1.
E-Team Grant & Training
Program

2.
Agenda
 VentureWell Overview
 The E-Team Program Overview
 Requirements & Application Process
 Selection Criteria & Intellectual Property
 Appendix
– Proposal Components
– Top Reasons for Rejection
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3.
INTRODUCTION TO
VENTUREWELL
Allison Bleyler, Director of Marketing
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4.
Our Mission
VentureWell fosters new ventures from an
emerging generation of inventors and supports the
innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystems
critical to their success.
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Innovators Faculty

5.
Our Programs & Initiatives
Early Stage Innovator
Programs
I-Corps
E-Teams
Xcelerator
GIST
ASPIRE
BMEidea /
DEBUT
Faculty Initiatives
Programs
Faculty Grants
Pathways to
Innovation
OPEN
Lean
LaunchPad®
I&E Network Initiatives
National
Innovation
Network
BME-IDEA
Meeting
TTA Advisory
GIST Network
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6.
Our Funders and Partners

7.
Early Stage Innovator Programs
 We work directly to support inventors in bringing
their ideas to market through:
– Workshops and training
– Coaching and mentoring
– Funding or awards
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o I-CorpsTM
o E-Teams
o Xcelerator
o GIST
o ASPIRE
o BMEidea / DEBUT

8.
Faculty Initiative Programs
 We support faculty in developing programs that cultivate
& support student innovators and promote institutional
change through:
– Grants
– Workshops & Training
– Conferences
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 Faculty Grants
 Pathways to Innovation
 Open annual conference
 Lean LaunchPad®

9.
I&E Network Development Programs
 We create and build networks to strengthen the
overall innovation & entrepreneurship
ecosystem.
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o National Innovation
Network
o BME-IDEA Meeting
o TTA Advisory
o GIST Network

10.
E-Teams by the Numbers
 $8.9 million in grants to over 665 student
teams
 More than $570 million in follow-on
funding to launch new businesses
 Many are still in business today, operating
in over 50 countries and reaching millions
of people with ground-breaking
innovations.
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11.
E-TEAM PROGRAM DETAILS
Christina Tamer, Program Officer
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12.
What is an E-Team?
 An E-Team – or, Entrepreneur Team - is a
multidisciplinary group of students and
faculty working together to bring a STEM-
based invention (product or service) to
market
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13.
E-Team Program Benefits
 Intensive and highly interactive
workshops led by experts in student
ventures
 Entrepreneurial and venture coaching
 Grant funding of up to $25K in two stages
 Opportunity to network and share ideas
with student entrepreneurs from around
the country
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14.
Why E-Teams?
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 PLACE HOLDER FOR VIDEO

15.
Agenda
 VentureWell Overview
 The E-Team Program Overview
 Requirements & Application Process
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16.
E-Team Requirements
Each E-Team must have:
 At least 2 active students (undergraduate or
graduate)
– ideally with mix of technical and business expertise
– must be from a VentureWell Member institution
– students must be leading the development of the venture
 A faculty advisor to act as Principal Investigator and
be responsible for the disbursement of grant funds
No maximum team size – most successful teams have 2-
6 student team members with additional faculty advisors
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17.
Eligible Inventions & Innovations
 Science / Technology based
 Scalable and commercially promising
 Potential for significant positive impact on
society and/or the environment
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18.
Examples of Eligible Inventions
 Biomedical devices, healthcare solutions
and/or technologies
 Clean energy, sustainable materials and
other clean technologies
 Technologies for low-resource settings (US or
international) that address poverty alleviation
and basic human needs such as affordable
energy, clean water / sanitation, health and
medical devices, agriculture, etc.
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19.
Examples of Ineligible Projects
 Faculty-driven projects in which participating students
have no ownership of resulting intellectual property (IP)
 Pure research projects without any defined commercial
applications or potential
 Projects without any student involvement
 Projects without a clear technology invention or
innovation
 Projects that don’t have a path to commercialization
 Projects without a clearly articulated social and/or
environmental impact
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20.
HOW TO APPLY
Patricia Boynton, Grants Management Officer
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21.
#1 Mistake Applicants Make
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22.
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23.
Before you apply…
 Read the guidelines: https://venturewell.org/student-
grants/guidelines-stage-1/
 Confirm your university is a VentureWell member:
https://venturewell.org/venturewell-member-list/
 Speak to someone at your Office of Sponsored
Programs about your intention to apply
 Know your university’s Intellectual Property policy
 Make sure your IP is appropriately protected before you
submit
 Create a VentureWell account and take a look at the
application
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24.
Create an account & apply:
venturewell.org/student-grants
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Download & read
detailed guidelines
Click to create
account & apply

