Alumni invest $1M in Furman investors fellowship.

• Position: Ken Clemens, Chase Clemens

Walking in the footsteps of two Furman graduates, fledgling investors can learn the ropes through a Venture South fellowship program at the university's The Hill Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

The eight-week Clemens Angel Analyst Fellowship, coined through a $1 million gift from Ken Clemens, a 1987 alumnus, and his son Chase Clemens, a 2022 alumnus, will offer students a deep dive into the "secrets of angel investing," according to a news release.

Eight to 10 students will be taught the analytical skills needed to evaluate pitches and parse promising startup plans from the rest, according to the younger Chase, who served for two years as the chair of Furman's Investment Banking Club and is pursuing a career in finance.

At the conclusion of the fellowship, the students will be eligible for a paid internship during which they can apply what they learned through real-life investment opportunities with VentureSouth.

Clemens said he was approached about three years ago by Anthony Herrera, executive director of The Hill Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, with an idea that spurred the Angel Analyst Program. The student seized on the idea and ran with it.

"It was Chase's ideas that led us to the gift for the fellowship," the elder Clemens, CEO of the Pennsylvania-based URL Insurance Group, said in the release. "I thought this was a great chance to re-engage with my alma mater."

Herrera said the gift is critical to positioning Furman University as a national leader in the field among liberal arts and science colleges by equipping students for careers in angel investing, venture capital and private equity.

"You would see these types of programs at major business schools," Herrera said in the release, "but this is a unique offering at a traditional liberal arts...