Black And Latino Tech – Connecting Founders of Color to Venture Capital

OUR PROGRAM

The Black and Latino Tech initiative is a Pre-Accelerator Program developed and sponsored by The Center for Urban Entrepreneurship and Economic Development at Rutgers Business School and in collaboration with strategic partners of the broader entrepreneurial ecosystem. The mission is to provide Black and Latino startup entrepreneurs with educational training, coaching, mentorship, networking, potential funding, and connection to resources and experts.
The program focuses on mentoring startup founders in order to increase the probability of securing admission into an accelerator and/or obtaining seed funding.
This Pre-Accelerator Program will not take equity in the participating startups.

APPLY

CLICK HERE TO APPLY TO THE PRE-ACCELERATOR PROGRAM, AND LAUNCH YOUR DREAMS!

EXPECTATIONS

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT
FROM THE PROGRAM

Connections

Mentorship

Knowledge

Capital

OUR EXPERTS

FAQS

How much does it cost?

$300 USD

Who is this for?

BLT is the first program of its kind in the tri-state area for black and Latino startup owners/founders of tech-enabled startups. Entrepreneurs companies must be in early ideation stage, and have not been accepted into a formal accelerator, have raised less than $50,000 in outside capital, have revenue of less than $100,000, and have five or less employees.

Why should I apply? What do I get out of it?

This is not a “one shot” program. Rutgers University’s Center for Urban Entrepreneurship & Economic Development (CUEED) is committed to helping the entrepreneurs over their multiple years and phases of growth. Rutgers University allows entrepreneurs to have access to teams of MBA students who do consulting projects for them. The entrepreneurs also have access to esteemed faculty members who are doing leading edge research related to minority entrepreneurs and their efforts to secure capital from public and private sources.

When will the program take place?

The program will take place from 6:30pm- 9pm on April 7, 14, 28, May 3, 5, 10 and Demo Day on May 12.

Where will the program be?

The program will be hybrid with a mix of virtual and 3 in-person sessions. The virtual sessions will take place via Zoom and the in-person will take place at Rutgers Business School in Newark.

How often do I need to participate?

There will be six sessions plus a Demo Day from 6:30pm -9:00pm on April 7, 14, 28, May 3, 5, 10 and Demo Day on May 12.

What topics will you cover in the program?

• Orientation; Startup Toolkit; Structure of the entity; Team development,
diversification and expansion; Law 101 (Contracts, IP); Using the right
startup documents
• Idea Identification; Converting Ideas into Business Models; Differentiation;
Gaining Traction; Customer Discovery and Validation; Competition
• Raising Capital; Financial Pro forma
• Product Development; Technology Dev (Agile)
• Sales, Marketing, Growth Hacking, Business Development; Strategic Partnerships
• Pitch Decks Presentations
• Special guest speaker series session

What can I expect from the mentors?

Mentors will provide assistance, guidance, resources, and connections for their team.

Will I be able to pitch to investors?

Yes! Companies will have an opportunity to pitch to angel investor network being formed specially to investing in tech companies led by teams that include a Black or Latino founder.

Will Rutgers invest in my business?

No, Rutgers Business School will not invest in the entrepreneur’s business. Rutgers is leveraging the platform and its relationships and making space, equipment and resources available to the community of entrepreneurs.

Are you interested in becoming one of our Tech Mentors?

If you are interested in tech mentoring one of our teams, please email cueed@business.rutgers.edu with your resume and areas of expertise. Mentors should have expertise in one or more of the following areas: Building a Technology Platform, Data Analytics, Growth Hacking, Building a Technology Team, User Experience, Raising Capital for a Tech Startup.