By David Robinson

LITTLE ROCK — BioVentures LLC at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) has secured a nearly $3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce to support entrepreneurs from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds who are looking to develop health technology and health care businesses in Arkansas.

The four-year $2,999,997 grant comes from the Minority Business Development Agency’s Capital Readiness Program, which chose BioVentures and 42 other recipients from more than 1,000 applicants. UAMS is providing $750,000 in matching funds, bringing the total funding to $3.75 million.

The Capital Readiness Program is a $125 million technical assistance program to help underserved entrepreneurs grow and scale their businesses. Grant recipients from across the United States, including BioVentures President Kevin Sexton, M.D., were invited to the White House on Aug. 4 to celebrate the Capital Readiness Program with a roundtable discussion and ceremony that included remarks from Vice President Kamala Harris.

UAMS BioVentures Awarded Nearly $3 Million for Health Tech Entrepreneurship Program, Invited to White House

UAMS' Kevin Sexton, M.D. (left), president of BioVentures, chats with Donald “Don” Cravens Jr., under secretary of Commerce for the Minority Business Development Agency, during a ceremony at the White House to celebrate the Capital Readiness Program.

UA Cossatot’s textbook rental and Open Educational Resource (OER) program has saved students $3,004,899.01. What began as a chancellor’s vision in 2015 exceeded all expectations in 2022. Nearly 70% of courses at UA Cossatot are taught with OER.

UA Cossatot Chancellor, Dr. Steve Cole recently recognized Relinda Ruth, Director of Educational Resources and OER Specialist, for her efforts in building this program and leading the OER effort in Arkansas. Dr. Cole also commended Ruth for serving as a leader for the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) Arkansas State OER Action Team and leading the Arkansas Community Colleges (ACC) consortial membership with the Open Education Network (OEN). “Good visions only become reality if the right persons can see them through. In our case, that person was Relinda Ruth. She not only built this program but just like Johnny Appleseed, she has provided her ideas and leadership community to Arkansas and the United States. This program would not have happened without Relinda!” said Cole.

Ruth was recently invited to Florida to join the SREB Educational Technology Cooperative (ETC) alongside 11 others representing 16 southern states.

UA Cossatot continues to lead Arkansas in OER usage and has become a leader in the OER world. Ruth has traveled to other colleges across the state to help educators move toward OER. Ruth has shared her

experience in building an internal textbook rental and OER program through national interviews, presentations, publications, blogs, and even podcasts. To date, she’s presented at 20 state and national conferences.

“It’s amazing what everyone at UA Cossatot has accomplished with our textbook rental and OER program. Dr. Cole had a vision of making college more affordable to students and the entire UA Cossatot team worked together to make it a reality,” said Ruth.

Ruth will travel to Atlanta in March 2023 to present at the SREB OER and Dual Enrollment Conference. Her focus is expanding the use of OER in developmental education and college readiness in Arkansas Community Colleges.

For more information on UA Cossatot’s textbook rental and OER program, contact Relinda Ruth at 870-584-1181 or rruth@cccua.edu.