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Academy of Art University Event Raises Close to $30,000 for Oklahoma Tornado Survivors

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San Francisco, California (PRWEB) June 13, 2013

San Francisco business and community leaders, including Mayor Ed Lee, attended an Academy of Art University fundraiser that raised close to $ 30,000 for survivors of the devastating Oklahoma tornadoes. The special art exhibit, organized by the Academy of Art, was held at the Palace of Fine Arts and featured the Stephens Family’s world famous classic car collection of over 50 cars and award-winning student artwork. Proceeds benefit United Way of Central Oklahoma May Tornadoes Relief Fund.

Dr. Elisa Stephens, President of the Academy of Art University, said “When tragedy strikes, everyone wants to do something to support those in need and we are grateful that so many city leaders and members of the Academy of Art community came out for a night to enjoy art while contributing to the recovery efforts in Oklahoma.”

Mayor Ed Lee added, “It is going to take years for the survivors to fully recover from the devastation in Oklahoma and it is important for the good people there to know that they have the support of the rest of the country. So many people in San Francisco have asked what they can do to help and we encourage people who were not able to attend the fundraiser to contribute whatever they can to United Way of Central Oklahoma.”

More than 300 people attended the event including Dr. Elisa Stephens, President of Academy of Art University; San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee; Eric McDonnell, COO United Way Bay Area; angel investor Ron Conway; Naomi Kelly, City Administrator; Greg Suhr, Chief, SF Police Department; Joanne Hayes, Chief, SF Fire Department; Tom C. Hui, Acting Director Building Inspection; Phil Ginsburg, General Manager, Recreational & Park Department; Mohammed Nuru, Director, Department of Public Works; Harlan Kelly, General Manager, SF Public Utilities Commission; and Mauro Battocchi, Consul General of Italy.

Eric McDonnell, Chief Operating Officer of United Way of the Bay Area said, “The outpouring of support around the country for the victims in Oklahoma has been tremendous. United Way provides the public with a trusted partner who will ensure that every dollar donated goes to the people most in need right now. The people of Oklahoma need our help and we are grateful to the San Francisco community for coming together and showing their support.”

After the devastating May tornadoes, United Way of Central Oklahoma activated its disaster relief fund so individuals could contribute specifically to relief and recovery efforts. Fund dollars are being distributed without administrative fees to United Way partner agencies working on the tornado relief efforts. The May Tornado Relief Fund serves both immediate needs, intermediate, and long-term care. For those interested in making a contribution, visit http://www.unitedwayokc.org.

About the Academy of Art University

With more than 18,000 students, Academy of Art University is the nation’s largest private art and design university. Established in 1929, the school offers accredited AA, BA, BFA, B.Arch*, MA, M.Arch and MFA programs in 23 different majors, as well as continuing art education, with classes in Acting, Advertising, Animation & Visual Effects, Architecture, Art Education, Art History(BFA), Fashion, Fashion Journalism, Fashion Styling, Fine Art, Game Design, Graphic Design, Illustration, Industrial Design, Interior Architecture & Design, Jewelry and Metal Arts, Landscape Architecture, Motion Pictures & Television, Multimedia Communications, Music Production & Sound Design for Visual Media, Photography, Visual Development and Web Design & New Media. Students can also enroll in flexible online degree programs in most majors. Academy of Art University is an accredited member of WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges), NASAD (National Association of Schools of Art and Design), Council for Interior Design Accreditation (BFA and MFA-IAD) and NAAB (M-Arch, B.Arch*). For more information, visit http://www.academyart.edu or call 1-800-544-2787.

*B.Arch program in candidacy status with NAAB

About United Way of the Bay Area

United Way of the Bay Area is a nonprofit organization, leading a movement to cut Bay Area poverty in half by 2020. We’re harnessing the collective power of nonprofits, government, corporations, labor and thousands of individuals to create change through giving, advocating, and volunteering. Every year, our programs – SparkPoint, Earn It! Keep It! Save It!, 211, MatchBridge and Community Schools – help more than 250,000 Bay Area residents. We connect people to food and shelter, put people back to work, bring tax dollars back to our community, help youth succeed in school and in the workplace, and move people toward financial stability. Founded in 1922, United Way of the Bay Area serves Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo and Solano Counties. For more information, visit http://www.uwba.org.

