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Academic Coursework

ECON238: Introduction to Entrepreneurship – Fall 2025

Taught by Eric Halaas and Allan Martinez Venegas ‘14

Intro to Entrepreneurship is a hands-on, project-based course that explores how new ventures are imagined, tested, and launched. Students will learn the five key phases of entrepreneurship: identifying problems worth solving, conducting customer and market research, generating and evaluating ideas, prototyping and piloting solutions, and crafting compelling stories to inspire support. Along the way, students will develop practical skills in teamwork, research, budgeting, and pitching, while also strengthening their creativity, resilience, and ethical decision-making. Guest entrepreneurs and experts will join throughout the semester to share their experiences and insights. By the end of the course, students will have built and pitched their own venture concepts, gaining tools and confidence to pursue their own ideas or contribute meaningfully to organizations and communities.

Course Structure:

  • Module 1: Introduction to Entrepreneurship and Innovation (Weeks 1–2) Students will explore the entrepreneurial mindset, review case studies, and gain an overview of the five phases of entrepreneurship that shape the course.
  • Module 2: Framing – Problem and Opportunity Framing (Weeks 3–4) Students will learn to identify, define, and frame problems worth solving, transforming challenges into opportunities for entrepreneurial action.
  • Module 3: Inspiration – Customer and Market Insights (Weeks 5–7) Students will conduct research to understand customers, competitors, and stakeholders, turning raw data into insights that inform venture design.
  • Module 4: Ideation – Solution and Business Concept Development (Weeks 8–9) Students will generate, test, and refine creative solutions, developing early prototypes and shaping initial business concepts.
  • Module 5: Implementation – Taking Entrepreneurial Action (Weeks 10–13) Students will translate ideas into action by building prototypes, designing business models, creating implementation plans, and exploring funding strategies.
  • Module 6: Storytelling and the Final Pitch (Weeks 14–16)
    Students will craft and deliver compelling venture pitches that communicate value, inspire support, and showcase their entrepreneurial journey.

    ANTH294: From Empathy to Action: Applied Anthropology and Human-Centered Design for Social Innovation

    Taught by Allan Martinez Venegas ‘14

    Embark on a transformative journey at the intersection of tradition and innovation in this dynamic course. Applied Anthropology and Human-Centered Design unite to empower you with the knowledge and skills to address pressing social issues. From Anthropology, you will draw on essential and time-honored qualitative research methods such as surveys, interviews, and focus groups to unravel the intricacies of the human experience. But that’s just the beginning. As a change-maker, you will also embrace the practical world of Human-Centered Design (HCD). You will learn to generate insights, fostering creativity through brainstorming and crafting prototypes. These multidisciplinary skills will not only prepare you for making a meaningful impact with empathy and precision but will also position you for life after college with highly sought-after, job-market-relevant abilities to address real-world challenges. Throughout the course, you will refine your storytelling acumen, enabling you to effectively thread your research findings and design solutions into compelling narratives. It will all come together as you work in teams to research a local issue, design a solution for it, and present it in an innovative pitch at the end of the semester. Are you ready for this fusion of classic anthropology and HCD to set the stage for meaningful change and professional success? 

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