MSU Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach

What MSU Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach does

The MSU Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach (also operating as the E-Center) is a university-affiliated entrepreneurship support unit within Mississippi State University's College of Business, headquartered at 101 McCool Hall in Starkville, Mississippi. Founded circa 2009 and reorganized into its current form by 2016, the center serves MSU undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and researchers, community members, K-12 students, and military veterans and spouses (the latter via the Veterans Business Outreach Center). It runs a structured startup pipeline through VentureCatalyst™, its core co-curricular program, complemented by NSF I-Corps™ Site programming for technology commercialization, the Jack Hatcher Certificate in Engineering Entrepreneurship, an MBA TechVenture Fellowship, and a Minor in Entrepreneurship.

The center's operational footprint spans multiple physical facilities: a 2,000+ sq ft main office in McCool Hall, a 10,000 sq ft business incubator at the Thad Cochran Research Park (60 Technology Blvd), The Factory maker space in Patterson Engineering Lab, the Idea Shop in downtown Starkville, and Cowork @ the Hub at 301 E. Main St. Programs include the MaroonX Accelerator (jointly with Texas A&M, funded by a $200,000 Blackstone Charitable Foundation grant), the annual MSU Startup Summit, VentureCatalyst Grants, E-Week pitch competitions, the iCREATE Summer Camp (K-12), and the four-state VBOC funded by an $825,000 SBA grant. The center supports approximately 100 active startups at any time and helps launch 50+ student startups per year, drawing from a student body spanning 40 majors and a 100,000+ living alumni network.

The center generates no commercial revenue. It is funded through a combination of university resources, private donations (including $750,000 in initial donations for the E-Center facility), endowments (Jack Hatcher Chair, Thad Cochran Endowment), and government grants from entities such as the SBA, USDA Rural Development, U.S. EDA, and the Blackstone Charitable Foundation. Notable portfolio outcomes include Glo (Inc. 5000, No. 3,563 in 2023), Buzzbassador (Google Black Founders Fund, $250K), CampusKnot ($1M post-money valuation), and Duet Technology ($1.7M seed, Switch 1.0 product launch in April 2025).

Name

MSU Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach

Legal name

Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach

Website

https://ecenter.msstate.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The MSU Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach is a university-affiliated support unit within Mississippi State University's College of Business that helps students, faculty, community members, K-12 students, and veterans launch and grow startups via mentorship, maker and incubator facilities, pitch competitions, and grant funding.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

University Entrepreneurship & Startup Support Services

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Entrepreneurship, Innovation & Venture Creation Centers (EDAHAHAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Entrepreneurship, Startup Incubation & Pitch Programs (EDAMAKAK), Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC)

Keywords

• Entrepreneurship education
• Startup incubation
• Small business mentoring
• Maker space access
• Venture funding programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Mississippi State

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Center provides entrepreneurship education, mentorship, maker-space and co-working facilities, business incubation, and seed grants to MSU students, faculty, community members, and select external constituencies (e.g., veterans). Offerings span academic credit programs (Minor, Certificate, MBA TechVenture Fellowship), non-credit programs (VentureCatalyst, NSF I-Corps Site, MaroonX Accelerator), shared workspaces (The Factory MakerSpace, The Idea Shop, Cowork at the Hub, Business Incubator), and seed funding (VentureCatalyst Grants).

Product overview

MSU Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach (E-Center) is a comprehensive entrepreneurship support organization offering a portfolio of programs, facilities, and funding opportunities. The core offerings include VentureCatalyst™ (student/faculty startup accelerator), NSF I-Corps™ Site (research commercialization support), and the MaroonX Accelerator (jointly with Texas A&M). Physical facilities include The Factory maker space, The Idea Shop prototyping facility, Cowork at the Hub coworking space, and a 10,000 sq ft business incubator. Academic programs encompass the Jack Hatcher Certificate, MBA TechVenture Fellowship, and Minor in Entrepreneurship. The center supports startup competitions (Startup Summit), grants (VentureCatalyst Grants), K-12 outreach (iCREATE Summer Camp), and veteran entrepreneurship (VBOC). The E-Center supports approximately 100 active startups annually across diverse industries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• VentureCatalyst: Comprehensive, co-curricular program for MSU's students and faculty interested in starting a successful, investor-backed company
• NSF I-Corps
• The Factory
• The Idea Shop
• Cowork @ the Hub
• MaroonX Accelerator
• Jack Hatcher Certificate
• MBA TechVenture Fellowship
• iCREATE Summer Camp
• MSU Startup Summit
• VBOC
• eClub
• DevNet at MSU

