It’s been a while since I last published. I’m hopefully going to start writing more in the following months. As summer starts, I have a feeling this summer will be extra special.

Last November, I was scrolling Twitter and noticed that one of my friends was attending NFT NYC. At the time, I was new to crypto and just minted my first NFT. I still had school but decided to book a last-minute flight to NY (a great decision I made).

NFT NYC: “The Superbowl of NFTs” - Coinbase

Going in, I barely knew anyone personally and had no conference tickets. It was only my second time visiting NY. Since I would be skipping an entire week of school, I wanted to make the most of my time so I decided to build my schedule with side events. I signed up for many side events and attended the ones that interested me.

The week was electric. I remember jumping between 3-4 side events a day while doing my homework. I would come back late at night, get up early in the morning, and repeat this for the next few days. It was incredible meeting people passionately building in the space and learning about various projects. I was blown away by the amount of innovation in web3 and realized I forgot there was a world outside a college town.

https://twitter.com/kch0e/status/1457917861909962757

Each day, I was excited to have more conversations around the growing NFT space and hear more about the Defi community. From Bitcoin pizza to VR/AR NFT galleries to community talks, I was running all over the place. I even bumped into Vignesh & Anand - holders of Beeple’s First 5000 Days (most expensive NFT bought at $69M). Through the various happy hours/parties, I met a Times Magazine writer who mentioned my NFT rug pull experience in their next crypto article. Not bad to top off the insane week.

“One 19-year-old college student from the Midwest, in New York as a representative of his school’s investment club, eagerly introduced himself. He explained that even though he’d recently been the victim of a “rug pull”—in crypto terms, when you invest in a coin and then the creator disappears, tanking the value and taking your investment with them—he was still all-in on the NFT world” - Raisa Bruner, Time 2030

Since then, I have gone down the web3 rabbit hole. I started hopping on crypto Twitter, began working at Coinbase, and attended too many crypto conferences. The conference list includes Art Basel, Miami Hack Week, ETH Denver, and a Solana Hacker House. I think I spent more time in Miami than in my classes combined (oops!). I’m thankful to be able to meet new friends through active communities like DropoutDAO.

Next week, I’ll be attending NFT NYC again but not alone this time. I’m returning to where it all started - the city that supercharged my interest in crypto. This year’s conference will be bigger than ever. I’ll be going with my team at Pinata to engage with the greater web3 community. I look forward to catching up with many familiar faces on Twitter and connecting with new ones through the hundreds of side events hosted.

I’ll also be spending the rest of the summer in NY before heading back to college. Having grown up in the San Francisco Bay Area, New York is a different beast. The lively city has a vibrant atmosphere with energy everywhere. The city really never sleeps. I can’t wait to experience the vibes. Summer 2022 is going to be a movie :)

I’m ready.

I started my undergraduate education at Purdue University. Having graduated high school during the pandemic and not being able to visit colleges, I accepted my offer without truly understanding the school environment. After spending 2 years here, I have met some of my closest friends, joined and led different communities, and soaked in everything the university had to offer. I have loved my time here with no regrets.

I am grateful for the relationships formed, opportunities given, and a sense of belonging in the Purdue community. Over the last few months, I have deeply reflected on experiences that fuel my personal growth and interests. I have decided it is best for me to transfer into UIUC (The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) in Fall 2022. I will be finishing the rest of my undergrad in junior and senior year (the next 2 years).

This may be surprising and unexpected to many. The reasons behind my decision →

1. Growth

I felt that I was not personally content in the university ecosystem. I have leveraged what resources Purdue has to offer and am not growing as much as I could. UIUC has various student opportunities and larger organizations that I can immerse myself in. I have everything to gain and nothing to lose by diving into a new environment.

2. Environment

The atmosphere at Purdue is lively but the student culture does not seem to be the best fit. An engaged builder community is still developing. UIUC has an active, compelling student body with ambitious individuals that I want to be surrounded by. I envision myself thriving around like-minded people who are as driven and hungry.

3. Interests

My current academic coursework at Purdue is valuable; however, the content covered does not match my current interests. UIUC’s degree is flexible and enables me to take a variety of subjects that build onto my developing skillset. I strive to learn about relevant topics and stay curiously motivated given that college is a very expensive investment.

Having traveled regularly this year, I was fascinated by UIUC’s alumni network talent and size. I have held great conversations with active students and graduates and I imagine I will be sparking more intellectual discussions. Although I will be starting fresh at a completely different school, I am confident that I can make the most of my time there and have memorable experiences. I look forward to embracing the unexpected.

This was a tough decision, but I am eager to make this next move. UIUC was the original school I have always wanted to attend. Yes, I may have to restart my social circles and rejoin student organizations, but it is an opportunity for me to meet new student groups and form new friendships. I am ready for this transition in my education.

