Submit Your Venture For Consideration

1. A member or member(s) of the founding and current leadership team must be enrolled as student(s) at an Baltimore-Towson-Columbia MSA college or university at the time of award, with an anticipated graduation date of December 2025 or later.
   1. The student founder(s) must be enrolled in three (3) semester credits or more at the time of award. If one or more student founders are graduating at the end of the current semester with less than three (3) credits at the time of award, this is also acceptable. 
   2. If one or more student founder(s) graduate date between application and award deployment, the graduation date must be no more than 180 days before award disbursement. 
   3. Eligible: A PhD student graduates December 2025. They are taking a 1.00 credit course for their capstone. 
   4. Not eligible: A student is taking an online certificate for course credit. They are in the first semester taking a 2.00 credit course. 
2. At time of application and award, at least 50% or more of the company is owned by a student founder or group of student founder(s) at an eligible college or university in the Baltimore-Towson-Columbia MSA. 
3. The venture must be a technology-based startup company leveraging some innovation in technology. This includes companies that are building/ have built a new technology, or companies that utilize technological advancement to deliver a new product or service.*We identify technology based as one that builds and commercializes proprietary technology. This often involves R&D, IP protection, or scientific advancement. There is an emphasis on scalable potential (beyond the initial founding teams’ ability to deliver the product) as a key trait. Examples include: 
   1. [eligible] An e-commerce sneaker platform with an embedded proprietary algorithm sourcing the best deals across various online marketplaces.
   2. [eligible]  A novel, portable medical tool that effectively and accurately diagnoses cancer, at twice the speed and half the cost of traditional equipment.
   3. [not eligible] Donut shop with online shop or nail salon where customers can book appointments online
4. The venture must be incorporated as a business. (LLC, C Corps, 501c3, or other entities accepted) Incorporation can happen within 30 days of notice of award.
5. The principal place of business must be located in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson Metropolitan Statistical Area.
6. The applicant agrees to use at least 20 percent of the award to hire third-party consultants for planning, development, regulatory compliance, or other technical assistance related to establishing a start-up company unless upon applicant’s request, TEDCO provides waiver thereto.
7. If selected, required documentation to receive funding:
   1. Application Form
   2. Project Proposal: Milestones & Metrics, Ecosystem Impact
   3. Spending Plan, as needed
   4. Budget
   5. Proof of Physical Business Headquarter Location in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson Statistical Area. Examples include lease, license agreement or deed. Upon request, a letter of verification may be required. 
   6. Articles of Incorporation or Organization
   7. Bylaws or Operating Agreement including Capitalization Table with ownership percentages, unless already stated in Bylaws or Operating Agreement
   8. Credit Enrollment Report
   9. Member or Bylaw Resolutions: grants eligible founder with executive signing authority from all founding members
   10. Student Verification Letter from a staff or faculty member

When did it start?
Pava LaPere Legacy of Innovation Act of 2024 was passed during the 2024 Maryland legislative session and effective July 1, 2024. The planning for the first Pava Innovation Awards selection process started in the fall of 2024, culminating in the inaugural MD Student Venture Showcase on February 18, 2025.

How many nominations are made and ventures selected?

• Each of the 20 colleges & universities in the Baltimore MSA are able to nominate up to four (4) student ventures for consideration.
• The committees will ultimately select anticipated nine (9) student ventures to receive $50,000 in grant funding – with no more than two (2) selected from the same college/university.
• In the 2024-2025 cycle, we had 39 nominated student ventures!

What is the award amount?

$50,000 non-dilutive grant funding disbursed by TEDCO.

Does my venture have to be incorporated?
Yes, ventures have to be incorporated to be awarded, but upon award selection, unincorporated entities have 30 days to incorporate and register as a business in Maryland.

Can my venture be a nonprofit?
It depends. The venture must be incorporated as a business and that includes entity types such as LLC, C Corps, B Corps, 501c3, or other entities. Above all else, eligible businesses must offer technology-based product(s) and/or service(s) and be registered in the state of Maryland. Please contact ssaintarmand@tedcomd.com if you are unsure about your business entity type.

