THE OTHER 99%: Peter Thiel offers a big lump of money to small number of smart kids to drop out of school and start companies. Now here's an approach that will make sense to a large swath of college goers: The Young Entrepreneur Council, with support from the White House, just unveiled a $10 million startup accelerator and investment company aimed specifically at students, Gen Y Capital Partners (GYC). Founder Scott Gerber says he's looking to invest in 100 early-stage startups nationwide over the next five years, offering equity capital from $15k to $50k, with a biz model that seeks to remove the burdens of student loans as a barrier to entrepreneurship.
The message: focus on your mission, not the bills. Among its many perks: founders (who must be eligible for the recently announced "Pay As You Earn" (IBR) plan) will have their federal student loan debts paid by GYC for up to three years. GYC will also provide founders opportunities to live on campuses across the U.S. for up to two years, as well as get mentored by an all-star cast and other peers in their field. Applications open November 1 and will be evaluated beginning in January 2012. Team Thiel will have a bit of a headstart but it will be fascinating to see what the two different cohorts will do.
