Entrepreneurship

Planning to hit the slopes this winter? Check out SnowSense, an iPhone and iPad app recently launched by Joe Wright--a first-year MBA candidate affiliated with the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship--and his partner Max Lansing, a software developer with a background in geography. Because SnowSense's updates are based on a unique algorithm of real-time data on weather, snow quantity, and snow quality, users see not just how much snow there is currently and how much is expected, but whether the snow is wet, dry, and so forth.

On December 2, three teams of entrepreneurially minded business students vied for the top spot in the final round of the Lundquist College's annual graduate-level Venture Quest Investment Competition. At stake were cash prizes and the chance to receive valuable feedback from top Northwest business professionals. This year's winners were MBA students James Collins, Peter Philbrick, Dan Richmond, and Bryan Schoen, whose Hawk Mobility Systems provides an innovative solution for moving patients.

"Top notch"--that's what US News & World Report's college guide called our business program in a recent article on the University of Oregon. (The Lillis Business Complex and its solar panels were also singled out for special mention.) Meanwhile, The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur ranked the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship among the nation's top twenty-five for graduate-level entrepreneurship education--making this the fourth time in the past five years the center has been numbered among this elite group.

From vision to Venture Quest to reality—that's the course charted by sisters Lindsey and Sydney Swing and their start-up company Swing Mobility Aids, LLC. Their product? A souped-up walker geared to disabled youths and adults, as well as active seniors. After learning about the many injuries caused by devices currently on the market, current UO business major Lindsey sketched out a better product. Next, she and her sister Sydney—a UO alum—interviewed people currently using mobility aids.

Don Upson is quick to give all the credit to his students, but it's no coincidence that year after year his students launch successful startups. The success of Shady Peeps, FloraGenex, Perpetua Power, Innovative Sports Strategies, Sunburst, and dozens more is a testament to Don's teaching, dedication, and mentorship. In recognition of Upson's contributions to advancing the economic vitality of the state, the reputation of the college, and the lives of students, the college has honored Upson as the 2011 Thomas C. Stewart Distinguished Professor. Congratulations Don.

Cash prizes, plus the opportunity to get real-world feedback from area business leaders—these were the awards teams of entrepreneurship students competed for in the annual graduate Venture Quest this past December. Each team's presentation was followed by a rapid-fire Q&A with contest judges. The winning project? VisiRay, a unique pest-detection technology presented by Walther Buecklers, Andrew Cook, Matt Eskue, and Orit Ofr. Runner-up was ShadyPeeps, a student-launched company that has already sold 3,500 pairs of university-themed sunglasses.

You developed a potential life-saving technology. Now, you have to get it to market. Roger Newton, codiscoverer of Lipitor, shared his insights on the trials and tribulations of technology commercialization with students and faculty across campus on October 21. Newton was the first invited speaker for the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship's new Distinguished Lecture Series.