Experiential Training Leads to Confidence
The mission of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program is to increase entrepreneurship and innovation activities and promoting the entrepreneurial spirit on the SSU campus and the North Bay area by providing experiential education and training, and supporting aspiring student entrepreneurs across every stage of the entrepreneurship process.
Entrepreneurship Resources
At SBE's Entrepreneurship Hub, our aim is to ignite and infuse entrepreneurial thinking and behavior into our students, inside the School of Business and Economics, across Sonoma State University, and throughout our surrounding community. This change takes a village. It takes you. Please reach out to us to learn more about what is underway and to discuss your ideas. You can contact us at chris.stewart@sonoma.
We have aggregated a directory of Sonoma State University and regional resources and services designed to help you develop ideas, scale your business and connect you with a vast network of entrepreneurs. Start here to connect with the resources and information you will need to support your journey.
Access Entrepreneurship Resources
SBE Entrepreneurs in Residence
Chris Stewart, Co-founder of Pocket Radar, Inc., Entrepreneur-in-Residence Lead
Chris Stewart is a prominent regional entrepreneur with 40-plus years of experience leading technology companies and startups. He began his career as a design engineer, and research and development project manager at Hewlett-Packard and Agilent Technologies. In 2009, he founded his own technology companies, Invention Planet LLC and Pocket Radar Inc. Chris has been a volunteer faculty at Sonoma State University where he lectured in courses on electrical engineering and business entrepreneurship. He also serves as chairman and lead industry advisor of the SSU Makerspace External Advisory Board and Electrical Engineering Department, respectively. Chris brings expertise in design, new product development, strategic business planning, patents, and consulting.
Michelle Wilson (pictured left), Co-Founder and Co-Owner of Ooh La Luxe
Cristina Wilson-Hudlin (pictured below), Co-Founder and Co-Owner of Ooh La Luxe
Michelle and Cristina Wilson’s first business endeavor was a coffee cart they owned in college which quickly expanded to multiple locations. After years of 4 a.m. shifts while also putting themselves through school, the twins graduated from Sonoma State University, sold their coffee cart, and used the money they made to open their first Ooh La Luxe store in downtown Petaluma. After their first successful year, they expanded by moving their shop to a new space more than four times the size of their first one. Next, they opened another store in the Santa Rosa Mall, followed shortly thereafter by an online store. Now with almost 10 years in business, Ooh La Luxe has three locations, a thriving web store, 19 employees, and a loyal customer following. Co-owner Cristina is focused on buying, developing merchandising ideas and concepts, and managing operations and logistics. Co-owner Michelle uses her expertise as marketing director to do everything from photoshoots to influencer scheduling and all things Instagram.
Schedule a Meeting with an Entrepreneur in Residence
Entrepreneurship Programs & Activities at SSU
Entrepreneurial energy, behaviors, and thinking are the lifeblood of any thriving economy. Given the North Bay's commitment to the triple bottom line of social equity, environmental stewardship, and economic prosperity, Sonoma State's role as the region's entrepreneurial epicenter comes naturally. Today, our faculty and staff build conduits between the student population and private industry, focus on new business initiatives, develop and apply practical case studies, create relevant curriculum and workshops, conduct critical research, and fuel talent development programs.
Transform our Educational System at SSU and in the North Bay
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Leadership and innovation are central themes in our undergraduate and graduate academic programs and infused in how we train our students to become creative problem solvers, change agents, and innovators in their workplaces and their communities. |
Launch and Support Entrepreneurial Careers out of SSU
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Our students will spend their time at SSU becoming entrepreneurial thinkers who have launched their own businesses or are job-ready as they step out on their career pathway.
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Accelerate Entrepreneurial Action in the North Bay
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We see entrepreneurship as a key ingredient for regional growth and prosperity. To that end, the School of Business and Economics has partnered with and supported entrepreneurial efforts and projects like the North Bay Make-a-thon, SSU's Makerspace and Innovation Lab, North Bay Investor Summit, and more. |
