Announcing the Access 2020 Summer Venture Interns

Many college students across the US saw internships for the Summer either dry up or get cancelled with COVID-19. The Access team decided we wanted to help out and so we launched a structured internship program for the summer period and advertised through University networks.

We are delighted with the team of 7 we have pulled together thus far — all from very different locations across the country and varied passions and backgrounds — who are working on various projects with the Access team.

The venture interns for 2020 include:

Willa Sobel

My name is Willa Sobel and I am a rising junior at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business, with a specialization in Entrepreneurship and a minor in Art History. At Access Ventures, I am taking a deep dive into the ecosystems of e-commerce and education technology, which plays a lot to my passions. I am the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of the Michigan Journal for the Business of Fashion (MASH Magazine), a digital publication that explores the rapidly changing global markets in retail, e-commerce, supply chain and consumer trends. For the past few years, I have worked as a Teaching Fellow for the Breakthrough Collaborative, a middle school program serving Denver metro students on the Kent Denver School campus. I am thrilled to work with the Access Ventures team, gaining valuable hands-on analyst experience, collaborating with portfolio company founders, and learning how venture funds develop and pursue investment strategies. I have also so far helped one portfolio company with a project, helping them to put together a fundraising pitch deck.

Alazar Michael
Hey, my name is Alazar Michael and I’m from Denver, Colorado. I attended Denver East High School, graduating with the class of 2019. While in high school I involved myself in many sports including tennis and track and field. I was also a member of DECA business club which introduced me to the business world and led me to apply to the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder. While attending CU Boulder, I strive to learn everything surrounding business, specifically finance, as I’m majoring in finance and accounting with a minor in economics, while at the same time taking on internships along the way. With all the experiences I hope to gain, I plan on starting my career in investment banking, private equity, or hedge fund. At Access so far, I have dived into the proptech industry and am putting together an investment memo for the market. Access has been fairly active in the space to date with investments in TurboTenant and Taskeasy, to name a few.

Luis Villareal
Hi Everyone. My name is Luis and I have over seven years of business experience in the process and energy industries. In my last role as an engineering project manager at one of the world’s largest cement companies, I built a strong background in project valuation, risk management, decision-making and cross-functional collaboration. Inspired by my passion to drive innovation, I returned to school to pursue my MBA at the University of Colorado Boulder. While at CU, I have focused on high-growth ventures and gained experience in finance and market intelligence. I am enjoying working with Access Ventures this Summer and the exceptional group of founders in their portfolio. My focus for research will be mainly in the healthcare and fintech industries, but I am also assisting a number of portfolio companies on bespoke projects — for example, I am helping one company with scenario planning on their forecast model. In my free time, I enjoy playing baseball, skiing and Colorado’s great outdoors.

Dylan Burton
Hi there, I’m Dylan. I am a 2nd year MBA student at the University of Colorado, a native of Maryland, and an undergrad alumnus of the University of South Carolina. Over the past 7 years, I have worked in various management roles in the live events industry, most recently with a security contractor for the athletics department at Colorado State University. My passions include travel, craft beer, hiking, sports, and fitness — and one of my projects so far at Access has been putting together a market map and investment perspective on the fitness industry, which has been heavily disrupted by COVID providing unique opportunities. I am also working on some research around the future of work, which is a big focus area for Access. In these unprecedented times, I am grateful for family, friends, and the great outdoors of Colorado, as well as the great opportunity to work with Access!

Emily Yuan
Hi everyone! My name is Emily, I’m a rising sophomore studying Management Sciences & Engineering and Computer Science at Stanford, and am currently located right outside DC. I love both finance and entrepreneurship and am involved in a couple of the investing and entrepreneurship clubs at school. In the past, I’ve written a book called “Beyond a Bake Sale” on how students can get started with a social venture, and I am still part of a nonprofit I founded in high school, Paper Bridges, which supports orphans and vulnerable children around the world. In my free time, I love hiking, baking, and working on side projects with my friends! I’m very excited to join the team at Access.

William Walsh
Hi, I’m Will. I’m from NJ and am a rising sophomore at UPenn studying systems engineering. I’m interested in understanding how businesses can operate efficiently and learning the merits of business models. I’ve investigated these topics within value-oriented investing communities (generally focusing on larger companies) and I’m excited to explore early-stage companies with this same mindset with Access! Currently, I’m looking into the rapidly changing construction tech and logistics industries, two spaces ripe for disruption from new entrants. In construction, startups are helping modernize the least efficient sector of America’s economy, presenting a massive secular opportunity for new efficiency-creating services. Within logistics, technology platforms are helping bring economies of scale to the smallest customers. I am really excited to have been offered the opportunity to work with Access.

Tyler Knox
Hello, I’m Tyler Knox, one of the venture interns with Access this summer! Originally hailing from upstate NY, I am a recent graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, where I studied Management and Legal Studies at the Wharton School. At Access thus far, I have had the opportunity to dive into the complex and intriguing world of cybersecurity. I have been working on a market map of the industry while also putting together a thought leadership article on Access’ perspective on the trajectory of cybersecurity in the years ahead. It’s been a blast to learn more about an emerging industry while also getting exposed to the thought process behind identifying promising ventures. I’m looking forward to working on even more exciting projects while working with Access over the next few months!

Originally published at https://www.accessvp.com on July 7, 2020.