Seven entrepreneurs will be recognized by the University of Iowa John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center (Iowa JPEC) at its Innovation and Entrepreneurship Honors event Oct. 11 at Old Capitol Museum in Iowa City, Iowa.

Jim Coble (BBA marketing and management ’04) of Coble Holdings, LLC, will receive the John Pappajohn Alumni Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

John Slump (BBA finance, certificate in entrepreneurship ’08) of Atraverse Medical and Volta Medical, will receive the Alumni Entrepreneurial Leadership Award. 

Melissa Bates of LSF Medical Solutions, will receive the Iowa Innovator of the Year Award.

Dylan DeClerck (MBA ’20, leadership certificate ’20) of Can Play, will receive the Young Alumni Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

Shamus Roeder (BS, human physiology, ’17, BSE, biomedical engineering, ’17, MS, biomedical engineering, ’19) has been named Mentor of the Year.

Tumbleweed, founded by Paul Richardson, has been named Venture School Business of the Year.

Dr. Lucy Amaniyo of Uganda, who attended the 2017 cohort of the Mandela Washington Fellowship, will receive the International Entrepreneurship Impact Award.

Awarded since 2020, the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Honors, recognize outstanding entrepreneurial accomplishments of our alumni, students, faculty, mentors, and Venture School participants.

Recipients of these awards exhibit passion, devotion and innovation in planning and deploying their startup/business, and have made significant progress over the years as determined by metrics such as jobs created and revenue generated.

Iowa JPEC is the hub for entrepreneurial education and outreach at the University of Iowa.