State (Illinois) gives $3 million to tech start-up centers

Program seeks to grow businesses

A state-funded program conceived during the stock boom to assist technology start-ups is coming to fruition in the final weeks of Gov. George Ryan’s administration.

Ryan on Thursday announced eight non-profit centers–all affiliated with universities–will receive a combined $3 million in the current fiscal year to provide services to entrepreneurs under a program called Illinois Technology Enterprise Corp.

By Barbara Rose
Tribune staff reporter

Two ITEC centers have been operating since 2000–at Northwestern University in Evanston and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. New centers are being established near campuses in Chicago, Naperville, Lemont, Peoria, Carbondale and Springfield.

"There have been a lot of lessons learned over the past couple of years … and we want to make sure that the next wave of entrepreneurs has access to the expertise they need to succeed," said Pam McDonough, director of Illinois’ Department of Commerce and Community Affairs.

The agency, which oversees ITEC, had come under fire last year for not moving faster to implement the program. A total of $5 million in state money was budgeted for the program starting in fiscal 2000.

The money was passed to the non-profit Illinois Coalition in Chicago, a tech promotion outfit that initially administered ITEC under a three-way agreement with McDonough’s agency and ITEC centers.

A spokesman for McDonough said Thursday that the Coalition plays an advisory role as a bridge to the private sector. The group’s state funding was eliminated in fiscal 2003.

Despite a slow start, ITEC has had some early successes.

Six of approximately 150 start-ups advised since 2000 by ITEC Evanston have raised money from institutional investors, including Northbrook’s Nanosphere Inc.

The Evanston ITEC’s state money will nearly double this fiscal year to $490,000, allowing the center to offer more services in the critical stage between conceptualizing a business and identifying a market in order to attract investors.

Copyright © 2002, Chicago Tribune

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