Oklahoma State University held a ribbon cutting ceremony for its new AppCenter today. The ceremony brought together representatives from the Office of the Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer, AAA Oklahoma and Cowboy Technologies, LLC – the three groups who partnered to make the center a reality.
Located in the lobby of the Henry Bellmon Research Center, the AppCenter provides a space where students can transition their app ideas into functioning web and mobile applications. The AppCenter will house all the necessary equipment and programs to facilitate this process. AppCenter resources and support are free to students.
The space will connect students on campus, allowing them to collaborate in the app development process. The space will also allow students to connect to corporate sponsors and businesses needing apps. The OSU AppCenter will provide a forum that is not widely available for application development.
“We work hard to provide opportunities and spaces where creativity can flourish while giving students the advantage of working on real-world projects and finding solutions to real-world problems, ” OSU President Burns Hargis said. “I am excited that with the help of AAA Oklahoma this AppCenter is accomplishing both.”
“I am thrilled that the new AppCenter will be located here in the HBRC,” said Dr. Stephen McKeever, VP for research and technology transfer. “Since this building is all about collaboration, discovery and innovation, the AppCenter is a perfect fit.”
As the lead sponsor of the App Center, AAA Oklahoma has been working hands-on with OSU as an influence, support and resource generator for the project. AAA is involved with setting the short-term and long-term strategies, concept, resources planning and procurement.
“We are eager to be partnering with OSU in development of the AppCenter,” said Neal Krueger, president and CEO of AAA Oklahoma. “The potential for innovation through mobile apps is limitless and the AppCenter will be of great value to OSU students, faculty, businesses, and ultimately our AAA members.”
The AppCenter will be a beta market for different AAA territories within their holding company. AAA is also sponsoring a contest that allows OSU students, faculty and employees to compete for more than $20,000 in cash awards to initiate an app that benefits the OSU ecosystem and AAA’s customers. The first phase of the contest began Jan. 31. Already 64 app ideas have been submitted.
The AppCenter will also have a support facility at OrangeTech in the Student Union University Store.
For more information on the OSU AppCenter, visit http://www.osuappcenter.com.
