Lehigh Valley LaunchBox (LVLB) and Penn State Lehigh Valley Student Business Society are sponsoring a weeklong series of speakers focused on economic development as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week taking place across all Penn State Commonwealth Campuses from Nov. 13 to 17.

From business developers to actresses to programmers, LVLB and the business society have events planned for the aspiring entrepreneur in all industries.

The schedule includes:

Legal Advice for New Entrepreneurs

Noon to 1:30 p.m. on Monday Nov. 13, in Room 135

Thomas Sharbaugh, professor of practice at Penn State Law and director of the Entrepreneur Assistance Clinic, will share an overview of resources and activities that his team provides.

Allentown Redevelopment, including The Waterfront Project

Noon to 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 14, in Room 302

Zachary Jaindl, fifth-generation entrepreneur, oversees long-term and daily operations, portfolio acquisitions and development efforts as chief operations officer and co-founder of Jaindl Enterprises. He formulates ongoing marketing strategies and directly manages each of the company’s primary departments. Jaindl studied finance and marketing at Lehigh University where he established a business plan centered around smart urban growth, the prevention of urban sprawl, and historic preservation.

LaunchBox Ladies:  From Passion to Profit

11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 15, in Room 135

Tanya Wright is an actress on the Netflix series "Orange is the New Black" and HBO’s "True Blood," author of “Butterfly Rising” and “I Found God in My Hair,” and founder of the hair care line HAIRiette. She is currently building a philanthropic distribution line of hair care products and was a micro-grant recipient of Lehigh Valley LaunchBox in 2017.

Wright will be interviewed by Ashley Russo, three-time Emmy award-winning executive producer, president of ASR Media Productions, and host of The PEAK TV and St. Luke’s HealthNow.

The Impact of Lehigh Valley LaunchBox on Small Business

Noon to 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 16, in Room 135

Matthew Heintzelman, finance major in Smeal College of Business at Penn State, teamed with Randall Forte, executive director of the Lehigh Valley Arts Council, to form Eternally Art, a startup that creates hand-made funeral urns that celebrate art and commemorate life. They were awarded a Lehigh Valley LaunchBox micro grant in 2016.

Joining Heintzelman, is Jaqueline Hall-Yurasits who opened Red Door Coffee Roaster, a micro-roaster of fine coffees, in September 2017 at Diana's Cafe in Center Valley.

"How Microsoft is Changing the Way Entrepreneurs Will Operate"

Noon to 1:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 17, in Room 135.

Mahesh Chand is founder of C# Corner, a free, membership-based open platform for developers to solve problems, to learn new technology and to just hang out. Chand was awarded the Microsoft MVP Award for seven consecutive years for his contributions to the developer community. He is also the author of several .NET programming books and published “A Programmer’s Guide to ADO.NET in C#” with APress at the age of 25.

All events are free and open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis. Advanced RSVP required at the Lehigh Valley LaunchBox website.  For more information, email lvlaunchbox@psu.edu or call Valerie Peters at 610-285-5208.

Attend one or more of Penn State’s GEW events and become part of an international entrepreneurship celebration with 150 countries, 24,000 partners and 34,000 events. Last year, the Penn State community hosted 143 events at 15 different locations, drawing 4,509 students, faculty, staff, and community participants across the commonwealth of Pennsylvania.