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Letter
from the
Director
Ken Sagendorf, Ph.D
Innovation in the Anderson College of Business is about intentionally driving critical, creative, and systems thinking.
It is about intentionally helping students — and community entrepreneurs — become more self-aware, more ingenious, more loving, and more heroic so that they might help solve the pressing problems of our time. At the Regis University Innovation Center, we have never believed that entrepreneurship is a solitary pursuit. It is, at its heart, a community endeavor — for the community and supported by the community.
Since our founding, the Innovation Center has supported over 230 businesses, engaged more than 90 volunteer mentors, and invested over $350,000 directly into the entrepreneurs who are shaping our region's future.
Our
Vision
Our vision in the Anderson College of Business is to help business become stewards of society with the goal of improving the quality of life on Earth.
INNOVATION AT REGIS =
3 kinds of thinking that the business community needs
4 kinds of leadership that the world needs
1 model of companionship
OUR MISSION:
The Innovation Center seeks to bring together students, faculty, alumni, and the community to design critical, creative, and systems solutions for our curriculum and the complex challenges of today's world.
Impact
By the
Numbers
$350k
Capital Invested
Total capital the Innovation Center has invested in businesses that went through the Innovation Challenge over nine years.
231+
Businesses Launched
Businesses launched and supported from the Innovation Center since its founding.
2,000+
Volunteer Mentor Hours
Hours of volunteer mentor time contributed each year to guide and grow our entrepreneurs.
7
Magis Factory Businesses
Businesses that went through the Magis Factory over two iterations of the Accelerator.
The Gronowski Innovation Incubator Lab
"Design thinking is a tool. It's a tool to think about new business products and services."
But the process is also about developing a set of skills useful in any business: listening to others, collaboration, and accepting failure as a step along the path to success. In January 2017, Jamie and Ann Gronowski and their family donated $1M to construct this unique space in our college — a gift that transformed Clarke Hall and invested in the future of our students. What they really invested in was the future of our college and our students.
This signature space for the Anderson College of Business is a proof of concept for what the future of learning looks like. From idea to reality in five months, the Gronowski Innovation Incubator Lab incorporates bleeding-edge technology that has made our world more accessible.
The space has been used to experiment with international courses offered simultaneously across continents, building real-time synchronicity and connection into online courses, and becoming the hub for multiple student clubs across the university. Community collaborators are increasingly asking to use the space, allowing our students access to their work. Our IT department is modeling new classrooms on our design and even our Admissions Office is using the space to recruit future Regis students.
Student businesses have sprung out of the Incubator's creative feel and it is the home of our Entrepreneurial Innovation course. The Innovation Incubator is the tangible evidence of what The Innovation Center brings to the Anderson College of Business.
About the Innovation Challenge
Empowering the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators to transform ideas into impactful solutions
OPEN TO THE
COMMUNITY
THE ONLY INNOVATION CHALLENGE OPEN TO THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY.
The Regis Innovation Challenge welcomes students, alumni, faculty, and community members from all backgrounds and locations. We've hosted participants from around the world, bringing diverse perspectives and groundbreaking ideas to our stage.
Whether you're a local entrepreneur or an international innovator with a bold vision, you're welcome to join our challenge and bring your ideas to life.
FULLY STUDENT
RUN PROGRAMME
EMPOWERING STUDENTS TO LEAD AND INNOVATE.
The Regis Innovation Center is proudly led by students, for students. Our programmes are designed, managed, and executed by passionate student leaders who understand the entrepreneurial journey firsthand.
This student-driven approach creates an authentic, dynamic environment where innovation thrives through peer collaboration, hands-on experience, and real-world problem solving.
Our Mission
Bringing Innovation Together
The Innovation Center seeks to bring together students, faculty, alumni, and the community to design critical, creative and system solutions for our curriculum and the complex challenges of today's world.
231+
Businesses Launched
Investment & Growth
Fueling Innovation
We invest at least $17,000 into businesses each year, providing crucial capital and resources to help innovative ventures grow and succeed in today's competitive market.
$350K+
Capital Invested
Experience & Excellence
Proven Track Record
With 9 years of dedicated operation, we have built a robust ecosystem of innovation, continuously evolving our approach to meet the changing needs of the entrepreneurial landscape.
