Thanks to all who joined Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility (VBSR) and Black River Innovation Campus (BRIC) for networking, food, drinks, and learning on Thursday, April 20, 2023. 

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SPRINGFIELD, Vt. – On Monday, April 10, the Springfield Selectboard heard a presentation from Interim Executive Director Marguerite Dibble of the Black River Innovation Campus (BRIC). Dibble reported on BRIC’s involvement with the Springfield Regional Development Corp. (SRDC), a program to support entrepreneurship in the Springfield area.

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BRIC’s updated Entrepreneurial Accelerator will focus on creating start-ups within technology, advanced manufacturing, and advanced computing. BRIC is partnering with NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD to provide commercialization opportunities with NASA-developed technology for participants.

In November 2022, BRIC was awarded $3M through the Economic Development Administration Build to Scale Venture Challenge to scale its Actuator program to new geographic regions and add advanced manufacturing and advanced computing verticals to its incubator offerings. These new objectives strongly align with NASA’s technology transfer program, providing a joint opportunity to promote commercial activity, economic growth, and innovation in rural America. BRIC’s partnership with Goddard will focus on the technology transfer program resources, while providing regional entrepreneurs with the resources that enable scalable high-growth concepts.

In addition to startups engaging in BRIC’s Actuator entrepreneurship program, regional innovators, businesses, and students will examine available Goddard technologies to determine which ones have the most promising commercial or partnership potential.

“Engaging with growing economic regions to educate start up and STEM communities is a core value for NASA. We are excited to work closely with BRIC and connect within their expanding ecosystems,” says Samantha Kilgore, Goddard’s Technology Transfer Expansion program’s lead.

BRIC’s partnership with Goddard aligns with the launch of the organization’s updated entrepreneurial curriculum, BRIC’s Actuator program. The curriculum offers founders a 10-week program three times a year to hone business development skills and network with key regional mentors and resources. The program will focus not only on supporting the development of a specific business concept, but also provide the entrepreneur participants with a set of tools for building a “founder’s mindset”: exposure to a number of business models and structures that will support future business concepting. BRIC will combine this start-up programming with a Lifestyle Curriculum that will provide 10 weeks of seasonal activities, events, and adventures embracing what it means to not just survive, but thrive in rural Vermont.

“We have a unique ecosystem for entrepreneurship here in rural Vermont,” says BRIC’s Interim Executive Director Marguerite Dibble. “We wanted to create a program that highlights everything that makes Vermont such a special place to live, and to build a business. By adding a lifestyle curriculum to make Vermont a more accessible option and providing excellent start-up programming, I believe we’re achieving that goal. When you’re an entrepreneurial person, chances are you’re going to be creating companies for the rest of your life, and we want to show why Vermont is a great place to be for just that.”  

BRIC’s new focus on advanced manufacturing and advanced computing as well as technology start-ups is supported by keystone partnerships with Vermont State University, Vermont Technical College, and Norwich University.

In addition to Springfield Vermont, BRIC will be hosting and expanding events into the Randolph region, furthering the organization’s goals of empowering rural Vermont communities through entrepreneurship and technology. 

BRIC will be introducing its new programming and the technology transfer partnership with Goddard at workshops throughout the state where participants can rapidly create and iterate on business concepts with local mentors to explore the entrepreneurial process. The first workshops will take place on March 29th in Springfield, Vermont and on April 11th in Randolph, Vermont with more to be announced.

Sign ups for the workshops can be found at BRIC’s website, and applications for BRIC’s Actuator entrepreneurship program are open, with cohorts beginning in May 2023, September 2023, and January 2024.

To access the software catalog, and for more information on NASA’s Tech Transfer program, visit: http://technology.nasa.gov/

Black River Innovation Campus will be awarded $3 million in federal grants and matching dollars to support local entrepreneurship and innovation. 

 Black River Innovation Campus (BRIC) along with partners will now scale the Actuator technology entrepreneurship incubator/accelerator program in Vermont by adding specializations in advanced manufacturing, cybersecurity, and medical technologies. This EDA investment will also support a new project focused on scaling the network and support needed for technology startups to succeed in rural Vermont.

 BRIC worked with the Center on Rural Innovation (CORI) and the Green Mountain Economic Development Corporation (GMEDC) to apply for this grant as part of CORI’s 2022 Rural Innovation Initiative, a technical assistance program empowering rural communities to create inclusive digital economies that support scalable entrepreneurship and tech job creation.

 “The work that goes into the Rural Innovation Initiative process requires intense focus, unwavering optimism, and a clear vision for the future — which is why it’s been so exciting to watch these communities receive Build to Scale funding,” said Matt Dunne, Founder and Executive Director at the Center on Rural Innovation.

