The Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation opens its doors today at a new, larger location.
The launch party for the remodeled center and its opening of the Jeff Gold Experiential Laboratory takes place today at 11:45 p.m. at 200 Stuzin Hall. The event is free and open to the public.
Immediately following the dedication ceremony for Jeff Gold, the donor, there will be an open house and reception at noon, said Jamie Kraft, the center's executive director.
The new center is down the hall from the old one, founded in 2000. However, the new center is doubled in square footage.
"We were buried in the student hall," Kraft said. "Now we have a prominent, up-front location on the second floor."
In the past seven years, more than 15,000 students enrolled in an entrepreneurship course.
"Our programs continue to expand," Kraft said. "We are fortunate enough to have Jeff Gold support our growth."
Gold, a former UF student and member on the center's advisory board, donated most of the money to make the new lab possible, Kraft said.
The new lab will have student incubation and a room called the Ideation Hub that gives students the opportunity to work on team projects, business ideas and new venture perspectives.
The center also features an innovation cafe for networking and sharing ideas, offices for faculty and staff, and a conference or pitch room, called the Impact Room.
Nicole Thommes, a business sophomore, plans to take full advantage of the new features offered at the center.
"It sounds like a great idea that business students can have a common place to meet up and discuss projects and ideas," Thommes said.
The lab will provide a home for student projects, like GatorNest, to be conducted. Over the past five years, experiential learning program GatorNest has worked for more than 190 local and regional clients on real-world consulting projects, Kraft said.
Even with the newly remodeled center, Kraft said, the center's mission is still the same: teach, approach and inspire students.
