Leadership & Innovation Lab

Launching a successful initiative requires vision, creativity, project management skills, and hard work — all necessities for aspiring entrepreneurs and leaders. The Scholar Launch Leadership & Innovation Lab (LIL)  is a selective opportunity for students to learn, develop, and implement these skills. 

With close guidance from Scholar Launch co-founder Joel Butterly and our seasoned instructors, students will work in a small group format to launch a business, organization, or initiative of their own. Students will graduate from the LIL as leaders and entrepreneurs, ready to make an impact on their communities.

Explore the LIL universe.

Program Benefits

• Improve your project management skills

• Learn how to start a business, organization, or initiative

• Gain a personal understanding of your leadership style and capabilities

• Learn how to be an effective leader

• Demonstrate a significant impact on your community

• Add a meaningful, independent project to your resumé

• Apply knowledge and skills gained in the classroom to real world projects

• Improve your college admissions results

How to Apply

1. Download LIL application form here.

2. Submit completed form along with your 1-page resume to team@scholarlaunch.org. If you don’t have a resume, you can download a template here. Please make sure your email subject includes “2023LIL+Student Name".

Program Instructors

Joel is the Co-Founder and CEO of Scholar Launch. He also owns and manages two other successful companies. Joel attended Dartmouth College, where he was inducted early into Phi Beta Kappa, and graduated Summa Cum Laude. He graduated with a double major in Government and International Studies, and a minor in Ethical Philosophy. After Dartmouth, Joel attended Yale Law School, where he served on the executive board of the Journal on Regulation, as well as the Law School’s entrepreneurship society. Joel has been featured in Forbes for his expertise on entrepreneurship, leadership, and management.

Maya Gobert is our Director of Student Innovation. Maya attended Cornell University on a full expenses paid scholarship where she double majored in Economics and Political Science and graduated with top honors. Maya has worked across three continents and industries - finance, marketing and educational consulting. Maya has led a team of consultants and worked personally with students across the world (more than 14 countries and counting!), mentoring them in candidacy building and extracurricular pursuits. Her students have gained admission into all the Ivy League colleges and many other Top 20 US universities. 

What will you get from the Leadership & Innovation Lab?

• Learn the cornerstones of entrepreneurship and leadership through lectures condensed and adapted for high-school students

• Enhance understanding of oneself within entrepreneurial and leadership context 

• Launch a venture and achieve quantifiable results

• Capitalize on workshopping and networking to build your venture

• Develop longer-term vision and understanding of entrepreneurship and leadership

Program Details

There are 2 forms of the LIL program, designed to accommodate varying preferences for length of program and intensity of learning. Students should feel free to choose the form of LIL that works best for them.

Alumni Projects

Project: Fitness app launch

Description and Outcome: Raised $40,000 to design, build, and launch fitness app. This student hired a team, worked with graphic designers, and launched a successful fundraising campaign.

Project: Young artist exhibition and auction

Description and outcome: Worked with artists from 15 high schools across the country to curate 2 online art exhibits. This student auctioned 100+ art pieces and raised proceeds to donate to disease relief.

Project: Civics education for young people

Description and outcome: Recruited 2 peer history fanatics to develop an education and advocacy organization. Together, they created nonpartisan online content and visited classrooms to teach students how they can become more civically informed and engaged.