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Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grants are key ways that university spinouts and innovation firms fund the early development and commercialization of their technologies. To highlight the strategic use of these programs, the Center for Translational Research holds dynamic conferences featuring experts across the Colorado and national innovation ecosystem.

2024 SBIR/STTR Week

April 1-4, noon-1:30 p.m. MT
Virtual Event

Features Jeanne Barthold (Center for Translational Research) and Tim Morrissey (Venture Partners Entrepreneur-in-Residence for the Ascent Deep Tech Accelerator) as well as agency representatives from the National Science Foundation (NSF), Department of Energy (DOE), National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

Attendees must register in advance for the showcase. Log in to your Eventbrite account to check or edit your registration.

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Full Schedule

Day 1: Monday, April 1, noon-1:30 p.m. MT

Intro to the SBIR/STTR Programs and Founder Panel

The SBIR program has been called the largest seed funding program in the world, but why and how do you leverage this resource? Join Venture Partners and the Center for Translational Research (CTR) to learn about SBIR/STTR funding and how to compile a winning proposal. 

To kick off the virtual lunchtime conference series, we will hear a brief introduction on SBIR/STTR awards and who should apply, hear from Tim Morrissey on how to find the right solicitation for your company, and then learn from a panel of founders who have leveraged SBIR funding to grow their ventures. They will give us their founder perspectives on the advantages and strategies around company growth with both dilutive and non-dilutive capital and how best to leverage your SBIR when looking for investment. 


Day 2: Tuesday, April 2, noon-1:30 p.m. MT

SBIR/STTR Proposal Writing: Building Blocks for a Winning Proposal

The practice of winning SBIR/STTR grants is honed over time and is entirely unique from what is needed to win an academic grant. We can jumpstart this process with wisdom and best practices from established winners of SBIR/STTR funding. 

What are the best ways to prepare for a strong SBIR and how can you best use all the supplemental documents in the application to strengthen your story? The proposal (for all federal agencies) is a mixture of a technical proposal, a commercialization plan and numerous supplemental documents outlining the project, the company and the ecosystem surrounding the company. 

In this session, we focus on how to best prepare and communicate the strengths of your company, technology, product, team, business development strategy and future direction. The session will include advice and actions to consider before writing the grant, as well as tips on crafting the narrative to highlight your progress, innovation and commercial activities within the grant. 


Day 3: Wednesday, April 3, noon-1:30 p.m. MT

Ask the Source: Meet SBIR/STTR Agency Representatives—National Science Foundation (NSF) and Department of Energy (DOE)

Hear directly from the SBIR Program Managers from numerous federal agencies. This session will include a presentation from the program managers, followed by ample open question-and-answer time for you to ask each agency your specific questions. This is a discussion around the unwritten best practices and tips for navigating a successful SBIR grant in each target agency.


Day 4: Thursday, April 4, noon-1:30 p.m. MT

Ask the Source: Meet SBIR/STTR Agency Representatives—National Institutes of Health (NIH and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Hear directly from the SBIR Program Managers from numerous federal agencies. This session will include a presentation from the program managers, followed by ample open question-and-answer time for you to ask each agency your specific questions. This is a discussion around the unwritten best practices and tips for navigating a successful SBIR grant in each target agency.


Bios of Guest Speakers

Kimberly Drennan, AIA LEED AP, CEO at HiveTech Solutions

HiveTech Solutions offers a comprehensive healthcare system for honeybees. Combining our expertise in design, engineering, biology and technology, they have developed and deployed a mobile apiary and network of smart beehives to improve honeybee health.

Levin Slicker, Co-founder and CEO at Point Designs

Point Designs is dedicated to developing and producing durable partial hand prostheses. Our flagship product is a strong, durable, and lightweight full finger prosthesis. The Point Digit articulates anatomically, is robust, and can be positioned unilaterally. Today we offer a suite of partial hand prosthesis products, including the Point Digit and Point Partial. 

Murad Kablan, PhD

Fascinated by solving complex challenges, Murad completed his PhD in Computer Science from the University of Colorado Boulder. Murad’s groundbreaking research on software defined networking became the patent and technology that underpins Stateless, a tech company focused on developing hybrid multi-cloud network solutions. Before founding Stateless, Murad helped design and build one of the first virtual routers while at AT&T. He also developed a scalable switching solution while working at IBM. Murad received his Master’s Degree at WPI and studied Leadership and Management at the London School of Economics. In addition to running Stateless, Murad enjoys advising early stage founders and serves as a guest lecturer at the University of Colorado. Murad also is a member of the Mile High Rottweiler Club and trains his dog in IGP dog sports

Michaël Hemmer, PhD

Michaël graduated with a Masters degree in engineering from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Physique de Marseille (France). He graduated with a PhD in Optics in 2011 from the University of Central Florida working on the development of ultrafast nonlinear amplifiers for high field physics applications. He then was a post-doctoral associate and later a research fellow at the Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO) in Barcelona, Spain. There he worked on the development of long wavelength, ultrafast lasers. These lasers have been used for high harmonic generation into the soft X-ray region and for ultrafast electron diffraction experiments. He then moved to the Deutsches Elektronen Synchrotron (DESY), in Hamburg, Germany as a researcher and worked on the development of laser driven electron gun and electron accelerators with the ultimate goal of providing an all-laser driven hard X-ray source. He joined the KM group at JILA in the summer of 2018 and has since then been working on developing a mid-IR laser facility to drive high harmonics into the soft X-ray with stability compatible with challenging experiments.

