I-Corps Site Award To Encourage Entrepreneurial Culture At Texas State

The I-Corps Site is expected to strengthen existing relationships between MSEC, the Service Learning Excellence Program, and Technology Transfer and Contracts Support Services at the university.

SAN MARCOS – Texas State University has received an Innovation Corps (I-Corps) Site Award from the National Science Foundation.

The three-year, $250,000 grant will be overseen by Jennifer Irvin, director of the Materials Science, Engineering and Commercialization (MSEC) program and an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, along with Jana Minifie, director of the Service Learning Excellence program and a professor in the Department of Management.

Texas State I-Corps Site activities will kick off with a series of innovation workshops held October 13-20 in conjunction with Women’s Entrepreneurship Week.

I-Corps Site grant will allow Texas State to more effectively foster entrepreneurial initiatives through the MSEC program.

MSEC will strategically strengthen the innovation ecosystem across the university, significantly growing the commercialization culture at Texas State and increasing diversity.

The I-Corps Site will provide infrastructure, advice, resources, networking opportunities, training and seed funding to enable teams of faculty and students at Texas State to transition their work into the marketplace. 

MSEC is a multidisciplinary effort from the College of Science and Engineering and McCoy College of Business Administration that brings scientists and engineers together with experts in entrepreneurship.

The I-Corps Site is expected to strengthen existing relationships between MSEC, the Service Learning Excellence Program, and Technology Transfer and Contracts Support Services at the university.

These organizations will work together to maximize success of Texas State’s commercialization teams. With an emphasis on under-represented students, staff and faculty, the I-Corps Site will provide resources to individuals and teams in the form of entrepreneurial mentoring, curriculum and intellectual property guidance needed to transition technology into the marketplace.

The I-Corps Site will award seed funding ranging from $1,000-$3,000 to at least 20-25 qualified Texas State teams per year.

For more information, contact Irvin at ji12@txstate.edu or Minifie at jm13@txstate.edu.