Igniting Entrepreneurship of Students and Recent Alumni of Oregon Tech
Oregon Tech’s Catalyze Klamath Falls Challenge has been a huge success for student competitors and the Klamath community. Over the past six years, student/alumni teams have competed for over $70,000 in prize money and services. The 2021 event is made possible through generous sponsorship and donations from AVISTA, City of Klamath Falls, Klamath County, Gaucho Collective, Klamath County Economic Development Association (KCEDA), Klamath IDEA Center for Entrepreneurship, Oregon Small Business Development Center, VertueLab and the Wendt Family Foundation.
Catalyze Klamath Falls Challenge aims to support business ideas and/or fledgling entrepreneurial activity from any field of study that produces a new idea, product or service that could become a thriving business in Klamath Falls, and has the potential for job growth in rural Oregon.
2020-21 Schedule of Events
| Event | Date | Location | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|---|
| Catalyze Klamath Falls Kick-Off | October 28, 2020 5-6:00pm |
Zoom | This is a hosted event for students, faculty, and community members to learn about the contest and begin to form teams |
| Pre-Registration Team Formation | January 13, 2021 | TBD | This is a hosted event for all prospective contestants to meet and network with potential team members as well as register for the event |
| Catalyze Team Registration | January 22, 2020 | Team registration is due at 5:00pm | |
| Catalyze Team Meet and Greet | February 3, 2021 | TBD | This is a hosted event for all teams to meet with the Catalyze Klamath mentor network and learn about available external resources |
| Preliminary Concept Submission | February 5, 2021 | Preliminary concept submission is due at 5:00pm | |
| Shark Tech Venture Pitch Contest | March 3, 2021 | TBD | This event will also serve to select finalists (if needed). Mandatory for all teams |
| Catalyze Klamath Falls Challenge Contest | April 15, 2021 | Oregon Tech College Union | Teams compete in front of a panel of judges for the PRIZES! A list of judges, prizes and final details will be posted prior to the competition |
Winning teams are awarded cash prizes to invest in start-up costs and ignite project development, or to share among the Team.
Previous Catalyze Winners
2018 Winning Team: OrbitOWLS
Utilize new technology to send small satellites and other devices to space for a fraction of the price of current methods
Team: Micah Hicks, David Minar, Julien Mindlin-Davidson, Brandon Camp, Ben Porter
2017 Winning Project: Helios Hive
A Solar Bee Hive which allows for the temperature regulation within a hive or set of hives, in order to assist with the elimination of the varroa mite. Inventor Mathias Dean is a Renewable Energy Engineering graduate.
2016 Winning Team: GO Possibilities
Production of graphene oxide
Team: Matthew Stansbury, Eric Tipler, Ben Fawver, Tate Orlik Hill
2015 Winning Team: Gro-volution
Sustainable agriculture production system ("In the box farming")
Team: Eric Wilson, Derek Pallett, Nathan Leung
In The News
But first, students participating in the Fourth annual Catalyze Klamath competition tested their project’s mettle with a panel of “Shark Tech” judges Wednesday.