ILLINOIS MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE ACADEMY NEW INNOVATION CENTER NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR STARTUP OPPORTUNITIES
Aurora, IL, May 31, 2017—The Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA) is accepting applications for Fox Valley startups to accelerate their product development and time to market. IMSA’s new innovation center, IN2 Steve and Jamie Chen Center for Innovation and Inquiry, is IMSA’s hub for entrepreneurship and provides a unique space to accelerate technology, prototype products, and grow entrepreneurship in the Fox Valley.
LINkubator, hosted by IN2@IMSA and sponsored by First National Bank, is a coworking cohort program. This program focuses on linking startups in the Fox Valley area with IN2’s network of experts and Illinois’ innovation ecosystem. A cohort of tech-enabled and not-for-profit Fox Valley startups will be selected in July with a start date of the end of August.
Also housed at IN2 are two LaunchPads—dedicated workspaces for promising early-stage startup ventures that can leverage IMSA as a testbed. The IN2 EdTech LaunchPad is open to startups aiming to break into the rapidly growing EdTech market. Promising community projects or early ventures that exemplify IMSA’s mission to advance the human condition can apply for incubator space in the IN2 Impact LaunchPad. Each LaunchPad can be closed and secured when not in use and is equipped with a table, two chairs, whiteboard walls and a wall monitor.
Startups selected for either the LINkubator cohort or the Launchpads have the opportunity to partner with IMSA’s highly skilled and tech curious students. In the past five years, IMSA students have provided over 11,000 hours of programming and support for startups at 1871, TechNexus, Matter and the Chicago tech community. Students and educators, not only from IMSA but across the state, contribute to product validation, pilot projects and market research. Startup partners are also able to leverage IMSA’s events, network and marketing channels to build visibility for their product and business.
Interested startups are encouraged to attend an Open House in IN2 at IMSA on Thursday June 8, 2017 from 1:00-6:00 pm. Applications are due July 7, 2017 and can be filled out online. For more information and to apply, visit www.imsa.edu/in2
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Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA)
Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA) is the world’s leading teaching and learning laboratory for imagination and inquiry and an esteemed three-year residential high school. Nearly 700 Illinois 10-12th graders currently live at the academy in Aurora, Illinois. Students hail from across Illinois and are enrolled in tuition-free, rigorous college preparatory classes. Graduates are leaders in the business, education, scientific, and civic sectors.
Notable technology alumni include YouTube Co-Founder Steve Chen, PayPal Co-Creator Yu Pan, Yelp Co-Founder Russell Simmons, SparkNotes and OkCupid Co-Founder Sam Yagan, and Hearsay Social Founder, Clara Shih. IMSA is proud to have been named among the top 40 public and private college preparatory institutions in the world by The Wall Street Journal. It was the 2009 winner of the Intel Schools of Distinction Star Innovator Award and has been profiled by NBC-TV’s Dateline, CNN’s Science and Technology News, USA Today, New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal.
