News Release

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March 8, 2005

TECHCONNECT Program At Boise State To Be Featured At National Business Conference

Editor�s note: Entrepreneurship and economic development are hot topics during this legislative session. Norris Krueger, a Boise State University entrepreneurship professor, will serve as a panelist for Monday�s national conference. Krueger heads up the TEAMS program at Boise State that utilizes teams of students to help technology companies and encourage economic development. Krueger also teaches a new class at Boise State this spring that takes entrepreneurs through the steps necessary to turn their ideas into businesses. He can be reached at 426-3573 or nkrueger@boisestate.edu.

The TechConnect program, headquartered locally at Boise State University, has been recognized by the Small Business Administration for its work with entrepreneurship and technology. Idaho�s program was one of 19 programs in the country to be honored for best practices in market-based initiatives that spur entrepreneurship and economic growth.

TechConnect representatives will present their successes and be eligible for one of four national �best practices� awards during �Putting it Together: The Role of Entrepreneurship in Economic Development,� a one-day national conference on Monday, March 7, in Washington, D.C.

TechConnect�s selection was based on a statewide effort to implement strategies from the Idaho Science and Technology Strategic Plan, according to Rick Ritter, TechConnect coordinator.

One of TechConnect�s successes for the past the year included TechLaunch 1.0 in June. Six technology companies from around the state had their business plans and presentations reviewed during the workshop. Since participating, three of the companies have received a total of $3 million in investment, Ritter said.

TechConnect began in 2002. It is a statewide effort with offices in Post Falls, Idaho Falls and serving southwestern Idaho from the TECenter on the Boise State University-West campus in Nampa. The program works hand-in-hand with the TEAMS program at Boise State that utilizes teams of students to assist entrepreneurs.

TechConnect is the state�s only public/private organization focusing solely on technology, its development, transfer, commercialization and impact on the state�s economy. TechConnect receives its primary funding from the Idaho National Laboratory. It is a partnership between Boise State, the Boise State College of Business and Economics, the Idaho Small Business Development Center and the TECenter, with additional support from the Inland Northwest Research Alliance.

The March 7 conference is co-sponsored by the Office of Advocacy of the Small Business Administration, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the Council of State Governments and the National Lieutenant Governors Association.

The conference will explore the key role that entrepreneurship and market-based solutions play in state, regional and local economic development. Best practice winners will show others �how it is done� and encourage promotion of entrepreneurship across the states.

For more information on the conference, visit www.sba.gov/advo/research/conference.html. Details about TechConnect can be found at www.bsutecenter.org.

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Contact: Rick Ritter, TechConnect coordinator, (208) 426-3870, rritter@boisestate.edu     

Media Contact: Sherry Squires, communications and marketing, (208) 426-1563, ssquires@boisestate.edu

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Last reviewed on Thursday, December 22, 2005