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UA I-Corps Sites Grads in Action

Background

The goal of UA's I-Corps Site is to help faculty, students and the community answer important commercialization questions through critical market and commercialization evaluations. Typical teams will be comprised of at least one faculty member (Academic Lead), one or more students (Entrepreneurial Lead), and one or more Mentors. Faculty from all colleges and department are encouraged to apply. Faculty from other regional universities and colleges and early-stage companies can also apply. Students can apply independently to join existing teams or startups.

Application Process

Each team will be required to submit a short application that will be evaluated on the following criteria:

• Team and Commitment
• Intellectual Property Strength
• Technology Strength
• Commercial Potential
• Fit with I-Corps Sites

Details about the Process

Application

Applications will be accepted any time, and will be evaluated three times each year (September, December, and April).

UA I-Corps Sites Program

As part of the program, each team will be required to attend training and meet with a business Mentor. The goal of the program is to help commercialize UA technologies and ideas with the specific outcome of the UA I-Corps Sites program being a team decisions on whether to pursue commercialization through one of the following:

• NSF I-Corps Teams program (an intensive 6-week NSF training with $50,000 grant)
• Ohio Third Frontier Technology Validation grant (a $50,000 grant with required matching funding)
• UARF’s Spark Fund (prototyping and commercialization assistance)

Calendar of Program

Program participants are also eligible for up to $2,500 in NSF funding, which can be used for:

• Prototyping materials
• Travel to visit potential customers and end users
• Training or education in entrepreneurship
• Other needed resources
• Budget must be approved by I-Corps Sites Budget Review Committee