Calling all Longhorns and Austinites! Are you interested in entrepreneurship & innovation? Do you want to meet ambitious students and faculty? Are you looking for mentors and resources to help you launch? If you answered yes, then this event is for you!

Hosted by the Herb Kelleher Center for Entrepreneurship, the Intro to the UT/Austin Startup Ecosystem is the perfect opportunity to get yourself involved in entrepreneurship & innovation at UT and in Austin!

Schedule

• 4:00PM - "Intro to the UT/Austin Startup Ecosystem" Presentation featuring Amanda Golden, HKC Program Manager, and Mellie Price, Executive Director of the Jon Brumley Texas Venture Labs.
• 5:00PM - Virtual Trade Show featuring UT and Austin startup resources

Speakers

Amanda Golden | Program Manager, Herb Kelleher Center

Amanda Golden is the Program Manager for the Herb Kelleher Center for Entrepreneurship. In this role, she manages the center’s various programs and events, including managing the Forty Acres Founders Pre-Accelerator Program.

Amanda has over 10 years experience working in higher education and helping students navigate the college and university setting. After graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Government right here on the Forty Acres, Amanda worked for two years at the University of Maryland, College Park in the Robert H. Smith School of Business.

Prior to joining the HKC team, Amanda worked as a Career Counselor and Academic Advisor in the Cockrell School of Engineering. While working in engineering, Amanda oversaw many complex projects, allowing her to build an expansive skill set in program coordination and student support. In 2015, Amanda earned a Master’s Degree in College Student Development from St. Edward’s University, where she was recognized as the Outstanding Graduate in her program. Amanda is excited to be part of the HKC team and to help students make their startup dreams a reality.

Mellie Price | Executive Director, Jon Brumley Texas Venture Labs

Mellie Price, a 25-year Austinite, is the inaugural Executive Director, Commercialization at the Dell Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin. She is an experienced investor, executive, fund manager, technologist, and eight-time entrepreneur with a range of business experience from small private sector to a large publicly traded organization. She has created and managed both organic and explosive growth scenarios for a variety of organizations and is passionate about leveraging that experience to help transform healthcare.

Mellie is a co-founder and Managing Director of the nationally recognized startup accelerator program and entrepreneurial hub, Capital Factory, as well as a former General Partner to its investment fund. She currently serves as the Director of Diversity and Inclusion and is passionate about building a more diverse entrepreneurial ecosystem. She is also the co-founder of SoftMatch, a service company that connects Fortune 1000 enterprises with the highly fragmented global startup ecosystem. Ms. Price was also the Founder & CEO of Austin’s own Front Gate Tickets, one of the largest privately held ticketing companies in the US/Canada from 2002 to 2015 when it was sold to Live Nation.

A frequent presenter and keynote speaker, Ms. Price is an active member of the Texas entrepreneurship community and a winner of the prestigious Austin Business Journal’s 2015 Profiles in Power Award as well as the 2014 Tech Titan Award. She is a member of the Board of Directors for KLRU (PBS-TV), Leadership Austin and the Sustainable Food Center.

Trade Show Partners