WE CALL THEM CHAMPIONS...

The Lab has funded over 50 Champions since 2003 - people who have a great idea as well as the desire, energy and willingness to make it  reality for Greater Cleveland.

NEWLY FUNDED IDEAS
Congrats to our recent round of champions who have the right amount of passion, knowledge and risk taking ability to make change!


BeeDance 
BeeDance's Champion, Michael Dungan, will create a virtual platform that identifies, locates, and connects useful waste materials...

MedCity News Service 
MedCity News Service's Champions, Chris Seper and Mary Vanac, will create a medical industry news service and website to cover...

Expedite Renewable Energy

Expedite Renewable Energy, led by Lab champion Stefanie Spear, is assisting small business in setting up on-site energy solutions...

FreshFork Market 
FreshFork Market's Champion, Trevor Clatterbuck, created a "virtual farmer's market" to connect local farmers with restaurants...

Got*City Game 
Got*City Game's Champions, Barbara Oney and TL Champion, will create a web-media series of reality-style city-focused scavenger hunts, where teams compete to show their city knowledge....

SpangleMagazine.com

SpangleMagazine.com is an online portal dedicated to connecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) patrons in Northeast Ohio with local arts, entertainment and cultural organzations...

CitizenGroove 
CitizenGroove champion, John Knific, created the first internet-based professional media network that accurately represents how content is created and distributed in the real world.CG will provide a new platform for performing and recording artists...

GREAT IDEAS CHANGING CLEVELAND

BackTalk Magazine
BackTalk Magazine's Champion, Erin Johnson, wanted to connect Cleveland teens, by engaging them in issues they care about...

Beyondmotherhood.com
Beyondmotherhood.com Champion, Shannon Davis, wanted to connect employers with educated, experienced, stay-at-home mothers through an online niche job board...

Black Singles Network
Black Singles Network Champion, Keshia Johnson, wanted to give African-American singles a venue to come together...

Center For Health And Disease Management
HDM Champions, Terry Murphy & Jack Kleinhenz, forsee patients having an ability to play an active role in their health over their lifetime...

Cleveland Brain Gain
Cleveland Brain Gain Champion, Madeleine Bruml, hopes to keep high school students in the region and/or encourage them to return after college...

Cleveland City Living
Cleveland City Living Champion, Scott Phillips, wanted to let youngprofessionals know about all of the great "living" opportunities in downtown Cleveland...

Cleveland Design District
District of Design Champion, Dan Cuffaro, wanted to
showcase the design product offerings of regional consumer product companies...

The Cleveland Rowing Foundation
Cleveland Rowing Foundation Champion, Mark Silverstein, im...

Cleveland365.com
Cleveland365.com Champion, Terry Travis, wanted to connect Cleveland's minority community to local resources 365 days a year...

City Wheels
City Wheels Champion, Ryan McKenzie, hopes to improve the quality of life in Greater Cleveland...

CityProwl Cleveland
CityProwl Cleveland Champion, Jennifer Coleman, wanted Clevelanders to hear compelling and fascinating stories about Cleveland, told by Clevelanders...

College Interns for Energy Efficiency
College Interns for Energy Efficiency's Champion, Brother Charlie McElroy, wants to use college students to prepare energy efficiency grant applications for local manufacturers...


Cool Cleveland
CoolCleveland Champion, Thomas Mulready, wanted to engage and inspire the Cleveland and Northeast Ohio community to participate in "cool" Cleveland events...

East College Street Accelerator Project
East College Street Accelerator Project Champion, Josh Rosen, had 12,000 square feet of vacant retail space that he wanted to fill with entrepreneurs providing them with technology, marketing, and business-development experience...

The Entrepreneurs EDGE
The Entrepreneurs EDGE Champion, Kirk Neiswander, wanted to help entrepreneurs in Northeast Ohio to grow the value of their companies..

