Belmont student CEOs shine in Nashville

Like plenty of Belmont University undergraduates, Channing Moreland identifies herself as a student, a music lover, a songwriter and a hostess. Last year, she added CEO to that description.

Moreland and two other Belmont University students were recognized last week at the NEXT Awards as finalists for the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. For each company founder, delaying their startup plans until after graduation was not a consideration.

"We fell in love with the idea, and we wanted it for ourselves," Moreland said of her site that helps people find local shows and artists. "We didn't want to wait around for it to happen."

That means on top of classes, writing essays and taking tests, Moreland and Belmont seniors Tim Downey and Ben McIntyre are launching companies in their spare time. Or, rather, with their startups top of mind, they are launching companies and simultaneously squeezing in academics.

Each are highly ambitious and impressive individuals taking advantage of the startup mentors and programs available at Belmont, as well as those off campus, demonstrating the strength of both the school and the city to attract and support aspiring entrepreneurs.

Moreland is a junior from Boston who originally came to Belmont to become a songwriter. She and a fellow student created What's Hubbin', which has more than 3,000 users.

Even with a 16-hour course load and a hostess gig, Moreland decided it was important to begin her entrepreneurship career as a student, given the target demographic of What's Hubbin'. It's easier to promote to college kids when you are a college kid yourself, she says.

Similarly, McIntyre's company stems from his experience as a college student seeking a meaningful, paid internship. Seeing an opportunity to help companies get the most out of their student hires and develop a more structured internship program, he founded Internpreneur and has lined up six client companies in Nashville with plans to place 35 students in May.

McIntyre came to Belmont from New Jersey specifically for its entrepreneurship program. Like Downey and Moreland, he has taken project-based entrepreneurship courses, as well as accessed the school's additional entrepreneurship programs that include its Hatchery and Student Business Accelerator. These connect them to free legal and accounting services, a peer group of fellow aspiring entrepreneurs, a space for them to work and a mentor network.

Downey, who is from Raleigh, N.C., created Picd.us after seeing potential in consumer-driven social media as a marketing tool while working on another company idea two years ago. His five-person team has secured investors and is seeking brand partnerships.

The school has been developing its entrepreneurship track for more than a decade and has been working hard to attract talented students who want to start businesses, said Jeff Cornwall, Belmont professor and chairman of entrepreneurship. Those who are successful create jobs for themselves and for others in Nashville, and he points to Nashville-based music festival app maker Aloompa as an example. Its team of co-founders include Belmont graduates Kurt Nelson and Tyler Seymour, and the company employs 24 people five years after launching.

"They are going to be job creators," Cornwall said of the companies being developed by his students. "Real economic development comes from entrepreneurs like these, not just at our school but across the city and across the region."

What each of these young entrepreneurs has done well is sought resources beyond their campus. Moreland has formed partnerships with Musicians Corner, the Nashville artist organization that performs at Centennial Park, and McIntyre last spring participated in the Nashville Entrepreneur Center's social enterprise accelerator program. Downey was an intern at the Entrepreneur Center and shadowed CEO Michael Burcham there, and through McIntyre's Internpreneur he has interned at another local startup BKON, meeting other proven entrepreneurs in the city.

Each student describes reaching out to established executives in their field, or other local founders in Nashville, and the positive reception and support they receive. They've recognized Nashville as a good place to grow their business, and all three student CEOs plan to stick around after graduation to see their companies through. That's good news for the city and for its growing startup community.

Reach Jamie McGee at 615-259-8071 and on Twitter @JamieMcGee_.