Origin Ventures Office of Entrepreneurship
The Origin Ventures Office of Entrepreneurship fuels innovation through learner entrepreneurial activities, fosters knowledge creation and dissemination from top faculty in the field, and designs and offers the curriculum needed to bring that knowledge to the classroom – exposing learners to new ideas that could shape and transform the future of business.
Building a Thriving, Inclusive Entrepreneurial Community
One way we purposefully innovate is the Origin Ventures Office of Entrepreneurship. This office is the center of Gies Business’ thriving and continually growing entrepreneurship efforts. As a key component of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s world-class entrepreneurial ecosystem, the office:
- Leverages faculty research – the science of entrepreneurship – to create and share knowledge that drives business practices forward
- Makes entrepreneurship more accessible and inclusive for learners, fostering their curiosity and connecting them to resources to help them push boundaries in business and beyond
- Elevates awareness of Gies entrepreneurship among all audiences - across campus, the nation, and the world
Explore our entrepreneurial programs below.
iVenture Accelerator
iVenture is the university-wide innovation development program powered by Gies College of Business. It provides nurturing opportunities for student-led startups to create social and economic value. Participants in iVenture receive the time, space, resources (up to $20,000), and mentorship needed to turn their idea into a scalable venture. iVenture supports ventures creating tech, social, commercial, or cultural value.
EntreCORPS
EntreCORPS is the student-based, pro bono consulting firm in Gies College of Business that provides startup companies with innovative, strategic, research-backed business advice. Student teams work closely with clients to understand problems and formulate solutions that address the business needs.
About Origin Ventures and The REAM Foundation
The office is made possible by a generous gift of nearly $5 million from The REAM Foundation, in honor of Origin Ventures co-founder and Gies Business alumnus Steve Miller. The REAM Foundation is a private family foundation, which since 2007 has awarded more than $24 million in grants supporting education and healthcare. Originally initiated in 2018, this investment is given in honor of Miller, a member of REAM’s board of directors. Miller (BA, ’87) and fellow Gies Business alumnus Bruce Barron (ACCY, ’77) co-founded Origin Ventures in 1999.
Origin Ventures is a leading venture capital firm that collaborates with ambitious founders to build high-growth, innovative, category-defining technology companies. Best known for being the first investors in Grubhub, Miller and Barron have been raising and providing seed and early-stage money for entrepreneurs and startups for more than 20 years.
Melissa Graebner
Academic Director, Origin Ventures Office of Entrepreneurship
An internationally recognized expert in the fields of entrepreneurship and strategy, Melissa Graebner is also deeply committed to student success in the classroom. Graebner is the Robert C. Evans Endowed Professor in Business and director of the Initiative for Qualitative Research in Innovation and Entrepreneurship (INQUIRE) at Gies Business. Her award-winning research focuses on mergers and acquisitions, strategy in entrepreneurial firms, and qualitative research methods. Her name regularly appears on the List of Teachers Ranked as Excellent by their Students.