Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship
Encyclopedia
The Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship is an entrepreneurship program at Rice University
in Houston, Texas
, United States
. The mission of the Rice Alliance is to provide entrepreneurship
education and support the commercialization of technology and non-technology innovations and the creation of new companies in Texas
, specifically the Houston region.
The Rice Alliance was launched in 1999 as a strategic alliance of three schools at Rice University: the George R. Brown School of Engineering
, the Wiess School of Natural Sciences
, and the Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Management
(Jones School).
Ernst & Young
presented the Rice Alliance with the Entrepreneur of the Year Award for support of entrepreneurship in 2005. Small Times magazine (nanotechnology trade) ranked Rice University #1 in the U.S. among all universities in 2005 and #3 in 2006 in the commercialization of nanotechnology and creation of start-up technology companies.
In 2004, the Rice Alliance was awarded the Price Institute Innovation Entrepreneurship Educators Award by the Stanford Technology Ventures Program at Stanford University.
The Rice Alliance assists companies in several ways, including:
In total, more than 500 early-stage technology companies have been showcased at one of the Rice Alliance Technology Venture Forums. These companies include both Rice-affiliated and non-Rice affiliated ventures. Approximately 25 start-ups licensing Rice-developed technology innovations have been founded in the last eight years. These diverse companies stem from energy technology, life sciences, information technology, and nanotechnology. Four Rice University start-up companies were among the first six companies in Houston to receive grant funding from the Emerging Technology Fund from the state of Texas.
The Rice Alliance’s flagship program to encourage collaboration and networking among students, investors, entrepreneurs, mentors, and service providers is the Technology Venture Forum series. Each year, four venture capital forums are held in the following areas:
In Fall 2007, in partnership with the Rice Executive Education program , the Rice Alliance initiated a new intensive Life Science Entrepreneurship Certificate Program.
Rice University
William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University or Rice, is a private research university located on a heavily wooded campus in Houston, Texas, United States...
in Houston, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The mission of the Rice Alliance is to provide entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship is the act of being an entrepreneur, which can be defined as "one who undertakes innovations, finance and business acumen in an effort to transform innovations into economic goods". This may result in new organizations or may be part of revitalizing mature organizations in response...
education and support the commercialization of technology and non-technology innovations and the creation of new companies in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, specifically the Houston region.
The Rice Alliance was launched in 1999 as a strategic alliance of three schools at Rice University: the George R. Brown School of Engineering
George R. Brown School of Engineering
The George R. Brown School of Engineering is an academic school at Rice University in Houston, Texas. It contains the departments of Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering and Biomolecular Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Computational and Applied Mathematics, Computer Science,...
, the Wiess School of Natural Sciences
Wiess School of Natural Sciences
The Wiess School of Natural Sciences is an academic school at Rice University in Houston, Texas. It contains the departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Chemistry, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Earth Science, Mathematics, Physics and Astronomy. Rice is well-known for its groundbreaking...
, and the Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Management
Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Management
The Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business is one of the academic units of Rice University in Houston, Texas. Named in honor of the late Jesse Holman Jones, a prominent Houston business and civic leader, the school received its initial funding in 1974 through a major gift from the Houston...
(Jones School).
Recent history
In 2007, the Rice Alliance was recognized as the Top Entrepreneurship Center in the U.S. for Enterprise Creation by the Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers.Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young is one of the largest professional services networks in the world and one of the "Big Four" accountancy firms, along with Deloitte, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers ....
presented the Rice Alliance with the Entrepreneur of the Year Award for support of entrepreneurship in 2005. Small Times magazine (nanotechnology trade) ranked Rice University #1 in the U.S. among all universities in 2005 and #3 in 2006 in the commercialization of nanotechnology and creation of start-up technology companies.
In 2004, the Rice Alliance was awarded the Price Institute Innovation Entrepreneurship Educators Award by the Stanford Technology Ventures Program at Stanford University.
Outreach & economic development
Since inception in 1999, the Rice Alliance has assisted in the launch of more than 225 start-up technology companies that have raised more than $350 million in early stage funding. The Rice Alliance has conducted over 90 programs attended by over 22,000 individuals during the first six years.The Rice Alliance assists companies in several ways, including:
- Assessing the commercial potential of new technologies
- Creating business plans
- Developing venture presentations and elevator pitches
- Obtaining funding
- Building their management team
In total, more than 500 early-stage technology companies have been showcased at one of the Rice Alliance Technology Venture Forums. These companies include both Rice-affiliated and non-Rice affiliated ventures. Approximately 25 start-ups licensing Rice-developed technology innovations have been founded in the last eight years. These diverse companies stem from energy technology, life sciences, information technology, and nanotechnology. Four Rice University start-up companies were among the first six companies in Houston to receive grant funding from the Emerging Technology Fund from the state of Texas.
The Rice Alliance’s flagship program to encourage collaboration and networking among students, investors, entrepreneurs, mentors, and service providers is the Technology Venture Forum series. Each year, four venture capital forums are held in the following areas:
- Energy and Clean Technology
- Life Sciences
- Nanotechnology
- Information Technology
Non-credit courses
The Rice Alliance teaches several “non-credit” educational courses each year in technology entrepreneurship. For the last seven years, the Rice Alliance has held a “sold-out” two-day Technology Entrepreneurship Workshop course. This workshop provides a step-by-step approach to successfully launch and build a company.In Fall 2007, in partnership with the Rice Executive Education program , the Rice Alliance initiated a new intensive Life Science Entrepreneurship Certificate Program.