If my venture is selected and awarded, when can I expect to receive the funds?

• Step 1 → Upon selection, TEDCO will conduct an internal review to ensure all awarded applicants’ meet eligibility criteria required by statute, Econ. Dev. § 10–462.
• Step 2 → TEDCO will coordinate each awardee’s grant agreement with the Office of Attorney General.
• Note: Disbursement is in two phases. The first tranche is released after the grant agreement is signed. The second tranche’s deployment is anticipated six months after initial deployment.

Is there a minimum number of credits to be considered a student?

There is a three (3) credit enrollment minimum at the time of application and award. If you are graduating this school year, see eligibility requirements for more information.

What if I am a graduate school student?
Graduate students and students of all types enrolled during the notice of award period are all eligible.

What if I graduate in December?

You are eligible to be nominated!

Where does a company need to be incorporated vs. headquartered?
The venture can be incorporated anywhere, but its primary place of business (headquarter) must be in Maryland.

My university owns intellectual property/equity in my company. Am I still eligible?
Yes, so long as one or more current eligible student(s) hold 50% or more equity in the company, as evidenced by the company’s operating agreement, bylaws, or cap table.

I have university faculty/staff as a founding team member. Am I still eligible?
Yes, as long as the founding team includes one or more student (s) enrolled at one of the eligible colleges or universities in the Baltimore-Towson-Columbia MSA at the time of application and award. A student must be recognized as a founder on the company’s official operating agreement or bylaws.

What is the role of the steering committee member from my school?
If your venture has been selected to be nominated, your nominator is expected to support the preparation of your intake materials to ensure competitiveness and timely submission. It’s a dialogue! Ask for feedback, support, guidance, and work together to submit a great nomination.

Who is my school’s steering committee representative / nominator?

Please refer to the contact sheet here for your point of contact.

What if your institution does not have a representative? Or I am not able to reach my school representative?
Please reach out to robbin@upsurgebaltimore.com.

Will I receive feedback about my venture from the evaluators?

Yes!  We encourage evaluators to provide feedback to nominated ventures after review and we share the feedback to student founders directly after the selection process.

How many attendees are at the MD Student Venture Showcase?
At the 2024-2025 MD Student Venture Showcase, we had over 400 attendees from across the Baltimore region join us to celebrate student entrepreneurship and to welcome the Pava Awardees into the ecosystem.

What are the expectations after the award?
Awarded ventures will be expected to:

• Leverage internal resources provided through TEDCO’s Venture Development, UpSurge, and/ any other coordinated business and technical support services through Baltimore’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Awardees can anticipate regularly scheduled meetings with the Program Manager to evaluate what support services align best with their project activities.
• Present at the MD Student Venture Showcase tentatively scheduled for mid-February 2026.
• Provide company updates to UpSurge/TEDCO on a 6 month regular cadence for the following 3 years and a comprehensive annual project report.
• Maintain their primary business location in Maryland for at least one year after award.
• Support the subsequent cycles of the award program by mentoring or sharing their story with future nominees.

What support/resources will my venture receive post award?
Awardees will work alongside TEDCO’s Program Manager to determine the appropriate business and technical resources for project and founder development with TEDCO’s Venture Development, UpSurge, and beyond. Resources may include:

• Direct mentorship & advisory services: Network Advisors, Prelude Pitch, UBII Mentorship, BRIDGE
• Business Development: BMore Tech Connect, Resource Navigators, FounderTrac, IP Gen, ICorps
• Ecosystem introductions, as needed.

My student venture was nominated, but not selected for an award – how can I still participate?

• All nominated student ventures will be eligible for sponsored community awards. These are smaller dollar amount awards ($250-500) provided by ecosystem sponsors and decided on by audience vote during the MD Student Venture Showcase.
• Pending space, nominated student ventures may be invited to exhibit at the MD Student Venture Showcase to gain additional exposure as part of the event.