Two teams of UALR graduate students took two of the three top awards Tuesday in the Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup business plan competition designed to encourage students at Arkansas colleges and universities to act on their ideas and talents to create future businesses.

“It’s a large credit to our student population for their extra commitment of the time and persistence necessary to get our teams wonderful recognition in front of such a large audience of the Arkansas business community,” said Dr. Joseph R. Bell, associate professor of management in UALR’s College of Business, who mentored three of the UALR teams in the final competition. “Each year the competition gets more and more competitive and the pride we have in our student effort cannot be understated.”

R.J. Martino and his sister Roxane Martino of Bryant, students at UALR’s William H. Bowen School of Law, and fellow Bowen student Anthony Johnson of Maumelle won $10,000 and a chance to compete in the tri-state competition in Las Vegas next month. They scored for their business plan for their company, ThanksBud, an online mobile marketplace changing the way services are bought and sold.

R.J. is a 2004 graduate of UALR with a degree in computer science. Roxane graduated from UALR in 2003 with a bachelor’s of art in graphic design. Johnson graduated from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville in 2005 with a bachelor of science in computing engineering.

The company they created provides reviews without charging fees and displays local pricing averages for each service purchased.

Two problems exist in purchasing services: buyers can’t find information and can’t negotiate efficiently. ThanksBud provides reviews without charging fees and displays local pricing averages for each service purchased. Buyers can use the information to ensure quality providers and reasonable prices.

ThanksBud also distributes job offers to multiple providers through e-mail and text message. Alerts are instantly received whether service providers are in the field or at their desks. Providers can request more information, counter-offer, or accept directly from their phones.

“”We are excited and honored for the opportunity to represent UALR’s School of Law in the Tri-State Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup Competition in Las Vegas,” said Roxane Martino. “The whole competition has been a tremendous learning experience. The future looks bright for ThanksBud; we intend to use our prize money to further develop our product and prepare it for market. Our intention is to quickly grow our company to create jobs for our fellow Arkansans, and our hope is that our competitors will do the same.”

Another team – MBA candidates Drew Jensen of Little Rock, Garama Lall of India, Glediana Rexha of Albania, and Kevin White of Conway, a master’s of science in taxation candidate who earned a B.A. in accounting at UALR – won third place and $5,000 for their company, Orlumet LLC.

The company, already registered with the Arkansas secretary of state’s office, holds the exclusive license for technology developed by Peder Jensen – Drew’s father – in collaboration for Dr. Alex Biris, chief scientist at the Arkansas Nanotechnology Center at UALR.

The younger Jensen received his B.A. at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Lall’s B.S. degree in pharmaceutical science was earned in India. Rexhal, a native of Albania, earned her B.A. in international studies at UALR.

Mildred Holley, technical programs manager at the UALR-based Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center, mentored the Orlumet team.

This year the Governor’s Cup competition, sponsored by the Arkansas Economic Acceleration Foundation, an affiliate of the Arkansas Capital Corporation Group, received 56 entries representing 15 universities from across the state that took on the challenge of creating a business plan for a product or service. Candidates were required to submit a comprehensive business plan for a seed, start-up, or early-stage venture that addressed the entire business concept. The finalists competed for prizes in undergraduate and graduate categories.

Students involved in the competition gain access to networks of successful entrepreneurs, lenders and investors, team building opportunities, business planning skills, and media exposure.

One of the goals of the competition is to encourage the development and commercialization of ideas and technologies being discovered in universities. Multi-disciplinary teams that combine members from technical disciplines with members from the colleges of business are encouraged. Multi-disciplinary teams bring together the pieces necessary for bridging the gap between technology and the marketplace.

In addition to UALR prize-winning teams, the University’s entrees in the state finals were:

• Wireless Structural Health Systems, LLC, designed and developed a system to provide real-time detection and monitoring of defects and damages in structures such as bridges, tunnels, and aerospace structures. Team members are James Mayhan of Sherwood, a computer science major with minors in mathematics and entrepreneurship management; Nicholas Scroggins, a management major of Hermitage; Sarnad “Sonny” Raheem of Hardy, a systems engineering major in telecommunications; Yeimer Bolanos of Caracas, Venezuela, with dual majors in systems engineering telecommunications and Spanish and a minor in mathematics; and Oleksandr Babenko of Sherwood, majoring in systems engineering. Bell served as mentor.

• iCube Technologies, created by five MBA students, developed the BiliSuit, a patent-pending technology in neonatal phototherapy that is a portable light emitting garment for infants used to treat neonatal jaundice. Team members are Jenish Pahari of Nepal whose undergraduate degree was in management; Mitesh Patel of the United Kingdom, B.A. in finance; ZhengYu Li of China with a masters debree in accounting; Srijan Shrestha of Nepal, B.S. in management of information systems; and Phu Huynh of Bryant, B.A. in chemistry. Bell mentored the team.

-30-