Contact: Joy Sawatzki or Tom Still at 608-442-7557
Or visit www.wisconsintechnologycouncil.com to learn more
MADISON – Thomas “Rock” Mackie, a scientist, entrepreneur and educator with a passion for helping students and faculty alike, will receive the 2015 “Excellence in Entrepreneurial Education” award at the Wisconsin Early Stage Symposium in Madison.
Mackie will be honored Nov. 5 during the second day of the conference, which will be held at the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center in downtown Madison. Visit www.wisearlystage.com to register and learn more.
The “Triple E” award, sponsored by Concordia University, was established by the Wisconsin Technology Council to highlight the importance of entrepreneurial education.
The selection of Mackie by the 2015 conference steering committee was based on:
· Delivering outstanding quality in teaching entrepreneurship and/or mentoring entrepreneurs, in or out of the classroom
· Stimulating innovative methods for teaching or mentoring entrepreneurs
· Promoting entrepreneurial education and mentorship among scholars, policymakers, practitioners and others
· Providing a significant contribution to the development of best practices in the field
“Rock Mackie’s efforts to build an entrepreneurial culture on the UW-Madison campus extends from its labs and classrooms to his work on successful companies and his advocacy for students and faculty alike,” said Tom Still, president of the Tech Council. “The startup landscape on the UW-Madison campus would not be the same without Rock Mackie.”
Mackie’s career as a medical physicist was focused on planning and delivery of radiation therapy to cancer patients. His group developed the 3-D treatment planning system that became the Philips Pinnacle treatment planning system, the most widely used radiation therapy treatment planning system in the world. His group was also the developer of tomotherapy, which is the marriage of a linear accelerator and a computerized tomography scanner. That invention led to the founding of TomoTherapy, now a part of Accuray.
Mackie has been an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, president of a foundation that supports high school science scholarships, founder of the campus-based Advocacy Consortium for Entrepreneurs, a mentor to scores of graduate students and a leader in the private Morgridge Institute for Research. His latest company, HealthMyne, is developing a searchable database of image analytics applied to oncology and radiology. Mackie is a professor emeritus at UW-Madison.
The inaugural winner of the “Triple E” award was Tim Keane, an investor and entrepreneur who was one of the first college-level educators in Wisconsin to design courses around entrepreneurial studies.
Previously announced speakers include Zach Halmstad, founder of JAMF Software; Sue Marks, founder and chief executive office of Cielo; and Mike Splinter, the former chairman of Applied Materials and Intel executive. The conference will also feature:
– Forty-five company presentations by selected firms in the Wisconsin Angel Network track and the Elevator Pitch Olympics.
– A dozen panel discussions and educational seminars featuring leading entrepreneurs, investors and others tied to the tech sector.
– “Office Hours,” offering the opportunity to meet with subject experts.
– SBIR/STTR awards luncheon to recognize grant recipients from the past year.
– A Nov. 3 “Wisconsin WOMEN Reception” (Women, Opportunities, Mentors, Networking, Entrepreneurs). This event is open to both men and women.
– A Nov. 4 reception, two luncheons, two breakfasts and other networking opportunities, including an investors-only dinner.
The Tech Council produces the conference. Sponsors so far include: Aberdean; Alliant Energy; American Transmission Co.; AT&T; Ascendancy Advisors; Aurora Research Institute; Baird Capital; Baker Tilly; BDO; BloodCenter of Wisconsin; BMO Harris; Boardman & Clark; Carroll University; City of Fitchburg; Concordia University; Cresa Madison; Dane County Regional Airport; Dedicated Computing; DeWitt Ross & Stevens; Eppstein Uhen Architects; Findorff; Fine Point Consulting; First Business Bank; Functional Biosciences; Godfrey & Kahn; HealthX Ventures; HP Enterprise Services; Keane Consultants; Madison Gas & Electric; Makin’ HEY Communications; Marquette University; Marshfield Clinic Applied Sciences; Medical College of Wisconsin; Michael Best & Friedrich; Midwest Prototyping; MIOsoft; Morgridge Institute for Research; Murphy Desmond; Neider & Boucher; Nelson Schmidt; NEW Capital Management; Pendio Group; Promega Corp.; Quarles & Brady; RDC National Inc.; Red Arrow Production; Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren; Setter Roche; Skyward; Smith & Gesteland; State of Wisconsin Investment Board; Summit Credit Union; University Research Park; UW-Madison Office of Corporate Relations; UW-Milwaukee Research Foundation; UW-Oshkosh Business Success Center; Venture Investors; WERCBench Labs; Whitewater University Technology Park; Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek; Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation; Wisconsin Economic Development Corp.; Wisconsin Health and Educational Facilities Authority; Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership; and WTN Media.
Learn more and register for the conference at www.wisearlystage.com.
