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Imagination Iowa Partners with the Belin-Blank Center

Rob Merritt October 10, 2016

[vc_row padding_top=”0px” padding_bottom=”0px”][vc_column fade_animation_offset=”45px” width=”1/1″][text_output]Imagination Iowa is partnering with the Belin-Blank International Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development (Belin-Blank Center) to offer enrichment courses in Cedar Rapids for gifted middle school students this fall. With Cedar Rapids students releasing early on Fridays throughout this academic year, this is a great opportunity for our partnership to offer courses. [/text_output][blockquote cite=””

Upcoming: ISA in Ames and Des Moines

Molly Monk October 7, 2016

[vc_row padding_top=”0px” padding_bottom=”0px”][vc_column fade_animation_offset=”45px” width=”1/1″][text_output]During the past month, the Iowa Startup Accelerator hit the road to build stronger connections across the nation. From San Diego to Baltimore to Denver, they’ve put on the miles. Some of the many highlights: Streamweaver traveled to San Diego for TwitchCon to connect with leading experts in the eSports industry. TwitchCon is a celebration of

Rising River and Remote Working: Vault Away From Vault

Rob Merritt September 30, 2016

[vc_row padding_top=”0px” padding_bottom=”0px”][vc_column fade_animation_offset=”45px” width=”1/1″][text_output]With rising waters in the Cedar River this week, we were unable to cowork from our home in the Geonetric building. Luckily, Vault members found temporary remote working spaces in makeshift offices, coffee shops, Iowa Coworking Collaborative member spaces, and Kirkwood College.[/text_output][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row padding_top=”0px” padding_bottom=”0px”][vc_column fade_animation_offset=”45px” width=”1/3″][text_output]Levi Bostian traveled the longest distance to caffeinate and remotely work from an

3 people work together to shovel sand from an enormous pile into sandbags during the 2016 Cedar Rapids flood

Funding, Finance, and Flooding: ISA Week 8

Molly Monk September 28, 2016

[vc_row padding_top=”0px” padding_bottom=”0px”][vc_column fade_animation_offset=”45px” width=”1/1″][text_output]Startups thrive when they adapt quickly. On Thursday, flood predictions made the Iowa Startup Accelerator’s 2016 cohort adapt very, very quickly. Enormous efforts by volunteers and the city of Cedar Rapids mitigated extreme damage in the New Bohemia district. Teams in the accelerator pitched their businesses on Friday morning and then quickly pitched in to help

Mentor Perspectives: How Mentoring Helps Mentors

Rob Merritt September 19, 2016

[vc_row padding_top=”0px” padding_bottom=”0px”][vc_column fade_animation_offset=”45px” width=”1/1″][text_output]Like most accelerators, the Iowa Startup Accelerator is mentor driven. A strong mentor network is the linchpin in a successful accelerator because it provides the bulk of the actionable information for the teams. This year, the ISA mentor network grew to include over 160 mentors in many different fields. Our mentors aren’t compensated monetarily because we

We’re Halfway There: ISA Week 7

Rob Merritt September 16, 2016

[vc_row padding_top=”0px” padding_bottom=”0px”][vc_column fade_animation_offset=”45px” width=”1/1″][text_output]Saturday marks the official midpoint for the ISA 2016 Cohort. We’re halfway to Launch Day! This week kicked off with a FOCUS work session led by Keevin O’Rourke and Wes Merrill of Streamweaver. During this session, they shared tips from what they learned on how to validate or kill other business ideas quickly. No one knows

Two Ways to Use General Solicitation and Public Advertising to Raise Capital

Rob Merritt September 15, 2016

[vc_row padding_top=”0px” padding_bottom=”0px”][vc_column fade_animation_offset=”45px” width=”1/1″][text_output]More rants from the Grumpy Old Company Lawyer. So, you need to raise money to build your dream company. You heard at a meetup that there are these things called “Reg D’s,” “private offerings” or “crowdfunding” that you can use to raise the cash you need to move your business to the next level. Should be