NobleReach™️ Foundation Holds First-Ever Innovation for Impact Educators Training

Tysons Corner, VA – August 1, 2024 – Today, NobleReach™️ Foundation launched its inaugural Innovation for Impact^TM Educators Training, convening representatives from academia, industry, non-profits and government. This three-day intensive training aims to equip participants with cutting-edge tools and methodologies to inspire and empower the next generation of mission-driven changemakers.

Adapted from Lean Startup principles, the tools and methodology taught during the Educators Training form the cornerstone of the Innovation for Impact course – a graduate-level offering designed to address critical civil, environmental, security, social, and technological challenges through hands-on entrepreneurship education and collaboration with government and the private sector.

“It’s not about creating start-ups, it’s about creating entrepreneurs to solve our most pressing and complex problems,” said Steven Weinstein, creator of the Innovation for Impact course and General Partner at America’s Frontier Fund. “This course is about teaching students the entrepreneurial mindset, helping them realize they can make an impact and giving them the tools to do so.”

The training included collaborative sessions that immersed participants in innovation practices, focusing on practical applications for tackling global challenges. It also featured discussions around technology and talent led by experts including Weinstein, as well as NobleReach Fellow Sree Ramaswamy, former senior advisor to US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, and Arun Gupta, CEO of NobleReach and author of national bestseller Venture Meets Mission.

“With technology, trust is very important. It is crucial that our broader society, especially youth, are engaged with public service and the challenges that technology and entrepreneurship can help us overcome,” said Gupta. “Give people tech, but more importantly, allow them to learn and explore it—and there’s no better place to explore than at our universities.”

“Our strength is our country’s creativity at the grassroots level, and universities play a critical role in that. The ability to spot and develop new innovations and technologies is our differentiator on the global stage,” said Ramaswamy.

Lauren Barry, an alumna of the Innovation for Impact course at Rollins College, reflected on her transformative experience, noting, “It changed my life, changed how I approach school, and will change how I approach my career.”

Participants heard firsthand from panels of course instructors and student alumni from participating universities including James Madison University, Northwestern University, Rollins College, Stanford University, University of Madison Wisconsin and University of Puerto Rico.

Representation spanned faculty and administrators from 18 universities, underscoring the program’s broad reach and impact. Additionally, participants from non-profit and government organizations included the Center for Climate Strategies, the Charlotte Chapter of the National Black MBA Association, EVRO, a non-profit consultancy for improving accessibility and neuro-inclusivity, and the U.S. Department of State.

NobleReach is committed to partnering with academic institutions around the country, providing opportunities for educators to help their students take advantage of mission-driven career pathways.

For more information about the Innovation for Impact Educators Training or NobleReach Foundation’s initiatives, please visit www.noblereachfoundation.org.  

For media inquiries, please contact:  

Katharine Viles  

Director of Communications  

katharine.viles@noblereachfdn.org

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About NobleReach Foundation:

NobleReach™️ Foundation, a nonprofit based just outside Washington, D.C., has a mission to strengthen the security and prosperity of our nation through talent and innovation. NobleReach brings together the entrepreneurial agility of the private sector, the ideas of academia, and the scale and purpose of the public sector to drive innovation toward solving our nation’s technological challenges by inspiring the next generation of mission-driven changemakers. Our talent initiatives are focused on bridging professionals in tech and entrepreneurship fields with opportunities in government. Our innovation efforts center around NobleReach experts partnering with government research agencies to commercialize cutting-edge research.