NC State Entrepreneurship selects five new alumni for the 2021 Miller Fellowship

At the end of each spring semester, NC State Entrepreneurship selects a new cohort of Miller Fellows – young entrepreneurs that have launched startups as students. The Miller Fellowship program supports newly graduated entrepreneurs who wish to pursue their venture full-time after graduation with resources and a monthly stipend. 

The creativity and passion of our Miller Fellows impresses and inspires me.

The five graduates selected for this year’s cohort represent five university colleges and 4 unique startups. For these students, the next six months will be a challenging and rewarding journey as they continue to develop and add critical entrepreneurial skills to their toolkits. Jennifer Capps, Interim Assistant Vice Provost and NC State Entrepreneurship faculty says, “each year, the creativity and passion of our Miller Fellows impresses and inspires me. But this year, amidst the trials and tribulations of a global pandemic, these entrepreneurs have set a new standard for resiliency. We are excited to support them as they take the next stamps in their entrepreneurial journey.”

About the Miller Fellowship

In 2014, Dr. Tom Miller, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Outreach and Entrepreneurship, recognized a need to provide “rent and ramen” funds to NC State graduates who wanted to pursue their entrepreneurial ventures full-time after graduation. Dr. Miller created the Entrepreneurship Initiative Fellows program to meet that need. A few years later, in 2017, a group of former students came together to endow the program, renaming it the Dr. Thomas Kenan Miller II Fellows Program in honor of Dr. Miller.

Today, benefits of the program include access to mentors and industry professionals, continued access to the Entrepreneurship Garage and a monthly stipend of $750 to cover basic needs. Fellows also benefit from access to workshops and networking events through monthly meet-ups. The Miller Fellows program runs from June through November. Applications for the 2022 cohort will open in March 2022. 

Meet the 2021 Miller Fellows

Billy Dickinson | Home Office Solutions | College of Engineering Alumnus 

Billy Dickinson graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the College of Engineering. He founded Home Office Solutions, a North Carolina family-owned and operated company that supplies the perfect office space for everyone’s work-from-home situation. Their vision is to construct residential offices with excellence in every step of the process. These dwellings are designed, engineered and built all in-house and the finished result is a turn-key product, ready to use when it arrives at your residence.

Anna Petrova | Wolfe Cravings | College of Design Alumna

Anna (Anya) Petrova graduated with a master’s of industrial design. During her time at NC State, she served as a Social Innovation Fellow and partook in the Silicon Valley trip touring companies such as Facebook, Google, Apple and Bolt. Pre-COVID, she traveled to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico with the ASB team to work with local entrepreneurs to build socially responsible tourism. She is the founder of Wolfe Cravings, which makes gluten-free Tiramisu. Her mission is to bring crave-worthy food to grocery stores making it easier for families and people with celiac disease to enjoy the pleasures of food.

Josh Guter | Never Far Away | College of Education Alumnus

Josh Guter graduated with a bachelor’s degree in technology engineering and design education with a focus on graphic communication, from the College of Education. During his time at NC State, Josh was a Goodnight Scholar and was involved in entrepreneurship through the Entrepreneurship Ambassador program. As an ambassador, Josh attended and helped plan several events and served as the president of the group in its inaugural year. Josh is the founder of, Never Far Away, a company that enables access to low-cost, easy-to-use wearable devices that allow any user to communicate distress, and location, in remote areas, without relying on cellular, satellite, or other outside communication methods.

Lindsay Wrege | 321 Coffee | Poole College of Management Alumna

Lindsay Wrege graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a concentration in entrepreneurship from the Poole College of Management. During her time at NC State, Lindsay was a Park Scholar and was highly involved with entrepreneurship at NC State by participating in various pitch competitions, being part of the Andrews Launch Accelerator and partook in mentoring and networking groups. She is the co-founder and CEO of 321 Coffee, a coffee shop and roaster that employs individuals with disabilities. Lindsay and her team are working on scaling the retail presence as well as B2B partners and she will be pursuing 321 Coffee full-time as CEO.

Michael Evans | 321 Coffee | College of Sciences Alumnus

Michael Evans holds a bachelor’s degree in statistics from the College of Science and will be graduating with a Master of Statistics over the summer. Michael co-founded 321 Coffee, a coffee shop and roaster employing individuals with disabilities, during his freshman year. During his time at NC State, Michael was a Park Scholar and was heavily involved with entrepreneurship at NC State. He participated in the Andrews Launch Accelerator and pitched 321 Coffee at entrepreneurship competitions such as the eGames and WolfDen. As a Miller Fellow, Michael hopes to make progress on a brick-and-mortar location, an in-office location, and a roasting facility for 321 Coffee. Outside of work and school, Michael enjoys watching Philadelphia sports, reading, and spending time exploring new food in Raleigh with friends and family.

This post was originally published in Entrepreneurship News.