Vanderbilt Innovation and Entrepreneurship Society

I stood before a crowd of 40 participants, 11 judges, and numerous audience members to pubicly share my personal story for the first time. Vanderbilt Innovation and Entrepreneurship Society's 48-Hour Launch pitch competition was a milestone. I revealed my background of doubt, shyness, and adversity, and how I transformed into an outspoken advocate for women, a runway model, and even a stand-up comedian at a local comedy club. It's been a hard-won journey shaped by five years of personal development, extensive research, and over 170 interviews to understand founder challenges and uncover effective strategies for success. This story is the reason I'm building WeStand, a self-improvement community to help purpose-driven founders reduce loneliness and stress, which often silently derail entrepreneurial dreams. It is a platform for human-first discussions on psychology and people skills, removing mindset blocks, and enhancing resilience with an honest sounding board of peers who are not tied to stakeholders. We hold night recaps to externally process the day and think about deep questions that many founders have never talked about out loud. This community saves founders time by distilling research and books into relevant and actionable advice (with future AI personalization), featuring inspiring guest speakers, and providing a space to discuss topics often restricted to elite masterminds and coaching sessions. I'm delighted to share that WeStand won $500, a donation from the Vanderbilt Hoogland Undergraduate Business Program, which serves as a testament to believing in the vision and the potential impact of this community. I’m truly grateful for Rebecca Brown, Aditya Bhatt, Ishan Mahajan, Justin Terry, Fardeen Bablu, and the entire VINES team—the welcoming and supportive community you all continue to foster is deeply impactful. Also, thank you so much, Kyle Caruso, Liz Wool, Andrew Lynch, Alessandra Thompson, Eve Eden, and other advisors and judges, for your encouragement and incredible guidance! As WeStand starts to grow, I’m grateful for the steadfast support of the Vanderbilt community, especially in the Human and Organizational Development program. I'm eager to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those who dare to dream of a better tomorrow. Let this new chapter begin. WeStand together, founders! 🤗 P.S. Mission-driven founders, apply to join the free WeStand Discord here (we just passed 40 members - join to meet some profoundly inspirational people in the group): https://lnkd.in/gFhbvqQ6 

I’ve had a few days to reflect on my sophomore year at Vanderbilt, and by far, April was one of the most fulfilling months of this year: First, I wrapped up a consulting project for the Graduate Hotels. Lilly Kneidl, Rachel Deresky, and Christina Bruni, and myself worked together to craft recommendations for The Graduate Hotels’ Gen-Z outreach strategy. I can't emphasize enough how much I enjoyed working on this project for a brand that I love. Thank you Leonora Zilkha Williamson and Thomas Gander Ostrom for making this project possible! I also had the opportunity to participate in Vanderbilt Innovation and Entrepreneurship Society 48 Hour Launch, where I pitched my 501c3 nonprofit, ReTextile. I loved getting to share my vision with so many other passionate people and am pleased to share that I secured a $200 donation from the competition. Thank you to Rebecca Brown for introducing me to 48 Launch and the entire VINES team for all their hard work in executing such an incredible event. Finally, I am excited to share that I will be joining the Vanderbilt Women in Business executive board as the Vice President of Community Collaboration. As VP of Community Collaboration, I will lead efforts to plan and host our Speaker Series, MakHERs Market, and other community events. Thank you to Emily Char, Rachel Lee, Soumia Vellanki, and Rebecca Brown for all your mentorship and support!

Recently, I had the incredible opportunity to compete in the Vanderbilt Innovation and Entrepreneurship Society 48-Hour Launch Pitch Competition. Alongside Tom Hu, we pitched CampusEats, our startup focused on streamlining the college dining experience. I'm excited to share, as one of the winning teams, we secured mentorship from Andrew Lynch at Acadia Healthcare! I'm looking forward to collaborating with Andrew and continuing to develop CampusEats. A huge shoutout to Rebecca Brown, Ishan Mahajan, Aditya Bhatt, and the entire team at the Wond'ry for orchestrating such a fantastic event. Your hard work made this experience truly valuable. Also, thank you to all of the judges that made this event possible.

Loved presenting our Startup idea, "Satchel", with accomplished investors and mentors. I am grateful to have shared this wonderful experience with Vienna Parnell and am delighted to have obtained a mentorship from Gabe Chrismon to continue bringing our idea to life. Thank you so much Rebecca Brown for all of your support throughout this process and for putting this incredible competition together at the Wond'ry. I learned a lot about what goes into creating a successful startup and am so excited to continue discovering new ways to improve.

This past weekend I had the opportunity to compete in 48-Hour-Launch, Vanderbilt's premier pitch competition. Along with my co-founder Nathan Park, we unveiled Cicerone, a company striving to make learning new sports easy and affordable. We were fortunate enough to be one of the winners earning us mentorship with Stephen DeGrazia, who we are beyond excited to begin working with. Thank you to the Wond'ry and Vanderbilt Innovation and Entrepreneurship Society for hosting this event. It was exciting to see what all the other contestants are working on. I also want to thank Rebecca Brown, Justin Terry, Fardeen Bablu, and Rishi Saran for all their help in creating our presentation. And thank you to all the amazing speakers and judges who made this event possible!

I had a great time judging pitch decks at Vanderbilt's VINES program, watching innovative ideas develop and inspiring entrepreneurship. Impressed by the passion and professionalism of the students, I provided feedback to help refine their pitches. Grateful for the opportunity to be part of the event, empowering the next generation of changemakers. Here's to their bright futures of innovation and entrepreneurship! #VINESProgram #Entrepreneurship #Innovation #Changemakers