[tabi] EDC Needs Applicants for Entrepreneurial Excellence Program

From: "Woolverton, Stacia" <Stacia.Woolverton@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: "Cain, Barbara" <Barbara.Cain@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "Howell, David" <David.Howell@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, 23 Nov 2010 09:40:56 -0500
 

Persons with disabilities should read over this article and take
advantage of the opportunity.  The website is
http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wfsu/news.newsmain/article/0/0/1727034
/WFSU.Local/EDC.Needs.Applicants.for.Entrepreneurial.Excellence.Program

 

EDC Needs Applicants for Entrepreneurial Excellence Program 

Gina Jordan (2010-11-17) 

null

TALLAHASSEE, FL (wfsu) - A new program launched by the Economic
Development Council of Tallahassee/Leon County is seeking applications
from would-be entrepreneurs. Gina Jordan sat down with the director, who
hopes to turn bright ideas into businesses that produce jobs.

Larry Lynch works at FSU's Office of Research. He goes around campus
looking for scientists who have ideas that could become commercial
products. Take the cancer drug, Taxol, for example. 

"A lot of the buildings we see out here were all built with money that
FSU made from royalties on Taxol. It was the number one and still is the
number one breast cancer drug in the world. It wasn't invented at
Florida State, but they learned how to synthesize it here at Florida
State. We made hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue from that."

Lynch works on finding the next big thing, which made him a logical
choice to lead the EDC's Entrepreneurial Excellence Program. A $450,000
grant from the U-S Small Business Administration will provide three
years of funding to help turn concepts into realities.

"It doesn't just happen by itself. You have to worry about how do you
start a company, how do you finance that company, how do you do
marketing for that new product?" 

The course will be modeled after a successful program at the University
of Central Florida, which hosts about three classes a year. Lynch plans
to use mentors from the area's universities and the private sector to
work one on one with recruits.

"At the end of the class, they actually start building their business
plan and start understanding what it is that they need to do next to try
and increase the odds of them succeeding. And they find out -- how much
money do I need to capitalize this business or this idea, do I protect
it with a patent or a copyright?"

Participants in the program will also be exposed to incubators,
facilities that enable entrepreneurs or startup companies to divide the
cost and the space needed to conduct their business. 

"So what you might have is twenty or thirty small companies, individuals
usually, sharing this space. And they might have either a cubicle or a
very small office in this facility, but have access in sharing the
conference room, sharing access to the internet, sharing access to
printers and copiers like that."

The course will be tuition based. The amount hasn't been determined, but
Lynch says it will be a nominal fee.

"The reason we do that: if you pay something for it, it has value to
you; and we want these folks to understand this is something very
valuable. We want them to take it very seriously." 

Their primary goal is to help build new companies around the magnet and
materials sciences, where FSU is very strong, but Lynch says a wide
variety of ideas will be included. He hopes to hold the first class
around March.

"When you have a down economic cycle like we have right now, everybody
is kind of looking to move forward and to have a great idea for a new
company or a new product. Now is a great time to do it, and how do we
help them be successful; how do we help them maximize their chances of a
success; that's kind of what we are all about."

For more information about the Entrepreneurial Excellence Program,
contact Director Larry Lynch at (850) 570-0560 or click here
<http://www.beapartofoursecret.com/index.php/entrepreneur/eep> .

 

Bryan  

 

Bryan F. Vaughan

Executive Director

Governor's Commission on Disabilities

4030 Esplanade Way, Suite 260M 

Tallahassee, Florida  32399

(850) 487-3423 

(850) 414-8908 fax

bryan.vaughan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

WEBSITE:
http://dms.myflorida.com/other_programs/commission_on_disabilities
<http://dms.myflorida.com/other_programs/commission_on_disabilities> 

 

For information regarding the Florida Discount Drug Card visit:
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[tabi] EDC Needs Applicants for Entrepreneurial Excellence Program

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