From start-up internships to shining in national competitions, read all about our latest UNH ECenter happenings!

The ECenter is the co-curricular heart of ideas, innovation, and entrepreneurship at UNH. Our goal is to create the next generation of leaders with an entrepreneurial mind-set who can see opportunities and identify creative solutions others have missed, one idea at a time. Although part of UNH, we are independent of any one college.

May 2021 Newsletter

The Latest Happenings from the ECenter

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The end of the school year saw a range of victories, not the least of which was UNH having an in-person commencement for 2021 and 2020 graduates. It reminds us of the importance of personal interactions and the impact they have. It will be a while for us to forget what that really feels like again.

A major standing ovation for this year's and last year’s seniors. Unknowingly, each of you acquired a valuable tool towards being an entrepreneur of your life—endurance and the ability to appreciate what you just encountered with a smile at the end. To the ECenter seniors mentioned below, please know regardless of your journey from here, you always have a home at the ECenter to return to.

Spring semester always brings forth both on-campus and national business competitions. UNH teams coached at the ECenter once again soared this year. It is hard to express the continued awe I have for the ideas and work put in by these students. It's amazing to see the jump in quality in only five years since the ECenter opened. A second standing ovation to each of you and we look forward to your continued success.

With warm days ahead, the ECenter team looks forward to mapping out yet another impact-filled series of experiential learning programs for both incoming and returning Wildcats! Great days are ahead.

Stay curious,

Ian Grant

Executive Director, ECenter

[email protected]

Support Student Ideas

i2 Passport Awards More Cash

Prizes Than Ever Before

Shafi Wara ’21 (Grad School)

Jessica Nelson '21 (Paul College)

Ashlynn Hatch '24 (Paul College)

Kate Keefe '24 (CEPS)

Michelle Lee '22 (CEPS)

Madison McEachern '22 (COLSA)

It’s no surprise we were 100% virtual again for the ninth semester of i2 Passport, which launched with a kick-off party via Zoom on February 14, 2021. This year, students from every class year and every college on campus, including the Graduate School, participated in the program!

If you aren't already familiar with i2 Passport, it's the flagship ECenter program that rewards students for participating in activities and events at UNH Durham with the chance to win money to pay down student loans or pay for tuition.

Rachel Poston '24 (Paul College)

We set a few records for i2 Passport this semester. First, an incredible 47 students qualified for the minimum raffle drawings. That’s a 27% increase from previous semesters in which we awarded a cash prize to participants who completed the required minimum participation in the program.

Because so many students qualified for just five $1,000 raffle drawings, we also raffled three $50 gift cards to Sea Dog Brew Pub and ten $10 gift cards to Hop+Grind. That way, more students would receive a prize for their semester-long efforts.

Another first for i2 Passport – a five-way tie for prizes! After the 1st Prize and 2nd Prize slots, there was a five-way tie, which resulted in the students splitting three prizes equally. And ANOTHER first for i2 Passport – a 1st Prize winner from the Graduate School! Congratulations to the spring 2021 winners!

First Prize of $3,500:

Mohammad Shafeul “Shafi” Wara ’21 (Graduate School)

Second Prize of $2,500:

Jessica Nelson '21 (Paul College)

Third Prize, Fourth Prize, FirstGen Prize of $1,300 each:

Kate Keefe ’24 (CEPS)
Madison McEachern ’22 (COLSA)
Rachel Poston ’24 (Paul College)
Michelle Lee '22 (CEPS) – FirstGen Student!
Ashlynn Hatch ’24 (Paul College) – FirstGen Student!

Runner-up raffle prizes of $1,000 each:

Reagan Calcari ’24 (Paul College)
Kathleen Scanlon ’24 (CHHS)
Brooke Samora ’21 (Paul College)
Derek Bobbitt ‘ 24 (Paul College)
Nathaniel Nichols ’22 (Paul College)

Of his i2 Passport experience, 1st Prize winner Shafi Wara said, "Initially I didn’t know much about this program. I got an email that said you could win money to pay down your student loans. I have student loans and decided to give it a try. I participated in a lot of events I’d heard about before, but never did. I'm glad I attended! It’s been a great experience."

