Five Brown students and three University of Rhode Island students are getting a firsthand look into the world of entrepreneurship in the life sciences through a fellowship program run by the Rhode Island-based Slater Technology Fund. The Entrepreneurial Fellows Program, now in its third year, offers stipends to students who are studying life sciences, bioengineering or entrepreneurship at Rhode Island universities to investigate the technology transfer between Rhode Island colleges and technology companies.
The program also aims to increase the likelihood that students will remain in the state after graduation. "The goal is to try and retain the students who come here in Rhode Island," said Richard Horan, senior managing director of the fund.
The fellows are responsible for compiling a report on the ease of technology transfer — the process of commercializing research discoveries — from the universities in Rhode Island to in-state start-ups. They then send their reports, which they hope to finish by May, to the Rhode Island Science and Technology Advisory Council, where the reports will be used to aid with policy decisions.
"(The Science and Technology Advisory Council) was set up a couple years back to advise the governor and general assembly with respect to the emerging sector of technology-based entrepreneurship," Horan said. The program will form the basis of conclusions and recommendations for how the state can strengthen its technology transfer.
The fellows acknowledged that technology transfer within the state is not as efficient as possible.
"The big picture is that Rhode Island is not very competitive for entrepreneurs," said Jason Chan MD'14, adding that Rhode Island universities need to improve translating their research into businesses. The program, which kicked off in early February, aims to help eliminate some of the friction associated with technology transfer in Rhode Island.
The program was initially funded by part of a $6.75 million grant awarded to URI from the National Science Foundation's Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research. The university received another $20 million to continue the program in the past six months.
From this additional money, the Slater Fund will receive $201,000 to provide stipends and continue the fellows program for another five years. The fund expects to accept eight students per year into the program in each of the next five years. "If adequate funding were available, we would expand (the program) to a larger number of fellowships that would be full-year and eventually full-time," Horan said. "The goal is to get it to a full-time appointment."
Much of the program is focused on teaching the fellows. "The first two weeks is learning about tech transfer," said Kenneth Estrellas GS, a master's student in artificial organs, bio-materials and cellular technology. "Once we've gotten familiar with the process of tech transfer and venture funding, we begin our report."
The program has changed since its inception. "This is the first year that the fellows will engage in something policy-related," Horan said.
