INDIANAPOLIS (Nov. 22, 2021) – Elevate Ventures has awarded a total of $164,000 in grants to 11 organizations across Indiana to enable expanding entrepreneurship programming. The grants represent 10% of the total $1,640,000 in startup investments made through the seven Elevate Nexus Pitch Competitions during the past year. The organizations are identified by startups during the Nexus Pitch Competition application process.
One of the 11 recipients is Purdue University, which plans to use its grant to support Boost, a new accelerator program for startups.
“The Elevate Nexus program is a vital part of the state of Indiana’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. At Purdue, we count on it to provide funding that allows us to offer services that will move our companies closer to being fundable so that they can make an impact on the world,” said Bill Arnold, assistant vice president of Purdue Research Foundation. “This year, we are using the funds to launch our new accelerator program, Boost, which aims to take up to ten companies forward in their funding journey.”
Organizations receiving grants:
- DePauw University, Greencastle
- Dimension Mill, Bloomington
- Indiana University, Bloomington
- IUPUI, Indianapolis
- Orr Fellowship, Indianapolis
- Purdue University, West Lafayette
- Purdue University–Northwest, Hammond
- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Terre Haute
- Startup South Bend-Elkhart, South Bend
- TechPoint, Indianapolis
- University of Notre Dame, South Bend
The new round is the second set of grants Elevate has distributed.
“This funding is designed to encourage organizations and higher education institutions to support and foster entrepreneurial activity in their backyard,” said Landon Young, executive director of university initiatives at Elevate Ventures. “This brings our total grant distribution in the past two years to $328,000 and we remain excited to see what many of them continue to do with the funds.”
Elevate Nexus is funded by a grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration and the 21st Century Research and Technology Fund (21 Fund). Several grant and investment programs managed by Elevate Ventures, including Elevate Nexus, are supported by the 21 Fund under the Indiana Economic Development Corporation.
