Frank Marin, Natasha Burao, Tosin Alabi, Motlani Oladitan, Jessica Grace McGee
This semester, five undergraduate students working at the Whitman School of Management's Cooley Hatchery Student Business Incubator will compete at the regional level in the New York State Business Plan Competition (NYBPC), an intercollegiate event designed to develop the next generation of entrepreneurs. We have broken through. in New York state.
The hatchery, led by program manager Indalia Jones and supported by faculty from the School of Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises (EEE), helps prepare students for this competitive event. They will compete for prizes of up to $100,000 in venture support.
The following students are currently vying for a spot in the statewide competition to be held on April 25th in Albany, New York.
Toshin Alabi G'25 (MBA)) is an entrepreneur in residence at Cooley Hatchery and a student in Whitman's MBA program. She competes with her own venture, her DiabeTech, which is an electronic bandage made for her diabetic foot ulcers.
The bandage not only protects the wound, but also has sensors that check temperature and blood sugar levels in real time, providing important information to patients and doctors. This information can be used to avoid the dangerous consequences of diabetic foot ulcers, such as gangrene and amputation.
Alabi, who is originally from Nigeria, is grateful for the support she received at the hatchery, especially as an international student.
“International students are already working on getting used to both the culture and the rigor of education here. Sometimes you can feel like an octopus juggling too many things at once,” she says. . “It took courage to go to the hatchery, but the resources there helped me understand the regulations, legalities, licenses and visa restrictions that affect my business. And Indria’s support I couldn't live a day without her. She turned the lights on at Couli Hatchery and made it a place for me. DiabeTech is more than just a business idea for me. Including, helping people live better lives.”
Natasha Burao ’22 (College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA)), ’23, ’24 (MBA) I first discovered the deliciousness of shakshuka, a Mediterranean staple, during a trip abroad in 2019, and quickly realized that it is a culmination of many Mediterranean backgrounds and cultures. Always a lover of culinary experimentation, she developed Shooka, a spiced tomato sauce, with the idea of ”mixing and fusing cultures to foster creative cuisine” and officially launched it in 2023. We started our business in. The product quickly gained traction when she started selling it in March of this year. Burao recently won a spot at the International Taste Festival in New York State, which was attended by more than 7,000 people, and had the opportunity to try Shuka.
“My entrepreneurial side comes from a creative background. [Brao earned a bachelor’s degree in design]. I was an idea machine and very passionate about the food and culinary business,” she says. “I spent quite some time at the Hatchery planning the future of my business, considering strategic partnerships, and creating a roadmap to help me stay on track as a busy student and entrepreneur. At the Hatchery I have weekly meetings with my advisor, which motivates me to keep progressing each week.”
Frank Mullin '23 (School of Engineering and Computer Science), G'24 (MBA) in Aerospace Engineering from the School of Engineering and Computer Science and is enrolled in a dual program to earn an MBA with an emphasis in entrepreneurship and supply chain management. He is working on his business opportunity called Marhold Space Systems LLC, which is involved in removing space debris through innovative technology. Mullin has developed a general process for spacecraft to maximize debris removal efficiency.
“I'm very passionate about science and its growing importance, and I have a lot of ideas about how to make the world a better place, starting with debris removal,” he says. “Coori Hatchery has been a place for me to talk to like-minded entrepreneurial people, including members of the EEE faculty who have challenged me and helped me get off the ground. I hope that someday my ideas will make a difference in people's lives.”
Jessica Grace McGee '19 (VPA), G'24 (VPA) She is a fine artist with her own online gallery and a graduate student in Creative Art Therapy in the School of Visual Arts. She participates in competitions for her own business, her Sacred Art of Rising (SAOR). SAOR supports survivors of chronic and complex trauma through her three different platforms. One is a resource center located on the South Side, an area of Syracuse with high poverty levels. The Retreat Center is a safe space with a myriad of nonverbal and verbal therapy platforms that provide restorative respite. And the Sacred Art of Rising mobile app provides sliding scale access to psychoeducational, motivational, and self-care content with a platform for telehealth therapy.
A survivor of complex and chronic trauma, Maggie uses alternative, nonverbal treatments to help others recover, especially underserved populations, as a means of “symbolic investment.” We created SOAR as a platform. She wants SOAR to fully invest in marginalized communities, empowering people to heal and achieve their self-directed goals. And McGee needs a place that provides safe outdoor spaces for individuals and families to form healthy attachments, obtain social respite, and heal and alleviate the chronic harmful stress that comes with poverty. I want it to be a place that reaches people.
“I knew SOAR could be incredibly useful, but I didn't know how to make it happen economically. Linda Hartsock was right there for me,” she says. “I moved to Syracuse from Los Angeles in 2008 and was promised a very healthy life, but I endured several types of abuse before I had the courage to leave. People supported me, encouraged me and did their best to help me achieve my dreams.”
Motlani Oraditan '24 (A&S)The psychology major founded Tà Beautie, an online marketplace where African entrepreneurs can sell beauty products in bulk online. Oladitan is from Nigeria where he started with 6-8 products and expanded from there to become Africa's premier beauty and health destination by helping bring these brands to the mainstream market in the United States. I hope to become She tests and uses all the products she offers, and when people kept asking to borrow her products, Oladitan knew she was on to something.
“Tracy Giesler, Indaria Jones, Linda Dickerson-Hartsock, and all of my mentors at Cooley Hatchery and Blackstone Launchpad have been very good to me and always available to help me practice my proposal. They give me advice on how to approach my challenges,” she says. “I'm trying to put together a marketing plan, and I know that even if I don't win the competition, it's a learning experience. I also had a learning experience at Syracuse University, and I'm looking forward to taking the feedback and applying it to the future of the business. I'm in this for the long term.”
The Cooley Hatchery is named for John Cooley ’63, co-founder of Duty Free International and chairman of the Cooley Foundation.
