Kay Etzler
National Cancer Institute (NCI) Small Business Programs Coordinator
Office of Technology and Industrial Relations
http://www.cancer.gov/smallbusiness

Presentation Abstract

The mission of the National Institutes of Health is to "improve human health through biomedical and behavioral research, research training, and communications." Small companies can use the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs to help NIH meet this mission by conducting research and R&D that results in products, processes, or services that will improve patient health, speed the process of discovery, reduce the cost of medical care and research, and improve research tools. This session will focus on what the SBIR and STTR programs are, how they work, how they are implemented at NIH, and what R&D funding opportunities they offer explicitly to small companies. Information will also be shared about the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) SBIR and STTR programs.

Biographical Sketch

Ms. Etzler is a program analyst in the NIH Office of Extramural Programs where she assists with implementing the policies and procedures of the SBIR and STTR programs. She previously worked in the Office of Technology and Industrial Relations (OTIR) of the National Cancer Institute where her responsibilities included the coordination of the SBIR and STTR programs across the Institute, management of the OTIR Web site, and assistance with the development of industry collaborations for cancer research.

Ms. Etzler has the unique experience of having worked with the SBIR and STTR programs from both the Federal and small business perspectives. As a small business counselor with the North Carolina Small Business and Technology Development Center, she developed a statewide SBIR/STTR outreach program and assisted individual researchers with how best to utilize SBIR and STTR. For many years, Ms. Etzler also worked at the Department of Energy, where she served as the SBIR and STTR spokesperson and administrative coordinator.

Ms. Etzler is a 1999 recipient of the Tibbetts Award, an honor bestowed upon those who extraordinarily contribute to the SBIR and STTR programs.

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