TEX-E Fellows Background

TEX-E stands for Texas Entrepreneurship Exchange for Energy. It’s a first-of-a-kind collaboration between Greentown Labs, MIT’s Martin Trust Center, and five Texas universities: Texas A&M, UT-Austin, University of Houston, Rice University, and Prairie View A&M University.

The objective is to create a powerful, student-driven entrepreneurship ecosystem in the Houston region and Texas broadly, focused on energy innovation and implementing lessons learned from building a successful ecosystem in Boston. This effort will aim to train and empower the next generation of entrepreneurs to lead the energy transition and to share in the massive economic opportunity it entails, while also addressing the existential threat of climate change.

Student Fellows

These individuals will serve as the student liaisons between their respective universities, as well as with MIT and Greentown Labs. They will help to identify and connect with the relevant groups at their university, while also participating in and learning from programs and activities at other universities.

Qualified candidates will have a passion for energy innovation and an in-depth knowledge of the energy innovation landscape within their university, as well as broader trends in energy transition and climate tech. Preferred candidates will have existing leadership roles (such as within a student club) at their individual universities.

Eligibility

Fellows must be:

  • a graduate or undergraduate student
  • currently enrolled at Texas A&M, UT-Austin, University of Houston, Rice University, Prairie View A&M, or the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • who are graduating no earlier than 2025.

Benefits

The fellowship includes the following:

  • A unique and unparalleled opportunity to connect with the energy innovation ecosystems in both Houston and Boston.
  • Access to a pool of discretionary funding for events and travel, to be administered by Greentown Labs, the Martin Trust Center, and their home university.
  • For applicants who apply early, consideration to receive fully-funded travel to Boston for the MIT Energy Conference. 
  • First consideration for paid part-time and full-time summer 2024 internships at Greentown Labs in Houston and at MIT’s Martin Trust Center in Cambridge, MA.
  • Special invitations to events and networking opportunities in fall 2024 and spring 2025.

Requirements

  • All fellows will be expected to attend a kick-off meeting to be held at Greentown Labs Houston on May 14, 2024.
  • Fellows will participate in a coordination call every other week with staff from Greentown Labs and the Martin Trust Center, as well as other fellows.
  • Fellows will meet with student groups, staff, and faculty across their university and create a map of relevant stakeholders.
  • Fellows will organize at least one event at their university that is focused on entrepreneurship and the energy transition.
  • Fellows will work collaboratively with one another to design and organize these events, and will have the capacity to promote events and opportunities from other universities and ecosystem partners.

More Information

For more information about the TEX-E Fellows, please email Ben Soltoff at bsoltoff@mit.edu.

TEX-E summer internship

Location: Mostly in-person at the Trust Center in Cambridge, MA

Overview

We are seeking to hire an MIT student as a full-time summer intern who will work on creating a powerful student-driven entrepreneurship ecosystem in Houston, focused on energy innovation and implementing lessons learned from building a successful ecosystem in Boston. The intern will conduct ecosystem mapping, engage stakeholders, and develop resource guides for potential programming, such as conferences, hackathons, and startup prize competitions.

The MIT intern will work closely with other interns from Texas A&M, UT-Austin, University of Houston, and Rice University, who will be based at Greentown Houston. There will be at least one opportunity to travel to Houston to work collaboratively on this project with the other interns.

Responsibilities

  • Kick-off Summit: Attend a day-long kick-off summit in Houston on May 17 at Greentown Houston to get to know others involved in the project and engage in interactive discussions to help chart a path forward for TEX-E.
  • Project Management: Assist with the strategic planning and execution of the TEX-E project, including helping to coordinate 30-50 student TEX-E Fellows who serve as liaisons for the project on their respective campuses.
  • Stakeholder Mapping: Identify relevant existing centers, research groups, and students clubs at MIT whose work has relevance to the energy transition, along with the contact information for current leadership. Where possible, reach out to leadership of these groups to introduce them to TEX-E.
  • Resource Guides: Research university programming related to climate tech, such as conferences, hackathons, and startup prize competitions, and reach out to organizers to create a comprehensive resource guide that could assist other students looking to set up similar programming in the future.
  • Events Calendar: Work with other student interns to create a shared base of events that includes events organized collaboratively as part of the initiative, as well as relevant events at each school. Consider possible ways to share this calendar publicly.
  • Digital Communication Platform: Explore options for a digital communications platform where students will communicate and collaborate across and between universities, and begin to set up this platform.
  • Other Projects: The role may include other tasks and projects related to TEX-E that arise on an ad-hoc basis.

Qualifications:

  • Currently enrolled graduate or undergraduate student at MIT
  • Pursuing a degree related directly or indirectly to energy
  • Passion for innovation and climate solutions
  • Self-starter comfortable taking initiative and managing projects independently
  • Highly collaborative and able to work productively with counterparts in another location and time zone

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Experience and connections within MIT’s energy innovation ecosystem

Compensation:

  • Student interns will receive a stipend for their work on the project, which will vary according to their level of experience

How to Apply

  • Send a resume to Ben Soltoff with a brief explanation in the body of the email as to why you’re interested in the position.