Meghan LeVota

Recent Articles by Meghan LeVota

KU event to connect hundreds of students with KC startups

To boost Kansas City’s growing startup community, the University of Kansas is hosting an event hoping to connect students with future employer prospects. Set for 2:00 p.m. on April 11, the KU Startup Job and Internship Fair expects to host about 200 students and over 20 area startups to connect and learn from presentations. The…

With cocktails in hand, VergeKC kicks off its high-growth tech startup series

An Indianapolis-based event series aimed at cultivating high-growth tech companies outside of Silicon Valley debuted its inaugural event in Kansas City on Tuesday. Verge — which hosts pitch forums in 11 Midwestern and southern metros — has a mission to accelerate community entrepreneurs through a curated approach that targets specific people and companies. Kansas City hub director…

Events Preview: Verge Pitch night, Yael Hochberg

There are a plethora of entrepreneurial events hosted in Kansas City on a weekly basis. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, supporter, or curious community member — we recommend these upcoming events for you. Are you hosting a relevant community event? Feel free to add it to the FWD/KC calendar for increased exposure. Once your event…

VR startup EON Sports lands pro Japanese baseball team

Kansas City-based virtual reality company EON Sports snagged its first international client. The firm has partnered with the professional Japanese baseball team Yokohama DeNA Baystars and will bring its 360 baseball training simulator to the athletes this 2017 season. Founded in 2013, the firm developed a mobile, virtual reality platform to help football and baseball…

TechAccel hops in $3.2M round for Lincoln-based ag tech firm

Kansas City-based TechAccel is joining an investment round in a Nebraska agriculture tech firm that aims to improve crop yields. The area venture firm is among a group of investors in Lincoln-based Epicrop Technologies Inc., which raised a total of $3.2 million in its Series A round, which was led by North Forty Ventures. TechAccel…

Roasterie founder Danny O’Neill takes historical look on Midwest coffee culture

Editor’s note: In partnership with the KC Greats podcast, hosted by Scott Parman, Startland News hopes to offer its audience more avenues to learn about entrepreneurs in Kansas City. Opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. In this episode, Roasterie founder and CEO Danny O’Neill answers the question: Why coffee? In the early…

Jeff Shackelford: Here’s how to land Digital Sandbox funding

When it comes to pitching their startups, most Kansas Citians err on the side of selling themselves short. At least that’s what the Digital Sandbox KC’s Jeff Shackelford told a crowd Tuesday at an event helping community members who are interested in pitching to the incubator-style program. Launched in 2013, Digital Sandbox has supported a…

The education system is broken — these Kansas Citians want to fix it

As you may remember or have experienced with your own child, there seems to come a point in one’s educational journey where kids ask themselves — what’s the point? The answer has always been, so that you can get good grades, to get into a good college to then get a good job. The problem with…

Park Hill toured the country for its new innovative learning program

The Park Hill School District is introducing a new approach to learning that aims to cultivate more innovative thinking among its students. Starting in Fall 2017, Park Hill conceptualized the LEAD Innovation Studio, a high school in which students will focus on project-, problem- and professional-based learning. The studio aims to not only address growing…

Kansas City city hall

Mayors James, Holland urge Trump to increase broadband access

While the nation is seemingly more divided than ever, Kansas City mayors on both sides of state line are working together. Along with officials from 62 other cities and counties across the nation, Mayor Sly James of Kansas City, Mo. and Mayor Mark Holland of Kansas City, Kan. showed their support for a bipartisan effort…