The northwest Ohio area’s growing tech and start-up community will gather with investors, venture capitalists, University of Toledo professors and business leaders at Pitch & Pour, the area’s premier entrepreneurial networking event, at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12 in the Nitschke Technology Commercialization Complex.

Six teams make their investment pitch in a shark tank inspired event with more than $10,000 in cash and prizes awarded to the top 3 winners. 

Teams have five minutes and five slides to pitch their business concepts. Then the judges start peppering them with questions. Investors, students, start-up companies and future entrepreneurs will all learn about the companies, their potential, and receive helpful insight from the judges.

“This year we are seeing a lot of momentum for Pitch & Pour based on the success of last year’s event,” said Molly Reams Thompson, director of LaunchPad Incubation at The University of Toledo. “The candidates and teams presenting are stronger. The support and involvement from the tech and investment community is the best it has ever been, and we are expecting a great evening for Toledo area businesses to connect with each other and discover some exciting things happening here at the heart of the start-up community.”

The presenting start-up teams at the fourth Pitch & Pour event are:

• AudiblEye, which provides indoor navigation to blind and visually impaired individuals via a smartphone application.
• Creepy Compass, a mobile app and website that collects and displays creepy nearby locations, attractions and stories of the paranormal and the macabre.
• Refine, a mobile app that uses proprietary algorithms to scour top websites to help users learn new and relevant words. Top words are ranked based on frequency, website mentions and context.
• Pfitz Reaction Bars are new, revolutionary types of bar bells featuring steel balls, which create unique kinetic dynamics for strength, cardio, endurance and proprioception training.
• ThermoMorph commercializes a percutaneous mechanical thrombectomy device called QuickFlow PE that addresses shortcomings in today’s therapies and surgical procedures for pulmonary embolisms.
• Silverback Casualty Extraction Pack is a novel way to transport injured soldiers on the battlefield. The Pack allows one operator to transport a casualty, by themselves, while maintaining full use of their hands.

New this year, the event will include food trucks, some new craft beers and additional event sponsors that include The University of Toledo, Ohio Third Frontier, Rocket Innovations, Rocket Ventures, Fraser Clemens Martin & Miller LLC, and Startup Weekend Toledo.

“Each year we try to take the event to the next level and this year with our new sponsors, some new craft beers and Toledo’s best food trucks, people can come right from work, have dinner and start networking,” Thompson said. “This is a high energy event with food, drinks, music, and a lot of interesting business leaders and tech companies to meet with. I think this year’s presenting teams are going to turn some heads as well.”

The University of Toledo LaunchPad Incubation Program works to bolster innovation in northwest Ohio by providing access to capital, resources, and expertise focused on enhancing community collaboration and communication for entrepreneurial development.

For more information about the Pitch & Pour event visit pitchandpour.com.

Media Coverage
The Blade (Nov. 13, 2015)
WTOL 11 (Nov. 13, 2015)

On Wednesday, Nov. 11, The University of Toledo will honor those who serve or have served our country as well as their families during the 11th annual Veterans Appreciation Breakfast and Resource Fair.

The free Veterans Day celebration will be held from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. in Savage Arena and is open to local veterans, members of the military and their families.

“The University of Toledo recognizes the significance of the service these individuals provide to our nation, and this is one way that we show our support,” said Samuel McCrimmon, UT vice president for advancement.

Col. Craig Baker, commander of the 180th Fighter Wing, Ohio Air National Guard, will give the keynote address following McCrimmon’s opening remarks.

After the breakfast and ceremony, a golf cart shuttle will be available for attendees who wish to visit the UT Veterans Memorial Plaza, an outdoor area that honors almost 400 individuals and groups who served the United States.

“It’s important to remember men and women have given their lives; they deserve to be recognized for the dedication and sacrifices they have given to this country and its citizens,” McCrimmon said.

Free parking will be available in lots 3, 5 and 6 near Savage Arena.

This year’s event is sponsored by The University of Toledo, American Red Cross of Northwest Ohio, Fifth Third Bank, Columbia Gas, Lucas County Commissioners and the Lucas County Veterans Service Commission.

The University’s reputation as an institution that assists veterans continues to grow. For the third consecutive year, UT has been recognized as a Top Military-Friendly University by Military Advanced Education & Transition.

For more information on the event, contact Peggy Holewinski, major gifts officer at the American Red Cross, at 419.329.2573 or peggy.holewinski@redcross.org.

