worked with Twin Cities artist Baki Porter to develop an art collective: a group of artists who ultimately came together for a one-time performance art event that included rap, dance, and poetry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The work for MacStartups focused on the methodical process of taking an idea from concept to reality. Myers says that one of the steps that had an immediate impact was an assignment to talk to dozens of people working in a similar field to learn how to find funding and strengthen her skills as an artist. \u201cI ended up interviewing more than fifty people connected to the arts, and they also connected me to other artists,\u201d she says. \u201cIt was a huge way for me to network and meet more people in the arts community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How It’s Going<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As a public artist, muralist, and mosaic artist, Myers continues to benefit from her MacStartups experience. Many of the skills she honed as a student\u2014including developing sharp pitches to describe her ideas, values, and approaches\u2014continue to benefit her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But even more than that, she\u2019s tried to model the kind of generosity that she experienced from alumni and artists when she was first learning about the field. \u201cToday, I have people who want to talk with me about the arts community, and I\u2019m happy to do that,\u201d she says. \u201cI learned how important it is to be generous with your time and information. Building relationships is at the core of this work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Juliette<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lilian Vo ’18<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How It Started<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Lilian Vo joined the board of the Live It Fund on a whim as a first-year student. Eventually, reading applications for students who wanted to pursue ambitious projects through the fund inspired her to devise her own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her junior year, she landed a grant to create The Sticky Rice Project, which used cooking, writing, and reflective workshops to build connections among different generations of the Vietnamese community in Seattle, where Vo grew up. The project, which included a print magazine component, connected her interest in her home city with her fascination with design. \u201cI\u2019m a designer through and through,\u201d she says. \u201cI wanted to go beyond ideas to create something that was real and tangible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Vo never thought of herself explicitly as an entrepreneur, she did think of herself as creative; she went on to pursue other entrepreneurial programs including Macathon and frequently spent time in the Idea Lab. \u201cThe Idea Lab gave me space to be creative and collaborative,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How It’s Going<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Sticky Rice led Vo directly to her current job at The On Being Project, an organization that produces podcasts, events, and tools to help people think about what it means to be human.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The art director at The On Being Project at the time came across Vo\u2019s online portfolio, which included The Sticky Rice Project, and reached out. \u201cI remember she said something along the lines of \u2018Oh, so you\u2019re an art director,\u2019\u201d Vo recalls. \u201cIt was cool to have a professional give words to what I was doing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, Vo herself is the organization\u2019s senior art director, where she creates a variety of materials for the website and social media, and collaborates with illustrators and photographers. She says she still leans on the experimental mindsets that she developed in her entrepreneurial programs at Macalester. \u201cYou have to try a lot of things to know if they\u2019re going to work. You\u2019ve got to keep working and keep testing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Lilian<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cuauht\u00e9moc Cruz Herrera ’19<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How It Started<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Growing up in Mexico, Cuauht\u00e9moc Cruz Herrera was an eager participant in Math Olympiad, a team-based competition that fosters mathematical thinking. But even as he excelled, he worried about the competition\u2019s flaws: \u201cMost of the students were private school students\u2014there were few opportunities for public school students like me,\u201d he recalls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While he was still in high school, he started working with public schools to help them get access to the competition. When he arrived at Macalester, he realized the Live It Fund could help him scale the work further. With the funding, he was able to work with more schools in Mexico to expand access to Math Olympiad experiences. It ended up reaching some 500 students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cruz Herrera says he benefited not just from the funding, but from advice he got from the Mac community during the process. \u201cI would go to the entrepreneurship office to just chat with them about my project,\u201d he recalls. \u201cThey gave me so much mentorship support,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How It’s Going<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Today, Cruz Herrera is the director of exact sciences and mental skills for the Department of Education in Mexico\u2019s state of Jalisco. He oversees a portfolio of programs and activities linked to
entrepreneurship, mathematics, and STEAM for teachers and students. He leads a team of more than fifty who have an impact on more than 100,000 students annually. \u201cIn many ways, much of my work is the same as what I was doing at Macalester, but a thousand times bigger,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Cuauht\u00e9moc<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jonah Kaplan ’16<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How It Started<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Jonah Kaplan loved the idea of being part of a team focused on making an impact in the world. When he had the chance to run the MacStartups program with Zach Willert \u201917, one year after its founding by Petar Petrovic \u201914, he jumped at the opportunity. \u201cI began to believe that a for-profit business could be used to effect positive change,\u201d he says. \u201cMacStartups put me together with an interesting group of people, and on an exciting new path.\u201d They aimed to build a program that leaned into liberal arts values and the unique challenges of launching a business. \u201cThere were people in the program from all different backgrounds and disciplines\u2014political science, environmental science, math,\u201d he says. \u201cHaving a deep expertise in a discipline unrelated to business can be a huge advantage.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They also aimed to help build a community for the fledgling founders\u2014both with fellow students, as well as alumni experts and the wider entrepreneurial community. \u201cBeing a startup founder is a lonely journey,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s really about the support you get from others along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How It’s Going<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Today, as the head of platform at early-stage venture capital firm BlueYard Capital, Kaplan sees parallels to the work he once did at Macalester. \u201cA startup requires incredible will from a founder\u2014as an outside supporter and investor, your job is to offer resources and support to keep them going,\u201d he says. \u201cAt MacStartups, that was a small stipend, a supportive alumni network, and a cohort of like-minded students. Now, the scale and stakes are higher, but the exact same principles apply.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kaplan continues to lend a hand to the MacStartups program through a variety of volunteer efforts, including attending pitch feedback events. At some point, he hopes he\u2019ll be more than just an advisor for today\u2019s students. \u201cMy dream would be that at some point, BlueYard has the chance to invest in the work of Macalester alumni,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Jonah<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Erin Peterson is a Minneapolis-based writer.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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