2-03-2025 10:22am

Local Tech Awards

Baltimore students making health, robotics and tech land $50k in state funds

9 winning ventures from several regional colleges have the chance to present their work at a special showcase in February.

4MLK building at UM BioPark

Thanks to a six-figure allocation from Maryland’s government, emerging entrepreneurs from public and private colleges will get money and exposure to take their startups to the next level.

Nine ventures from students at schools in and around Baltimore will each receive $50,000 as part of the first-ever Pava LaPere Innovation Awards. The non-dilutive award comes with mentorship, education and other opportunities through the Maryland Student Venture Core Advisory Board, a group of leaders from various university and entrepreneurship support organizations that developed this program.

The winners also get a chance to present their ventures before the ecosystem at the Maryland Student Venture Showcase, taking place Feb. 18 at the University of Maryland BioPark’s new 4MLK development.

Rsvp for the showcase

Here are the winners, listed by company name, university affiliation and a brief description of their work:

DegreeMap (Towson University), whose platform aims to help students and advisors collaborate on degree completion by managing and tracking necessary steps
Elastic Energy (University of Maryland, Baltimore County), a developer of an alternative energy storage solution that draws from tree sap
Fetal Therapy Technologies (Johns Hopkins University), a surgical device company developing tools and training systems to improve safety in fetal surgeries
Luminova Beauty LLC (Loyola University), a skincare venture using science to develop affordable skincare products
RhizeUp (Community College of Baltimore County), which engineers the rhizobia bacteria to protect waterways from fertilizer runoff and related agricultural pollution
SneakerSyncLabs.com (Towson), whose platform streamlines and automates the process of launching a resell business
Somnair (Johns Hopkins), which developed a neurostimulation device to treat obstructive sleep apnea without requiring invasive surgery
Sustainabli (University of Maryland, Baltimore), which creates internet of things systems to enhance safety and energy efficiency in healthcare settings
WholeSite (CCBC), an AI-based platform that helps businesses simplify the process for creating websites

The awards are named after the late CEO of Baltimore-based EcoMap Technologies who helped develop much of the entrepreneurship infrastructure at her alma mater, Johns Hopkins University. LaPere’s name was also used in the Pava LaPere Innovation Act, a piece of legislation enacted after her passing that set aside funding for student entrepreneurship. The award funds are administered by the state-founded investor TEDCO and ecosystem nonprofit UpSurge Baltimore, whose staffers serve on the advisory board.

The board and leading organizations worked with universities across the Baltimore area to establish this program and identify candidates for the awards.

“The Maryland Student Venture Showcase and Pava LaPere Innovation Awards are a testament to the incredible talent and innovation coming out of Maryland’s colleges and universities,” said TEDCO CEO Troy LeMaile-Stovall in an announcement. “We are excited to support these outstanding student entrepreneurs as they work to grow

LaPere, A&S '19, was a tireless and vocal advocate for local and undergraduate entrepreneurship and a strong supporter of FastForward U, describing the space's creation as "one of the highlights of my time at JHU." Going forward, it will be called the Pava Center in honor of LaPere, who died in September 2023.

"Pava was vital to the new wave of entrepreneurship from our students across our campuses," said Josh Ambrose, director of student ventures at FastForward U. "Her fingerprints are across all the many things we do." FINISH READING HERE