Title:Leonsis Family Georgetown Venture Lab

Fostering the spirit of student and alumni entrepreneurship

• Support student and alumni entrepreneurial endeavors

• Draw connections between Hoya startups and the greater D.C. community

• Encourage collaboration and creativity for social good within the Georgetown network

From sweetgreen and Bombas to Lulu’s Ice Cream and The Steinberg Group, Georgetown’s alumni community is known for setting the entrepreneurial world ablaze. Thanks to a $1.5 million gift from the Leonsis family, the legacy of Hoya entrepreneurship continues with the launch of the Georgetown Venture Lab.

Located in WeWork White House, one block east of the White House on 15th and G Streets NW, the lab provides a collaborative space for the university and its network of alumni entrepreneurs to catalyze startups and initiatives.

The Georgetown Venture Lab extends the Leonsis family’s leadership role in supporting the university’s entrepreneurial community. In 2016, they launched the Leonsis Family Entrepreneurship Prize to honor and financially assist students and recent alumni who kickstart social impact ventures and initiatives.

“The Georgetown Venture Lab will offer valuable support for aspiring entrepreneurs, while at the same time further strengthening Georgetown’s alumni network and Georgetown’s connections to the local business community,” says Ted Leonsis (C’77, Parent’14, ’15). “We would like to see these companies led by Georgetown alumni grow and become leading contributors to the local economy.”

Membership rates at the Georgetown Venture Lab will be subsidized for alumni entrepreneurs. Participants in the Georgetown Venture Lab will also receive WeWork benefits, including 24/7 access to their home location and access to global WeWork networks and events. As an added benefit, programming will be offered in partnership with the Georgetown Entrepreneurship Alliance, including alumni and faculty mentorships for students, internships, entrepreneur-in-residence office hours, and social and professional events to unite students, alumni entrepreneurs, and the greater Washington, D.C. community.

“The Georgetown Venture Lab will provide a vibrant hub for alumni entrepreneurs to convene, collaborate, and create,” said Jeff Reid, founding director of the Georgetown Entrepreneurship Initiative.

“We are happy to partner with the Georgetown University Alumni Association and its Entrepreneurship Alliance to support alumni entrepreneurs in this way.”