Lehigh Valley LaunchBox is accepting applications for its second round of micro grants for summer 2016. Interested business startups will participate in a competitive selection process. The application is available online at http://launchbox.lv.psu.edu/apply. The application deadline is June 24.
All Lehigh Valley community members, including high school students, and Penn State faculty, staff and students who have a scalable business idea are encouraged to apply. The number of projects selected depends on the number of applicants and amount of funds requested. Thirteen projects are already active as part of Lehigh Valley LaunchBox.
“The first award cycle yielded innovative projects in philanthropy, marketing, internet technology/ applications and innovation technology. We look forward to seeing the additional creative ideas that will be submitted,” said Tina Q. Richardson, chancellor of Penn State Lehigh Valley. “It is a priority for us at Penn State Lehigh Valley to continue advancing and supporting an entrepreneurial spirit in the local community and on our campus.”
The goal of Lehigh Valley LaunchBox is to encourage entrepreneurial thinking and support startups as they develop into scalable businesses. Micro grant recipients benefit from free co-working and meeting spaces at Velocity (532 Hamilton Street, Allentown); professional development, consultation and research resources, mentorship from local entrepreneurs and Penn State alumni will also help with business planning.
Lehigh Valley LaunchBox awardees are selected from a pool of candidates by a committee of university and community stakeholders. The proposals will be evaluated against the criteria below. Grant recipients’ progress will be regularly reviewed by an advisory committee.
The selection committee looks for these characteristics in applicants:
- scalable business model
- team commitment
- technical readiness
- market awareness
- existing or potential intellectual property
- connection to community engagement
All completed applications will be scored in the following categories:
- business plan readiness
- technical readiness
- customer/market analysis
- leadership team development
- intellectual property readiness
- existing funding
The Executive and Awards Committee of the Lehigh Valley LaunchBox Advisory Board will meet prior to the July 15 board meeting to review the proposals for the summer award cycle. The top proposals will be invited to present ideas to the board for final selection. The grant recipients will be announced the week of July 18.
“By supporting business startups and helping them win their first customers or early investors, we aim to spur economic development throughout the Lehigh Valley,” said Bill Hacker, chairman of the Lehigh Valley LaunchBox Advisory Board.
Lehigh Valley LaunchBox is a signature program of the Invent Penn State initiative and was created in collaboration with community and University entrepreneurship supporters.