One of the five students tied for 3rd Prize, 4th Prize, and the FirstGen Prize, Madison McEachern commented, "I have participated in the i2 Passport Program for four semesters now and I am always so thankful to the ECenter for putting it together. It has allowed me to get involved in many ways on campus and opened up new opportunities for me. I have also gotten to meet so many new people, even when we participate over zoom. Thank you to the ECenter and congratulations to all of this semesters winners."

Thank you to the Patten Family Foundation for sponsoring i2 Passport and to our raffle partners, Sea Dog Brewing Co. and Hop+Grind!

UNH Alumni Share Their

Stories at Start-up Speaker Series

Our Start-up Speaker Series this semester featured back-to-back stories from two UNH alumni. Their stories are incredibly unique, but they also have something in common - passion for their ideas.

The first speaker of the evening was Jerome DuBois '96. Jerome is the co-founder/co-CEO at 6 River Systems, a Shopify company. Jerome received a BS in Mechanical Engineering from UNH and an MBA from Northeastern University in Supply Chain and Finance.

Jerome titled his talk "Concrete Foundations: the Lessons Learned During a Career of Startups.” He walked attendees through his impressive career, starting with how nearly failing out of the UNH business school (Whittemore School of Business at the time) prompted him to transfer to the mechanical engineering program at CEPS!

Jerome DuBois '96

The lessons Jerome shared included taking both business and personal opportunities when they come your way. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the shift to online retail which created opportunities for new and existing online businesses.

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Our other speaker of the evening was Toby Ripsom '01. Toby is currently the CEO of Avér Skin, a cannabinoid-driven skin care firm.

Prior to Avér, Toby co-founded Colorado's first wholesale cultivation and current market leading luxury flower purveyor since 2014, Veritas Fine Cannabis. He's also a member of the ECenter's Advisory Task Force. Toby earned his BS in Business Administration from the Whittemore School (now Paul College) at UNH in 2001.

Toby's talk was titled, “The Entrepreneurial Highs and Lows of Growing a Cannabis Company in Colorado.”

Toby Ripsom '01

Toby shared his experience starting in the cannabis industry in Colorado, something he never expected to do. He idea was inspired by the need for medical cannabis by a family member. "I never designed my life for entrepreneurship, but when it found me, I was ready. Since then I've learned that hard and fast mindsets, goals and plans, rarely prove the final destination. I enrolled at UNH with far flung hopes of skiing in the Olympics, when I graduated I set out for a career in Silicon Valley. None of this came to be, but the skills to seize and execute on the opportunities that did, crafted a life to exceed my youthful dreams, through industries that didn't exist," shared Toby.

The Start-up Speaker Series shows students what is possible with passion and dedication. "I really enjoyed learning about the very different paths that Toby and Jerome took, and how entrepreneurial skills played a role in their success," said event attendee Riley Dionne '21 (CHHS).

Thank you for Lake Street Advisors for sponsoring our Speaker Series this semester! If you'd like to view the recording of the event, please visit our YouTube page.

Inaugural Grant Memorial Entrepreneurship Prize Awarded to Exemplary Graduates

We're thrilled to announce the recipients of the first ever William and Joan Grant Memorial Entrepreneurship Prize.

Ryan Lefebvre '21 (CEPS)
Marisa Rafal '19 (CHHS), '21 (Grad School)

The William and Joan Grant Memorial Entrepreneurship Prize was established by ECenter Executive Director, Ian Grant, in memory of his parents who provided him a lifetime of unwavering support of his entrepreneurial, adventurous, and innovative pursuits and in honor of the ECenter’s 5th birthday in 2021.

The intent of the Prize is to be given to the top two graduating undergraduate or graduate students, selected by a committee, who have exemplified the spirit and actions of “in-the-trenches” innovation and entrepreneurship during their years at UNH. A $500 prize and award trophy will be given to each student.

