Engineering students Zumwalt, Rice and Olusola bring home Governor's Cup Honors

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University of Oklahoma student teams won top honors, including the OG&E Positive Energy Award, at the 2011 Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup Collegiate Business Plan Competition in Oklahoma City on April 14. Students from OU’s Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth and the Price College of Business spent months developing business plans for real-world technologies that hope to create jobs for the state of Oklahoma.

"This sweeping victory in the Governor's Cup Competition is another example of OU's national leadership in business and entrepreneurship education in practical programs,” said OU President David L. Boren. “On behalf of the OU family, I congratulate all students who are members of our championship teams," he said.

Almost 40 teams from college campuses across the state were given the opportunity to write business plans and make a pitch for investments that can be used to implement their ideas. These teams competed for more than $120,000 in cash and prizes in the seventh annual Governor’s Cup competition, and OU teams swept the competition.

Simtra Tools was named the winner of the $7,000 OG&E Positive Energy Award, recognizing the team that developed the best business plan around energy generation, conservation, new delivery methods or other technology to enhance efficient energy use. Their plan focused around a technology that provides utility linemen a versatile tool called TrueTight that helps them easily tighten power lines to the correct tension without carrying more cumbersome and expensive equipment. The team was comprised of Brandon Mikael, team leader, and Matthew Huber and mentored by their Faculty Advisor Dr. Lowell Busenitz, Academic Director for the Center for Entrepreneurship in OU’s Price College.

Undergraduate Division winner was LumiDX, which developed a business plan around a novel diagnostic test, which detects up to five indications of upper respiratory infections in just 30 minutes. LumiDX team members were entrepreneurship senior Amy Henderson, team leader, Ashley Zumwalt, Mimi Nguyen and Kaelyn Lu. Jim Wheeler, Executive Director for the Center for Entrepreneurship in the Price College of Business was their faculty advisor. Team member Ashley Zumwalt was also awarded the Oklahoma Business Roundtable Paulsen Award Scholarship.

Lucas Rice was named as a 2011 i2E Fellow.

Winning first place in the Graduate Division was OU team CerebroGen Pharmaceuticals. The team’s plan was built around a new antibody-based drug treatment for epilepsy. CerebroGen was led by Entrepreneurship and Venture Management senior, Benjamin West, and comprised of Chase Roberts, Tobi Olusola, and Majed Gharfeh. The team’s Faculty advisor was Elaine Hamm, Director for the Office of Technology Development.

“We are so proud of all the OU teams. All their hard work and dedication has paid off,” said Jeff Moore, Executive Director of the Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth.

The teams are sponsored by OU’s Price College of Business and the Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth. The Price College of Business’ Entrepreneurship program was ranked 15th in the nation according to U.S. News & World. OU’s Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth provides an interdisciplinary environment for researchers, entrepreneurs, and students to collaborate in growing and diversifying Oklahoma’s economy through the nurturing of technology-based enterprises.

The goal of the Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup Collegiate Business Plan Competition is to encourage students of Oklahoma universities and colleges to act upon their entrepreneurial ideas and develop skills to lead tomorrow's innovative new businesses. The business plan competition is in its seventh year.

Tobi Olusola is a senior industrial engineering/pre-pharmacy major. Ashley Zumwalt is a senior petroleum engineering major. Lucas Rice is a senior industrial engineering major.

Read more: http://newsok.com/top-business-plans-in-oklahoma-governors-cup-competition-recognized-at-awards-dinner/article/3558558#ixzz1K1TmK5rn

Read more: http://oudaily.com/news/2011/apr/18/ou-snatches-first-place-business-competition/

Like the Donald W. Reynolds Governors Cup Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/OKGOVCUP#!/photo.php?fbid=10150159041223668&set=a.383151738667.162742.217510388667&type=1&theater

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