Eight woman-owned, startup businesses have been selected to participate in one of two TechFW programs as the first Texas Woman’s University - Center for Women Entrepreneurs Education Award recipients.
The Center for Women Entrepreneurs has designated $1,000 and $2,000 awards for female entrepreneurs to participate in TechFW’s ThinkLab™ startup accelerator or SmartStart™ business incubator programs.
The winners were chosen based on the following criteria: 1) the founder is a female entrepreneur who is a major shareholder and decision-maker; 2) the founder and business are in the state of Texas; 3) the business is a for-profit company; and 4) the founder must own, have licensed, or be working on proprietary technology, a trade secret, or an innovative way of doing business.
About the TechFW programs:
ThinkLab™ is a non-seed startup accelerator that helps entrepreneurs determine whether there is sufficient value to pursue a product or service idea, identify potential markets, develop a path to market strategy, and learn how to communicate the value of the idea to early stakeholders and adopters.
The SmartStart™ business incubator assists leaders in developing a formalized business framework that enables them to take their company to market. Coaches help facilitate the process of engaging early adopters, prototyping and test marketing the product/service idea.
“Organically, we have created an organization and programs in which female entrepreneurs have thrived," said Hayden Blackburn, Executive Director of TechFW. "More than 40% of our clients are women-led and this partnership with Texas Woman’s University expands the opportunities for women that are 'building the future.'
"With new intentions and new alliances, we believe TechFW can be a force for good in reducing barriers and helping level the playing field for female founders of high-growth tech startups."
“We are happy that we can help these women take part in programming that will prepare them for entrepreneurial success,” said Tracy Irby, Director at the Center for Women Entrepreneurs.
Here are the award winners who will be starting their TechFW program in the fall:
1. Dr. Meena McCullough
Company: Body Spring
Industry: Health
Program Award: ThinkLab™
Meena McCullough is the lead physical therapist in an outpatient clinic. She loves the intimacy of patient care and manual therapy and complex cases/problem solving using innovative solutions, keeping patients functional and pain-free with cutting-edge movement philosophies in the area of Myofascial planes and advanced biomechanics. Meena also enjoys mentoring physical therapist assistants and medical caretakers.
About Body Spring
It follows an inside-out approach and, instead of relying on technological machines, has tapped into the human body’s technology. Locked deep inside the fascial planes, the human body has the potential and capability to heal itself and overcome pain.
Body Spring products are based on the anatomical realization that every part of our body is crisscrossed by planes of connective tissue called fascia. Unlike any previous approach, Body Spring products and techniques work together to organize and align fascia (covering the bones, muscles, and organs), reactivate them and initiate the healing process. This allows PTs to offer patients improved health on many levels: less pain, better posture, more ease of movement, and increased strength and flexibility.
2. Whitney Robinson
Company: Head to Vegas
Industry: Software
Program Award: SmartStart™
Whitney Robinson is the owner of Big Horse Marketing and has experience in all aspects of marketing and brand development. She has a Bachelor’s of Business Administration in Marketing and is highly skilled in direct marketing, marketing strategy, digital media, email marketing and more.
About Head to Vegas
Its technology will allow users who are planning to travel to Las Vegas to book and pay in advance for all aspects of a trip. By utilizing an RFID tag once travelers arrive at their destination, they will be essentially cashless. Head to Vegas also will utilize existing application program interfaces (APIs) and will function as a small-scale online travel aggregator to research and book hotels, dining, entertainment and more based on their reasons for travel.
3. Dr. Jennifer Galanis
Company: Art to the Power of Gamma
Industry: Health
Program Award: ThinkLab™
Jennifer Galanis received a Doctorate of Medicine from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. She had worked as a scientist at the National Institutes of Health, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Ben Gurion University, where she investigated phase transitions and spontaneous pattern formation in molecules.
Dr. Galanis also was a continuing education student at the Corcoran College of Art+Design in Washington D.C., and has participated in art exhibitions in the United States, Israel, Japan, Greece, Spain, Ecuador, and France.
About Art to the Power of Gamma
Art to the Power of Gamma, LLC strives to combine art and science to create environments that naturally support people and encourage positive interactions. It uses a holistic approach (with a foundation in embodiment theory) and recognizes that human behavior is influenced by a combination of factors within the brain, body, and environment. The company provides multi-disciplinary consulting and research-backed products that are sound, accurate, and reliable.