9
Years of Innovation
What Is the Innovation Challenge?
The Regis Innovation Challenge is Colorado's only university business competition that openly welcomes and supports both student and community businesses. Open to anyone with a student team member, businesses under $100,000 annual revenue compete across a semester-long journey of mentorship, pitch rounds, and community support — culminating in a Finals event where the audience votes for the winner.
This is not just a pitch competition. It is a full development experience built around the belief that the best businesses are built through listening, collaboration, and a willingness to embrace failure as a step toward success.
The 2026 Finals will take place on April 17, 2026 in the Mountain View Room at Claver Hall, Regis University — with more than 200 community members, mentors, judges, alumni, and supporters joining to celebrate our finalists and invest in the future of entrepreneurship.
"Innovation isn't just about creating something new — it's about creating something that matters."
Ken Sagendorf, Director, Innovation Center
2026 Prize Structure
Over $350,000 awarded across nine years — determined by expert judges & audience vote
$0
1st Place
+ Co-working Space Audience Vote Winner
+ Co-working Space Audience Vote Winner
$0
2nd Place
+ Co-working Space
+ Co-working Space
$0
3rd Place
+ Co-working Space
+ Co-working Space
$0
4th Place
The Journey to Finals
Every business that enters the Innovation Challenge goes through a structured five-stage development process — not just a pitch, but a real entrepreneurial journey backed by mentors and community.
01
Open House & Kick-Off
Learn about the program, meet past participants, and decide if the Innovation Challenge is right for your business. Open to all — students, community members, and aspiring founders alike.
02
Qualifying Pitches
5-minute presentations to a panel of judges. Teams advance based on the strength of their idea, market understanding, and team capability. Top 10 teams move forward.
03
Mentor Saturdays
Three full-day sessions with volunteer mentors who bring real-world expertise. Teams refine their business model, validate assumptions, and sharpen their pitch. Over 2,000 mentor hours are contributed each year.
04
Semifinal Pitches
The top 10 teams present again. Only 4 advance to Finals. Judging evaluates desirability, feasibility, viability, and presentation across a rigorous scoring rubric.
05
The Finals
An in-person celebration attended by 200+ community members, investors, mentors, and Regis alumni. Finalists deliver their polished 4–5 minute pitch, and the audience votes for the grand prize winner.
How Winners Are Judged
Every business is evaluated across four pillars that mirror what investors and the market look for in a real venture. This rubric pushes teams to move beyond just a great idea and build something real.
0%
Desirability
Addresses a real customer problem. Demonstrates genuine innovation and market differentiation.
0%
Feasibility
Supported by market research. Team capabilities are established and matched to the opportunity.
0%
Viability
Business has been tested. Evidence of sales, revenue, or traction. Clear next steps articulated.
0%
Presentation
A compelling 4–5 minute pitch with a slide deck. Clear, confident, and persuasive delivery.
What Makes The Finals Unique
The Finals stage transforms the Innovation Challenge into a collaborative celebration of entrepreneurship. Beyond the four pillars evaluated by industry judges, the audience plays a vital role in the process.
0%
Audience Vote
Every attendee becomes part of the judging process, voting for the team they believe most deserves recognition and prize funding.
2026 Finalists
This year's finalists represent the breadth and ambition of the Innovation Challenge. Each has navigated qualifying rounds, Mentor Saturdays, and semifinals to earn their place on the Finals stage on April 17, 2026.
Tot Friendly Homes
A platform helping families find and vet child-safe, family-friendly housing — addressing a critical gap for parents navigating today's rental and purchase market.
realxreal.ai
An AI-powered platform reimagining how communities and individuals interact with real estate — bringing transparency, intelligence, and access to one of life's biggest decisions.
Hungry App
A mobile-first solution connecting people experiencing food insecurity with nearby resources — making access to food faster, easier, and less stigmatizing.
Where Are They Now?
The Innovation Challenge doesn't end at Finals night. Many alumni ventures go on to launch, grow revenue, and build real impact in the world. Here's a snapshot of businesses born from the Innovation Challenge.