Media Coverage
The Blade (Nov. 11, 2015)
WTOL 11 (Nov. 11, 2015)
13 ABC, NBC 24 and WTOL 11 (Nov. 12, 2015)
13 ABC (Nov. 13, 2015)

Two University of Toledo colleges have been named among the nation’s best by The Princeton Review.

The UT College of Law is listed in The Best 173 Law Schools and the UT College of Business and Innovation is listed in The Best 295 Business Schools.

“At the UT College of Law, we provide legal education on a personal scale,” said D. Benjamin Barros, dean of the College of Law. “Our goal is student success, and our faculty take the time to get to know their students. No one is just a number here.”

“All of us in the College of Business and Innovation are very excited at this continuing recognition by The Princeton Review of the quality and relevance of our programs,” said Dr. Gary Insch, dean of the College of Business and Innovation. “This recognition by The Princeton Review further validates the quality of our faculty, the significance of our curriculum, and the excellence of our students.”

The UT College of Law had the top ranking on accessibility of professors (92) among Ohio’s nine law schools and The Princeton Review editors wrote, “Students speak overwhelmingly of the school’s obvious care and concern for their future.”

The UT College of Business and Innovation’s MBA program was praised as “one of the best in the Midwest” in the Princeton Review report, which stated “the college’s history of excellence in practical, relevant education based on cutting-edge research and business engagement will take your career to the next level.”

The nationally recognized Interfaith Amigos will promote interfaith acceptance when they visit Toledo this weekend.

Known for their blend of spiritual wisdom and humor, Imam Jamal Rahman, Pastor Don Mackenzie and Rabbi Ted Falcon started their work together after 9/11. The group travels around the country promoting authentic conversation between faith traditions, sharing why they believe interfaith dialogue is so critically important and how each of their Abrahamic traditions support and inhibit deeper dialogue.

The visit by the Interfaith Amigos offers a unique format for the annual Jewish-Christian-Muslim Dialogue hosted by The University of Toledo Center for Religious Understanding.

Each year for the past 13 years, members of the Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths on campus and in the community gather to talk about a topic of mutual interest. Normally the faiths take turns on a keynote speaker, but this year the Center for Religious Understanding was offered the opportunity to partner with Sylvania United Church of Christ to bring the Interfaith Amigos to Toledo instead.

“One reason to come to this event is to get to hear firsthand and ask questions of a Jew, a Christian and a Muslim who are great speakers and at the same time great leaders in their tradition,” said Dr. Jeanine Diller, director of UT’s Center for Religious Understanding. “Religions that aren’t your own can seem really abstract and odd; it can help a lot to talk with someone from them, and it’s wonderful to talk with someone who knows a lot about them.”

The group will offer several public presentations throughout the weekend:

• Saturday, Nov. 7 — “Promises and Problems of Interfaith Dialogue” at 4 p.m. at the Sylvania United Church of Christ, located at 7240 Erie St., Sylvania. The lecture and question-and-answer session cost $15; students with valid ID get in free.

• Sunday, Nov. 8 —“The Golden Rule and Compassion in Three Faiths” at 8:30 and 10:40 a.m. at the Sylvania United Church of Christ. Join the congregation in a worship service with the Interfaith Amigos and hear them give a shared sermon.

• Sunday, Nov. 8 — “An Informal Conversation With the Interfaith Amigos” at 9:20 a.m. at the Sylvania United Church of Christ.

• Sunday, Nov. 8 — “The Practice of Effective Interfaith Dialogue, an Experiential Workshop” at 2 p.m. at the Radisson Hotel on UT’s Health Science Campus. This event will include a discussion after the lecture portion.

“It’s hard to imagine a better team to instantiate the dialogue between these traditions that our event is all about, and I know our team is looking forward to learning as much as we can from them about interfaith dialogue while they are with us,” Diller said.

The Interfaith Amigos’ visit is sponsored by the Jewish Christian Muslim Dialogue Committee at The University of Toledo’s Center for Religious Understanding, the Childester Lecture Series at Sylvania United Church of Christ, the Toledo Community Foundation and the Multifaith Council of Northwest Ohio.

Click here for more information on the Interfaith Amigos events.

Media Coverage
The Blade (Nov. 7, 2015)

U.S. Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur will be the keynote speaker at the 15th annual Great Lakes Water Conference Friday, Nov. 6, in the Law Center.

The free, public conference, sponsored by the College of Law and its Legal Institute of the Great Lakes, will feature three panels of experts to discuss “Algae, Pipelines and More.”