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CU-Boulder Students Invest $30,000 in Startup Through Real-life Venture Capital Program

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Boulder, CO (PRWEB) November 26, 2013

Elihuu, a startup company whose slogan is “meet your manufacturer,” has met an investor — a group of University of Colorado Boulder graduate students.

The students last week put $ 30,000 into Elihuu, an online software platform that connects product designers with manufacturers who can make their wares.

The students turned venture capitalists direct CU-Boulder’s Deming Center Venture Fund (DCVF), which was launched by a donor in 1997 and is a program of the Leeds School of Business.

Selected from across campus to be part of the fund, the students manage everything from scouting new companies to vetting business plans, negotiating the terms of agreements, making final decisions on investments and supporting investees with ongoing resources and advice.

“I think it’s brilliant and that they’re doing all the right things,” said Dorian Ferlauto, founder and CEO of Elihuu, which is based in Denver as well as Oakland, Calif. “I really didn’t know that there is a university fund like this run by students. It’s very unique and I think it’s a great thing in this area where there are a lot of startups.”

The $ 30,000 investment will go toward development and expansion of the Elihuu tool, which Ferlauto says is similar to a matchmaking website except it’s for designers and manufacturers working to line up with the right business partners.

One appeal to the students as they carried out their research on the company is that Elihuu supports the cutting-edge “makers movement.” The makers movement, which is growing in popularity, is comprised of people like artisans, techies and inventors who create small-scale products on their own.

While investee companies benefit from seed money from the DCVF, the student directors gain professional experience and unique insights that could give them an advantage as they pursue their own ventures.

“By going through the capital investment process and by being on the decision-making side, the students know what questions will be asked of them as entrepreneurs,” said Bret Fund, faculty director of the DCVF and assistant professor of management and entrepreneurism. “They themselves will build better companies or be better able to do whatever they want when they move forward.”

Nearly all DCVF alumni have landed employment in technology companies, venture capital firms or other professions related to entrepreneurship, according to the team.

About 10 to 12 CU-Boulder graduate students from business, law and engineering fields are part of the DCVF at a time. They apply for a position on the interdisciplinary team and serve for about 18 months.

“Students almost never get the opportunity, even through internships, to make venture capital decisions,” said Julie Simmons, director of legal management for the DCVF and a graduate student in both law and business administration. “The fund is completely ours to direct. We bring in the deals, we make the relationships and we make the decisions. The challenges are ours to figure out and the successes are ours to celebrate.”

Some of the student directors receive externship credit from the CU Law School for their DCVF participation; however, many students earn no credit from their respective degree programs.

Investments by the DCVF typically are in technology startups. In addition to Elihuu, the fund’s portfolio currently includes Birdbox, an online platform that organizes individuals’ social media content; Flixmaster, a cloud-based video editing and publishing tool; and SpyderLynx, a mobile marketing and technology company.

The student team works with five faculty directors and a board of professional advisers

Since 2009, the DCVF has deployed more than $ 200,000 in investments. Returns on DCVF investments typically come when bigger companies buy the startups. At that time, the DCVF’s ownership and the value of that percentage based on the acquisition is calculated. The acquiring company pays the DCVF its share.

One goal of the DCVF is to accrue enough in returns to put a percentage of profits back into the CU-Boulder campus and programs in addition to maintaining the fund.

“There are a lot of mock competitions out there that give students the chance to think through scenarios and put their skills to the test,” said Chris White, director of outreach for the DCVF and a graduate student in both law and business administration. “But I think this is the only situation where students are investing real money. The possibilities are incredibly real.”

For more information about the Deming Center Venture Fund visit http://cudcvf.org/.

-CU-