HELIX Innovations Collection
21Sep/100

Welcome to the Collection! New Innovations Week of September 20, 2010

We welcome the following higher education innovations to the collection this week. Please take a moment to read about them, comment, and rate the innovations.

  • The CHEA Initiative. A multi-year national conversation on the future of accreditation. The Initiative seeks to (1) enhance accountability in accreditation and (2) sustain a balance and distinction between accountability to the federal government and the academic work of accreditation.
  • Green Boxes at MIT. Student-driven initaitive reducing waste in dining halls and directly addressing sustainabilty on campus through the use of environmentally friendly, reusable containers.
  • CampusPhilly. For students, CampusPhilly is a great tool and resource for finding things to do and see in Philadelphia. There's a larger mission behind it, though--to stave brain drain and keep students living and working in the city when they finish college.
  • GlobalCampus. Students and institutions alike can focus their search for global learning opportunities and talent in the same way that job sites help job seekers and employers connect.

Let us know if you have a suggestion for an innovation in higher education that we should be including in the collection!

Filed under: New to the Collection No Comments
14Sep/100

Welcome to the Collection! New Innovations This Week

We welcome the following higher education innovations to the collection this week. Please take a moment to read about them, comment, and rate the innovations.

  • Atlas Black Business Textbooks. The use of the graphic-novel genre provides a medium where key concepts are presented in a story format, allowing for an increase of student engagement with course content.
  • SCVNGR. Using this location-based mobile app as a means to facilitate student engagement with orientation programs & student activities may contribute to greater student retention.

Let us know if you have a suggestion for an innovation in higher education that we should be including in the collection!

Filed under: New to the Collection No Comments
13Sep/103

The Accelerator and Project Olympus at Carnegie Mellon University

creative, original1.51.51.51.51.5
adoptable, replicable4.54.54.54.54.5
promises impact, influence3.53.53.53.53.5
inspires, motivates change33333
paradigm shifting, game changing1.51.51.51.51.5

What do you think? Click to comment.

Why is it innovative?
The Accelerator and its Project Olympus are taking direct action to avoid brain drain in the Pittsburgh area by supporting top entrepreneurial talent and creating local career opportunities.

More info:

From the Pittsburgh Business Times, Accelerator: Black Locus Readies Project, September 10, 2010:

How does your financing shape up?

“So far, we have received funding from Alpha Lab, the Tepper Accelerator Program, and from business plan competitions that we won. We are currently talking with local programs that support start-up companies, as well as with angel investors.”

You’re also part of Alpha Labs and Project Olympus. What benefits does your company receive through those and

Filed under: Adoptable, Replicable, New to the Collection, Other Institutional Programs, Top-Rated Continue reading
13Sep/101

Rutgers Business School Entrepreneurship Pioneers Initiative

creative, original44444
adoptable, replicable55555
promises impact, influence44444
inspires, motivates change44444
paradigm shifting, game changing33333

Why is it innovative?What do you think? Click to comment.
The Rutgers Business School Entrepreneurship Pioneers Initiative is aimed at first-generation entrepreneurs, helping to bring new ideas and approaches to the entrepreneurial community. The program focuses on revitalizing the city of Newark and in order to do this develops a variety of partnerships in the community, and emphasizes community development as well as economic growth.

More Information

From the Entrepreneurship Pioneers Initiative website:

The Entrepreneurship Pioneers Initiative is a comprehensive program developing entrepreneurs in the North Jersey region that invests in the human capital and social capital of first generation entrepreneurs. Selected participants receive intensive training to help them grow their business, group and 1-on-1 counseling, networking opportunities, and mentoring.

From Diverse Issues in Education, Rutgers University Helps Entrepreneurs Revitalize Newark, September 10, 2010

The center takes a broad approach to its work. It partners with nonprofits to help them develop ideas to generate more revenue. It works with homeless shelters to help better meet the needs of the destitute, partly because business owners may be reticent about relocating to a city teeming with hundreds of homeless people loitering nearby. It also explores innovations, such as

Filed under: Adoptable, Replicable, Inspires, Motivates Change, New to the Collection, Other Institutional Programs, Overall, Promises Impact, Influence, Top-Rated Continue reading
12Sep/102

SCVNGR

creative, original44444
adoptable, replicable44444
promises impact, influence2.52.52.52.52.5
inspires, motivates change3.53.53.53.53.5
paradigm shifting, game changing3.53.53.53.53.5

Why is it innovative?What do you think? Click to comment.
Using this location-based mobile app as a means to facilitate student engagement with orientation programs & student activities may contribute to greater student retention.

More Information

From the SCVNGR website:

SCVNGR is a game.

And playing is easy. Go places. Do challenges. Earn points! That’s the core of it, but there’s a whole lot more. Discover cool new places. Do exciting new things. Share what you’re up to with your friends. Unlock badges (and even real world rewards) by doing quick, fun challenges at your favorite places as you go about your daily life.

From Mashable, On SCVNGR the Checkin Game Is What You Make It, August 12, 2010

The idea behind user-generated challenges is to allow game players to define the game for themselves. SCVNGR players could already select from a few seeded challenges such as

Tagged as: , , Continue reading
11Sep/102

Atlas Black Business Textbooks

creative, original55555
adoptable, replicable22222
promises impact, influence1.51.51.51.51.5
inspires, motivates change22222
paradigm shifting, game changing1.51.51.51.51.5

Why is it innovative?What do you think? Click to comment.
The use of the graphic-novel genre provides a medium where key concepts are presented in a story format, allowing for an increase of student engagement with course content.

More Information

On YouTube, Atlas Black Trailer:

From Atlas Black: Managing to Succeed website:

Atlas Black: Managing to Succeed is the first ever graphic novel that encompasses key concepts and theories from the management field. For perhaps the first time, you will not struggle to get your students to read their assigned text.

Graphic novels are book length works that are targeted toward adult audiences. They are widely read by college students, and in recent years educators have incorporated graphic novels

Tagged as: Continue reading
   

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True innovation is open. We created the HELIX Innovations Collection to allow all those concerned with improving higher education to share and comment on innovative solutions. Who decides which ideas are innovative? You do!

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