HealthTech
RenewRx
Personalizing pregnancy care through data-driven coaching — supporting expectant mothers with nutrition, glucose monitoring, and lifestyle guidance.
Clean Energy · 2023 Winner
Tap Energy
Transforms water pressure into clean electricity. The 2023 Innovation Challenge winner is now building a commercial pipeline for renewable micro-generation.
Sports Tech
10K Athletics
An all-in-one platform connecting athletes, coaches, and parents with customized training plans and real-time performance analytics.
Mental Health
MindSpa Denver
Revolutionizing mental health treatment with TMS, Ketamine Infusion Therapy, and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for treatment-resistant conditions. Now operating at mindspadenver.com.
Sustainable Transport
Traveling Ground
A marketplace for used bicycles now operating out of Denver's RiNo neighborhood — making sustainable transportation more accessible and affordable.
Elder Care
Autumn Meadows
Addressing the critical need for elder care that reflects diverse cultural backgrounds and traditions — building a nursing home model rooted in belonging.
Built by the Community,
for the Community
The Innovation Challenge is powered by a network of 90+ volunteer mentors, generous donors, and community partners who believe entrepreneurship is a force for good. Over 2,000 mentor hours are contributed each year — freely given by professionals who want to pay it forward.
Our partnership with Arrupe Jesuit High School — led by proud Regis alumnus and board member Ruben Martinez — extends the entrepreneurial ecosystem all the way to middle schoolers as young as 11 years old, making the runway to entrepreneurship longer and more accessible than ever before.
We are also the only university business competition in Colorado to welcome community businesses alongside student ventures — because great ideas don't have a student ID requirement.
90+
Volunteer Mentors
9
Years Running
200+
Finals Attendees
Innovation Challenge Team
Meet the talented leaders driving the Regis Innovation Challenge forward
Ken Sagendorf
Innovation Center Director
Ken leads the Regis Innovation Center with a passion for empowering the next generation of entrepreneurs. With extensive experience in innovation strategy and academic entrepreneurship, he has cultivated a vibrant ecosystem where students and community members transform bold ideas into impactful ventures.
"Innovation isn't just about creating something new—it's about creating something that matters. We're here to help you turn your passion into purpose."
Adin McPherson
Co-Student Director
Adin brings student leadership and entrepreneurial energy to the Innovation Center. As Co-Student Director, he works alongside his team to organize competitions, mentor fellow founders, and create meaningful connections within our entrepreneurial community. His direct involvement ensures that student voices shape every program and initiative.
"The best part about the Innovation Center is that it's led by students, for students. We understand your journey because we're on it too."
Nathaniel Deryl
Co-Student Director
Nathaniel is passionate about supporting student entrepreneurs and creating impactful programming for our community. As Co-Student Director, he collaborates with the team to mentor founders, coordinate events, and nurture a culture of innovation at Regis. His dedication ensures that every student has the support they need to succeed.
"We believe in every great idea. Our job is to help you develop it, refine it, and bring it to life."
The Magis Factory
Colorado's only university-based startup accelerator
The first Magis Factory cohort on Signing Day, April 2019 — accepting 90-day contracts across outdoor recreation, veterans' mental health, home improvement, and craft spirits.
3%
of people start a new business in Colorado each year
And the possibility of failure is high.
With extended support, those odds flip. The Magis Factory gives validated founders the fuel — consulting, marketing, finance, mentorship, and non-dilutive investment — for up to thirty months at no cost.
MAGIS
the "more" · the "greater"
The first of its kind
After a student has their business validated through Anderson coursework and The Innovation Challenge, they enter the Magis Factory Accelerator — a distinct business accelerator exclusively for Regis and Anderson College students and alumni.
Led by Joe Tartell — Anderson Advisory Board member and successful entrepreneur — the Magis Factory is an ecosystem of support: consulting, marketing, finance, and organizational culture mentoring. Joe personally accompanies every founder and builds a cadre of providers tailored to each business.
We are the first college to develop this type of business accelerator.
"Joe accompanies founders and works tirelessly with participants to provide access to resources and strategy implementation. This is leading — yes, it's active! — to successful launches, revenue growth, and even donations to the Innovation Center."