4. Wendi Alexander
Company: LoneStar Corre Care
Industry: Software/Health
Program Award: ThinkLab™
Wendi Alexander is a seasoned nursing education professional. She graduated from American Sentinel University with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Nursing and a Master of Science in Nursing Education. She was most recently a correctional Health Nurse Manager at Parkland Hospital, and a clinical professor at the University of Texas in Arlington.
About LoneStar Corre Care
The company transforms healthcare “back to the patient” by harnessing best practices in nursing education and documentation through a multi-disciplinary approach among medical and correctional staff. It utilizes collaborative thinking within the creation of nursing care that functionally and prominently enhances the well-being of patients while eliminating patient harm and sentinel events.
To provide the best evidence-based patient care, LoneStar Corre Care needs comprehensive EMR (electronic medical record) software. There are less than a handful of correctional healthcare EMRs available, none written by nurses or geared solely for correctional health. LoneStar Corre Care is owned by nurses with more than 90 years of experience who will create the most innovative correctional health software on the market.
5. Bridget Pervalle
Technology: Specialized Toothbrush
Industry: Health
Program: ThinkLab™
Bridget Pervalle majored in Religion and has taken her love of people and ministry to the screen as a filmmaker. She knows her purpose is to share stories of beauty and elegance to audiences across diverse generations, cultures, ethnicity, and faith in hopes of educating minds and changing hearts for the better. Bridget's DNA is a mixing pot of nationalities throughout West Africa and Northern Europe. Her desire is to write and direct films and TV with no boundaries.
About her Technology
A multi-use toothbrush made of bamboo wood and charcoal bristles. A layered pattern of soft and medium bristles targets the entire tooth and gum line. The bottom bristles gently massage the gums while teeth are being brushed. In addition, the bottom handle flips out to reveal a tongue scraper made of short silicone bristles. “The Maserati of toothbrushes” for everyone who wants a clean smile, healthy gums and fresh breath.
6. Che' Jackson, M.Sc
Company: HYPE Math
Industry: Edutech
Program Award: ThinkLab™
Che’ Jackson is an Information Security Professional with a focus on governance, risk, and compliance for small- and medium-sized businesses. She frequently writes about how to implement NIST Cybersecurity Framework controls for small- and medium-sized businesses on LinkedIn.
About HYPE Math
HYPE Math's mission is to improve the math skills of elementary and middle school students through educational gaming, virtual learning, and technology tools.
The company has begun development on an educational game that assists students in reviewing, re-learning, and practicing key math concepts to help them build a solid foundation.
7. Jennifer Deans
Company: TD products
Industry: Consumer Product
Program Award: SmartStart™
Jennifer Deans specializes in Nutritional Instruction, Volunteer Management, and Classroom Management. She is the Cooking Matters coordinator at the Tarrant Area Food Bank. She received a Bachelor of Science in Dietetic and Institutional Administration from Texas Woman's University.
About TD Products
TD Products exists to empower homeowners or renters to take on small do-it-yourself wall repairs by providing an easy, no-tools-needed, high-quality product.
Her primary product is: Erase-A-Hole, a Wall Repair Putty that makes it quick and easy to fill the holes in your walls.
Whether you are conquering a DIY project or moving and need to fill the holes left behind from artwork. Erase-A-Hole makes things easy with no tools needed! All you need to do is simply apply, wipe, then paint.
8. Ibby (Elizabeth) Roscoe, DPT
Company: Allbodies Collective
Industry: Health
Award Program: ThinkLab™
Ibby is passionate about increasing access, equality, and inclusion in the healthcare space. She is helping lead the charge by being a disruptive innovation leader focusing on staff development and complex problem-solving. She loves being an improvement driver by utilizing change management to ensure quality patient experiences.
About Allbodies Collective
A weight-neutral, healthcare advocacy collective. A safe space for women with all body types to get connected to respectful, empathetic, and quality healthcare.
The medical community and healthcare space are rapidly evolving. Yet, there remains a lack of change in the ability for women of all sizes to find quality, empathetic, and effective health care in a system often dominated by men. Allbodies Collective bridges the gap between patients who are looking for care and providers focused on whole-person care with a weight-neutral mindset. A directory may not seem like innovative technology, but the idea that there is a website/app/etc. to find care as easy as posting an Instagram photo is inspiring because innovative, accessible healthcare still doesn't exist for so many populations.
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