IFI/IFE Experience Guides Student to be an Entrepreneur

When Kurtis Sluss, a senior studying chemical engineering and chemistry, decided to apply to the Interns for Indiana/Interns for Entrepreneurship Program (IFI/IFE), a program within the Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program, he didn’t know it would lead him to start a business that would utilize mobile devices to diagnose health issues.

IFI/IFE connects entrepreneurially-minded Purdue students to startup and technology companies in order to promote economic development, enhance student success and provide professional opportunities to high performing students with the goal of keeping them in Indiana after graduation.

In 2014, Sluss received an e-mail about applying to IFI/IFE. After doing some research about the program, he applied and was interviewed by two companies. Instead of going home for the summer, he decided to see where an internship would take him.

“I was nervous and little scared to try something new,”Sluss said. “I am glad I did because I was pushed outside my comfort zone and learned so much about myself and my abilities. This internship set the stage for my future.”

Sluss was an intern with Megajoule Storage Inc., a bulk energy developer that focuses on the use of storage cells with power management and inversion. He said he was naive about how much the internship would develop his skill set.

“My responsibility was managing the material’s capabilities, which was tested through different prototypes I designed,” he said. “This internship opened my eyes to a new career path. I never saw myself in a small company setting, but my impact was directly incorporated into the future plans for the company. I realized during this experience that my contribution to the company was imperative to my future success.”

Sluss participated in IFI/IFE the following summer, this time accepting an internship with MorNuCo, Inc. where he worked on detecting cancer proteins with lasers.

“I was the lead and only person assigned to the project. I was given the autonomy to make the project my own,” Sluss said. “I would not have gotten his type of responsibility if I had not started through IFI/IFE. My leadership skills were developed quickly through this internship.”

Jennifer Dexter, internship and outreach program manager, said she met Sluss as student in ENTR 46000, a class students take before or during IFI/IFE internships.

“Kurtis is a bright and strong academic student, but he also has the maturity and tenacity to pursue passions outside of the classroom,” Dexter said. “Kurtis has been successful as an intern, student and now business owner, because he takes the initiative to learn and embrace the process of learning from his atmosphere and those around him – professionally and personally.”

These experiences along with entrepreneurship courses in college and high school, led to the start of Brightlamp, LLC, a company Sluss started after placing second in Startup Weekend, a 54 hour event where anyone can pitch their startup idea and receive professional feedback.

Brightlamp, LLC focuses on medical mobility by using software based applications on mobile devices to diagnose symptoms.

“The drive for medical mobility starts with our introductory product, Collide,” Sluss said. “Early diagnostics of brain trauma is a necessity and with the technology surrounding Collide, medical diagnostics can be conducted on a mobile platform. Our patented technology incorporates bio-metric pupil mapping to determine the likelihood of brain injury, specifically involved during a concussion.”

The company has been building quickly. In four months, Sluss and his team have taken an idea from something conceptual to tangible.

“The process of building a business has been a learning experience from the beginning. I am a college student who has never had to step into the corporate world or worry about intellectual property rights. Thanks to my experiences with IFI/IFE and my team I have been able to overcome challenges and learning curves like these.”

Sluss has worked closely with the Purdue Foundry, a resource where Purdue students, staff and alumni move ideas to the marketplace, to take Brightlamp, LLC to the next step. The Purdue Foundry provides advice for entity formation, ideation, market analysis and business model development.

“The Foundry is a great resource for my business, especially in the early stages,” Sluss said. “They’ve helped me evaluate what I’ve done so far, make connections and grow.”

Sluss offers advice for students who might consider applying to IFI/IFE.

“If you are looking for a way to improve yourself by extraordinary measures, explore your non-technical abilities and learn how a business is developed through an entrepreneurial mind set —IFI/IFE is the perfect platform.”

To learn more about IFI/IFE visit the website or contact Dexter at dexterj@purdue.edu. Student applications close April 11 and company applications close May 2.

Writer: Sayde Uerkwitz, suerkwit@purdue.edu

Sources: Kurtis Sluss, ksluss@purdue.edu

Jennifer Dexter, dexterj@purdue.edu