Entrepreneur Week (e-Week) at Utah State University

Imagine skiing down a three-story snow-covered structure, then sliding down a rail to catch air and pulling off an impressive stunt without ever leaving campus. Using such an approach to call attention to e-Week may be unusual, but the Utah State University Entrepreneur Club, which prides itself on innovative thinking, is doing just that.
"we not only have a chance to showcase entrepreneurship, but to broadly increase awareness of the e-Club and to have a fun event connected with e-Week that will attract students from all across campus."
The “Campus Rail Jam Tour,” a traveling ski and snowboard competition, is part of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business e-Week (Entrepreneur Week). This last year featured a large, temporary mountain-like structure to be built next to the George S. Eccles Business Building and then covered with 25 tons of snow, allowing participants to compete and show off their ski and snowboarding skills without traveling up the canyon, organizers say.

The “Rail Jam” event is organized by Galvanic Design, a company that began as an entrepreneurial venture launched by students at Oregon State University.

“It’s a great demonstration of a successful entrepreneurial effort by college students,” said Dave Clark, e-Club faculty advisor. “By bringing it to USU, we not only have a chance to showcase entrepreneurship, but to broadly increase awareness of the e-Club and to have a fun event connected with e-Week that will attract students from all across campus.”

Also during e-Week, students have the chance to sharpen their business skills by participating in competitions offering more than $15,000 in prizes. The “Elevator Pitch” contest requires participants to pitch their business idea to a panel of judges in just two minutes, with hopes of convincing them it is an idea worthy of an upfront investment.

Another e-Week event is the 72-hour innovation competition, where groups of students compete to develop an innovative solution to a real-world problem in just three days. The catch is that participants don’t find out the problem or the guidelines for the competition until the kickoff of the event, forcing them to be creative and inventive under pressure.

Paul Rossiter, e-Club president, has been involved with the e-Club since last year and said that the purpose of e-Week is to inspire students to be creative with their businesses. Cash prizes for e-Week are given with the intention of helping new businesses get off the ground, he said.