Overview
Carolina Launch Pad, a pre-commercial business accelerator, is aimed at aspiring IT entrepreneurs who are part of the University of North Carolina community (faculty, staff and students) and who have not yet developed their business ideas into funded start-ups. Launch Pad is intended to work with up to five entrepreneurs each year beginning in November. Those chosen to participate in the program are housed in professional office space at RENCI headquarters in the Europa Center office building, where they have the chance to interact with RENCI’s world-class technology experts, learn about its technology resources and attend lectures and other events. Professionals from the UNC Chapel Hill Office of Technology Development (OTD), the UNC Chapel Hill Kenan-Flagler Business School and from the Triangle IT community will coach and mentor the entrepreneurs.
Each Launch Pad participant receives a small office equipped with a desk, laptop computer, and phone and storage space. The common work area offers a printer and fax machine and a conference table. Parking for a limited number of team members is available at no charge. Launch Pad participants have access to a RENCI Web server to host a basic website during their one-year stay. Participants may receive access to RENCI’s technological resources, such as high performance computers, the Innovations Lab and the Visualization Lab.
Funding
- RENCI
- UNC Chapel Hill’s Office of the Provost
Partners
- UNC Chapel Hill Office of Technology Development (OTD)
- UNC Chapel Hill Kenan-Flagler Business School
Collaborators
- Ted Zoller, Center for Entrepreneurial Studies, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School
- Cathy Innes, UNC Office of Technology Development
- Paul Jones, UNC School of Library and Information Science
- Timothy L. Quigg, UNC Computer Science Department
Project Team
- David Knowles, project leader
- Warren Ginn
- Michael Shoffner
- Erik Scott