— Ken Sagendorf, Director, Innovation Center
Two Rounds · Seven Businesses
The Portfolio
Round 1 · 2019
$120K invested
Outdoor Recreation
Campcrate
Mental Health · Veterans
MindSpa Denver
Round 2 · 2023–Present
$228K invested · Active
Sustainable Transport
Traveling Ground
619% revenue growth
Sports Tech
10K Athletics
1st partnerships
Clean Energy
Tap Energy
Patents filed
Elder Care
Autumn Meadows
New facility
7
Businesses
Accelerated
Accelerated
$348K
Total
Invested
Invested
619%
Revenue Growth
Traveling Ground
Traveling Ground
0
Equity Taken —
100% Non-Dilutive
100% Non-Dilutive
Nine Years of Investment
Giving Where
It's Needed
Every dollar that has moved through the Innovation Center has been directed toward one goal: giving entrepreneurs — students and community members alike — the best possible chance to succeed. Over nine years the Innovation Center has invested over $350,000 across prizes, programs, mentorship, and the community infrastructure that makes it all possible. Here's where that investment has gone.
Alumni Engagement
Alumni
Matrix
There are over 30,000 Regis Business Alumni in the world and nearly 10,000 in the state of Colorado.
The Alumni Matrix is more than a network — it is our alumni companionship program where alumni are frequent interactors with students and each other, showing what a Jesuit business education looks like. Each April, our Annual Alumni Matrix Meetup celebrates these companions, bringing alumni, students, faculty, staff, and business community connections together to celebrate, break bread together, and listen to inspiring speakers.
These annual events are hosted in Regis parking lots under tents replete with food trucks and drink. Annual attendance has increased in each of the past three years, nearing 400 people. Additional Alumni Matrix events occur throughout the year — including tours of alumni businesses, class presentations, and panel talks.
The Alumni Matrix is creating conditions where students feel the presence of our alumni as companions in their education.
ALUMNI
MATRIX
"[Ken] and I often discuss, 'why not Regis?' And I have watched him build programs and events that bring students, faculty, staff, alumni, board of trustee members, and community together to support and build a business education that rivals the best universities."
The most exciting thing about being a new innovation center in a new business college in being a young college is the opportunity for exciting partnerships and collaborations within and outside the university, bringing colleagues to our students.
Key Partnerships
The Gronowski innovation incubator has been the host of many partnerships including:
- Paper axis Design Thinking
- Working with strategy consultants Craft:ATI to host a design sprint for local business IOU2
- Hosting Denver Kids Immersive Group
- Monthly meetings for the Colorado Chapter of the Association for Strategic Planning
Community Partnerships
We have collaborated to build courses with SALT Lending, partnered with MBA Advisors, invited to arrange internships for the Investment Club, and worked with local media and technology companies to rethink how business cases are created.
Arrupe Innovation Club
Our most recent partnership is the most exciting. We are supporting Arrupe Jesuit High School to start an Innovation Club that will engage high school students in the innovation process and thinking.
Regis x Arrupe Partnership
In partnership with Arrupe Jesuit High School, the Innovation Center offers a dual enrollment Innovation and Entrepreneurship course, giving Arrupe seniors the opportunity to earn college credit while developing real startup businesses. Students create ventures from scratch and pitch them at a final event attended by business leaders and the Regis community, with a top team selected to compete in the Regis University Innovation Challenge.
Organizational Memberships
The Innovation Center is a founding member of the Colorado University Innovation Council and a member of the Jesuit Collaborative on Social Innovation as well as the Jesuit Entrepreneurship Alliance.
Entrepreneurial
Journeys
The Anderson College of Business has many different kinds of students — from undergraduates living on campus to graduate students with full-time jobs.
But the amazing thing about all of our students is watching their paths when they want to start their own businesses. The Innovation Center is at the epicenter for many of these journeys with our students. We've supported ideas being tested in pop-up business events, accompanied businesses to the Emmy Awards to give away their products at the gifting suites, been in the audience as students wooed new partners, and introduced them to advisors and mentors.
