Tulane Partners with Andrew Yang’s Venture for America

NEW ORLEANS – Tulane University’s Albert Lepage Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation will partner with Venture for America (VFA) to host a select group of 2020 VFA Fellows along with leaders from university entrepreneurship centers across the country during New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW) in March. Founded by former presidential candidate Andrew Yang in 2011, Venture for America is a two-year fellowship program for recent graduates who want to work at a startup and create jobs in American cities.

VFA Fellows and their mentors will participate in dedicated programming designed by the Lepage Center, VFA and leaders from the New Orleans business community. These will include design-thinking workshops, sharing best practices and sessions with current and former VFA Fellows. Participants will also attend the NOEW summit, a two-day conference featuring opportunities to network with thought leaders, entrepreneurs and investors from around the country. 

Fellows learn important startup skills at a month-long training camp, apply for jobs within VFA’s company network and work for two years as full-time, salaried employees in one of 14 cities. The program aims to attract talented college graduates to work in cities not traditionally known for startup activity. If fellows want to start businesses of their own, VFA helps them get their ideas off the ground with programming, an accelerator and an investment fund. VFA has been in New Orleans since 2012 and has been home to 99 fellows to date, 49 of whom are still living in the city. 

“New Orleans was one of the very first VFA cities, and we are committed to supporting the entrepreneurs here,” said Amy Nelson, CEO of Venture for America. “We’ve had so many awesome fellows who are Tulane grads and we are excited to partner with the university to showcase New Orleans and its vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem. I know our incoming Fellows will leave this week inspired.”