12 companies and individuals driving the region’s innovation ecosystem
Rowan Innovation Venture Fund
Industry: Venture capital
Headquarters: Glassboro
Rowan University President Ali Houshmand told the Business Journal he thinks Greater Philadelphia has the potential to “become the next Silicon Valley.” To do that, there needs to be much more capital readily available, and Rowan is making an effort to do its part with the Rowan Innovation Venture Fund. Eleven years after its launch and three years after expanding the fund to $25 million, it appointed Garden State Venture Partners as its management team to accelerate growth. The management team includes three Rowan alumni — Michael Connallon Jr., Shawn Hill, and Ernie Holtzheimer — who collectively boast time at JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Moderne Ventures and law firm Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott on their resumes. Portfolio companies for the Rowan Innovation Venture Fund include former PHL Inno Startup to Watch HalfDay Tonics and fellow Fire Award winner Sojo Industries. A recently announced collaboration between Rowan, Garden State Venture Partners and other South Jersey stakeholders will see the creation of two innovation centers in Camden and Mullica Hill to serve as accelerators for early stage companies.
Read more about all of the 2025 Fire Award recipients at The Philadelphia Business Journal: https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2025/08/14/2025-phl-inno-fire-awards.html
