Impactathon® @ North Central College
** first 40 participants who join in on Friday will be included in a raffle for door prizes!**
Have you ever wanted to solve local issues + be an entrepreneur? Join this hands-on day of social entrepreneurship at NCC!
Join us for a hands-on day of social entrepreneurship where you'll collaborate with other changemakers to tackle real issues that matter. Come with your enthusiasm to solve problems, work in teams, and make a difference. No experience required!
Starter seed funds or prizes will be awarded to promising teams, with selected teams fast-tracked to the Changemaker Challenge! 🏆
What: Impactathon® @ North Central College — this is the 30th Impactathon event in the US...and the first time at NCC!
Who: Calling aspiring entrepreneurs and problemsolvers from North Central College! Impactathon will guide you to launch project & business ideas that create positive social impact.
No experience, team, or ideas necessary. Coaches will lead you through the process.
Why Participate?
💰 Prizes
🚀 Get fast-tracked to the Changemaker Challenge
🌱 Learn how to build a social enterprise from scratch
🤝 Network with like-minded changemakers
✅ Add valuable experience to your resume and LinkedIn
🌈 Be part of the generation that's actually solving problems
When: Friday, April 11, 2025 | 9AM - 5:30 PM
Teambuilding, workshops, and talks | 9AM - 1PM
Teams work on ideas | 1PM - 3:00PM
Pitches | 3:15-4:45 PM
Lunch and snacks will be provided to fuel your creativity!
Where: Stevenson Hall
Impactathon® will take place on campus at Stevenson Hall.
What to expect at Impactathon® :
Learn about social enterprise & tools to build your own strategy for impact.
Map social problems
Brainstorm impact-driven solutions
Design project/business plans
Pitch to potential investors, advisors, and mentors
Get a certificate of completion for your resume and LinkedIn
Top teams win cash, in-kind prizes, chance to pitch at Changemaker Challenge!
Speakers, Judges, Mentors, Organizers:
Niharika Hanglem - Program Director, Entrepreneurs
at The Richard L. Duchossois FoundationPatti Minglin - Founder & CEO at Go Girl Communications
Varun Parekh - VP Life IT at Sammons Financial Group Companies
Macarena Tamayo-Calabrese - President & CEO at Naper Settlement
Temi Okubadejo - Organizational Development Consultant | Interdisciplinary Researcher for Social Innovation
Chirag Acharya - Sustainable Investment Stewardship, Impact Investing
Klara Hermesz - Learning Manager, Perplexity AI Business Fellow
Michelle Kurian - Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) at Harvest Fund
Ramon P. Llamas, MPH - Founder of Spiero Ventures, Reimagining a Better Quality of Life for All
Sunny Williams - Co-Founder at Tiny Docs
David Green - Dean of the School of the School of Business and Entrepreneurship at North Central College
Julie Nagashima - Director of Leadership, Ethics, and Values; Assistant Professor of Ethical Leadership at North Central College
Neetal Parekh - Founder of Innov8social, Convener of Impactathon, Author, Attorney
Learn About:
Social Enterprise: using business models to create social impact
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Introduction to Design Thinking
Lean Methodology for Startups
Hackathons: sprints of group-work, brainstorming, and innovation around a particular idea, problem, or solution.
Teams
Teams must have at least 2 members. Don't have a team? No worries! We'll help you find awesome teammates during the event.
Prizes: Starter seed funds + support or other prizes!
To receive prizes, all participants must participate in the entire event. Prizes will be distributed evenly among team members.
What to Bring
An innovation mindset + can-do attitude! It is suggested that you bring laptops or devices to research and also to help make simple slides for your pitches. You may like to bring a notebook and pen to take notes or sketch out ideas. Bringing layers of clothing is always a good idea.
Accommodations
We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals, including individuals with disabilities, to engage fully. To request an accommodation or for inquiries about accessibility, please contact hi@innov8social.com.
Open to the NCC Community
This event is open to the NCC community, including students and alumni, and is not based upon participant race, religion, ethnicity, socio-economic background, sexuality, gender.
Video and Photography
Please note that by signing up for a ticket, you acknowledge and agree to being photographed and filmed. Please email hi@innov8social.com with any questions.
About LEV at North Central College
The Leadership, Ethics and Values (LEV) Program offers majors, minors, and concentration (specialization) in Social Entrepreneurship and Ethical Leadership. The LEV team is committed to providing integrated development opportunities that inspire students to develop their ethical and personal values, strengthen their leadership qualities, and empower them to engage in impact-driven initiatives to effect positive social change in whatever environment they lead or follow.
The LEV Program at North Central was recognized by Ashoka U as one of only 6 institutions around the world as a semi-finalist for the #MillionsofChangemakers award, given to innovative initiatives that serve as a model for higher education. Ashoka U is the higher education initiative of Ashoka – the world’s largest community of social entrepreneurs and changemakers. In 2018, North Central College was one of less than 50 colleges and universities globally to receive the designation of a "Changemaker Campus" by Ashoka U.
About Impactathon by Innov8social
Impactathons® are interactive social impact experiences incorporating engaging expert talks, workshop, and hackathon to empower participants to be problem solvers and adopt a social entrepreneurship mindset. They have taken place in partnership with universities, organizations, and foundations in cities including San Francisco, New York City, Seattle, Aliso Viejo, Palo Alto, Los Angeles, Berkeley Baton Rouge, Tacoma, and virtually.
Innov8social creates content and experiences to make social entrepreneurship more actionable, transformative, and accessible.
Impactathon® is a registered trademark of Innov8social.