The IEEE Forum on Entrepreneurship and Innovation

RSVP/Enter Drawing

Aggies Innovate!

About This Event

Join us for refreshments, a lively, interactive panel discussion featuring your questions, and item giveaways focused on how you can be an innovator and entrepreneur. Whether you have started a business or are just considering doing so, this panel can help you get started with ways to research and patent inventions, think entrepreneurially about your career, and point you to success.

Send in your question for the panel to be entered in the drawings (must be present at the event to win).

Panelists

Desmond Sharpe, President, Sharpe Pursuits, Inc.

Desmond Sharpe is founder and president of event planning and management company Sharpe Pursuits, Inc., and a proud Aggie, Class of 1999. After completing a PhD in groundwater hydrology at N.C. State University and a career in higher education, he followed his dream of creating an event planning and management company, making successful events come alive all over the Piedmont Triad region.

Thaddeus McEwen, Professor, College of Business and Economics

Dr. Thaddeus McEwen is a Professor in the Department of Management, Coordinator of the Entrepreneurship Program and Founding Director of the Center for Excellence in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Dr. McEwen recently established the Entrepreneur-in-Residence and the Faculty Fellows in Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programs. In the community, he is a member of the Small Business Consortium, member of the Launch Greensboro Advisory Board, and recently served as Chair of the Organizing Team for the Spring 2017 Triad Startup Weekend.

Laura Collins, Department of Research and Economic Development

Laura Collins is the Interim Assistant Vice Chancellor of Outreach and Economic Development in NC A&T’s Division of Research and Economic Development. She leads economic development and technology transfer efforts, including advocating for business collaborations. Previously, as Director of Intellectual Property Development, she was responsible for engaging campus researchers in the patent process, and working with outside patent counsel. She also manages the university’s technology transfer efforts– licensing university IP to take research into the marketplace. In addition to her role on campus, Laura currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Nussbaum Center for Entrepreneurship.

Tiffany Russell, Librarian, F.D. Bluford Library

Tiffany Russell is the liaison librarian to the College of Business and Economics, where she helps students and faculty navigate information resources and analytics. She is also the budget officer for the library, interacting with vendors and negotiating contracts for library resources. Her work also focuses on research impact and training on entrepreneurship databases and resources.

Ruth Wolfish, Client Services Manager, IEEE

Ruth Wolfish is a client services manager for IEEE and supports academic, government, and corporate accounts in the eastern United States. She previously worked for Lucent Technologies and its predecessor companies as a reference librarian, management trainer, information specialist, and electronic content coordinator.