University of Delaware alumni Austin Crouse and Ben Rapkin, both members of the Class of 2015, launched their startup ProjectedU in June of 2014. Since then, both have gone on to start individual careers with the entrepreneurial skills learned through their business endeavors and the Horn Program in Entrepreneurship in their back pockets.

When Crouse, a mechanical engineering major, and Rapkin, an entrepreneurship major, realized how well they and their skill sets complemented each other, they knew they had to work together. The pair created ProjectedU, a projector that displays relevant information to students in classrooms.

Together, with ProjectedU, they placed third in the 2015 Hen Hatch competition. Due to a set of uncontrollable setbacks, their startup failed to expand, but the pair did not let this discourage them.

“There is no better way to learn life lessons than to start a business,” said Rapkin. “The worst that happens when you fail is you get smarter, you get more connections, you get more respect and you get more experience.”

Since starting ProjectedU and graduating from the University, Crouse and Rapkin have gone on to pursue careers with W.L. Gore and Associates as a new business development leader and Parse.ly Inc. as a marking specialist and publisher analytics consultant, respectively.

Both credit the Horn Program for supplying them with the life skills needed to tackle the real world.

Rapkin praised the Horn Program for supplying students with the opportunity to be “constantly networking, constantly learning from experts and constantly dedicating time to actually apply what I’m learning to building startups and clubs.”

Despite both having full time jobs, the entrepreneurial gears are constantly turning in their brains, thinking about possible startup ideas to pursue whether it be in the future or on the side.

“Ben and I always go back and forth with business ideas,” said Crouse. “We’re constantly staying in touch, bouncing off each other, trying to figure out the next big problem we want to solve.”

Registration for Hen Hatch 2017 is open now through Jan. 16, 2017. Visit the website for details.

About the Horn Program in Entrepreneurship

The Horn Program in Entrepreneurship ignites imaginations and empowers world changers through educational offerings that emphasize experiential learning, evidence-based entrepreneurship and active engagement with entrepreneurs and other members of the broader entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Through participation in Horn Program offerings, students gain the knowledge, skills, personal capacities, experiences, connections and access to resources needed to successfully manifest innovation and thrive in the rapidly changing world.