IN the news John Wheatly 1926-2012
John Joseph Wheatley, Professor Emeritus of the University of Washington School of Business, passed away at his home on June 28, 2012. Professor Wheatley was born in Birr, County Offaly, Ireland on May 23, 1926 and grew up in New York City. He served in the US Navy during World War II, and subsequently in the US Naval Reserve, retiring at the rank of Lieutenant in 1986. After receiving his Bachelor’s degree from Harvard University, he obtained his MBA and PhD from SUNY-Buffalo, where he was also an assistant dean. He was assistant professor at the University of Rochester from 1959-60 and came to the University of Washington in 1960. He chaired the Marketing and International Business Department from 1986-1990 and retired from the UW in 1999. Professor Wheatley once said that he enjoyed almost every day of his career and found teaching very satisfying. n
8 fo s t e r B USI N ESS
Ready, Go! New Accelerator seed fund helps student start-ups Student-led start-ups are delicate. They require nourishment, encouragement, favorable market conditions, even luck. Seed funding can make or break them. Enter the Foster School’s new Accelerator program. Foster’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) is giving student start-ups more seed funding, advisory board mentoring and office space at a time when their early-stage venture could launch or fail. Through the Jones Milestone Achievement Award combined with a new Foster Accelerator Award, students who participated in a recent UW Business Plan Competition, UW Environmental Innovation Challenge or UW entrepreneurship class can qualify for seed funding. In the past three years, nearly $350,000 has been doled out to the most motivated entrepreneurs. “We are guiding start-ups to transition from being student teams to start-up teams. It’s a squirrely time. This is what will help them go forward,” says Connie Bourassa-Shaw, CIE director. This new award is a true start-up engine for the region. While competitions and classes give students skills, experience, guidance and testing opportunities, Accelerator awardees are hand-selected by a committee of powerhouse Seattle VCs and have explicit milestones they must achieve over six months. Cadence Biomedical, a UW student-led biotech company that helps the disabled walk again, is one of the biggest Accelerator success stories. They received seed funding in 2010, achieved their milestone goals and raised an additional $1.1 million. Another success is Stockbox Grocers, a Bainbridge Graduate Institute MBA-led company that provides fresh groceries and produce in urban food deserts. They offer a modern, often organic alternative to the neighborhood mini mart. Stockbox won second prize and best service idea in the 2011 Business Plan Competition and advanced their start-up through a crowd-funding campaign and $25,000 Accelerator award. In 2012, they won more awards, received press coverage from the New York Times and the White House blog and are working on more investment sources to scale the business. n