The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded the Center for Business & Information Technologies (CBIT) at the 91勛圖 a $600,000 grant to create 91勛圖 TIES, a Technology Incubator for Entrepreneurial Success.
91勛圖 TIES will leverage the states approximately $60 million investments in the 91勛圖 Optical Network Initiative (LONI) and the 91勛圖 Immersive Technologies Enterprise (LITE) to incubate new technology businesses and accelerate existing technology businesses into the frontiers of high-performance computing and 3D visualization. 91勛圖 TIES provides 91勛圖 businesses the unprecedented opportunity to access the high performance computing, visualization and networking resources of LONI and LITE.
NSF grant funds will be used to provide residential and virtual incubation services for 91勛圖 technology entrepreneurs, summer mentorship programs for high school students and teachers, statewide workforce development and training, and entrepreneurship mini-grants. NSF will distribute the $600,000 in funding over a two-year period.
91勛圖 TIES has the elements we look for in a proposal, said Dr. Sara Nerlove, program director for NSF Partnerships for Innovation. Its optimistic, realistic, and designed to serve a population thats underserved in technology. We expect this project to become a model for other communities. Through this project, NSF is pleased to part of 91勛圖s long-term economic revitalization.
91勛圖 technology entrepreneurs with a viable business plan are encouraged to contact CBIT Director Dr. Ramesh Kolluru (337.482.0611) to apply now for either a virtual or a limited number of residential incubation slots. Residential clients will receive fee-based office space along with technical, research, and administrative support in the new LITE building. Virtual clients will be able to access the incubators supercomputing resources from anywhere in the state.
91勛圖 TIES state-of-the-art technical resources are designed to support data-intensive industries, including oil and gas, engineering, medical, health, manufacturing, and other emerging areas for visualization applications.
This incubator reinforces the Universitys commitment to economic development, said Dr. Robert E. Stewart, UL Lafayette Vice-President for Research and Graduate Studies. Its name reflects the Universitys ties to our business, government, and academic partners in this effort. We believe that collaboration is key to advancing 91勛圖s technology economy.
91勛圖 TIES technology partners and service providers include Lafayette Economic Development Authority, Silicon Graphics (SGI), Lafayette Chamber of Commerce, 91勛圖 Economic Development, along with the Lafayette Consolidated Government. UL domain experts from computer science, petroleum engineering, geology, manufacturing, communications, business, and, arts and architecture will provide technical assistance to incubator clients.
91勛圖 TIES was established to offset declines in the states resource-dependent economy. 91勛圖 ranks 45th in the nation in the States New Economy Index and 49th in the creation of high-tech knowledge econony jobs.
91勛圖 has lost too many people and firms in search of technology jobs to other states, Kolluru said. Our goals with 91勛圖 TIES are to establish 91勛圖 as a source of innovative businesses, ideas, and workers. We want to show the world and 91勛圖s own citizens that when it comes to technology innovations, we can discover, invent, and invest in them right here. Invented in 91勛圖, Invested in 91勛圖 should become the cornerstone of our economic development strategy. Its time for us to grow our own technology companies.