A startup state of mind

Oct. 1, 2026

Photos by Kaitlyn Miclean

The Entrepreneur Quest (EQ) program helps University of Missouri students develop a proactive "startup" mindset and transform their innovative ideas into viable businesses ready for investor funding.

“EQ truly embodies the Missouri Method in that it's not about entrepreneurial theory or discussing business case studies,” said Kelsey Raymond, Mizzou’s executive director of entrepreneurship programs at the Griggs Innovators Nexus on campus. “It’s where students actually start businesses, talk to customers, create products and services and make a real impact.” 
 

At the beginning of the fall semester, undergraduate and graduate students from a wide variety of degree programs applied for a chance to land a spot in EQ. Community and university leaders selected semifinalists from the pool of applicants who then participated in an elevator pitch competition on Sept. 22. A panel of judges at the event chose the 10 most promising ventures to participate in the EQ program and compete for funds from a $30,000 prize pool.

The ProxiPatch team of biomedical engineering students was voted audience favorite and won $2,000 during the competition. They are designing a a hydrogel sensor patch for neonatal intensive care units that detects detachment and monitors infants’ vitals without damaging their fragile skin. They starting working on the project in March when they competed and won first place at the National Medical Device Make-a-Thon competition.

"We plan to use the funding to get our hands on a commercial thermoresponsive hydrogel and begin our first round of physical prototyping," sophomore Koen Straub said. "Up to this point, most of our work has been research. This money lets us move from studying the problem to actually building, testing and working out the kinks in the design."
 

EQ guides students through the process of refining their business ideas. It challenges them to take advantage of a multitude of industry and marketplace resources at Ellis Library and to validate and test their ideas using customer interviews and surveys. The teams also receive services through the School of Law’s Entrepreneurship Legal Clinic.

“They get access to coaching, mentorship and a community of peers who are genuinely invested in their success,” Raymond said. “I think that is one of my favorite aspects of the program — the camaraderie that develops among like-minded students who are all trying to do something genuinely difficult: launch a business while in college.”

On Nov. 17, the following finalists will compete to win funds for their ventures: 

Big Bird Ostrich Farm — raises a lean, red-meat alternative for health-conscious consumers and people with food allergies like alpha-gal syndrome.

• Brayden Hallford, sophomore in agribusiness management, College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources 

Boltara Scaling — generates marketing and high-ticket jobs for businesses that provide surface finishing, junk removal and other services .

• Tim Sebolt, sophomore in finance and banking, Trulaske College of Business

Digitus Labs — develops wearable data gloves to capture human hand movements and training data for robots and physical AI.

• Akbarjon Kamoldinov, senior in electrical engineering, College of Engineering

EqueTrainer — unifies health, training and breeding data into one real-time platform for horse owners, trainers, veterinarians and others in the equine industry. 

• Roselynn Orr, junior in agriculture, College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources

HOCO — builds and supports trucking companies in underserved rural communities to strengthen local economies and improve quality of life for truck drivers.

• Casey Merckling, senior in finance, banking and economics, Trulaske College of Business

Keynote Speaker Marketing — helps professional speakers increase their engagements by combining repeatable lead generation with customer relationship management tools.

• Nathan Smith, senior in accountancy, Trulaske College of Business

LegiTrack — follows and compares model bills as they move across multiple states so users can see how legislation evolves.

• Jacob Pears, sophomore in political science, College of Arts and Science

ProxiPatch — develops a hydrogel sensor patch for neonatal intensive care units that detects detachment and monitors infants’ vitals without damaging their fragile skin

• Koen Straub, sophomore in biomedical engineering, College of Engineering

Unbridled Impact — offers a year-long program that gives participants experience with horse ownership, care and training.

• Kate Mueth, senior in agribusiness management, College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources

VIA — creates a luxury brand of distinctively designed Italian-crafted belts. 

• Olivia Zielinski, junior in finance and banking, Trulaske College of Business

EQ is sponsored by the employees of Veterans United Home Loans and U.S. Bank. Hawthorn Bank is the audience favorite sponsor.