If the mother of invention is necessity, then it might also be the surrogate parent of start-ups. LectureTools, a University of Michigan spin-out that is reinventing educational materials, makes a good argument for it.
The 1-year-old start-up got its start late in 2009 when a small group of graduate students approached
U-M Prof. Perry Samson, co-founder of
Weather Underground, about reinventing the software program for educational materials, such as course packs, handouts and quizzes. That grass roots movement turned into $650,000 in National Science Foundation grants that allowed U-M students and Samson to redesign the software from the ground up.
"It's more efficient," says Jason Aubrey, sales and marketing director and co-founder of
LectureTools. "The design is much better and the usability is a lot nicer."
The Ann Arbor-based firm plans to debut its product this fall at U-M, thanks to the work of a team of 10 employees and several interns, up from the company's three original founders. LectureTools is working with the
university's Office of Tech Transfer and another company to fully integrate the program with U-M's infrastructure and begin marketing it beyond Ann Arbor.
"For the first time students will be able to have their notes, textbook and other materials on one platform and it will be searchable," Aubrey says.
Source: Jason Aubrey, sales and marketing director and co-founder of LectureToolsWriter: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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