The University of Delaware’s Horn Program in Entrepreneurship invites submissions from UD students, faculty, staff and alumni for Hen Hatch 2017, the university’s premier startup funding competition.

Registration and business concept submissions are due Jan. 16, 2017. An outline and suggestions for what to include in the submission are available at the Hen Hatch website.

Participants in Hen Hatch receive guidance, visibility, startup funding and in-kind services to help develop and improve their business concepts.

Last year’s top student team, JADE Biotech, created Chroma, a medical diagnostic device that helps deter theft of liquid narcotics in hospitals.

“Hen Hatch was an invaluable experience for JADE Biotech,” said Elizabeth Soulas of the JADE Biotech team. “From countless mentorship opportunities, to funding that enabled our company to make great progress, we learned a great deal, and we are very grateful to the Horn Program for this opportunity.”

Founder and CEO of Strataca Systems LLC and 1993 alumnus from UD’s College of Health Sciences, John Erbey was selected as the top team from the alumni, faculty and staff track last year for his invention of JuxtaFlow, a treatment for acute kidney injury.

“Hen Hatch assembled a world-class panel of reviewers and judges that took the time to review and ask relevant and impactful questions about my submission,” said Erbey. “That feedback has helped me understand how to better refine my messaging.”

Hen Hatch separates applicants into two tracks:

• A track that is open to undergraduate and graduate students from any UD degree program; and

• A track that is open to UD alumni, faculty and staff.

Timeline

• Nov. 28, Hen Hatch registration opens.

• Jan. 16, registration/submission deadline.

• Feb. 13, notification of semifinalists.

• March 10, semifinal round, students, 10 most promising student teams pitch to a panel of entrepreneurs and investors at the Venture Development Center.

• March 17, semifinal round, faculty and staff, 10 most promising alumni, faculty and staff teams pitch to a panel of entrepreneurs and investors at the Venture Development Center.

• April 25, final round, top three teams from each track pitch in front of a panel of judges and audience at World Café Live at the Queen in Wilmington, Delaware.

Those with questions about Hen Hatch can write to hornprogram@udel.edu.

About the Horn Program in Entrepreneurship

The Horn Program in Entrepreneurship ignites imaginations and empowers world changers through educational offerings that emphasize experiential learning, evidence-based entrepreneurship and active engagement with entrepreneurs and other members of the broader entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Through participation in Horn Program offerings, students gain the knowledge, skills, personal capacities, experiences, connections and access to resources needed to successfully manifest innovation and thrive in the rapidly changing world.