Ryan Lefebvre

Ryan is the founder and CEO of Logsmarter, a nutrition tracking software that uses machine learning to help people reach their fitness goals. Ryan carefully built a team to push the company forward and has launched a beta version of his product with just under 2,000 users. Ryan is graduating from the UNH College of Engineering and Physical Sciences with a degree in computer science.

"It was a honor to receive an award that is in memory of Ian Grant's parents and it makes me proud to be representing the ECenter as one of the first two recipients," said Ryan.

Marisa Rafal

Marisa is the founder and president of the NH Toy Library Network, a toy lending library for NH children, including those in need of adapted toys. Marisa had the idea for NHTLN as an undergrad at CHHS and has since grown it to a bonafide LLC with two locations - Dover and Boscawen. Marisa is graduating from the Carsey School of Public Policy with her Master's in public policy (MPP).

Said Marisa, "Ian Grant has been such an amazing mentor, so to get an award in his parents’ name is an honor that’s hard to describe. Ultimately, I just want to say thank you so very much for all you’ve done to support my journey as an entrepreneur and helping me grow my company, the New Hampshire Toy Library Network!"

"It is impossible to totally recognize my appreciation for my parents and what they provided me. Paying it forward is one small way," said Ian Grant. "I was 23 when my mom died and my dad passed in 2019 at 95—both always encouraged me to live life with as few regrets as possible. That instilled in me my own entrepreneurial and adventurous journeys that included studying and living in Kenya and with the Maasai, traveling overland through much of Sub-Saharan Africa on the Indian Ocean side, founding three start-ups that were fortunate enough to be acquired, and a seemingly endless list of other amazing experiences. While I have no hand in the selection of the annual winners, the committee certainly awarded two well deserving rock-star students in Ryan and Marisa. Both embody the spirit of the in-the-trenches entrepreneurship which was the vision of the award."

Internships at Start-ups Program

Places 15 Students

In the fifth year of the Paid Student Internship at Start-ups Program, we expanded the number of available internships to fifteen, up from ten last year. This is thanks to generous gifts from the Patten Family Foundation, Service Credit Union, and UNH alumni donors. For those who aren’t familiar with the program, it provides UNH freshmen, sophomores, and juniors from any college or major the opportunity to get hands-on experience working at a start-up company. As not all students have an idea right away and/or they want to learn about and understand the inner workings of a start-up and help in the building process, an internship at a start-up is the perfect way to spend a summer developing entrepreneurial skills.

By the time the application deadline passed for both students and start-ups, we had 27 applications for start-ups and 32 student applications. This resulted in a whopping 115 interviews in a single week! After the interviews, we obtained feedback from all and made fifteen 1:1 matches.

The fifteen matches for the summer of 2021 are:

Alex Meehan ('22, Paul College) with NOCA
Jacob Rich ('23, Paul College) with Brickleaf Properties
Caroline McCarthy ('24, Paul College) with Claro Analytics
Gabi Sott ('22, Paul College) with Kikori
Jacob Lenef ('22, CEPS) with Metalmark
Courtney Jacques ('22, Paul College) with Aisling Organics Cosmetics
Derek Bobbitt ('24, Paul College) with Evolve Talent
Jeff Marquis ('23, Paul College) with Awato
Nathaniel Hunt ('21, COLA) with ecoText
Harmony Moran ('21, Paul College) with Shtudy
Olivia Balabanis ('22, Paul College) with GoodWork
Nick Rainforth ('23, Paul College) with SplitFit
Ryan Meader ('22, Paul College) with Helios Sports
Kaiden Bedell ('24, CEPS) with Rogue Space Systems
Breanna Williams ('22, COLA) with Performology

Congratulations to all the students and start-ups participating in our internship program this summer!

Please stay tuned for information on the end of summer showcase during which the interns will share their experiences and what they each learned over the summer in their internships.

