Fisher Innovation Launchpad Accepting Applications from UW Students

University of Wyoming students can take their ideas from the dorm room to the board room through the 2021 Fisher Innovation Launchpad.

The entrepreneurship challenge, designed specifically for UW students, is now open to all undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral students. Teams may include UW employees or non-UW members, but each team must have at least one UW student or postdoctoral student in a primary role.

Students apply by proposing their business ideas, which must focus on innovative solutions. The Launchpad is now open and accepting applications through April 16.

Finalists of the Launchpad will be selected by a panel of judges and will have the opportunity to pitch their business models for seed funding. While there is no set limit on how much a finalist can receive, awards have historically ranged from $4,000 to $40,000. Final Pitch Day will take place in the fall.

“The Fisher Innovation Launchpad provides students with the opportunity to take their businesses past the concept stage and address the real world, where they will prove to themselves how to validate their ideas, watching them come to life,” says David Bohling, director of IMPACT 307 Laramie.

Jared Henderson is a finalist in the ongoing 2020 Fisher Innovation Launchpad. His business, Warboard, is an information management company that aims to organize, store and distribute information on behalf of steel detailing and fabrication firms.

“Fisher has been absolutely wonderful in my experience,” says Henderson, a UW junior from Greybull majoring in business economics. “Our mentors, Fred (Schmechel), David and Meghan (Kerley), have always either been able to answer my team’s questions or direct us to someone who can. They’ve been essential to keeping us focused and offering sound advice when we were unsure.”

The Launchpad is supported by a generous financial gift from Donne and Sue Fisher, and sponsorship through IMPACT 307, the university’s not-for-profit business incubator that includes incubator sites in Laramie, Casper and Sheridan.

IMPACT 307 will host informational sessions Wednesday, March 24, from 4-5:30 p.m., and Thursday, April 8, from noon-1:30 p.m., both via Zoom. For more information about the Fisher Innovation Launchpad or to RSVP for the informational session(s), email IMPACT 307 at laramie@uwyo.edu.