 With the $3 million provided by the Venture Challenge grant and matching funds, BRIC plans to scale its Actuator technology entrepreneurship incubator/accelerator program from Springfield to Randolph, GMEDC will launch an innovation and entrepreneurship hub in Randolph, and the two organizations will execute regional strategies for ecosystem engagement to attract and retain entrepreneurs, investors, mentors, and workforce. Both Springfield and Randolph are part of CORI’s Rural Innovation Network.

 “Partnership with CORI and BRIC allows us to expand geographical impact to the White River Valley, and build out regional expertise in the fields of advanced manufacturing and cybersecurity," says Erika Hoffman-Kiess, Executive Director, GMEDC.

 "It's an incredibly exciting time for the organization and I feel very lucky to be joining at this moment. I’ve lived in rural Vermont building tech companies for all my professional life, and am eager to develop programs that not only help participants build world-class technology start-ups, but also bring to life the value proposition of the truly one-of-a-kind lifestyle we’re able to enjoy as rural Vermonters," said Marguerite Dibble, BRIC's new Executive Director. 

 BRIC is joined by Vermont Technical College, Vermont Manufacturing Collaborative, Norwich University, Springfield Regional Development Corporation, Vermont Telephone Company, and ECFiber as local partners who provided funding for the community’s match portion of the grant. Other local partners supporting this program include Randolph Area Community Development Corporation, Dartmouth College, and Vermont Technical College.

The 2022 Build to Scale program awarded 51 grants to applicants from 31 states. The grants represent a combined $47 million in federal investment. Springfield and Randolph’s application was one of just eight rural applications to receive the award this year. 

The Black River Innovation Campus (BRIC) announces initiative aimed towards remote work upskilling, computer science education, and adult learning.

The “Remote Work Professional Certificate Course” is a one month program where students learn remote work best practices and tools. Students who receive an 80% average or higher in the course receive a professional certificate of completion and can work with BRIC staff for further career guidance and mentorships. Certificate-holders will also receive priority consideration for remote work positions

being offered by BRIC employer-affiliates.

“The recent paradigm shift towards remote and distributed work means that these skills are incredibly important, more so now than ever before. Though we look forward to the days when shelter-in-place orders are long behind us, this change in structure will inevitably leave a lasting impression. It’s our hope that we can help Vermonters get ahead of these changes and not only stay ahead of them, but thrive

alongside them,” said Chris Maggiolo, Campus Manager at the Black River Innovation Campus.

BRIC is also partnering with the Center on Rural Innovation (CORI) and the Flatiron School to offer a suite of online computer science classes. Students may study a variety of subjects including: coding, data science, cybersecurity analytics, and UX/UI design. 

The course, which takes 5 months at 40 hours per week or 10 months at 20 hours per week, is available fully online and extra support will be available via the BRIC community in Springfield.

In addition to the education provided by the Flatiron School, CORI and BRIC will facilitate career support for program students, helping to identify and apply for local jobs or jobs that can be conducted remotely from the Black River Innovation Campus.

The program offers a creative financing model to allow more people to take advantage of the

opportunity. Instead of paying tuition up front, students can access the Flatiron School’s Income Share Agreements (to see terms and agreements, visit https://flatironschool.com/income-share-agreement-

isa-online) and make payments only after they’ve left the program and are earning at least

$40,000/year.

Founded in 2018, the Black River Innovation Campus’s aim is to educate and train people in digital and remote work skills, employ them in digital economy jobs, and empower them to launch the startups that will continue to drive Springfield’s digital economy.

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The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their

respective owners.

Springfield, VT – BRIC welcomes Arsana Health (Arsana) to its Springfield-based innovation campus. A recipient of CORI Innovation Fund (CIF) investment, Arsana is a producer of software and hardware solutions for post-acute healthcare providers, such as skilled nursing facilities and assisted living homes.

Arsana founder and CEO, Connor Dahlberg, said, “40% of Americans will require long-term care in their lifetime. Arsana’s solutions improve long-term care outcomes and are gaining significant traction in the post-acute care marketplace. We are excited to utilize the additional capital provided by CIF to grow our business and better serve our customers.”

The Arsana Health Portal combines medical records from post-acute care facilities, doctors’ offices, labs, and pharmacies into an intuitive and convenient format that saves time, creates new billing opportunities, and improves outcomes. The company’s hardware solution, WashSense, uses a patent-protected smart sensor installed next to soap dispensers to promote and monitor proper handwashing technique to improve hygiene and reduce the spread of infection at medical facilities. The COVID-19 pandemic has made the functionality of the company’s products even more important for its customers.

“We are excited to welcome Arsana as an anchor tenant,” said BRIC executive director Trevor Barlow, “and we look forward to supporting the Arsana team as they continue to grow and provide their invaluable and innovative services to the healthcare industry.”

Arsana expects all three WashSense/Arsana employees to begin working from the Black River Innovation Campus in July.