Program to Host 200 of the Nation’s Top Tech & Engineering Students

The deadline for application is now extended to June 2 by 11:59 pm CST for ThinkChicago: Lollapalooza 2019! Students with an interest in digital technology, computer science, design, innovation, entrepreneurship and STEM are encouraged to apply for the seventh annual installment of the city’s premier program connecting rising talent with Chicago’s tech scene.

From July 31 – August 2, 2019, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, along with the University of Illinois System, World Business Chicago, and Lollapalooza will bring 200 top college students from across the country to take a behind-the-scenes tour of Chicago’s vibrant technology ecosystem and attend this year’s four-day Lollapalooza music festival.

“The University of Illinois System is committed to educating the students of Illinois and keeping them here at home to apply their talents and drive progress for our state,” Tim Killeen, president of the University of Illinois, said.

“ThinkChicago introduces the next generation of innovators to Chicago’s vibrant tech scene. To ensure we have a rich pool of talent, this program connects the country’s top students with innovative businesses in Chicago ranging from startups to large corporations.”

-Mark Tebbe, chairman of ChicagoNEXT

“ThinkChicago introduces the next generation of innovators to Chicago’s vibrant tech scene,” Mark Tebbe, chairman of ChicagoNEXT, said. “To ensure we have a rich pool of talent, this program connects the country’s top students with innovative businesses in Chicago ranging from startups to large corporations.”

ThinkChicago: Lollapalooza received a record-breaking 1,073 applications in 2018. The final class was the most diverse to date. Students from 27 states and 79 schools were selected to participate, including homegrown talent from the University of Illinois System, City Colleges of Chicago and other major universities in the Chicago area, as well as nationally ranked institutions such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Princeton University and Harvard University. The 2018 class also included more students than ever before from Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Hispanic Serving Institutions.

“The diversity of last year’s ThinkChicago: Lollapalooza class represents the program’s continued commitment to creating inclusive access to Chicago’s tech community,” Andrea Zopp, President and CEO of World Business Chicago, said. “Selected students will have an unparalleled opportunity to be immersed into Chicago’s tech ecosystem, while also engaging with our most innovative companies.”

Last year, participants attended a wide variety of programs, including:

  • Visits to more than 20 tech companies, including Relativity, CCC Information Services, tastytrade, McKinsey & Company, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Echo Global Logistics and Capgemini
  • A Civic Tech Panel with Carleton Nolan, Chief Technology Officer & First Deputy Commissioner, City of Chicago; Katie Olson, Director of Operations & Services, City Tech Collaborative; Adam Hecktman, Director of Technology & Civic Innovation for Chicago, Microsoft; Aviva Rosman, Co-Founder and COO, BallotReady; and Thomas K.R. Stovall, Founder, ImBlackInTech
  • A Diversity in Tech and Entrepreneurship Panel with Mark McFarland, Manager of Technical Recruitment, Relativity; Tom Alexander, Founding Partner, Holistic; Shaniqua Davis, Founder and CEO, Noirefy; and Alida Miranda-Wolff, Founder, Ethos
  • Access to all four days of Lollapalooza, including a backstage tour

Past attendees have also had the opportunity to tour tech incubator spaces, such as 1871, MATTER, mHUB and TechNexus, which are focused on cultivating Chicago’s growing community of tech entrepreneurs and start-up companies.

ThinkChicago has an alumni base of more than 1,400 talented students and professionals, many of whom now work for startups, leading tech companies, innovation spaces and venture capital firms in Chicago. Its sister program, ThinkChicago: Chicago Ideas Week, will take place in October 2019. For more information on ThinkChicago, visit the website at http://www.thinkchicago.net/lollapalooza

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