Tanya Ennis, PhD; Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Research, Creative Work and Innovation

Tanya is the director of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in research, innovation and creative work. With 14 years of DEI and engineering education experience at CU Boulder, Tanya serves as the strategic lead for programs integrating DEI within the research, creative work and innovation ecosystem of the university. As funding agencies require DEI plans, Tanya’s leadership and expertise support researchers authentically respond to DEI proposal questions and requirements. Reach out to Tanya for DEI grant questions; ways to integrate DEI within research, creative work and innovation; and establishing, implementing and achieving campus and unit-level DEI plans.

Dr. Tanya Davis Ennis is also the owner of the Ennis Consulting and Research Group, LLC. Dr. Ennis consults on a variety of topics including engineerin g education, STEM education, diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice, to name a few. Additionally, Dr. Ennis conducts both quantitative and qualitative research and is an expert in the Qualitative Comparative Analysis research method. She is also a trained Qualified Administrator for the Intercultural Development Inventory, a tool that assesses intercultural competence. 

Eileen Chant, DOE

Eileen Chant joined the DOE as the Outreach Program Manager at the Office of SBIR/STTR Programs in 2020. Eileen is a Mechanical Engineer with over 25 years of experience. Her engineering experience encompasses diverse energy technologies including novel cooling and dehumidification processes, fossil and nuclear power, pressure vessel technology and hydrogen storage. She also has over a decade of experience aiding startup companies with technology evaluation and grant writing. Eileen has extensive experience in Knowledge Management and as a Director with non-profit engineering and other volunteer associations.  She received her PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology.

Henry Ahn, NSF

Henry Ahn joined the U.S. National Science Foundation as an SBIR/STTR program director in 2016. Prior to joining NSF, Henry managed seed and early stage investment programs for TEDCO for 12 years including the Technology Commercialization Fund, its flagship seed funding program for technology-based companies in Maryland. During his time at TEDCO, Henry mentored numerous entrepreneurs and was a guest speaker at entrepreneur support groups. He also served as an advisory board member and a judge. Additionally, Henry was part of the licensing/supplier relations team at a biotechnology company called Upstate, where he successfully negotiated, licensed and commercialized approximately 190 biomedical research reagents from around the world. Henry’s background also includes five years of research, primarily in the field of immunology. Henry has an MBA from Rice University, a master's in biotechnology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and a bachelor's in biomedical engineering from Boston University.

Mayra Alvarez, NIH, NCATS

Mayra Alvarez Lopez is the program analyst in NCATS’ Office of Strategic Alliances (OSA), where she supports program activities for OSA as well as for the NCATS Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs. In addition, Alvarez Lopez works on behalf of the OSA director to execute special projects and other high-profile deliverables as needed. In consultation with OSA staff, Alvarez Lopez initiates and prepares the execution of agreements (e.g., Confidential Disclosure Agreements and Material Transfer Agreements) for discussion with potential partners seeking to collaborate with NCATS. Alvarez Lopez joined OSA in March 2015; she has been with NCATS since its inception in December 2011 and with NIH since February 2011. 
Alvarez Lopez received her bachelor’s degree in government and international politics — with a concentration in international policy — and her master’s degree in organizational development and knowledge management at George Mason University in Arlington, Virginia

Monique Pond, PhD; NIH, NCI

Dr. Monique Pond is a Program Director in the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Development Center at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). She manages a portfolio of grants and contracts to small businesses developing novel cancer therapeutics, digital health technologies, and therapeutic devices. Monique leads the CARE program, Connecting Awardees with Regulatory Experts, and other collaborative initiatives with FDA to assist small businesses in navigating the regulatory pathway for their technology. She initially joined the NCI SBIR Development Center in 2018 as a Science & Technology Policy Fellow with the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Prior to joining NCI, Monique spent several years as a regulatory medical writer and consultant at a small start-up where she provided clients with regulatory support for FDA, EMA, and other country submissions. She was awarded a National Research Council Fellowship at the National Institute of Standards and Technology where her postdoctoral research focused on the development of bioanalytical tools. Monique earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from the Pennsylvania State University and a B.S. in chemistry from the University of Texas at Austin.

Keith Woodman, Ph.D.; NASA

Dr. Keith Woodman is NASA’s SBIR operations manager for the agency’s Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. He began his career at NASA in 1988 and spent the first part of his career developing technologies for many of NASA’s aeronautic, science, and spaceflight projects. He has a passion for helping people who are developing technologies succeed, especially small companies. He led the design and integration of a hydrogen leak detection system onto the Discovery Space Shuttle, and he is the co-inventor of a patented and licensed data acquisition system for vehicles and structures. Since transitioning from systems development, his career has been dedicated to technology assessment and management for many of NASA’s major programs. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Physics from Christopher Newport University; a Masters of Engineering Management from George Washington University, concentrating in technology assessment; and a Doctorate from Old Dominion University for Engineering Management, concentrating in complex systems analysis and development. In addition, since 2011, he has also served as an adjunct professor for the American Public University System’s Space Studies Department where he has taught over 70 graduate-level classes.
 


2024 SBIR/STTR Day

Please check back soon for details about our next SBIR/STTR Day happening in Fall 2024. Sign Up for Updates