About

Our Mission

The Vassar Innovation and Entrepreneurship (VIE) Program connects all changemakers with the knowledge, network, and resources to develop their entrepreneurial mindsets and advance their creative and impactful ventures.

Our Vision

Vassar will be recognized as a leader in innovation and entrepreneurship, deepening the case for how the liberal arts are the most powerful foundations for any changemaker.

Our Values

Entrepreneurship is for everyone. We lower barriers to entry and meet our community where they are, regardless of expertise, experience, or venture stage.

The liberal arts are our foundation. We don’t adopt the traditional models of entrepreneurship rooted in pre-professional or business education. We build from what Vassar already does best: critical thinking, multidisciplinary inquiry, and a commitment to consequential work.

Ideas demand action. Curiosity is the starting point, not the destination. We are committed to building the scaffolding that moveschangemakers from exploration to execution.

Impact over industry. We measure success by the significance of the problems our changemakers solve, not by sector, scale, or profit model. Startups, social enterprises, research initiatives, and creative ventures are equally at home with us.

Community is infrastructure. Knowledge, network, and resources only work together. Who you learn alongside matters as much as what you learn.

Our History

The Vassar Innovation and Entrepreneurship (VIE) Program launched in the spring of 2023 under the Office of the Vice President for Technology and Human Resources, with the support of campus partners and through close consultation with a college-wide advisory group, in response to demonstrated student demand for structured venture development support. Following a validating three-semester pilot, we transitioned to a standing program under Academic Computing Services in Fiscal Year 2025 with a dual charge: to deepen student support across the full range of experience, engagement, and venture types, and to meaningfully bring faculty into this work.

Two years in, we have developed the operational foundations, philosophical clarity, and collaborative partnerships to move beyond an established program. This history guide our next phase, one that positions us to serve as the programmatic engine of the Center for Innovation and contributes to the enduring story of what a Vassar education makes possible.