Attendees listen to a speaker in Marshall McLuhan Hall

Inaugural faculty symposium showcases entrepreneurship at UM

Experts shared how incorporating entrepreneurial approaches supports research, innovation and the student experience.

December 2, 2024 —

Nearly 100 people gathered for the inaugural Entrepreneurship & Innovative Thinking Faculty Symposium on Monday, November 25^th.

The collaborative event hosted by The Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, the Stu Clark Centre for Entrepreneurship, IDEA START, and Partnerships, Knowledge Mobilization and Innovation, brought together our UM community to learn about entrepreneurship in various forms.

Four faculty members shared their experiences applying entrepreneurship and innovation

Snehil Dua from the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences shared how she incorporates entrepreneurship as a type of experiential learning into her courses to provide students with real world experience and help prepare them for their post-university careers.
Nathan Greidanus from the I.H. Asper School of Business shared highlights from his career scholarship of entrepreneurship, including the relationships between entrepreneurship and Attention Deficit Hyper-Activity Disorder (ADHD) and exposure to natural disasters in childhood.
Associate Professor Tijen Roshko from the Faculty of Architecture shared about her journey founding a high fashion felt company called Koyle TJN and how combining her background in science, technology and art with entrepreneurial approaches helped grow the company to be featured at this year’s Startup Fashion Week in Toronto.
Claudio Rigatto from the Max Rady College of Medicine shared about his journey to build a start up around a UM technology for chronic kidney disease along with Faculty of Science researchers using accessible and affordable lab-equivalent technologies.

Attendees also heard brief introductions from the units on campus that support entrepreneurship in all its forms:

Janine Carmichael, Faculty Specialist, Entrepreneurship, The Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning.
Debra Jonasson-Young, I.H. Asper Executive Director, Stu Clark Centre for Entrepreneurship
Rajeev Koyal, Program Manager, IDEA START
Andrea Kraj, Technology Transfer Manager, Partnerships, Knowledge Mobilization and Innovation

November marked the second annual Entrepreneurship & Innovative Thinking Month at the University of Manitoba. Along with the symposium, the month featured events, initiatives and highlights of how entrepreneurship and innovative approaches can support the pursuit of big ideas to help make the world a better place.

Check out the latest Entrepreneurship & Innovative Thinking Report on Activities for 2023/24.

The Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning

entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship and innovative thinking, provost and vice-president (academic), the centre for the advancement of teaching and learning

Examining deficit thinking and moving to strength-based strategies to better work with Indigenous students

UM faculty are invited to a workshop to learn about how historical events and policies have shaped deficit thinking, and how this impacts Indigenous students in education spaces. Deficit Thinking and Strengths-Based Approaches in the Classroom When Working With Indigenous Students takes place on Wednesday, January 15 from 9 am - 12 pm online.