Nine student teams from the University of La Verne raised more than $27,000 in the fall semester through startup businesses they created as part of the Integrated Business Program.

The program gives undergraduate business students hands-on experience operating a real business before graduation, with profits going to a charity of their choosing. The final checks were presented to representatives from each of nine charities at a ceremony in the university’sAbraham Campus Center on Dec. 14.

“The charity component was built into the Integrated Business Program because we wanted our students to learn the value of giving,” said Abe Helou, dean of the College of Business and Public Management. “Partnering with a charity allowed them to promote their sales and get involved with the community at a deep level.”

The College of Business and Public Management launched the Integrated Business Program in fall 2011. Undergraduate students take several courses together that teach the fundamentals of running a business.

The nine teams in the fall 2017 semester sold products ranging from key chain organizers to food storage containers to foldable sunglasses. Charge the World, which sold magnetic phone chargers, raised the most money for charity this semester, with $4,087 going to Ophelia’s Jump, a nonprofit theater company in Upland.

In seven years of the Integrated Business Program, student teams have donated more than $155,000 to local nonprofits.