The 2020 TOP DOG New Venture Championship gave awards for first ($1,500), second ($1,000) and third ($500) places in the annual competition via a Zoom Awards Show May 22.

The TOP DOG process begins with the Idea pitch in the Fall Quarter. After the pitch, student teams have the option to continue with their ideas and build an investor deck to enter the preliminary round of the New Venture Championship.  This year, after the preliminary round, eight multi-disciplinary teams advanced to compete in the TOP DOG New Venture Championship.

The 2020 team’s investor decks were judged by Melissa Dobson, an attorney who specializes in business development and intellectual property; Noah Hayes, Entrepreneur in Residence at Gradient Ventures; and Ron Ondecheck, Managing Director and founder of South Highland Ventures, LLC.

Team DuaSock, with students Fatima Hussain and Dace Cole, who are Biomedical Engineering majors, and John Macadam, double dajor in Marketing and Graphic Design, won first place with their socks that detect pressure and heat problem areas for diabetic patients to guard against foot infections.

Second place was awarded to Team JoeyJacket and Biomedical Engineering majors Emil Fonseca, Tosh Morgan, Marissa Nguyen, and Brandice-Taylor Tilley. JoeyJacket offers a Neonatal Intensive Monitoring System that creates a safer and more comfortable environment for babies and their families.

The HydroGuard team – Ethan Reed, Mechanical Engineering; Oliver Powell, Business Management and Entrepreneurship; Alisha Brown, Biomedical Engineering; and Chris King, Electrical Engineering; was awarded third place. HydroGuard is developing a mouthpiece sensor that allows athletic trainers to monitor hydration levels of athletes in real-time.

Century Next Bank sponsors a TOP DOG Startup Prize of up to $10,000 to the 2020 TOP DOG New Venture Championship team with the most promising business opportunity. In order to be eligible for this grant award, the team must launch and actively operate their business. They must also pursue other forms of funding such as SBIR/STTR grants, bank loans, equity investment, or other federal or state grants or contracts.

The Louisiana Tech Robert H. Rawle Enterprise Center sponsors six months of incubator space to the winning teams that choose to pursue their ideas.

Supporting sponsors for the TOP DOG include the Louisiana Tech College of Business, Louisiana Tech College of Engineering and Science, the Center for Entrepreneurship and Information Technology (CEnIT), the Louisiana Tech Enterprise Center, the Innovation Enterprise Fund, JonesWalker, and the Technology Business Development Center (TBDC).

The TOP DOG competition was established in 2002 and is coordinated by Debbie Inman, Director of the Center for Entrepreneurship and Information Technology. Members of Bulldog Entrepreneurs, the student organization that empowers entrepreneurs and promotes innovation on the Tech campus, serve as facilitators for the event.