Loyola’s Simon Center invests $20,000 in Baltimore startup

À¶Ý®ÊÓÆµâ€™s Simon Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship awarded an investment of $20,000 from the Loyola Angel Fund to , a startup business in Baltimore that manufactures and curates premium small-batch corporate and personalized gifts.
Loyola established the Loyola Angel Fund, a $250,000 charitable fund, in 2021 to provide students with angel investment knowledge and experience and support local under-resourced entrepreneurs, especially Baltimore-based minority- and women-owned businesses.
Investments follow recommendations made by students in Loyola’s applied angel investing class, a hands-on, interdisciplinary course where students attend pitch meetings and analyze companies. They learn the history of early-stage investing; the entrepreneurial landscape and social inequities in Baltimore; concepts and vocabulary in fund formation and investment vehicles; risk management in the funding and decision-making process; and models of valuation.
“Students in this interdisciplinary elective were profoundly influenced by the opportunity to make real-world financial decisions with the potential to impact the trajectory of a Baltimore startup, cementing the interest for some students in pursuing careers in venture capital and introducing a new career path and practical experience to others who had not had exposure to the notoriously insular field,� said Wendy Bolger, founding director of the Simon Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship. “We hope what students learned in the class can help change who investors are in the future and ultimately who receives investment in this country.�
in Baltimore delivers an internationally recognized Jesuit business education. Recognized for its scholarship, ethical leadership, and tradition of excellence, the Sellinger School delivers a wide range of sought-after fields of study including eight undergraduate majors and 11 undergraduate minors as well as full-time, part-time, and fully online MBA and Master of Accounting programs.