We have placed students in national opportunities and competitions like the Veterans in Residence Program, the Outdoor Weber Competition, Patriot Boot Camp, and helped them gain traction locally through programs like the Denver Scale Up Network. We are often there when a business pivots toward a greater customer need — and there when an idea runs out of runway.
As a support system, The Innovation Center becomes part of our students' entrepreneurial journeys.
Founders in the Making
Student Founder
My Home Fix
Trista, Matthew & James took their housing-tech startup from ideation to Demo Day — backed every step by the Innovation Center's network of mentors and resources.
Pitch Finalist
Wallrest
Keegan Storlie's performance poncho line built a following at regional competitions before earning national recognition — proof that boldness travels.
National Stage
Repurpose Bowties
Paul Hunter turned discarded materials into handcrafted bowties — and after going through the Innovation Challenge, took Repurpose Bowties all the way to the Emmy Awards gifting suites, putting his brand alongside Hollywood's biggest names.
Read More
Nine Years · Countless Journeys
Stories of
the Center
Every venture, every founder, every late-night pivot — these are the moments that define what the Innovation Center is made of.
2023 Grand Prize Winner
Featured Story · HealthTech · 2023
Tap Energy
"Think of it as a mini–Hoover Dam in your home." MBA graduate Coty Church arrived at the Innovation Challenge with a deceptively simple idea: capture the water pressure already running through household pipes and convert it into clean electricity. After winning a grand prize in 2023 and securing Magis Factory investment, Tap Energy has filed patents and is moving toward product development — proof that the most powerful innovations sometimes begin with what's already flowing right past us.
Grand Prize Winner
Magis Factory
Patents Filed
MBA Graduate · Mentor: Innovation Challenge Community · Director: Ken Sagendorf
View Website
Magis Factory Alumni
Traveling Ground
What started as a used bicycle marketplace became a Denver institution. After placing 2nd in the 2023 Innovation Challenge and receiving Magis Factory investment, Traveling Ground opened its first — then its second — RiNo location and achieved 619% revenue growth. A story of patient momentum and community fit.
Magis Factory
619% Revenue Growth
RiNo, Denver
View Website
2024 Grand Prize Winner
Bring Coffee
Founder Michael Griffin had a simple frustration: "Coffee on airplanes is pretty miserable." What followed was a patent-pending portable coffee bag in partnership with Denver's beloved Huckleberry Roasters. With Regis MBA students Sierra Gilbride, Brett Foss, and Kallie Welton by his side, Bring Coffee won the 2024 grand prize and is taking great coffee everywhere.
$10K Grand Prize
Huckleberry Roasters Collab
2025 Grand Prize Winner
RenewRx
Personalizing pregnancy care through data-driven coaching — monitoring glucose, tracking nutrition, and helping expectant mothers build lasting healthy habits. RenewRx took the 2025 grand prize with a platform that puts real clinical insight into the hands of mothers who need it most. A reminder that innovation, at its best, is an act of care.
$10K Grand Prize
Maternal Wellness
Data-Driven Care
View Website
2025 · 2nd Place
Agera
Three Regis freshmen. One audacious idea: build an AI platform to bridge the gap between traditional commerce and modern technology across the African continent — connecting consumers to retailers in ways the market had never seen. Agera emerged directly from the Innovation Center, and the future runs on bold beginnings.
$5K Award
3 Regis Freshmen
AI + Africa
Community Partnership
Arrupe Jesuit & the Inaugural Prize
When the Innovation Center partnered with Arrupe Jesuit High School to offer a dual-enrollment entrepreneurship course for college credit, something changed. High school seniors began pitching real businesses. At the 2023 finals, the inaugural Arrupe Prize went to Enviobag — biodegradable tote bags designed by teenagers. The entrepreneurial ecosystem now starts as early as age 11.
Dual-Enrollment Credit
Inaugural Arrupe Prize
Ages 11+
Magis Factory · 1st Round
MindSpa
One of the very first ventures supported by the Magis Factory, MindSpa set out to revolutionize mental health treatment in Denver — offering TMS, Ketamine Infusion Therapy, and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for treatment-resistant depression, anxiety, and PTSD. A reminder that the Center's first bets were already swinging for the biggest problems.
Magis Factory Round 1
Mental Health
mindspadenver.com