FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas has received a $250,000 award from the National Science Foundation to advance the commercialization of research discoveries. This five-year award will be used by the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation to establish an Arkansas Innovation Corps Site in collaboration with partners at other institutions in the state. All faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates whose research holds commercial potential are encouraged to apply.

The University of Arkansas I-Corps Site, STEP (STEAM Training in Entrepreneurial Practices), builds on existing programs that accelerate the commercialization of research by faculty and students. A primary goal of the Site is to encourage researchers to consider how the commercialization of their research might open new avenues of discovery and promote economic development in the state.

The two-phase program will take place over 10 weeks each summer between 2018-2022. Phase I, with 15 teams, will include instruction in lean startup principles and interviews with potential customers. In Phase II, eight teams will receive additional funding to further develop the most promising business ideas from Phase I. The STEP site will include undergraduate and graduate student teams and faculty from three UA System campuses: the University of Arkansas, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, and the University of Arkansas Little Rock.

The I-Corps program was created by the NSF in 2011 to help faculty and students in the sciences learn how to apply lean startup methods for bringing new technologies to the marketplace. With funding provided by the program and the support and mentorship provided by the Site, researchers and students will conduct market research, learn to identify product-market fit through interviews with potential customers, and develop prototypes.

Teams will also be encouraged to take advantage of the growing Arkansas entrepreneurial ecosystem, which includes resources such as the Brewer Family Entrepreneurship Hub at the University of Arkansas, statewide grant programs such as the Delta I-Fund, and accelerator programs such as the InnovatAR Life Sciences Accelerator supported by UAMS.

Applications for the Arkansas I-Corps site were open as of Feb. 26, with instruction beginning on June 1 and continuing through mid-August. Each commercialization team will include an entrepreneurial lead and an academic lead; with mentors assigned as appropriate. Although teams are preferred, individuals who are not affiliated with teams are also encouraged to apply.

"This program is about unlocking the potential of technologies that are born in university laboratories, which are often the result of many years of open-ended exploration," says Carol Reeves, associate vice chancellor for entrepreneurship at the University of Arkansas and principal investigator on the grant. "Having an I-Corps site in Arkansas means that innovators across the state will have the opportunity to extend their work into meaningful commercial applications."

Bob Beitle, associate vice provost for research; Ed Pohl, professor and head of the Department of Industrial Engineering; and Cynthia Sides, director of the Office of Industry Engagement, are co-PIs on the grant.