Draper to get reality TV show: Downtown San Mateo university to start filming ABC’s ‘Startup U’

“We hope this show will bring new ideas to education,” Draper wrote in an email. “I have always encouraged entrepreneurship worldwide and this should give these young entrepreneurs some additional exposure.”

In early 2013, Draper formally opened his school that attracts students from across the globe for a seven-week immersion program where they hear from some of the area’s most successful innovators and conclude their experience with a rare chance to pitch their ideas to a panel of venture capitalists.

The eccentric Draper said he will serve as an executive producer alongside Ugly Brother Studios’ twins Mike and Tim Duffy, who approached him after hearing about “the wonders of Draper University of Heroes.”

Housed in the old Benjamin Franklin Hotel on Third Avenue in downtown San Mateo, the school’s intensive program is ripe for a reality TV plot line.

“We bring in about 50 outside speakers. We are team based. There are no grades, only team points. We teach future. We have an element of outdoor education. We give students what on the outset seem like impossible challenges, but become doable. We encourage trying new things. We are technology centric and we grow entrepreneurs,” Draper wrote.

The hour-long show will follow a series of weekly team challenges with everyone at the school available for the spotlight, even Draper who said he’ll have a guiding role as the cameras film.

ABC is expected to start airing the show later this summer.

Draper said applications for his program have already increased and assuming the nation tunes in and falls in love with “Startup U,” the series could last seven seasons.

Draper University aims to attract and challenge eager business-minded students ages 18 to 28 who seek to learn about entrepreneurship from a variety of Silicon Valley experts. Past speakers have included Tesla’s Elon Musk, Box CEO Aaron Levie and Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh, according to the school.

The varied curriculum includes fundraising strategies and venture capital, branding and storytelling, predictive analytics, prototyping, competitive combat, law primer for startups, perfecting a pitch and much more, according to the school.

Draper, who made recent headlines after investing millions of dollars on bitcoins and for his initiative proposal to divide California into six states, said he’s hopeful his unique model will help viewers reimagine education.

“Draper University is extraordinary,” Draper wrote. “We challenge many of the aspects of what used to define a school.”

samantha@smdailyjournal.com

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