Great Plains I-Corps Hub

The U.S. National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps™) program is an immersive, entrepreneurial training program that facilitates the transformation of invention to impact.

The University of Wyoming is a member of the Great Plains I-Corps Hub located at North Dakota State University. Great Plains Regional Hub provides training for scientists, researchers, and engineers and is designed to help propel research ideas into the marketplace via a free five-week course.

The learnings acquired will allow teams to gain insights that can be leveraged in crafting a focused and clear commercialization strategy for translating technology out of the lab and into the marketplace. An I-Corps team must be prepared to commit about 8-10 hours per week for the five-week cohort. A team consists of an entrepreneurial lead (EL), a technical lead (TL), and an industry mentor (IM). In addition, teams will receive grants of up to $2500 to further their commercialization research effort.

This course is an experiential learning process focused on customer discovery, aimed at successfully designing products and services that provide a clear benefit to customers by communicating directly with potential customers. Teams learn to “channel” the voice of the customer, which gives partners and investors a more objective view of the foundations used to craft your commercialization strategy.

Benefits of participating in the Great Plains I-Corps Hub include:

Gain valuable market insight to inform the next steps in your research and/or development.
Eligibility to participate in the NSF I-Corps National Teams program and $50,000 grant for qualifying technologies and teams.
Cultivate network connections and receive mentoring from experienced industry experts and entrepreneurs.
Develop the entrepreneurial mindset and toolset needed to start a successful business.

To get started, please contact:

Stephen Hanlon, Director Health & Bioscience Innovation Hub
shanlon@uwyo.edu

Ramasankar Veerakumar, Assistant Instructional Professor of Mechanical Engineering
rveeraku@uwyo.edu

For more information, visit Great Plains Region I-Corps.

Contact Us

Technology Transfer Office

Mailing Address:

Technology Transfer Office

Dept. 3672

1000 E. University Ave.

Laramie, WY 82071

Physical location:

Technology Transfer Office

Bureau of Mines, Room 205

365 N 9th Street

Laramie, Wyoming 82071

Email:WyomingInvents@uwyo.edu