WCU Magazine Summer 2025

University News

SUSTAINABILITY IN ACTION

Students, employees, and community members joined President Laurie Bernotsky in the Gordon Natural Area (GNA) on Arbor Day, April 25, for the planting of a tulip poplar tree. The event marked the conclusion of a week of sustainability activities in honor of Earth Day. The University hosted the third annual Zero Waste Summit and the sixth Spirituality and Sustainability Colloquium plus other events that encouraged the campus community to “grow greener.”

 

---

Jake Henry ’23 Wins First Place at Salisbury University’s Prestigious Shore Hatchery Competition

Jake Henry ’23 won first place and a $35,000 prize at the Philip E. and Carole R. Ratcliffe Foundation Shore Hatchery Program competition, hosted by Salisbury University’s Perdue School of Business, in Salisbury, MD.

Henry impressed judges with his wearable device designed to treat musculoskeletal pain without the need for opioids or surgery. Inspired by his mother's long battle with debilitating osteoarthritis, Henry began working on the technology as a freshman in his dorm room. During his tenure at WCU, Henry started his company, Lectra Tech. Five years later, his device helped his mother run pain-free for the first time in a decade. Henry hopes to help millions more.

Lectra Tech’s unique approach integrates muscle stimulation with kinesiology tape and a magnetic, wireless electrode system. The product, set for launch later this year, has already helped Henry raise $375,000 in funding through investors and national competitions.

Henry credits much of his early success at WCU to two key mentors: Pattie Diggin M’96, director of WCU’s Cottrell Entrepreneurship Center, and Dr. Marc Duey, professor of marketing and Cottrell Entrepreneur-in-Residence.

“When you start to work on something that’s not on the ‘normal’ path, you get a lot of flack from other people,” Henry said. “Having people like Marc and Pattie in my corner is how I got where I am now. I’m super thankful for both of them.”

Duey, a seasoned entrepreneur and venture investor, provided strategic coaching and industry insights throughout Henry's journey, and was impressed by Henry’s determination.

“He did everything I ever asked him to do, and more,” Duey said. “He’d come up with questions constantly on projects he was initiating, which displayed both determination and creativity.”

Diggin, who traveled with Henry to several national pitch competitions, echoed the sentiment. “When Jake first came to the Cottrell Center as a sophomore, his idea seemed almost too ambitious but he got the work done. He has really put himself into his venture.”

Henry’s team at Lectra Tech includes WCU biomedical engineering students Collin Cowan and Cole Campbell, along with collaborators from MIT. The team is finalizing product development for review by the FDA and preparing for a national product launch by year-end.

The Shore Hatchery Program, inspired by the popular TV show Shark Tank, awards up to $200,000 annually to promising entrepreneurs across the mid-Atlantic region. Henry emerged victorious among 150 applicants and 15 finalists in the program’s 24th annual event, the largest competition win of his career.