More more information on the Paid Student Internship at Start-ups Program, please visit our website. If you are a student or start-up interested in applying for summer 2022, please email [email protected] to be informed when the 2022 applications open.

COLA Philosophy Student Wins

4th Annual Maurice Prize for Innovation

Ely Marciano '21 Presents During Final Round of Maurice Prize

On April 20th, the ECenter conducted virtual final presentations for the $5,000 Maurice Prize for Innovation. We are pleased to announce that this year, the prize was awarded to Ely Marciano ’21, a graduating COLA senior majoring in Philosophy, for his project A New Dream. A New Dream is a content channel “created by seekers, for seekers” to explore a variety of subjects ranging from wildlife ecology to philosophy, with an emphasis on learning how to learn.

The Maurice Prize is a different kind of idea competition, one that focuses on idea exploration and the learning process over having a “successful” end result.

We ask students to highlight the growth, learnings, and development that occurred between submitting their idea in the fall and completing their final analysis in the spring. This year was highly competitive, with many outstanding ideas in both the preliminary and final rounds. Ely impressed the judges with the caliber of his idea, the growth that occurred during the competition window, and the thoughtfulness of his final presentation.

Each year, the competition gets more impressive, and our runner-up teams deserve a special shout-out. HydroPhos Solutions, submitted by first-and-second year Paul College students Daisy Burns ’24, Jason Plant ’23, Katie Remeis ’23, Derek Long ’23, and Matthew Oriente ’23, and MyGreenPlate, submitted by graduating CEPS student Holly Proulx ’21, both showed exceptional progress and growth during the competition window. We look forward to watching both of these ideas grow in the coming years and we're delighted to recognize their efforts with runner-up prizes of $1,500 per team, a first in this competition.

Ely is the first COLA student to win the Maurice Prize, but we hope not the last. As you'll read in other stories below, it has been a great year for UNH Philosophy students! Nathaniel Hunt ‘22, co-founder of SPAITR, just won 1st place with his team at the Holloway Prize Competition and was one of the top 25 business ideas in the country from undergrad students at e-Fest this year. We look forward to working with many more COLA students at the ECenter.

ECenter Students Shine at the

Holloway Prize Championship Round

The Championship Round of the Holloway Prize Competition at UNH's Paul College took place on May 13th. While the audience was virtual, the students got to pitch on the stage at Paul College, just as in years past. Of the six teams in the finals, three were ECenter-coached teams and they came in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd!

1st Place

2nd Place

3rd Place

First place team, SPAITR, was founded by Nathaniel Hunt '22 (COLA), Brady Esmaili '23 (CEPS), and Joey Neleber '22 (CEPS). With SPAITR, lacrosse players and coaches use sensor attachments paired with an app to see the speed of their shot, the angle of release, and the number of reps that were taken during practice or play sessions. Coaches can hold players accountable as well as see minute details about practice sessions and games. SPAITR is not only a platform for viewing growth and distinct play statistics, it is also a social platform that can allow players to share their improvements, participate in team and national leaderboards, as well as interact with their teammates. Parents and relatives can also see their youth’s progress in a way that allows them to interact actively with their child's growth, in a level of detail that was previously impossible.

"Competing against fellow students and seeing the hard work and dedication that they put in was amazing; it put everything that we are doing at SPAITR into perspective," said Joey Neleber, co-founder and CTO of SPAITR. Added Brady Esmaili, co-founder and CPO of SPAITR, “Holloway gave us a chance to engage with other talented student entrepreneurs and really compete from a level financial and experiential playing field! Winning the $15,000 grand prize really gave a lot of credit to the idea that we worked so hard on and gave us the funds to take our next big steps!” As you'll read in another story below, SPAITR also found success at e-Fest recently. They also participated in our Summer Seed Grant program last summer!

