Julie Frieswyk, University of Delaware Horn Entrepreneurship youth programs lead, received Next Gen Summit’s Honorary Next Gen Award recognizing her hard work and dedication working with thousands of teens and educators from 30-plus countries.

Frieswyk manages UD’s international entrepreneurship competition for high school students (the Diamond Challenge), its Youth Entrepreneurship Summit (YES!), the dual enrollment program and entrepreneurship training for K-12 educators.

“Julie is a shining star and true role model for the thousands of students across the globe looking for empowerment and inspiration to work on their projects,” said Next Gen Summit co-founder Justin Lafazan. “Julie was the fully deserving recipient of our 2017 Honorary Next Gen Award, given to a mentor, speaker, or partner who most exemplifies support and empowerment for young entrepreneurs.”

Next Gen Summit was founded by Lafazan and Dylan Gambardella to establish a conference and online/in-person community for millennial entrepreneurs.

The conference is praised by Forbes and Entrepreneur magazines as one of the best for young entrepreneurs. The conference’s reach extends to over 200 campuses, 2,000 direct founders, and over 20 million online impressions.

Lafazan also wrote What Wakes You Up?: Designing Kick-Ass Lives Through Entrepreneurship to provide a blueprint for young entrepreneurs to go about their lives. Lafazan was inspired by the Diamond Challenge and Frieswyk’s own work with youth in entrepreneurship.

“We at Next Gen were ecstatic to partner with and welcome Julie Frieswyk from Horn Entrepreneurship and the Diamond Challenge Team at the University of Delaware. Their collective commitment to supporting young entrepreneurs on their personal and professional journeys is highly respected and commendable, as well as in line with our core mission,” said Lafazan about his experience working with Frieswyk. “We were grateful for their presence and mentorship to many of the attendees and community members who joined us at NGS2017, guiding them through social impact, marketing, student entrepreneurship, event production and more. We thank Julie, Horn, Diamond, and the UD team for their support.”

About Horn Entrepreneurship

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