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September 6, 2022

Trinity College launching new entrepreneurship center

HBJ PHOTO | STEVE LASCHEVER Trinity College Vice President for Advancement Michael Casey is leading the liberal arts school’s $500 million fundraising campaign. Some of that money will go toward renovations to the college’s landmark campus chapel (shown in background).
By Skyler Frazer

Trinity College is opening a new Center for Entrepreneurship, which school officials said will support students, faculty and alumni hoping to pursue entrepreneurial endeavors.

The new center, which was announced Monday, will be “student-focused and promote entrepreneurial thinking, said Trinity Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs Sonia Cardenas. She said the center will provide any liberal arts major with the confidence and “know-how” to turn their innovative ideas into action.

Contributed
Sonia Cardenas

Cardenas said the new center will allow Trinity to more effectively partner with Hartford’s innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem. According to the school, the facility will connect students and faculty with alumni and entrepreneurs and innovators. 

The inaugural director of the center is Danny Briere. According to information from Trinity, Briere has started several firms including technology company TeleChoice. He’s also served as a consultant to more than 200 start-ups. Briere was also CEO and co-founder of Startup Connecticut, a statewide startup initiative focused on job creation in the state, and he’s a longstanding board member of Connecticut’s Invention Convention.

“The Center for Entrepreneurship has two goals: first, we want to build inventive, innovative, and entrepreneurial mindsets in all Trinity students; and then, for those who want to take the extra step in pursuing product and company launch, we will support that direction as well,” Briere said.

Partnerships at the new center could include internships, apprenticeships or other collaborations with corporations and nonprofits.

According to the college, the center was launched following contributions from graduate Lou Shipley, who serves on Trinity’s Board of Trustees. The Center for Entrepreneurship will be fully funded through new donations to the school, and fundraising goals for the facility will be centered around creating opportunities for students, faculty and alumni, and growing the college’s endowment.

A faculty and staff advisory board will provide the center and its director with guidance about campus partners and programming, the school said.

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