Experiential Learning Accelerators



Better Catalytic Converter: A New Tool for Emission Control

UConn Today – Two UConn researchers have developed a technology that promises big improvements on one of the most common and important emission control tools used to protect the environment: the catalytic converter.

With help from UConn’s NSF program, Accelerate UConn, the pair are now well on their way to commercializing their new technology



NSF Program Helps UConn Entrepreneurs Get Started

UConn Today – Imagine that due to your family medical history, you had an almost 100 percent risk of developing cancer in your lifetime. Now imagine that you discovered this fate before you even started high school. Today that is the reality for many patients with classic familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), a hereditary colon cancer syndrome.

A team of researchers at UConn Health is exploring ideas for novel approaches to prevent FAP and other inherited colorectal cancer syndromes, and they’re getting out of the lab to do it with help from the University’s new National Science Foundation Innovation Corps Site, Accelerate UConn.


Developing a Solution to the Problem of Dry Mouth

UConn Today – Dry mouth. It’s listed as a possible side effect for hundreds of prescription and non-prescription medications, and can also be brought on by factors such as aging, tobacco use, cancer therapy, or autoimmune diseases such as HIV/AIDS and Sjogren’s Syndrome.


Brookfield Veteran, Purple Heart Recipient, to Attend State of the Union

Stamford Advocate – Mike Zacchea has another commendation to add to his Purple Heart and two Bronze stars — an invitation to the State of the Union.

The retired Marine lieutenant colonel from Brookfield will be the guest of U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn, Tuesday, when President Barack Obama addresses Congress.


EBV Director Invited to State of the Union Address

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., announced Thursday that Michael Zacchea, director of UConn’s Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV), will be his guest at President Obama’s State of the Union address on Jan. 12.  Zacchea, who served in the Iraq war, is a retired Marine Corps lieutenant colonel and a Purple Heart recipient.Continue Reading



‘We’re Starting to Have Our Voices Heard’

Military Flag

Senator Blumenthal Attends UConn Roundtable on Veteran Employment; Seeks Ideas, Concerns, Suggestions

Their livelihoods couldn’t be more diverse—from farming to aerospace to cleaning services—but their message was the same: help us and help our fellow veterans find, keep and create great jobs.

That was the message that some 70 people delivered to U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) during a roundtable discussion Thursday, Jan. 7. Hosted by UConn’s School of Business, the focus of the event was how Congress can further support veteran hiring and veteran-owned businesses.Continue Reading


Veteran-owned Connecticut Businesses Express Disconnect Between Job Opportunities for Veterans, Hiring

The Day of New London – Stephen Gifford, an Army veteran who is the recent owner of Hartford Wire Works, explained it this way: At the executive-level, corporations will make commitments to hire veterans, but those aren’t the same people who are reviewing resumes.