Reset: Beyond Business as Usual

Congratulations to the 9 entrepreneurs + 8 ventures who celebrated the completion of the 2026 Impact Accelerator last night! The judges and audience members were blown away by the passion, creativity, and momentum shared by each founder during their live pitches and tabling.⁠
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We’re proud to announce the winners are...⁠
1st Place: Cassandra Hamer, Design Elementary (@designelementary)⁠
2nd Place: Christina Outlaw, The Kem Lab (@the.kemlab)⁠
3rd Place + Audience Choice: Scott “Pepe” Bodnar, Stay Free Coffee⁠
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Special thanks to our judges Malik Okoro of Connecticut Innovations,⁠ Alexander Sulpasso of Ascend Bank, and Sarah Blecher, Reset’s incoming Executive Director. ⁠
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With gratitude to our program and prize sponsors Wells Fargo, The Connecticut Department of Economic Development, and the Berkins Family Fund, as well as to the audience members who supported these founders and donated to our Audience Choice prize pool.⁠
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We’re incredibly proud of all nine entrepreneurs and are honored to continue to support them on their journeys to accelerate their impact-driven businesses!