When the state
Department of Community and Economic Development
announced this week that Philadelphia would receive $785,000 in grant
funding for commercialization projects, local development officials had
to feel flattered. After all, very few of DCED's grant programs are
this competitive and when all was said and done, Philadelphia programs took
nearly half the funding, including the only two universities included in
the funding round.
Drexel University's Health Innovation Partnership of
Southeastern
Pennsylvania ($100,000) is a research-in-action program creating
products from transitional life sciences research and Temple University's Pennsylvania
Environmental Technologies for Pharmaceutical Industry ($600,000) will develop energy-efficient technologies for waste management in the pharmaceutical industry. But the
scrappiest competitor may have been the
University City Keystone Innovation Zone. After their first proposal was duplicated by another KIZ, officials submitted a new proposal for a suite of programs to help
would-be business owners through the commercialization process.
"We are going to re-scope the grant to include workshops on how to pitch to funders, grant writing advice, that kind of thing," says Jeanne Mell of the University City Science Center. She and Science Center colleague Kristen Fitch worked on the proposals, which earned $85,000 from the DCED. "Beyond that, we are looking to continue the great programming we have offered for the last five years."
But the most important thing the UC KIZ hopes to offer is funding. Through a new micro-grant program, UC KIZ hopes to redistribute this funding award to back worthy business plans, getting some products and business concepts to the marketplace sooner rather than later.
"We will continue to offer a steady stream of networking, professional development and entrepreneurial support programs in Philly," says Mell. "What the micro-grant project will allow us to do is add funding as well to get these companies moving."
Source: Jeanne Mell, University City Science Center
Writer: John Steele