New Mexico State University's Arrowhead Center, which helps commercialize technologies developed at the university, recently won $150,000 in funding as part of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Catalyst competition.
The competition is put on by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and sought proposals for efforts aimed at increasing access to the "innovation economy" for people of color, female entrepreneurs and rural communities, according to a Sept. 22 release from New Mexico State University. In addition to NMSU, seven other proposals received funding as part of the program, the release says.
As part of its proposal, the Arrowhead Center is partnering with the University of Alaska Fairbanks, the University of Idaho and TechLink at Montana State University for the "Mesas to Mountains SBIR Support Program." The program will host two accelerator programs for participants from New Mexico, Alaska, Idaho and Montana aimed at teaching participants how to submit compelling SBIR and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) proposals.
“This year’s cohort of winners emphasizes our commitment to equity. Our awardees have innovative plans to support underserved entrepreneurs, including women, people of color and individuals from underrepresented geographic areas,” said SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman said in a prepared statement.
The Arrowhead Center has previously offered support to people and companies applying to the SBIR and STTR with its NM FAST program, which offers "resources, support, and expertise" for submitting competitive proposals, per the organization's website. So far, the FAST program has worked with more than 250 clients throughout the state, the release says.
“One of the highlights of building our NM FAST program has been the opportunity to partner with similar organizations in other states,” said Dana Catron, SBIR program director and director of Strategic Operations at Arrowhead Center in a prepared statement.“Collectively, we’ll be able to offer more robust outreach and assistance to SBIR/STTR applicants by leveraging the unique assets at each institution. We can’t wait to get started."
