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NEWS RELEASE

09-24-03

Contacts:
Judi Eyles, ISU Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship, (515) 296-6532
Kim Schroeder, College of Business, (515) 294-5800
Kevin Brown, News Service, (515) 294-8986

IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS MAY ATTEND IOWA VENTURE CAPITAL CONFERENCE FOR FREE ON OCT. 7

AMES, Iowa -- Iowa State University's Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship will provide free registration and transportation to ISU students who want to attend the Iowa Venture Capital Conference.

The conference will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 7, in the Polk County Convention Complex, Des Moines.

Interested students must pre-register online by Friday, Sept. 26, at www.isupjcenter.org/programs/iowa_ventures. This Web site also provides more detailed conference information.

Iowa State faculty and staff also may attend the conference. The cost is $40. To register, call (800) 245-IOWA or visit www.iowasmart.com/venture.

Judi Eyles, programs and marketing director for the center, said the registration includes lunch and offers students an opportunity to meet members of Iowa's entrepreneurial community.

"This conference was created and designed with students in mind," Eyles said. "Students will have the opportunity to sit next to, talk with, and learn from successful entrepreneurs, potential investors and successful business people. They can create their own networking strategy and exchange business cards with the professionals they meet."

The Iowa Department of Economic Development, the John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Centers and Equity Dynamics, a Des Moines-based venture capital company owned by John Pappajohn, host the fourth annual conference.

Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack will open the conference. The keynote speaker is Jerre Stead, retired chairman and chief executive officer of Ingram Micro Inc., Santa Anna, Calif.

When Stead took Ingram Micro public in 1996, it became the largest technology initial public offering in history. Stead will speak on his experiences as an entrepreneur.

Other activities at the conference include a panel discussion on starting and managing a community-based business seed fund, raising capital from an entrepreneur's perspective and an overview of the Iowa Capital Investment Corporation, a state agency organized to mobilize private venture capital for investment in targeted businesses and communities. Also, the Venture Network of Iowa will hold a forum where several entrepreneurs present their business ventures to potential investors and conference members.

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