Leaving college midway is never an easy call and I will surely miss the energy and deep connections in these great communities. I will be keeping in touch and visiting Purdue :)

A new chapter.

When people think of startups, they think about ideas founded at colleges like Stanford, Berkeley, and Harvard. It makes sense, Ivy-league level schools including MIT, Penn, and other big-name universities attract top-tier talent and some of the world’s brightest minds that we know today. These schools yield numerous successful entrepreneurs and many famous companies were started on these campuses.

However, one area I always felt was overlooked was the Greater Midwest. This region’s student entrepreneurship ecosystem is thriving and only accelerating. The 3 largest student-led startup organizations in the Midwest are located at Purdue University, the University of Michigan, and UIUC (The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign). These clubs are The Anvil, V1, and Founders. I call these the Midwest’s “Triple Threat”.

• The Anvil (Purdue)

• V1 (Michigan)

• Founders (Illinois)

For context, I have worked at a few startups and joined The Anvil my freshman year. As a director, I lead our startup accelerator program. I was curious about other student-run entrepreneurship club events and their various initiatives. As a result, I respectively joined their communities, observed activity, and kept in touch with club officers.

Every year, each organization has grown tremendously with startups getting into top accelerators, various projects receiving funding, and increased student innovation. Below is a list of startups that have been successfully founded by active students, alumni, or dropouts and backed by leading venture capital funds such as Y-Combinator.

Industries: B2B SaaS, Consumer, Healthcare, Fintech, Crypto, Construction, Automotive

Startups: Purdue / The Anvil

• Burst (Pear VC) | Aeon Charge (YC W22) | Glimpse (YC S20) | Ladder (YC S20) Socio (Acquired-Cisco, High Alpha)| Mimir (Acquired-HackerRank, YC S15)

Startups: Michigan / V1

• Intros.AI | Tour.Video (YC W21) | LineLeap (YC S19) | Money Mafia (NFT Collection) Morning Brew (Acquired-Insider) | Wolverines @Ramp (Founders Fund, Stripe)

Startups: Illinois / Founders

• Stackend Solutions | Burst (Pear VC)| Atmos (Khosla, YC S20) | Allergenius Baking (iVenture Accelerator) | Helios Threads (iVenture Accelerator) | Alum (YC W17)

University-focused venture capital funds such as Contrary Capital and Dorm Room Fund have venture/investment partners or scouts that represent their school’s entrepreneurship community and become a valuable resource for student founders seeking advice or fundraising. Identifying young talent early on and sourcing promising student startups have been a trend for strong deal flow. This has attracted more VCs.

Each student-led organization operates in its unique ways. Leadership is structured differently and each club has its own goals; however, we all share the same mission.

We strive to support all Midwest students with resources who are interested in building something impactful and became the student hub for our schools. Whether that be side-projects or startups, we want to cultivate community for ambitious student builders and unify entrepreneurship on campus. Through increasing student involvement in running entrepreneurial programming, we hope to expose more students to startups and strengthen ties between our universities and alumni.

Below are some great updates worth highlighting from each organization. From famous guest speakers to new initiatives being launched, every community is growing rapidly.

Highlights: The Anvil

• New co-working space at the entrepreneurship center, revamped online community

• 8th cohort of The Boiler - flagship startup accelerator, starting collaborative events

• Fireside chats with Jonathan Chang, Mike Asem, Alexis Ohanian, Mitch Daniels

Highlights: V1

• Organized the first Startup Fair, engaging the most active online builder community

• 2nd cohort of Product Studio - ideation program, developing monthly newsletter

• Fireside chats with Gaby Goldberg, Shriya Nevatia, Geoff Ralston, Vinay Hiremath

Highlights: Founders

• New co-working space at the design center, enhance Startup Bootcamp series

• 3rd year of Forge / 54 - largest student startup conference / hackathon-like event

• Fireside chats with Lucy Guo, Matt Rastovac, Peter Piekarczyk, Brad Baum

I am excited to see the next wave of high-profile startups that emerge from these student-run organizations. These community-centered clubs have become incubators for students who want to make something people want and share similar experiences. Being surrounded by high-performing, driven individuals creates a powerful culture that pushes students to achieve things out of their comfort zone. Pure infectious energy.

A hot startup does not have to start from a brand-name school or silicon valley, it can be born on campus right in the middle of the country. Given the sheer amount of talent and opportunity, “Triple Threat” is boosting the Midwest entrepreneurship ecosystem.

Don’t sleep on the Midwest.

If you have any comments or thoughts would love to hear from you. Twitter: kch0e