VGN Academic Partnerships
In the latter part of the meeting, Hampton presented a VGN academic partnership initiative for universities to serve as engines of innovation and talent. “With an academic partnership, we know that academic institutions have long been used to come up with out-of-the-box thinking and also to have additional resources for various projects,” he said. He highlighted examples such as Conexxus and W3C’s (World Wide Web Consortium) hackathon in Munich, Germany, which produced new Smart Safe standards, and his own experience at Jacksons Food Stores, where Boise State University students analyzed vast amounts of market basket data using AI and machine learning. These collaborations not only delivered useful insights but also created a pipeline of talent, with several students eventually joining the company. Hampton described two main avenues: semester-long capstone projects and shorter hackathons. Capstone efforts, he explained, succeed when there is a “very, very clear definition of what you’re looking for” and consistent check-ins that mirror an agile process. Hackathons, by contrast, deliver rapid bursts of creativity. Citing his work with Texas Tech University, Hampton noted that hundreds of students participated in weekend sessions, solving problems for local businesses and generating enthusiasm that
“ [For] students today and universities today, it’s all about these experiential learning opportunities that are making a difference, and universities and students are looking to do these kinds of things. So I think coming up with the problem and what we’re looking to solve would be a fun thing to do. Ed Collupy , Principal, Collupy System Solutions and CTVG Facilitator
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