Second place team, HallHub, was founded by Caleb Peffer '22 (CEPS), Nicolas Silberstein Camara '21 (CEPS), and Garrett Frohman '21 (CEPS). HallHub is a "Digital" Residence Hall that elevates campus communities, helping universities stay relevant in a rapidly changing world. HallHub co-founder Caleb Peffer said of his experience, "The Holloway Prize Competition is a wonderful opportunity to build your idea or company's reputation and resources, while learning invaluable business skills!" HallHub is also one of the ideas participating in our Summer Seed Grant program this summer.

Third place team, Mongo, was founded by Jessica Nelson '21 (Paul College). Mongo is new sustainable plant-based protein derived from mung beans that is high in protein, fiber, and antioxidants. Mongo is versatile as it can be incorporated into stir-fry’s, wraps, scrambles and smoothies. "During the Holloway Competition process, I was mentored by Ian Grant at the ECenter. Ian helped me refine my idea and develop my pitch to present to investors and judges," said Jessica.

“Crisp presentations and thoughtful answers take dozens of hours of practice on top of months and months, if not years, of idea, product, and company development," said Ian Grant. "We become family as a result which is a bonus outcome as a mentor/coach. We also live by the ‘work hard, but have fun’ mantra. The trademark ECenter celebration jump shown above captures all of this spirit in one image. So very proud of these seven students.”

Thank you to the Holloway Prize team, particularly Andrew Earle (chair) and Aidan Kittredge '21, for executing terrific event. We also thank Paul and Anna Grace Holloway for their continued sponsorship of this inspiring event.

If you're a UNH student who would like to meet for coaching on your idea, please reach out!

Student Entrepreneurs Pitch

on the National Stage

In addition to the business plan competitions ECenter students participate in at UNH, they also submit their ideas and start-ups to competitions on the national level. This spring, SPAITR submitted to e-Fest and HydroPhos Solutions submitted to the Draper Competition. Both found success!

SPAITR at e-Fest

As mentioned in the Holloway story above, the SPAITR team is made up of co-founders Nathaniel Hunt '22 (COLA), Brady Esmaili '23 (CEPS), and Joey Neleber '22 (CEPS).

SPAITR is a two-fold venture. The first part is a universal sized plug that goes in the end of a lacrosse stick that will track diagnostic information such as speed, reps, and angle of stick at release. Part two is an application which the plug will connect to wirelessly and will serve as a social network for coaches to create a group for their team and track their results, growth, and diagnostics. Additionally, individuals will be

able to compete against themselves, their friends, and even professionals.

e-Fest, sponsored by the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation and the Schulze School of Entrepreneurship at the University of St. Thomas, is an annual competition attracting applications from the best student entrepreneurs around the country. This year was the fifth e-Fest competition and offered over $200,000 in prizes. After reviewing nearly 100 submissions from 59 colleges and universities across the United States, the judges selected SPAITR as one of the top 25 undergraduate teams to compete for more prizes at the 3-day e-Fest celebration! At e-Fest, SPAITR won the 60-second pitch competition and won $3,500!

Of his e-Fest experience, Nathaniel Hunt '22 said, "Getting selected as a top 25 finalist in the country is beyond humbling. I still cannot believe that I went from having an idea four years ago of something I wanted as a lacrosse player, but was unable to turn it into a reality, to finding the ECenter and my fantastic co-founders that, within a year, helped my idea become one of the top 25 teams in the country. Our hard work is paying off and I cannot wait to see what the future has in store for SPAITR."

HydrosPhos at Draper Competition

HydroPhos Solutions, founded by Daisy Burns '24 (Paul College), Katie Remeis '23 (Paul College), Derek Long '23 (Paul College), Matt Oriente '23 (Paul College), Jason Plant '23 (Paul College), aims to address two social and environmental problems: destructive mining of phosphorus for fertilizer, and eutrophication in bodies of water caused by excess phosphorus from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). The business plan is to take the excess phosphorus from the WWTPs and use it for fertilizer, therefore reducing the need for mining.

