Written by Mubashir Hussain
April 24, 2024
Since I was little, I always had a passion for entrepreneurship. I dreamed of one day founding my own company, and I knew that Santa Clara University would be the perfect place to lay the groundwork. As a freshman, I wanted to get involved on campus and came across a few opportunities. The one that stood out in particular was joining the Student Advisory Board at the Ciocca Center.
Initially, I was hesitant about getting involved in a completely online setting during the pandemic. I did not have the opportunity to know the board members in person before the pandemic, and I thought that the lack of in-person interaction would be challenging. Contrary to my fears, I still remember the emotions I felt after the first board meeting that I was part of, over three years ago. The energy in the zoom call with bright smiles across the screen welcomed me to not just a board, but a community of leaders on campus. I knew that I made the right decision to get involved.
I have seen the Student Advisory Board grow over the past four years as we put together amazing events and provided the center with feedback on its programs. We faced challenges as we dealt with the transition from online to in-person meetings as well as reshaped our board structure completely. Through these changes, we have been able to inch closer towards our goal of exposing students on campus to the entrepreneurial mindset. As the Co-Chair of the board these past two years, I wanted to make sure that I could help solidify the mission of our board. The first step towards this vision was organizing and hosting the first ever Entreprelooza in the spring of 2023. This event was discussed since the Ciocca Center was founded in 2019, and it was finally coming together. Our board spent months reaching out to speakers, planning the activities for the day, and marketing the event. We were so excited with how it turned out, and we are currently preparing for our second Entreprelooza this quarter.
"The team always took these as a learning opportunity and transformed those ideas into something that better aligned with what students can benefit from."
Being a part of this organization for most of its lifespan has also allowed me to see the Ciocca Center transform from a small network on campus to a vibrant and dynamic community of students, faculty, alumni, and entrepreneurs. During my sophomore and junior years, I was part of the center’s first Innovation Fellows team and cohort. I learned so much through the process, and it is great to see how large the program has become in just the past year with multiple teams in each cohort, each working on creative ideas. Through the Student Advisory Board, I was also able to provide feedback to the center on other programs that we have developed and watch them grow, including the Mindset Scholars as well as the early stages of BVA Idea School and Prep School. This year, Ciocca was the title sponsor of the 11th Hack for Humanity hosted by the Association for Computing Machinery chapter on campus, and we held a Post-H4H: Project to Startup conversation where Morgan Slain of the BVA shared some advice with hackers on how to take their projects to the next steps. Over the years, we also naturally had many programs and endeavors that were not successful or needed reworking. But the team always took these as a learning opportunity and transformed those ideas into something that better aligned with what students can benefit from
As I reflect on my time at SCU, I am so grateful to have been part of such an amazing community at the Ciocca Center and as the Co-Chair of our Student Advisory Board. The
Center has overcome various challenges over the years as the team and programs grew. But as our efforts increased, our impact did as well. The Ciocca Center is a name that is known and respected around campus and in our alumni network. Every time I walk into the Ciocca Suite in Lucas Hall, I am met with warm smiles from our lovely staff and the assortment of delectable snacks. I am so excited to see how the Center continues to develop, and I hope to remain involved after I graduate.
Mubashir Hussain '24 has led the Ciocca Center Student Advisory Board of 16 students across disciplines on campus to advise the Ciocca Center’s efforts in increasing entrepreneurship and innovation on campus. He has also organized the first Entreprelooza event at SCU, hosting entrepreneurial speakers from various industries.