Entrepreneurship Preparatory School
Entrepreneurship Preparatory School Champion, John Zitzner, wanted to build a school curruiculum teaching entrepreneurship and life skills to inner city youth...

Exhibit: Cleveland
Exhibit: Cleveland Champion, Kate O'Neil, wanted to bring local artwork to vacant, Cleveland storefront...

Full Circle Fuels
Full Circle Fuels Champion, Sam Merrett, wants to increase awareness and use of biofuels in Northeast Ohio...

Hands On Northeast Ohio
Hands on Northeast Ohio Champion, Jeff Griffiths, wanted to provide young professionals in Cleveland with specific, exciting, volunteer opportunities...

Homelessness Education Campaign
Homelessness Education Campaign will atempt to reduce aggressive panhandling by redirecting resources from paper cups to well-managed resources...

iGuiders
iGuiders will provide an online business mentor that offers tactical business guidance for emerging entrepreneurs and small business owners in Greater Cleveland...

Kalliope Stage
Kalliope Stage Champions, John Paul Boukis & Paul Gurgol wanted to promote the art of the American musical and present intimate music performances...

Microsystems Academy
Microsystems Academy Champion, Colin Drummond, wanted to provide Clevelanders with hands-on experience in micro-electrical mechanical systems (MEMS) and Nanotechnology...

Minds Matter 
Minds Matter's Champion, Michael Lagoni and a group of other young professionals, will help students gain admission to top colleges...

National Society of Black Engineers Jr. (NSBE Jr.)
NSBE Jr. introduces African-American high school students from the Cleveland region to various engineering disciplines by pairing them with African-American engineers...

NEOBio
NEOBio Champion, Steve Goldberg, is dedicated to the clustering and growth of the bioscience industry in Northeast Ohio...

Northeast Ohio Videogame Initiative
NEO Videogame Initiative Champion, Daniel Carl, wanted to promote the interactive entertainment industry in Greater Cleveland...

Plexus
Plexus Champion, Eric Lutzo, wants to make Cleveland's corporations more inclusive to the LGBT community...

PolicyBridge
Policy Bridge Champion, Randell McShepard, envisioned a public policy institute, researching, analyzing and strategically responding to issues impacting the African-American community...

Pop Up City
Pop Up City temporarily occupies vacant building and land with short-term, high impact events, such as outdoor markets, temporary restaurants and shops, concerts and sports...

Ray's Indoor Mountain Bike Park
Ray’s Indoor Mountain Bike Park is over 80,000 square feet of industrial space that holds an array of ramps, turns, tracks...

Red Dot Project
Red Dot Project Champion, Joan Perch, wanted to connect local artists to the business community...

Sankore Vanguard
Sankore Vanguard Champion, Dr. Jomo Mutegi, wanted to prepare African-American men for leadership in science, technology, engineering and mathematics...

The Seed Factory
The Seed Factory's Champion, Melissa Williams, decided to fill neighborhood service voids by working with property owners to rent out their vacantspaces to entrepreneurs...

Society Of Urban Professionals (SOUP)
Society of Urban Professionals Champions, Donna Dabbs & Alton Tinker, wanted to create an on-going forum, whereby emerging, minority leaders could network in a professional environment...

Sustainable Community Housing Assistance
Sustainable Community Housing Assistance (SCHA) will provide community residents with housing down payment assistance, through a sustainable investment vehicle...

TUBA Group
TUBA Group Champion, Chris Carter, a high school junior at Max Hayes High School, wanted to help MEMS companies offer MEMS equipment to entrepreneurs...

Velodrome
The Velodrome, when complete, will be an indoor arena including a bike park with outdoor track, Cyclocross trails, BMX trails and Safety...

Women's Leadership Initiative
Women's Leadership Initiative Champion, Barbara Danforth, hopes to assist women in effectively advancing their careers, through workshops and individual coaching...

World School Games
World School Games Champion, David Gilbert, hopes to provide an Olympic style athletic and cultural event for students enrolled in secondary schools around the world...