Richard Branson, the founder of the Virgin Group conglomerate, dropped out of high school at the age of 16. His first venture was a student publication which eventually expanded into a constellation of businesses that now carry the Virgin brand. There are so many ventures under that brand that he shared with NPR’s Guy Raz that he has lost count of how many businesses make up his portfolio as a serial entrepreneur. Courtney Jiggetts ’20 regards Branson as a life-long idol and aims to replicate his laser focus on innovation. She already has a head start, having recently been named as a 2019 Forbes Under 30 Scholar.
Jiggetts is an environmental and interior design student in the College of Visual and Performing Arts at Syracuse University where she is immersed in a transdisciplinary educational setting that challenges students to rethink the built environment. She is concurrently pursuing a minor in real estate in the Martin J. Whitman School of Management and another minor in psychology in the College of Arts and Sciences respectively.