25.
Proposal Components &
Requirements
 5 page narrative
 Letters of support
 Team resumes
 Optional appendix (up to 5 additional
documents)
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26.
Verifications of Support
 Principal Investigator (PI)
 Administrative Contact (AC)
 Department Chair (DC)
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27.
Proposal Selection Criteria
1. Technology innovation and feasibility
2. Business model and commercial potential
3. Team composition, commitment,
expertise, and institutional support
4. Positive social and/or environmental
impact
5. Workplan feasibility
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28.
What happens after you submit
your proposal?
 Proposals are reviewed by panels of
VentureWell staff and external reviewers.
 Status notifications are sent ~60 days after
submission deadline
 Competitive program: 15-25% acceptance
rate
 You may be invited to resubmit
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29.
If your team is accepted…
 Your team is part of the E-Team Stage 1 cohort
and your university is awarded a $5,000 grant
on behalf of your team!
 All E-Team grantees send two team members
to participate in the three-day workshop in the
Boston area.
 The grant award is intended to cover travel to
attend the workshop. Any leftover funds can be
used to further develop your technology.
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30.
What happens at the workshop?
 The Stage 1 workshop focuses on market
validation and discovery.
 Workshop exercises help teams learn and be
able to:
– articulate the value of their innovation
– validate that the market they have identified is
indeed the right market for their innovation
– articulate their competitive position within that
market(s)
 Network with ~15 other teams and 5-6
experienced instructors/mentors
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31.
Remember--before you apply…
 Check out the guidelines: https://venturewell.org/student-
grants/guidelines-stage-1/
 Confirm your university is a VentureWell member:
https://venturewell.org/venturewell-member-list/
 Speak to someone at your Office of Sponsored Programs about your
intention to apply
 Know your university’s Intellectual Property policy
 Make sure your IP is appropriately protected before you submit
 Create a VentureWell account and take a look at the application
 Identify your PI, Administrative Contact and Department Chair
 Review the proposal timeline and proposal requirements
 Mark your calendar with deadline and the workshop dates!
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32.
More Information
Spring 2017 Cohort:
April 6-8 in Boston, MA area
Application deadline: January 25, 2017
Summer 2017 Cohort:
July 27-29 in Boston, MA area
Application deadline: May 3, 2017
E-Teams Program
Christina Tamer, Program Officer
ctamer@venturewell.org
VentureWell Grants Office
Patricia Boynton, Grants Management Officer
Membership and grant application questions: grants@venturewell.org
Or 413-587-2172 x115

33.
Questions?
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34.
Appendix

35.
VentureWell Intellectual Property
Policy
 Ownership of intellectual property resulting
from E-Team work should belong to the
students on the team
 VentureWell takes no financial or ownership
interest in the projects funded by its E-Team
grants
 Applicants advised to protect their intellectual
property before submitting a proposal
 Students should understand their university’s
IP policies
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36.
Proposal Components
 Required
– Title page
– Proposal narrative (no more than 5 pages)
– Letter(s) of support (at least 1, no more than 3)
– Team member resumes
 Optional
– Additional appendices
– Weblinks (websites, video links, articles, etc.)
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37.
Who is your audience?
1. VentureWell Program Officer
2. VentureWell Grants Manager
3. Panel of 4-5 external reviewers made up
of individuals from academia, industry,
nonprofits & NGOs, and venture capital
with experience in the technology areas
and in the commercialization of early
stage innovations.

38.
Proposal Narrative
Technology and value proposition (1-2 pages)
• What is your invention or technology innovation?
• Is it technically feasible? Have you demonstrated proof of the key
principle(s)?
• Is your technology proprietary &protectable?
• Have you done a prior art search, filed an invention disclosure, filed a provisional patent? Who
are the inventors and who owns the patent?
• Have you developed a physical prototype or proof of concept?
• If yes, document the development of your prototype with drawings, digital documentation, or
data demonstrating its effectiveness.
• If not, describe your plans for proof of concept
• What problem are you solving for what customers? In what way is it better
than other solutions on the market?
• What large-scale impact would successful adoption of your innovation create
(e.g., lives saved, amount of C02 reduction, money saved. etc.)?

39.
Proposal Narrative (cont’d)
Business model and market (1-2 pages)
• Describe the market and customers that you intend to reach, and explain
how you will engage them.
• Who are your target customers, and have you talked to any?
• How does what you are proposing compare with the competition?
• What is your commercialization plan?
• How will you approach the manufacturing, marketing, sales, distribution, and support of your
product or service?
• How do you intend to make this economically sustainable?
• Describe the costs to produce and support your product and your expected sales price
• How do you intend to make this environmentally sustainable? – if applicable
• What is the structure you envision for your venture?

40.
Proposal Narrative (cont’d)
Team (half page)
• Who are the key team members and what roles will they play (1-2
• sentence on each)?
• Who will lead the technical and business model development?
• Do you have outside mentors, advisors, and/or partners?
• If your team is working on a technology for low-resource settings in the US or
abroad:
• Identify any partners (individuals, community leaders, nonprofits or
NGOs, etc.) outside of your institution who will provide connections and
access to the field and end-users
• Identify any partners who can help the team commercialize any resulting
technologies
• Explain how the team will address possible language, cultural, and social
barriers.
• Has the team traveled to the community in which you propose to work?

41.
Proposal Narrative (cont’d)
 Work plan and outcomes (1 page)
• Describe your plan for moving forward (from today to initial sales)
• In a table format, list the 10 to 15 high-level steps with a timeline
that will get you from today to readiness for initial sales
• What does success look like and how will you measure it?

