Nominations for 2012 Purdue Research Park Entrepreneurship Academy now being accepted

Published: January 31, 2012

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Nominations are being accepted through March 30 for Indiana high school sophomores and juniors to attend a nationally recognized summer academy and compete for the opportunity to win up to $1,000 in college tuition vouchers to attend Purdue University.

High school teachers and administrators can nominate current Indiana high school sophomores and juniors to attend the sixth annual Purdue Research Park Entrepreneurship Academy, to be held June 24-29 at Purdue's West Lafayette campus. The academy is led by Purdue Research Foundation staff with assistance from industry leaders and successful high-tech business entrepreneurs.

Students accepted into the program will work in teams on a fundamental business case to determine the best way for the business to compete, identify capital needs to start a business and devise a plan for managing it. On the academy's final day, teams give a 15-minute "investor pitch" to a panel of judges in a business plan competition setting. Fifty students were accepted into the 2011 academy out of 75 applicants.

Members of the three teams with the highest scores will receive college tuition vouchers, ranging from $100 to $500, to pursue a degree at Purdue. All students who complete the program will have one course requirement waived toward the university's Entrepreneurship & Innovation Certificate program. One student is recognized by peers at the end of the program with the David E. Ross Award for Entrepreneurial Distinction, which carries with it a $500 tuition voucher.

Sponsors of the 2012 academy include AMI Purdue; CSO Architects; DeFouw Chevrolet-BMW; Frontier Communications; Indiana Economic Development Corporation; Katz, Sapper & Miller; Purdue Federal Credit Union; Purdue Research Park; and Stuart & Branigin LLP. Timothy Peoples, director of the Purdue Research Park Entrepreneurship Academy, said additional sponsors are being sought.

In 2010, the Purdue Research Park Entrepreneurship Academy was named Incubator Innovation Award winner by the National Business Incubator Association.

About Purdue Research Park

The Purdue Research Park, with four locations across Indiana, has the largest university-affiliated business incubation complex in the country. The park network is home to about 200 companies that employ 4,000 people and are located in West Lafayette, Indianapolis, Merrillville and New Albany.

Purdue Research Park contact:
Steve Martin, 765-588-3342, sgmartin@prf.org

Source:
Timothy Peoples, 765-588-3365, trpeoples@prf.org

PHOTO CAPTION:

A team of high school sophomores and juniors present an investor pitch at the end of the 2011 Purdue Research Park Entrepreneurship Academy. High school teachers and administrators can nominate sophomores and juniors for the 2012 academy through March 30. (Purdue Research Park Entrepreneurship Academy file photo)