Prime Highlights:
- Cambrian College launches Hanson Venture Lab to encourage entrepreneurship among students and graduates.
- Hanson College contributes $1.3 million and establishes an endowment fund to fund future potential entrepreneurs.
Key Facts:
- The lab will provide lectures, workshops, mentorship, and networking to potential entrepreneurs.
- The move is affirming the conventional relationship between Cambrian and Hanson Colleges.
Key Background:
Cambrian College formally opened the Hanson Venture Lab, a state-of-the-art entrepreneurial centre on its Barrydowne campus in Sudbury. The lab will be an immersive and supportive environment for students, graduates, and community members to develop their entrepreneurial enterprises. Complete with such conveniences as master lectures, skills-building workshops, and exposure to mentoring and networking opportunities, the lab will foster a new crop of entrepreneurs in Northern Ontario.
The project was possible due to a $1.3 million grant that was kindly provided by Hanson College of Business, Health and Technology. The donation went towards financing the construction of the lab, equipment, and furniture. Hanson College also created an endowment fund whose only purpose is to invest money into student entrepreneurs who lack the necessary funds to turn their ideas into realities.
Shouyi Ma, President and CEO of Hanson College, emphasized the institution’s commitment to long-term educational development and student success. He highlighted the decade-long partnership with Cambrian and stated that this new facility symbolizes the shared vision of both colleges to empower students through innovation and entrepreneurship.
Cambrian College President Kristine Morrissey said the Hanson Venture Lab is a step towards college vision of having experiential, hands-on learning environments. She laid claim to the applicability of such environments with the rapidly changing economy today where students are not only looking for education but also ways of leading, innovating, and giving back to society.
The Hanson Venture Lab is just one part of an increasing emphasis on entrepreneurship at Sudbury’s post-secondary institutions. By developing student-owned business enterprises and building connections with local and national business leaders, Cambrian College is becoming a leader in getting students ready to succeed after graduation—either as employees in the workforce or as entrepreneurs in their own right. The program will have a lasting impact on the region’s innovation economy.