Products and services

• VentureCatalyst Structured mentorship and venture-support program for MSU-affiliated and community entrepreneurs, providing founder coaching and pathway to seed funding.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 50 student startups launched annually
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Veterans Business Outreach Center (VBOC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 August 2015VBOC operates in partnership with the College of Business' Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and the G.V. 'Sonny' Montgomery Center for America's Veterans. The center received an $825,000 SBA grant to serve veterans in a four-state region (Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee). One of 15 VBOCs nationwide.
• Texas A&M UniversityflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 March 2015Joint partnership with Texas A&M University's Center for New Ventures and Entrepreneurship to operate the MaroonX Accelerator Program simultaneously at both locations. The collaboration enables video conferencing and live streaming between campuses, expanding network reach and resources for rural entrepreneurs.
• Bagley College of EngineeringcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Factory maker space was created as a collaboration between the Bagley College of Engineering and the Entrepreneurship Center, combining engineering resources with entrepreneurial support.
• School of Human SciencesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for iCREATE Summer Camp program providing entrepreneurial education for high school students with sessions led by educators, industry professionals, and current students.
• Office of Technology ManagementcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates with the university Office of Technology Management for intellectual property assistance, patent search guidance, and technology commercialization support for faculty and student startups.
• Mississippi Development AuthoritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMDA Executive Director Glenn McCullough Jr. serves as Executive-in-Residence, advising student entrepreneurs on business development and helping retain young talent in Mississippi.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Stanford StartX: University-affiliated startup accelerator at Stanford supporting student and faculty founders through mentorship, workspace, and seed funding. Directly comparable mission of taking university innovators from concept to funded company.
• MIT Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship: MIT's entrepreneurship center delivering educational programs, maker/innovation resources, funding, and competitions to student founders. Closely comparable multi-program structure spanning academics, incubation, and K-12 outreach.
• Georgia Tech CREATE-X: Georgia Tech's student-startup initiative offering ideation-to-launch programs, maker spaces, and proof-of-concept funding. Comparable engineering-school-embedded entrepreneurship pipeline serving a large public-university student body.
• Purdue Foundry: Purdue University's startup accelerator and maker-space hub providing incubation, mentorship, and grant funding for student and faculty entrepreneurs. Equivalent large public R1 university entrepreneurship center.
• Texas A&M McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship: Texas A&M's central entrepreneurship hub, which is the center's actual partner on the MaroonX Accelerator program. Directly comparable SEC public-university entrepreneurship center with similar student-led venture pipeline.
• University of Chicago Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation: University of Chicago's hub for technology commercialization, student ventures, and innovation competitions. Comparable structured pipeline from research and ideation through launch with grants and accelerator offerings.
• University of Michigan Center for Entrepreneurship: University of Michigan's cross-campus entrepreneurship center combining academic programs, incubator space, competitions, and venture mentoring. Same multi-program model integrated with a large public-research university.
• Rice University Liu Idea Lab for Innovation & Entrepreneurship: Rice's entrepreneurship center providing maker space, ideation programs, mentorship, and funding for student founders. Comparable boutique university-affiliated venture incubation model with engineering emphasis.

Emerging players

• Venture For America: National fellowship placing early-stage entrepreneurs in emerging-market cities to launch startups. Comparable focus on entrepreneurship development outside top-tier venture hubs but oriented to fellowship delivery rather than university incubation.

Broad incumbents

• SBA Veterans Business Outreach Centers (VBOC Program): The federal program under which the center operates its VBOC. Directly comparable institutional framework providing free business-development services to veteran entrepreneurs across the same multi-state footprint (MS, AL, LA, TN).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/MSStateECenter
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ECenterMSState
• Facebookfacebook.com/MSStateECenter
• Instagraminstagram.com/msstateecenter
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/msu-center-for-entrepreneurship-outreach

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments10 records

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Frequently asked questions about MSU Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach