THE CATALYST ACCELERATOR WINS STAGE ONE OF THE U.S. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION’S 2024 GROWTH ACCELERATOR FUND COMPETITION
April 24 2024 - 4:44PM
Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the
Catalyst Accelerator, in collaboration with Air Force Research Lab
Space Vehicles Directorate (AFRL/RV), as a Stage One winner for the
2024 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition (GAFC). The Catalyst
Accelerator will receive a $50,000 cash prize for its impactful and
inclusive approach to nurturing a collaborative national
innovation ecosystem to advance small business research and
development (R&D) from ideas to the market. By fostering
connections between entrepreneurs, mentors, partners,
philanthropies, corporations, investors, and other shared
resources, GAFC 2024 catalyzes strategic ecosystem partnerships to
build community and organizational capacity for the successful
launch, growth, and scale of STEM (Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Mathematics)-based entrepreneurs.
With the GAFC award, the Catalyst Accelerator will build
relationships with other entrepreneurial-support entities located
in states with few SBIR wins to collaborate on a Boot Camp model
in host-state areas. The Accelerator’s Boot Camp model was
prototyped under a previous GAFC award and was created to help
local/regional small businesses in the space defense industry to
understand the pathway to doing business with the Department of
Defense (DoD). The Accelerator team will equip the host
entrepreneurial-support entities with resources and knowledge to
duplicate and scale the Boot Camp to other needed defense sectors
pertinent to their region.
“It was such an honor to win the GAFC award in the past,”
explained KiMar Gartman, Program Director of the Catalyst
Accelerator. “We worked hard, in collaboration with AFRL/RV,
to prototype the Boot Camp then and are now so excited to have the
opportunity to start connecting with neighboring states to share
the success we’ve had and open doors to the DoD for underserved
entrepreneurs in their areas as well.”
Two Stages
SBA welcomed Stage One submissions from a broad range of
organizations with a collaborative vision to nurture a
national ecosystem for equitable access to entrepreneurship.
Winners of Stage One were selected through a multi-tier review
panel process with experts in entrepreneurship, business,
innovation, and strategic planning both inside and out of the
federal government.
Stage Two offers an additional $50,000 to $150,000 in cash
prizes for Growth Accelerator Partnerships. To learn
more about Stage Two opportunities and to access the Growth
Accelerator Fund Competition Guidelines, please
visit https://www.americasseedfund.us/accelerators.
From inequity and climate change, to supporting national defense
and community-driven economic prosperity, the real opportunity is
now to build up innovation ecosystems and The Catalyst Accelerator
is eager to deepen its collaborative impact in National Security
and Defense.
About Catalyst Accelerator
The Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate and
United States Space Force’s Catalyst Accelerator is a
NewSpace-focused defense and national security industry
accelerator, headquartered on the Catalyst Campus for Technology
and Innovation (CCTI) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. CCTI is a
collaborative ecosystem where industry, small business,
entrepreneurs, startups, government, academia, and investors
intersect with Colorado’s aerospace and defense industry to create
community, spark innovation, and stimulate business growth. The
Catalyst Accelerator is a collaborative program hosted by Catalyst
Campus for Technology and Innovation (CCTI, a Colorado 501(c)3) in
partnership with the United States Space Force, and the Air Force
Research Laboratory to provide a robust, mentor-driven curriculum
for accelerator teams.
Allison Boothe
Catalyst Accelerator
719-749-8601
Allison.Boothe@CatalystCampus.Org