Ottawa, Canada, August 15, 2007 - So what? who cares? why you? ®: The Inventor's Commercialization Toolkit has been chosen by The Purdue Research Foundation as the standard approach and methodology to drive its newest program, The Entrepreneur Academy.
The goal of the Entrepreneurship Academy is to expose young people who demonstrate achievement in the fields of mathematics, science and technology to entrepreneurial experiences they can carry forward as life skills. The program's first nominated students attended a five-day high-tech intensive Entrepreneurship Academy at the Purdue University, West Lafayette campus the week of July 29-August 3, 2007. About 40 high school students from 14 Indiana counties spent the week with local entrepreneurs, industry experts, mentors and role models from Purdue University.
Each student received a copy of So what? who cares? why you?: The Inventor's Commercialization Toolkit as part of an entrepreneurial success kit. The book's author, Wendy Kennedy, kicked off the program with two days of interactive workshops to introduce students to the So what? who cares? why you? tool sets.
Teams of students rolled up their sleeves and, using flipcharts, worked with Wendy to define the business opportunity for their start-up ideas, which ranged from implantable devices for nerve regeneration to compounds to control the harvest cycle of crops.
The teams then used Wendy's ten-slide presentation and investor pitch templates to weave their results into investor presentations.
Mentors from start-up companies at the Purdue Research Park helped the teams finalize their business presentations. The week wrapped up with each start-up team presenting to a mock panel of investors/judges comprised of local business leaders and executives from the Purdue Research Foundation. Tuition vouchers were awarded to first, second, and third place teams demonstrating potential for success.
The Entrepreneurship Academy has received enthusiastic feedback and support from the community. The program is expected to expand next year to include additional students and counties.
For more information on the Purdue Entrepreneur Academy, visit www.prf.org/academy.
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