innovationIOWA Weekly 9.17.20

IN THE NEWS

Million Girls Moonshot awards Iowa network $50,000
The STEM Next Opportunity Fund announced a multiyear $50,000 grant to the Iowa Afterschool Alliance as part of the Million Girls Moonshot, an initiative launched by the Intel Foundation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. The effort is designed to engage 1 million school-age girls in the U.S. in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) learning opportunities over the next five years. The Iowa Afterschool Alliance will use funds to create an online repository of STEM lessons with a focus on engineering and equity, as well as provide professional development opportunities to further educate after-school sites on implementing more STEM learning.

"The Million Girls Moonshot provides an extraordinary opportunity for after-school programs in Iowa to make an enormous impact on the lives of all our youth, and particularly our girls," said Iowa Network Lead Britney Samuelson. "The future economy of our state and our nation will rely heavily on the STEM fields, and after-school programs are uniquely situated to help prepare our youth for those career opportunities."

Led by STEM Next Opportunity Fund, the Million Girls Moonshot will tap a range of funding and programmatic partners, including NASA, Qualcomm, Technovation, STEMconnector, National Girls Collaborative Project, Jobs for the Future, Techbridge Girls and Lyda Hill Philanthropies. The Million Girls Moonshot is providing the Iowa Afterschool Alliance and other state after-school networks with technical assistance, educational resources, access to Intel’s She Will Connect partners and mentorship from STEM experts including Intel employee volunteers.

Venture School begins with new partnerships, opens applications
The University of Iowa’s Venture School, developed by the John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center (Iowa JPEC), is expanding to Mason City, Cedar Falls, Iowa City and Des Moines next month, the Venture School announced this week. JPEC centers at the Northern Iowa Area Community College, the University of Northern Iowa, Drake University and the Small Business Development Centers at University of Iowa and Kirkwood Community College will be offering the seven-week program, which was built from a streamlined curriculum developed by the National Science Foundation I-Corps at Stanford University and the University of California. Venture School is accepting applications to participate in the fall 2020 program. Applications and more information are available online.

Ames Seed Capital names new director
Mike Upah has been named the director of Ames Seed Capital, an organization that provides seed funding for startup companies in the Story County area. According to a news release from the Ames Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Commission, Upah began his new duties last month. He will oversee and manage all Ames Seed Capital operations. In the news release, Upah said Ames Seed Capital, an affiliate of the Ames Chamber of Commerce, is a "tremendous resource for entrepreneurs in Central Iowa, not just a source of capital, but also through the ability to access talents and experience and investors in the fund." Upah has previously worked with the Iowa State University Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship, helping startup companies obtain funding from Ames Seed Capital. He concurrently serves as chief financial officer of iSeek Corp., leading the company’s finance and strategic business efforts. Upah takes over the role of director from John Hall, who moved to Ames Main Street, another Chamber-affiliated organization, as a part of various internal moves and reductions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, chamber officials said.

U.S. Cellular expands 5G network in more central Iowa locations
U.S. Cellular has expanded access to the company’s 5G network for 19 communities in central Iowa, the company announced Wednesday. Customers in parts of Ackworth, Albion, Attica, Bevington, Cedar, Clutier, Cooper, Cumming, De Soto, Fontanelle, Hartwick, Lincoln, Lynnville, Malcolm, Martensdale, Pleasant Hill, St. Charles, St. Marys and Spring Hill can now access 5G coverage along with more than 40 other communities in central Iowa that began receiving service earlier this year. In 2019, U.S. Cellular invested nearly $74 million in 5G upgrades to enhance the network for Iowa residents.

Healthtech company Navigate Wellbeing offering free access to speaker series
Des Moines-based Navigate Wellbeing Solutions is offering access to a 10-part virtual speaker series free to the public and has created Project Care, a suite of resources including virtual care packages and additional client resources for employers seeking to address mental health care of employees, the company announced this week. The speaker series launched on July 30 and continues until Dec. 3. Speakers, registration and more information are available online.

Dwolla announces Push-to-Debit payout product
A new product launched by Dwolla this week allows businesses fast payouts to customer debit cards, the company announced. The Push-to-Debit payment functionality for Dwolla customers allows businesses to access a programmable payments infrastructure for bank-to-bank transfers and offers a disbursement option for payments to be sent to a user’s debit card. More information is available online.

ONE GOOD TECH READ
This entrepreneur is proving philanthropy and profit can coexist

ENTREPRENEUR: Dominic Kalms never had any interest in becoming an entrepreneur. "For 30 years, my father asked me what I wanted to do and I always said doctor or lawyer, engineer, something with a little bit more stability in my life," he told Entrepreneur. "But ultimately I became an entrepreneur because I saw a critical problem and there was simply no solution. And the problem was not an insignificant problem. It was a problem about accessing philanthropic capital and generating philanthropic capital, which is a massive industry in the United States, and more importantly, there's a massive need for it."

IN OTHER NEWS: Gen Zers carving a new path to tech entrepreneurship on Discord (NEW YORK TIMES); Meanwhile, Facebook reinvented original Facebook (MIT TECHNOLOGY REVIEW); Just after film trailers for ‘Dune’ were released last week, NASA announces it’s looking for private companies to help mine the moon (WASHINGTON POST).

By Joe Gardyasz | Senior Staff Writer

Drake University officials announced on Sept. 1 the founding of a new two-year college — the John Dee Bright College at Drake University. It’s the first new college to launch at Drake in more than 70 years, with an approach that Drake leaders say will reimagine the two-year college experience.

The new college will offer two tracks for its associate degree programs, one in the integrated arts, sciences and humanities, and one in business, organization and professional studies. In the planning stages for more than the past year, the Bright College will welcome its first students in the fall 2021 semester.

With an annual tuition set at $18,500, the program is designed to encourage greater diversity by attracting qualified students who may not have considered Drake attainable, whether for cultural, economic or other reasons.

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BUSINESS RECORD CALENDAR
UPCOMING EVENTS

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Sept. 26: IowAsia Business Summit
For the past six years, IowAsia has brought together strategic partners to help facilitate business and investment opportunities between Iowa and Asia. IAA has worked with member Asian community associations to bring their consul generals and/or their economic teams to the event as well as collaboration with the Iowa Economic Development Authority, Greater Des Moines Partnership, and US Commercial Service Iowa to invite local businesses interested in exploring, establishing, or expanding business relations in Asia.
WHEN: 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
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