Nomination Deadline July 15
The University of Tennessee Research Foundation is pleased to announce that nominations for the B. Otto and Kathleen Wheeley award for excellence in technology transfer are now being accepted. Recent winners include Gabor Tigyi, Tami Wyatt, J. Douglas Birdwell, Tsewei Wang, and Dr. Edward Chaum.
The B. Otto and Kathleen Wheeley Award is given to a University of Tennessee faculty member, graduate student, medical and/or pharmacy resident, or post-doc who excels in the commercialization of university-based research results. The B. Otto and Kathleen Wheeley Foundation provides the award stipend, through an endowment fund which was established in 1989. The award is specifically intended to recognize faculty who take a direct and active role in the commercialization process. Criteria for the award include:
- The technological and/or scientific significance of the invention
- The market success of the product or process
- The degree of active involvement of the nominee in the commercialization process
- The nominee’s overall contribution to the University’s missions of teaching, research and service
Otto Wheeley, a University of Tennessee graduate, was deputy chair of the Koppers Company and President of Kopvenco, a venture capital subsidiary of Koppers in the early 1980s. Eager to promote technological entrepreneurs in Tennessee, he returned to the state and founded Venture First Associations, Inc., and formed a close alliance with his alma mater to promote the commercialization of university-developed research.
There will be a $5,000 award given in 2015.
The deadline for submission is: July 15, 2015
Send nominations to:
UT Research Foundation, attn. Stacey Patterson
600 Henley Street, Suite 211/UT Conference Center
Knoxville, TN 37996-4122
sspatter@utk.edu
Nominations must include the nominee’s curriculum vitae and a two-page description of their technology transfer achievements. The technology transfer description must include: the company (or companies) that have licensed the technology; information on the market to which the product is directed and its success in the market place; the innovative/unique qualities of the product or process and its benefits to society; and, the nominee’s active and direct involvement in commercialization process.
The award will be given in the fall of 2015.