Denice Spero, research professor and co-director of the University of Rhode Island’s Institute for Immunology and Informatics (I’Cubed), recently created an unheard-of class: “Smart Vaccines for Entrepreneurs,” forging a business/science curriculum for 14 students looking to explore business opportunities in the biotechnology field.
Spero worked alongside Dr. Anne De Groot, founder of I’Cubed and CEO of the immunology company EpiVax, to recruit vaccine experts, lawyers, scientists and business professors for the course.
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PBN: How did you discover the need for this type of class?
SPERO: Anne De Groot and I observed that money was being sent out of state for services that were not available in Rhode Island, so we decided to establish a course that would provide attendees with ideas for businesses that are needed locally and to provide them with the training necessary to get their businesses started.
PBN: Do you think we’ll be seeing more of these types of ultra-specific classes in the future? Is that where higher education in Rhode Island is trending?
SPERO: These types of courses are complementary to the traditional courses in higher education; both go well together. For instance, one of our attendees, Roxanne LaCroix, is getting an advanced degree in biochemistry at URI, and she joined our course to learn the specifics of how to start a business. In another example, Richard Glass, a Bryant University professor who a strong business background, came to our course because he was interested in learning about business opportunities in the life sciences. I am sure that many business sectors, not just biotechnology, could identify specific business needs and formulate courses around that topic. The targeted, cross-pollination approach works.
PBN: Do you have any similar classes planned?
SPERO: We would love to run this course again and further refine it. It really was a great success. What we require to run the course again is funding. Our speakers (CEOs, entrepreneurs, lawyers and business professors) were very happy to participate, and they all did a fantastic job.
PBN: One of the class requirements was to design a business proposal and it came with an incentive attached, a $2,500 startup scholarship. Have any caught your eye so far?
SPERO: We had four business proposals submitted by class members, and we were very pleased to see the quality of the plans. Anne De Groot and I feel that two stand out in particular. One is a proposal is to start a peptide synthesis business in Providence and the other proposes to start an immunology contract research organization. Both are very much needed in Rhode Island as these are activities that both I’Cubed and EpiVax Inc. outsource to companies in other states. Currently, four business plans are being evaluated by a team of reviewers to determine which plan will win the $2,500 prize.
PBN: How can Providence compete with bigger metropolitan areas that have more resources for these kinds of highly-specific businesses?
SPERO: Rhode Island can compete with the larger metropolitan areas. Our local businesses could offer services at lower costs than businesses in cities that have higher overhead expenses. In addition, Rhode Island companies would support locally-based service companies. If we could just walk across the street to drop off samples and check on a study, that would be preferable to shipping samples outside of state. The proximity is a bonus.
We do, however, need to ensure that loans are available for these new businesses. The two that I mentioned have sound business plans, and they will need funding.