The annual Draper Competition for Collegiate Women Entrepreneurs is designed to hone the skills that undergraduate women need to advance from idea to venture creation. As such, Daisy Burns and Katie Remeis represented the HydroPhos team and applied for the Draper Competition.

At the Draper Competition, hosted and organized by the Jill Ker Conway Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center at Smith College, students demonstrate an understanding of a problem, why the problem requires a new venture to address it, and how their idea presents the best solution to the problem. After many rounds culminating in the final ten teams, HydroPhos placed 3rd in the nation and won $10,000!

Katie Remeis said, "Participating in the Draper Competition was a huge learning experience for me, and I really enjoyed getting the chance to compete in the competition. Prior to applying for the Draper Competition, we had been getting idea coaching from Ian Grant. He helped us with our application for the Social Venture Innovation Challenge in the fall, and we continued to meet with him in the spring semester where he helped us prepare for Maurice Prize and the Holloway Competition. None of the members on our team had heard of the Draper Competition before, Ian was actually the person who told us about the Draper Competition and encouraged us to apply. When we applied, we didn't know if anything was going to come out of it but Ian helped us prepare every step of the way."

Added Daisy Burns, "Competing in Draper was an incredible learning experience. It gave us the opportunity to refine our idea and pitch to real venture capitalists. Winning the service track also opened the door to many further opportunities such as a full scholarship to Draper University’s summer Hero Training, several resources offered from previous winners, and connections with judges who offered to help us move forward. Ian’s coaching throughout our entire journey was instrumental in our success at Draper. He has given us valuable advice from the very beginning when we were first forming our idea, all the way up to helping me practice Q & A the day of the Draper Competition. The ECenter and Ian’s coaching in particular have been incredible resources at UNH and I am so grateful for everything I have gotten from my entrepreneurship experiences."

“For UNH ECenter students being selected from hundreds of submissions from top universities around the country to present in the semi-finals and finals of national competitions is a major milestone accomplishment in and of itself," said Ian Grant. "To place third as HydroPhos did at Draper and to win the 60 second pitch slam competition as SPAITR did at e-Fest, only highlights the impressiveness of their ideas and efforts. UNH is fast becoming known as a place for entrepreneurial students to succeed.”

Congratulations to the SPAITR and HydroPhos teams! We're so proud of your hard work!

Donors Rose to the 603 Challenge

with $43k for the ECenter

UNH’s annual fundraising event, the 603 Challenge, is a critical time for the ECenter to bolster our donor-funded programs. We’re happy to announce that once again, our donors came through in a big way to support high-impact experiential learning opportunities for UNH students!

We kicked off the Challenge with a goal of 50 donors, double our goal from the previous year, and we’re proud to announce that our alumni, friends, and students blew that number away with a final count of 94 individual donors! With the support of our donors, we unlocked $35,000 in additional Challenge funds specific to the ECenter, in addition to the $3,000 of matching funds through the Kick-Off, New Hampshire Numbers, and Grand Finale bonus challenges.

The support for this year’s 603 Challenge will directly impact our mission to grow the Paid Student Internship at Start-Ups Program, one of UNH’s most valuable internship experiences, which you read about above.

To all our of our 603 donors – friends, alumni, and especially to our current students - THANK YOU!

ECenter Celebrates 2021 Graduates

What a year it has been! The class of 2021 has had a tremendous impact on the ECenter and we've had an impact on them, too. We've learned from each other through our events like the Idea Creation Bootcamp and Start-up Speaker Series, our activities like idea coaching, the Entrepreneurship Club, and Makerspace, and our programs like our Paid Student Internship at Start-ups Program and i2 Passport Program.

These students have been active members of the ECenter community throughout their time at UNH, and they're what makes the ECenter such a unique and inspiring place on campus. We will miss having them with us every day, but if past graduates have proven anything, it's that the ECenter journey doesn't end with graduation.

We look forward to seeing what great things they'll do, and the ECenter doors are always open to our alumni, to troubleshoot ideas, launch businesses, hire student interns, or whatever else we can help with.

Congratulations, Class of 2021!