| NSF Org: |
TI Translational Impacts |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | December 12, 2016 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | September 25, 2023 |
| Award Number: | 1639609 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Jesus Soriano Molla
jsoriano@nsf.gov (703)292-7795 TI Translational Impacts TIP Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships |
| Start Date: | December 15, 2016 |
| End Date: | November 30, 2023 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $225,000.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $212,206.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2019 = $44,999.00 |
| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
2301 S 3RD ST LOUISVILLE KY US 40208-1838 (502)852-3788 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
Louisville KY US 40202-1959 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): |
PFI-Partnrships for Innovation, SBIR Outreach & Tech. Assist |
| Primary Program Source: |
01001920DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT |
| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.041, 47.084 |
ABSTRACT
The broader impact of this Accelerating Women And underRepresented Entrepreneurs (AWARE) ACCelerating Entrepreneurial succeSS (ACCESS) project is to proactively engage underrepresented groups in entrepreneurship and increase the science and technology oriented competitiveness of the U.S. by harnessing the valuable intellectual capital of diverse populations to build innovation capacity. The program is specially designed to broaden participation and access of faculty, staff, post-doctoral fellows and students from underrepresented populations (defined as female, African American, Hispanic/Latino, Asian American, Native American) in commercialization, enrich communication mechanisms to promote inclusive entrepreneurship, and enhance the competitiveness of women and underrepresented entrepreneurs to succeed in securing Small Business Innovation Research/Small Business Technology Transfer Research (SBIR/STTR) funding. The program will support and engage women and underrepresented innovators on the benefits of moving their discoveries into practice through commercialization of their technology-based products. The AWARE: ACCESS program will empower women and underrepresented innovators to be successful entrepreneurs as well as expand a new paradigm for increasing the pipeline of emerging technologies to the marketplace. A diversification of entrepreneurial innovators will provide a wider network of valuable resources ? thereby enhancing scientific and technological knowledge and increasing the national pipeline of enabled, well-trained technology entrepreneurs.
The proposed project addresses the disproportionately limited success that women and minority innovators have had in securing SBIR/STTR funds even though they represent a significant share of the general population, STEM graduates and business owners. The four goals of this program are to: 1) identify, engage, encourage, and mentor women and underrepresented innovators to consider entrepreneurship as a career path; 2) expand access for women and underrepresented entrepreneurs to educational, experiential and networking opportunities; 3) increase the volume and enhance competitiveness of the SBIR/STTR applications of these innovators; and, 4) share best practices with other institutions to create a regional ecosystem that provides an inviting, rewarding experience and climate for entrepreneurial women and underrepresented innovators. These goals will be achieved through the synergistic interaction of six key components: 1) An Innovation Entrepreneurship Resource Center; 2) Entrepreneur talent matching series; 3) Grant writing assistance program; 4) Phase Double Zero supplement program; 5) Commercialization and Entrepreneurship Summit; and, 6) Outreach and sharing of success stories to the community. The proposed project will develop a cadre of well-trained, entrepreneurial-oriented women and underrepresented innovators who can inspire others toward engaging and succeeding in the SBIR/STTR process and assimilate into the innovation ecosystem and community.
PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
The overarching goal of the Advancing Women And UnderRepresented Entrepreneurs: ACCelerating Entrepreneurial SucceSS (AWARE: ACCESS) was to enhance the competitiveness and success rate of women and minority innovators in securing translational and entrepreneurial funding such as SBIR/STTR funding, using the Midwest region as a model region. To accomplish this goal, the University of Louisville (UofL) and Indiana University (IU) developed a commercialization diversity pilot program in partnership, by leveraging each respective institutions' strengths. AWARE: ACCESS sought 1) To identify/encourage/mentor women and underrepresented innovators to consider entrepreneurship as a career path; 2) To expand access for women and underrepresented entrepreneurs to educational, experiential and networking opportunities; 3) To enhance the competitiveness of the innovators’ SBIR/STTR applications; and, 4) To share best practices between institutions, as well as other interested parties, to create a sustainable regional ecosystem that provides an inviting, rewarding experience and climate for entrepreneurial women and underrepresented innovators. As a result of AWARE:ACCESS, 12 companies led by women and minority founders received grant writing assistance and submitted federal SBIR and STTR applications to the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Department of Defense, United States Department of Agriculture, and Department of Education. Based on training sessions, more SBIR/STTR applications may have been submitted These metrics are despite the challenges experienced by many of these founders during the COVID-19 pandemic, which had a more significant impact on our target innovators. To date, five of these submissions have been awarded federal SBIR/STTR funding, and additional applications are under review or are being re-submitted. Teams have received coaching from mentors, program leaders, and industry experts through workshops, Commercialization & Entrepreneurship Summits, round table opportunities, and peer communities.
Intellectual Merit: AWARE:ACCESS accomplished these goals through annual Commercialization and Entrepreneurship Summits, Pilot grant funding to support prototype development and demonstration of proof of concept, and grant writing assistance. The program has impacted and continues to impact diverse entrepreneurs across a variety of disciplines, including healthcare, software-based products, medical devices, psychology, education, student recruitment and renewable energy. By building a diverse and supportive community of innovators, AWARE:ACCESS has enhanced opportunities for technology and non-technology based entrepreneurs. Drawing on each other’s expertise, a Midwest based learning community for accelerating the growth of women and underrepresented innovator-based businesses has been developed. AWARE:ACCESS has developed best practices for mentoring, networking, and support of female and underrepresented innovators that can be replicated with dedicated mentors and coaches.
Broader Impacts: Innovators participating in our program have provided feedback that show the importance of building a strong support community of women and underrepresented entrepreneurs within our region and nationally, and enhancing collaborative funding opportunities. The AWARE:ACCESS program has provided a strong sense of “belonging” to a community of innovators and entrepreneurs that “look like them” and “have experienced similar situations as them,” which they felt was greatly needed within their local and regional entrepreneurial ecosystems. AWARE:ACCESS has resulted in a growing community through increased collaborations and success in obtaining government and non-government grant funding as well as professional investment in companies led by underrepresented founders. Participants in the programs have agreed to continue to serve as mentors to other innovators, increasing future opportunities and impact of the program. The AWARE:ACCESS program has resulted in more SBIR/STTR applications submitted and an increase in the number of women and underrepresented minorities participating in innovation based programs in the Midwest, indicated by broadened participation of women or minority founders in other entrepreneurial activities in the region. For example, in a recent NSF I-Corps training cohort, all seven companies were led or co-led by women or minority founders. This expanded pool of SBIR/STTR-eligible innovators has strong ties to overall improved economic development. By equipping women and underrepresented innovators with essential training in discovery, entrepreneurship, business development, and SBIR/STTR proposal writing, the AWARE:ACCESS program is actively supporting their efforts in commercialization and bolstering the SBIR/STTR pipeline.
Last Modified: 03/30/2024
Modified by: Jessica L Sharon
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