WYOMISSING, Pa. — Penn State Berks will host a variety of events during Global Entrepreneurship Week at Penn State 2025, kicking off Friday, Nov. 14, and running through Friday, Nov. 21. Events are sponsored by the college’s Flemming Creativity, Entrepreneurship, and Economic Development (CEED) Center and Berks LaunchBox in downtown Reading.

Global Entrepreneurship Week at Penn State is a collaboration between the University and local communities through partnerships that promote a spirit of innovation. Events include lectures, networking, and workshops, and some require advanced registration.

Award Ceremony – Innovation & Business Idea Challenge and Imagine Your Business Grants

Friday, Nov. 14, 12:15–1:15 p.m., Room 111, Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building, co-sponsored by the Flemming CEED Center and Berks LaunchBox. This event is free and open to the public.

The Innovation & Business Idea Challenge tasked teams of students with developing creative, impactful solutions to local and global challenges. The Imagine Your Business Grant provided funding to early-stage entrepreneurs to support various business needs such as prototyping, marketing and product development.  Both awards have been funded by the County of Berks through a grant to the Berks LaunchBox. During this award ceremony, winning teams will be recognized for their work. Sadan-Kulturel-Konak, professor of management information systems, will moderate the ceremony.

3D Printing Workshop

Monday, Nov. 17, 12:15–1:15 p.m., Room 111, Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building, sponsored by the Flemming CEED Center. This event is free and open to the public.

The Flemming CEED Center will host this workshop on how to operate 3D printers for prototype building using a three-step process: planning (sketching), hands-on application (rough prototyping) and 3D printing (modeling). Participants will learn about the software used to create prototypes and how 3D printers work. The workshop will be presented by Kathleen Hauser, assistant teaching professor of engineering, and mechanical engineering student Talan Nguyen.

Upcycling Workshop

Tuesday, Nov. 18, 1:30–2:30 p.m., Room 111, Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building, sponsored by the Flemming CEED Center. This event is for Penn State Berks students, faculty and staff.

In the Upcycling Workshop, attendees will bring their own garments and accessories and learn how to repurpose them with materials provided by the CEED Center. Dipti Bhatt, lecturer of business analytics and management, will facilitate. Previously, Bhatt managed research and reporting activities at Better Buying Institute, a nonprofit that helps fashion retailers and other CPG companies improve their purchasing practices towards more sustainable supply chain management. She also has experience managing a global supply chain for a textile-buying house in India.

Artificial Intelligence Workshop – From Idea to Income

Tuesday, Nov. 18, Presentation: 6–7: 15 p.m., Networking: 7:15–8 p.m., Room 121, Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building, co-sponsored by Berks LaunchBox and the Flemming CEED Center. This event is free and open to the public. Advanced registration is required for the in-person event. The presentation is also available online without registration.

This interactive workshop is led by Drew Griffin, founder of Askspot.ai, an AI-powered platform helping businesses leverage conversational AI to scale faster. Attendees will learn how AI can transform ideas into income-generating businesses and explore real-world strategies and tools to help create, market and scale smarter. The presentation will cover using AI for the following: lead generation and capture of potential customers; creating large volumes of content quickly; building professional websites from a single prompt; generating music, visuals, and video content; automating workflows by saving time and streamlining operations; and exploring AI-Driven offerings. Attendees are encouraged to bring their laptops to this hands-on workshop. Griffin’s career spans technology, entrepreneurship, and creative media. He has worked with startups and organizations to design innovative solutions that combine AI, marketing and customer engagement.

How to Register Your Business in Pennsylvania (en Español)

Thursday, Nov. 20, 6–7 p.m., Webinar, Sponsored by Berks LaunchBox and the Kutztown Small Business Development Center This event is free and open to the public. Advanced registration is required.

In this Spanish-language webinar, the Penn State Entrepreneur Assistance Clinic will guide participants step-by-step through the process of legally registering a business in Pennsylvania. The presentation will cover the essential legal steps to establish a business, key compliance requirements every entrepreneur should know, how to use the PA Business One-Stop Shop website to find licenses and permits for 100+ business activities, and how the free Penn State Entrepreneur Assistance Clinic can help entrepreneurs set up an LLC. The webinar is led by Penn State Dickinson Law School students Claudia Hernández and Enzo Escalante. Hernández has been working with the Entrepreneur Assistance Clinic since May 2024. She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Miami. Escalante serves as a student clinician with the Entrepreneur Assistance Clinic. He earned a bachelor’s degree in finance and economics from James Madison University.

Augmented Innovation Workshop

Friday, Nov. 21, 12:15–1:15 p.m., Room 111, Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building, sponsored by the Flemming CEED Center. This event is for Penn State Berks students, faculty and staff.

Attendees are invited to bring their own devices (BYOD) to the Augmented Innovation Workshop, where they will learn how to use generative AI in entrepreneurial ventures. Participants will prompt generative AI to pitch new products and services and to evaluate product and service innovations using De Bono’s Six Thinking Hats. There will be a discussion on the ethical implications and challenges of using AI in entrepreneurship and innovation. The workshop will be presented by Sarah Hartman-Caverly, reference and instruction librarian, whose research examines the compatibility of human and machine autonomy from the perspective of intellectual freedom, including the privacy, intellectual property and creative augmentation implications of generative AI.

More information

For more information events sponsored by the Flemming CEED Center, contact Director Sadan Kulturel-Konak at SXK70@psu.edu. For more information on events sponsored by Berks LaunchBox, contact Erica Kunkel, director of continuing education and Berks LaunchBox, at ELS5014@psu.edu.