TRIO Upward Bound elects new president

After 37 years, the TRIO Upward Bound program has replaced previous director Arnie Smithalexander with Grand Valley State University graduate Josh Brandsen.

Prior to becoming director, Brandsen served as the associate director. This marks his 12th year at the TRIO Upward Bound office.

Previous director Smithalexander will continue to work as a TRIO specialist for the College of Education before fully retiring.

TRIO Upward Bound is an initiative purposed with helping students within the Grand Rapids Public High School’s efficiently transition into college through year-round programming.

For more information, contact Michele Coffill in University Communications at (616) 331-2221.

Great Lakes History Conference

The 41st annual Great Lakes History Conference at Grand Valley State University will see more than 20 presentations concerning the revolutions that forever changed culture in U.S. history.

In addition to presentations, the Great Lakers History Conference will include round table discussions between public historians, librarians, archivists and educators.

The conference is set to kick off at 7 p.m. on Oct. 9 with a keynote address from Fritz Fischer, professor of history and history education at the University of Northern Colorado.

All events are scheduled to take place from Oct. 9-10 in the Kirkhof Center Grand River Room.

The conference requires registration and will cost $20 for students and community members and $40 for faculty, teachers and MCHE members.

For more information, go to www.gvsu.edu/history.

Seventh annual Hult Prize Challenge

The seventh annual Hult Prize Challenge is inviting Grand Valley State University student entrepreneurs to compete for a $1 million cash prize to fund their own start-up company.

This year’s theme is “crowded urban spaces.” Students will work together in teams of three to five people and create their own start-up company in an attempt to solve this problem.

Both undergraduate and graduate students along with alumni can attend an information session from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Oct. 6 in the Mary Idema Pew Library Multipurpose Room.

The GVSU Hult Prize competition will be held from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Dec. 10 in the Kirkhof Center Room 2215/2216. The winner will move on to one of five regional competitions.

For more information, go to www.gvsu.edu/cei or contact Michael Kurley at [email protected].

Idea Pitch Competition

Grand Valley State University students are invited to pitch original product or business ideas to a panel of West Michigan judges for a cash prize at the 11th Annual Idea Pitch Competition.

Sponsored by the Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization, the competition will allow students only 90 seconds to pitch their idea for evaluation by the judges with no PowerPoint or props allowed.

The event is scheduled to take place from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Oct. 6 in the Mary Idema Pew Library Multipurpose Room.

For more information, contact Zoe Bruyn at [email protected] or visit www.ceogvsu.com.