42.
Optional: Appendices and
Weblinks
• Up to 5 additional appendices may be included
• May include but not limited to:
• Images demonstrating design and/or technical feasibility
• drawings, photographs, etc.
• A summary of prior art
• Any data collected as part of testing your technology
• Any other relevant supporting materials
• Weblinks
• Links to online articles, videos and/or other relevant online data
• Videos not required, but can help your proposal stand out or
demonstrate how your technology works
Quality > Quantity

43.
Letters of support
 Letters of support demonstrate to reviewers that
there is institutional support for your project
and/or to verify partnerships discussed in your
narrative.
 At least one letter is required as part of your
proposal. You may include up to three total.

44.
Do you have a polished resume?
 Resumes should be no more than three
pages each, and are only required for key
team members, with a maximum of four
resumes included.

45.
PROOFREAD YOUR PROPOSAL!

46.
TOP REASONS FOR
REJECTION
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47.
1. No entrepreneurship (too research-focused,
no path to commercialization/project(s) begin
and end in the classroom)
2. No tech innovation (not convinced it’s new)
3. Too faculty-driven (too little student
involvement or ownership opportunity)
Top Reasons for Rejection

48.
Top Reasons for Rejection
4. No clearly defined social impact
5. Lack of expertise on the team/no relevant
advisors and/or partners
6. Unclear proposal (“ask” isn’t compelling, no
budget justification, too much jargon, sloppy)

49.
Top Reasons for Rejection
7. Not sustainable
7. Not scalable
8. No resulting E-Teams (for faculty grants)
9. No connection to existing resources on
campus (for faculty grants)

50.
CAYDIANCAYDIAN
Lymph/AxisLymph/Axis
COMPANIES FROM E-TEAMS
VentureWell Funded

51.
53
FogKicker is a natural, green anti-fog solution. It
prevents the formation of fog on any surface,
including vehicle windshields, eyewear, mirrors,
windows, and display screens. Made from
Nanocellulose, a wood derived natural
nanomaterial, FogKicker is biodegradable,
biocompatible, and non-toxic.
VentureWell provided Stage 1 and 2 E-Team
training and grants to FogKicker totaling $25,000.
Company: FogKicker
Year Founded: 2016
Sector: Materials
Investment Status: Pre-seed
Product Status: Sales
Geographic Market: USA
E-Team Participation: E1, E2
Yinyong Li,
Co-Founder and CTO
YinYong Li is a PhD candidate at the
Department of Polymer Science and
Engineering at the University of
Massachusetts Amherst.
Li has said that FogKicker creates a film
on a surface that prevents
condensation from beading and
scattering light. Instead, it distributes
light evenly and the user is able to see
more clearly. According to Li, future
markets for the product include 254
million vehicle windshields, 181 million
pairs of glasses and 115 million
household mirrors.
InventorInventionCompany Snapshot

52.
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BioCellection is developing bacteria that can
break down ocean-bound plastic waste. Their
technology then upcycles unrecyclable waste into
valuable products for textiles.
They have a prototype for breaking down
polystyrene into CO2 and water, and see their
technology being used in two ways—first, for
landfill and beach cleanups, and, second, to
create a secondary product to be used in textile
manufacturing.
VentureWell provided Stage 1 and Stage 2 E-Team
training and grants to BioCellection totaling
$25,000.
Company: BioCellection
Year Founded: 2015
Sector: Environment, Life Science
Investment Status: Raised $300k
Product Status: Prototyping
Geographic Market: N. America,
China
E-Team Participation: E1, E2
Miranda Wang, CEO, and
Jeanny Yao, CTO - Co-Founders
Miranda Wang and Jeanny Yao first
worked on the problem of plastic waste
in high school. They have since filed two
patents, founded a company, and raised
about $400,000 from a variety of
sources. They recently graduated from
the University of Pennsylvania and the
University of Toronto respectively.
InventorsInventionCompany Snapshot

53.
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Kinnos prevents the transmission of
infectious diseases by eliminating human
error and empowering healthcare workers
and patients to protect themselves. Their
first product, Highlight, is a patent-
pending powdered additive for
disinfectants that greatly enhances
decontamination. By targeting both
surface decontamination during epidemics
and daily disinfection in hospitals,
laboratories, and government agencies,
Highlight can fundamentally improve the
practice of decontamination and prevent
the transmission of infectious diseases.
VentureWell provided Stage 1, 2 and 3 E-
Team training and grants to Kinnos
totaling $25,000.
Company: Kinnos
Year Founded: 2015
Sector: Healthcare Technology
Investment Status: Seeking
first round investment capital;
USAID funded
Product Status: Sales
Geographic Market: USA
E-Team Participation: E1, E2,
E3-ASPIRE
Jason Kang, Katherine Jin, Kevin
Tyan, Co-Founders
This trio is interested in improving
health care in low-resource
settings by addressing gaps. Their
goal with Kinnos is to improve
disinfection to protect healthcare
workers. They were inspired by
Columbia’s Ebola Design
Challenge in 2014, realizing there
was an opportunity to solve a
pressing need—health care
workers were being infected by
Ebola due to an ineffective
decontamination process.
InventorsInventionCompany Snapshot