Inclusive Innovation Funding Supports New Programming for Community Entrepreneurs

The Polsky Exchange is a startup incubator featuring work and meeting spaces, and a full calendar of programming and workshops designed to help entrepreneurs launch and grow their ventures.
The Inclusive Innovation Fund has awarded the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign $50,000 to launch a new program supporting technology commercialization in the community.
A cross-institutional priority coordinated by the University of Chicago’s Office of Civic Engagement and the Office of Science, Innovation, National Labs, and Global Initiatives, the Inclusive Innovation initiative launched the fund in 2023 and has since invested in 16 projects.
The initiative is a partnership between UChicago, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Argonne National Laboratory, and Fermilab National Accelerator Laboratory. It aims to engage local students, educators, and workers and connect them to the city’s growing scientific ecosystem – helping to generate a diverse talent pipeline in the sciences and spur economic growth on the historically under-resourced South Side.
As part of its second year of award granting, the Inclusive Innovation Fund has selected a joint proposal from the Polsky Center and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as one of several projects for investment: The first community-centered program of its kind at either institution, the Innovate2Market program is designed to empower community inventors and innovators to explore the commercial opportunities and impact of their products and ideas.
The five-week program will feature the well-tested elements of the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) I-Corps program, with ongoing wraparound services provided by the Polsky Center’s Exchange, and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Each institution received $25,000, for a combined $50,000 investment.
“The University of Chicago and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have offered effective and impactful NSF I-Corps programs for University researchers for many years. This Inclusive Innovation funding provides an opportunity for community entrepreneurs to access similar market research and customer discovery programming and to test feasibility of ventures built on their inventions and innovations,” said Abigail Ingram, executive director of the Polsky Exchange.
Resources at the Polsky Exchange will include no-cost workspace, access to more than 100 Polsky Center mentors, invitations to events and workshops, as well as access to the Illinois Small Business Development Center and additional cohort-based growth programs.
“We are excited to receive the Inclusive Innovation funding to support equitable economic growth and provide effective ways to address funding disparities. Our dedication to inclusive innovation is matched by our commitment to ongoing community engagement and impactful community initiatives,” said Jed Taylor, assistant dean for innovation and entrepreneurship at the Grainger College of Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will leverage the expertise of its Illinois FAST (Federal and State Technology) Center, the premier resource for innovators seeking SBIR/STTR and other grant funding opportunities, including office hours and services for grant seekers.
“The Innovate2Market program was funded because of their commitment to collaboration across institutions and ability to scale an already exceptional program format to target community members on the South Side,” said Sarah Tinsman, program director for Inclusive Innovation at UChicago. “The Inclusive Innovation initiative aims to create entry points for South Siders to engage with and benefit from the STEM ecosystem growing across our region and we’re excited to see how supporting this program will help more community entrepreneurs seize those opportunities.”
The purpose of the annual Inclusive Innovation Fund is to incentivize academic and community joint partnerships that advance strategies and impact goals outlined in the Inclusive Innovation Blueprint Plan across four pillars: STEM Education, Workforce Development & Employment, Economic Development, and Civic Infrastructure.