News
April 17
2025
Penn State Harrisburg student wins Invent Penn State Inc.U pitch competition
A U.S. Marine Corps veteran and Penn State Harrisburg kinesiology student, Erin Godfrey partnered with her husband — a law enforcement officer and defensive tactics instructor — to launch Joy Tac LLC, a company focused on developing a safer, more responsive firearm holster better aligned with modern training needs. Joy Tac recently won first place and $15,000 in the 2025 Invent Penn State Inc.U Competition.
April 17
2025
Penn State Harrisburg student, veteran reinvents firearm holsters
A U.S. Marine Corps veteran and Penn State Harrisburg kinesiology student, Erin Godfrey partnered with her husband — a law enforcement officer and defensive tactics instructor — to launch Joy Tac LLC, a company focused on developing a safer, more responsive firearm holster better aligned with modern training needs. Joy Tac recently won first place and $15,000 in the 2025 Invent Penn State Inc.U Competition.
April 09
2025
Berks LaunchBox ‘IMAGINE Your Business’ grant accepting applications
Berks LaunchBox has announced the spring 2025 round of the “IMAGINE Your Business” grant. Funded by the County of Berks Imagine Berks Fund, this grant provides up to $2,000 to early-stage entrepreneurs to support various business needs such as prototyping, marketing and product development. The initiative aims to foster innovation and economic growth within Berks County.
April 09
2025
Berks LaunchBox fuels entrepreneurial growth and innovation in local community
Throughout 2024, Berks LaunchBox has continued accelerating startup growth in the Berks County community. In the last year, Berks LaunchBox has assisted 229 new entrepreneurs, taught new skills to 708 community members in its Makerspace, offered entrepreneurship classes to 463 community members, and impacted 339 students.
April 08
2025
Alum Birgitt Boschitsch discusses taking her research to market
The latest episode of Invent Penn State’s “Dare to Disrupt” podcast features Birgitt Boschitsch, co-founder and CEO of spotLESS Materials, an advanced materials company and Penn State spinoff commercializing highly repellent, anti-fouling coatings. The startup is currently offering to consumers a toilet coating that repels sticky waste.
April 08
2025
Five student startups win funding in Invent Penn State Inc.U Competition
Joy Tac LLC, a student startup from Penn State Harrisburg, won first place and $15,000 in the 2025 Invent Penn State Inc.U Competition. As a kickoff to Penn State Startup Week powered by PNC, six student teams from four Penn State campuses pitched their startups to a panel of judges, competing for prizes totaling $30,000 in funding.
March 28
2025
Brandywine LaunchBox hosts first Women Founders Pitch Competition
The Brandywine LaunchBox held its first Women Founders Pitch Competition on March 26. The event, which was held at Penn State Brandywine, is part of a series called “Road to LionCage,” which features six small-scale pitch competitions that lead up to LionCage, a large-scale pitch competition held annually at Penn State Great Valley.
March 27
2025
App to connect dancers with partners and resources wins IdeaMakers Challenge
Winning teams were selected during the final round of the 2025 Bardusch Family IdeaMakers Challenge hosted by the Penn State College of Information Sciences and Technology.
March 24
2025
Brandywine hosts Youth STEAM event for high school students
The Brandywine LaunchBox held a Youth Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math (STEAM) and Startup Day for high school students on March 12.
Sign up for the monthly Invent Penn State newsletter