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Professor Edward B. Roberts awarded Monosson Prize for entrepreneurship mentoring

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 18, 2008 — Edward B. Roberts, the Sarnoff Professor of Management of Technology at the MIT Sloan School of Management, is the fourth recipient of the annual Adolf F. Monosson Prize for Entrepreneurship Mentoring. He was presented this prestigious award at the April 17 reception for CEOs of the MIT Entrepreneurship Laboratory (E-Lab) host companies. Roberts was awarded for his extensive mentoring of aspiring entrepreneurs in the classroom and seasoned entrepreneurs active in the business world.

Roberts has been part of the MIT community since entering as a freshman in 1953, earning four degrees and moving through the academic ranks to become a full professor, former chair of the MIT Management of Technological Innovation & Entrepreneurship Group, and Founder/Chair of the MIT Entrepreneurship Center. Earlier at MIT, Roberts co-founded the MIT Enterprise Forum, which has nurtured hundreds of new companies in the Greater Boston area.

Robert's latest academic achievement has been the launch of MIT Sloan's new Entrepreneurship & Innovation MBA Program, which has attracted more than 25 percent of each MBA class since being launched two years ago. Many aspiring entrepreneurs have said they selected MIT Sloan because of its special commitment to Entrepreneurship and Innovation through the E&I Program.

Outside of his academic work, Roberts has been a founder, investor, director and advisor/mentor of a large number of early stage technology-based companies. He co-founded Pugh-Roberts Associates, Medical Information Technology (Meditech), SOHU.com (Beijing), Zero Stage Capital Funds, CommonAngels, Visible Measures, and Dyno-Media (Beijing).

Over the years Roberts has also served as a director of Advanced Magnetics, EdTech Networks, HighPoint Systems, Interactive Supercomputing, InTouch Systems, Inverness Medical Technologies, Laser Sciences, NETsilicon, Pegasystems, and PR Restaurants, among others. Twenty years ago Roberts co-founded and chaired Technion Entrepreneurial Associates to nurture early-stage Israeli high-tech companies.

Adolf “Sonny” Monosson, MIT Class of 1948, was a serial entrepreneur, founder and CEO of more than ten businesses in the finance, publishing, computer, and leasing industries. He was deeply committed to investing time and capital to help other would-be entrepreneurs. Established by MIT Sloan in 2004, Monosson Prize for Entrepreneurship Mentoring recognizes those who support and guide business pioneers who are blazing new pathways in entrepreneurship. The Monosson Prize was initiated and made possible by a major gift to MIT by Monosson's partner, William S. Grinker, MIT Class of 1956, and his wife Ilene, now joined as donors by family and friends.