The algae panel will explore legal solutions to the harmful algal blooms plaguing Lake Erie. The pipelines panel will focus on challenges arising from an important network of petroleum pipelines near valuable water resources. And the more hot topics speakers will discuss a controversial new rule defining the scope of the Clean Water Act, a recent Ohio Supreme Court decision impacting impaired waters, and a proposed diversion of water out of the Great Lakes basin.

“The conference will tackle key water issues that are not yet on many persons’ radar as well as problems that are currently weighing heavily on almost everyone’s mind,” said Kenneth Kilbert, director of the Legal Institute of the Great Lakes and professor of law.

The conference kicks off at 8:30 a.m. with a welcome from UT President Sharon L. Gaber, and Congresswoman Kaptur will give the keynote address at 8:45 a.m. The algae panel will be at 9:15 a.m., the pipelines panel at 11 a.m., and the more hot topics panel will take place at 1:30 p.m.

The conference is free to the public. Registration is $75 for attorneys seeking 4.5 hours of Ohio Continuing Legal Education.

For more information about the conference, click here.

Media Coverage
The Blade (Nov. 4, 2015)
13 ABC (Nov. 6, 2015)
The Blade (Nov. 7, 2015)
The Blade (Nov. 9, 2015)
Marcellus (Nov. 9, 2015)
13 ABC, WTOL 11 and NBC 24 (Nov. 9, 2015)

More than 70 years after answering his nation’s call to service during World War II, University of Toledo Professor Emeritus Richard R. Perry will be presented the Soldier’s Medal during a ceremony 1 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, in Doermann Theater.

A graduate of Waite High School, Perry enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1943 and was honorably discharged in 1946 with the rank of sergeant.

An accomplished academic who earned bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees from UT, he spent 57 years teaching and serving in various administrative positions at his alma mater.

“It was an interesting twist of fate in which Perry learned that his actions on April 6, 1945, earned him this award,” said Navy Reserve Lt. Haraz N. Ghanbari, UT director of military and veteran affairs. “He risked his life that day to save his comrades, and we look forward to officially recognizing Sergeant Perry for his heroism.”

In addition, the second annual American flag retirement ceremony hosted by the Student Veterans of America UT Chapter is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. on the steps outside the Student Union. Ghanbari will speak at the ceremony and share the history of the flag, the proper way to dispose of a flag that is no longer suitable for display, and will preside over the retirement of several American flags from across campus.

For more information, contact Ghanbari at 419.530.VETS (8387).

Media Coverage
WTOL 11 (Nov. 6, 2015)
The Blade (Nov. 6, 2015)
NBC 24 (Nov. 6, 2015)

As CEO of the United States Anti-Doping Agency, Travis T. Tygart was involved in one of the most high-profile cases when he and his agency took on seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong.

Wednesday, Nov. 4, at 7 p.m. in The University of Toledo’s Doermann Theater, hear Tygart talk about that case and more at the Edwin Dodd Distinguished Lecture Series in Business Ethics.

The lecture, named for former Owens-Illinois chairman Edwin Dodd, seeks to start a conversation about ethics while bringing together the fields of business and law.

Tygart

“The case is interesting and well-known,” said Dr. Gary S. Insch, dean of the College of Business and Innovation. “It crosses the boundaries of both areas; there is the obvious legal aspect to this, but Lance Armstrong used his name to create a business. Certainly there are business ethics questions associated with this.”

Tygart was chosen to speak at this lecture not only because of this particular case, but because of the background he has that bridges the gap between business and law. Though he received his JD from Southern Methodist University in 1999, he pursued a different path than most lawyers.

“From our perspective, it’s great to have speakers on campus who went to law school and then ended up doing something different with their lives,” said Geoffrey Rapp, UT associate dean for academic affairs in the College of law and the Harold A. Anderson Professor of Law and Values. “He has legal education but branched into a direction that a lot of people might not think is available if you go to get a JD. It’s nice for our students to get to see the diverse things someone can do after they go to law school.”

Under Tygart’s leadership, USADA’s efforts to protect clean athletes have included cooperating with federal authorities on numerous investigations such as the international steroid bust, Operation Raw deal, and the international doping conspiracy involving the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative in San Francisco.

Tygart also has been recognized by Sports Illustrated as one of the 50 most powerful people in sports; named to Time magazine’s 100 list of most influential people in the world for 2013; named one of the top 12 world sports personalities of the year by Sport Intern; selected as one of the world’s most influential sports personalities by Inside Sport; and was one of the Colorado lawyers of the year named by Colorado Law Weekly.

