Beatrice Sirakaya is an Assistant Teaching Professor and Bio-Tech Cluster Director of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation minor. Sirakaya has been working with the Penn State Eberly College of Science for over two decades. Recently, She, along with the College of the Liberal Arts and others, conducted a meeting to introduce her Entrepreneurship and Innovation class.
She initially began the Entrepreneurship and Innovation class in 2019. It invites students to propose a problem in conjunction with a business, find a solution, and present this information at the end of the course. Sirakaya assists students in this process is by teaching them UN Sustainable Development Goals to help them select their problem. Throughout the duration of the class, three pitch presentations are given leading up to the final presentation. After presentations have concluded, all members of the top two teams receive cash prizes. An example proposal involved students addressing the issue of pesticide pollution with the solution of probiotic produce spray.
In 2023, she expanded her program internationally through Penn State Global courses. She has worked in conjunction with several countries, such as Germany and Switzerland. Sirakaya also engages with alumni to help mentor and collaborate with current students.
Sirakaya’s class is not simply a platform for students to carry out this presentation but involves techniques and educational components to help students along the way. Class material focuses on design strategies and problem solving.
You can view opportunities in Entrepreneurship and Innovation here.
