Franklin CREATE! Mentors and Supporters

Mentor options can be tailored to fit your schedule. Meetings can be in-person sessions or video chats with a team; listening and providing feedback on student ideas; or pairing with a team for regular coaching during the summer LAUNCH program.

Successful startups require the integration of many approaches and disciplines, from R&D and technical expertise to operations, legal, marketing, finance, sales, venture capital, human resources, management, and more. We anticipate our student startups will cross multiple industries including technology, AI, software, healthcare, biotech, chemical and geological sciences, sustainability, music, arts, entertainment, media, communications, behavioral health, consumer goods, public goods, services, consulting and more in a range of models including B2B, B2C, subscriptions, online, etc. 

Your expertise will be invaluable to our students as they navigate their startups from idea to launch. Ways to share your expertise could range from guest speaking in a class, pairing with a startup team in your related industry, becoming a quick sounding board when students need expert advice, providing feedback on presentations, competition, and VC pitches, participating in Student Startup Showcase (held on campus in early fall), or networking to set our students up for the next stage of success. Let us know how you can best help our students with relevant and impactful guidance by completing the form below.

An external advisory board is planned for summer 2026. If you are interested in learning more, please reach out through any of the buttons below. 

Financial support of any amount fuels innovation and directly empowers student founders. A gift to the Franklin CREATE! Excellence Fund will maximize the potential for students to launch successful startups. By championing Franklin CREATE!, you’re investing in Georgia’s next generation of innovators and future change makers—students poised to lead, innovate, and redefine what’s possible with entrepreneurial spirit in a founder-focused ecosystem that supports teams and bold ideas. As curricular pathways and academic program offerings grow and expand, your support will directly benefit students and faculty.

Support through endowments provide long-lasting impact to advance entrepreneurial activity in the arts and sciences. Annual gifts offer flexible ways to empower student founders and their teams, support faculty ambassadors, and provide funding for seminars, workshops, and treks to industry startup hotspots to engage with alumni, accelerators, and investors.