At 1 p.m. the day of the lecture, law students are invited to have “A Conversation With Travis Tygart,” moderated by Rapp and Benjamin G. Davis, UT associate professor of law. Held in the Law Center McQuade Law Auditorium, the event will offer an opportunity for students to ask Tygart questions and have a more personal conversation.

The free, public event later in the evening is geared toward students, but open to anyone who wishes to attend. Order free tickets at utoledo.edu/honorslecture.

This lecture is co-hosted by the College of Business and Innovation and the College of Law, and sponsored by Dana Holding Corp. and Owens-Illinois Inc.

Media Coverage
The Blade (Nov. 3, 2015)
The Blade (Nov. 5, 2015)

Heather Mac Donald, the Thomas W. Smith Fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a contributing editor at the City Journal, will deliver the second lecture in a two-part series titled “A Conversation on Policing and Race in Post-Ferguson America” at noon Monday, Nov. 2 in the Law Center McQuade Law Auditorium.

The free, public lecture is a part of the Stranahan National Issues Forum and is sponsored by the College of Law and its chapter of the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies.

Since the events in Ferguson, Mo., last year, Americans have seen a steady stream of incidents replayed in video images: the death of Eric Garner in a police chokehold in New York, the killing of a fleeing Walter Scott by a North Charleston police officer, and the death in police custody of Freddie Gray in Baltimore, to name a few.

These incidents and others have raised uncomfortable questions about policing in this country. Is American policing infected with racism? Have police gone too far in their willingness to use force? How can we ensure that policing is performed effectively, but also fairly and impartially?

Mac Donald will argue that police departments are the government agencies most dedicated to the proposition that black lives matter by explaining the policing revolution of the 1990s and looking at race, crime and policing statistics.

Her work at City Journal has canvassed a range of topics, including homeland security, immigration, policing and racial profiling, homelessness and homeless advocacy, and educational policy. Her writings also have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The New Republic. She is a frequent guest on FOX News, CNN, and other television and radio programs.

Mac Donald is the author of several books. Her second book titled Are Cops Racist? (2003) investigates the workings of the police, racial profiling, and the anti-profiling lobby’s harmful effects on black Americans. She has frequently testified before Congress.

Mac Donald holds a bachelor of arts degree from Yale University, a master of arts degree from Cambridge University, and a law degree from Stanford University Law School.

In the first lecture Sept. 10, David Harris, who has studied police and their conduct for 25 years, and who has worked with and trained police in departments all over the country, offered his thoughts on racial profiling and various means available to curb police misconduct. He is the Distinguished Faculty Scholar at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. Harris taught at The University of Toledo College of Law through 2007, where he was the Eugene Balk Professor of Law and Values.

The Stranahan National Issues Forum is a joint program of The University of Toledo College of Law and its chapter of the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies. It is made possible by an endowment from the Stranahan Foundation.

The forum’s purpose is to address issues of national importance through the lens of the American legal system.

Do you have a product or service that provides a measurable impact on the lives of women and families?

If so, you could have the chance to compete in the InnovateHER challenge for one of three prizes totaling $70,0000.

The InnovateHER challenge, created by the U.S. Small Business Administration, is a national competition aimed at unearthing products and services that impact and empower the lives of women and families.

The competition begins with a local round, hosted by The University of Toledo, and ends in a final round with 10 finalists in Washington, D.C. The northwest Ohio regional competition is being held Tuesday, Dec. 1, at UT’s Scott Park Campus.

To compete, register for free at UTInnovateHER.com by noon Friday, Nov. 20. Potential participants will have their documents reviewed and local finalists will be chosen on Wednesday, Nov. 25 to present their pitch to a panel of judges at the local competition Dec. 1.

The judges for the regional event are Scott Weiss, CEO of Ocean Accelerator; Gary Insch, dean of the UT College of Business and Innovation; Amy Hall, president and CEO of Ebony Construction; Linda Parra, president at Nuestra Gente Community Projects, Inc.; and Chris Hill, vice president of business banking at Huntington Bank.

Judges will evaluate each pitch based on whether the product or service has a measurable impact on the lives of women and families, whether it has the potential for commercialization, whether it fills a need in the marketplace, the overall quality of the pitch, and the overall quality of the company’s business plan.

On Wednesday, Dec. 2, the judges will announce the winner, who receives a $1,000 prize for the local contest and a chance to be selected to compete at the national competition.

For more information, call 419.530.3347.

Media Coverage
La Prensa (Nov. 10, 2015)