Cornell undergraduates with a good business idea and an itch to do something about it now have their own business incubator — the Student Agencies eLab — to help nurture their plan into the next Facebook or local candy store.

Opening this week in the Student Agencies building at 409 College Ave. in partnership with Entrepreneurship@Cornell, eLab will choose 24 student clients during its first two years who will have access to a network of successful alumni mentors and investors and a suite of professional services, including legal and accounting support.

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"When we spoke with student entrepreneurs, they all had that spark in their eye when they talked about their idea," said Dan Sommer '97, who serves on the Student Agencies Advisory Board for eLab and was one of its earliest supporters. "But many of them said they needed help — whether it is mentoring or a physical location and a name behind them."

The eLab effort will be directed by Dan Cohen, eLab's Entrepreneur-in-Residence and a faculty member in Cornell's ILR School who was co-founder and president of his own business for 15 years while earning an MBA and a doctorate in management. He taught business strategy and entrepreneurship and also assisted with the student business incubator at the University of Iowa before coming to Cornell last fall.

"It's exciting to help these students take their ideas from inception to a company ready to launch," Cohen said.

Cohen will recruit student clients and an array of alumni mentors, manage fundraising efforts and provide daily guidance to students.

"There are a wealth of Cornell alumni who want to be involved -- so many that we can offer students mentors on an industry-specific basis," Cohen said.

Student clients will range from those who already have a product in the marketplace to those who have "a piece of paper with a concept," Sommer said. "We're betting on high-potential entrepreneurs. It could be the next Google or Facebook or it could be a smaller local business with a passionate entrepreneur."

The eLab students who are recruited as clients will need to show a serious commitment to their project and agree to pay fees and/or provide equity for lab space and services.

The idea for eLab came from a group of Student Agencies' board members and alumni, who then met with John Jaquette, executive director of Entrepreneurship@Cornell, to discuss additional ways to support Cornell's entrepreneurial culture.

During focus group discussions last year, students validated the need for acceleration services, physical space, a chance to talk with other like-minded individuals and access to mentors.

The eLab is supported by Student Agencies Foundation, Entrepreneurship@Cornell, the Leland C. and Mary M. Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship and a group of dedicated Cornell alumni.

To find out more about eLab, e-mail Cohen at dc489@cornell.edu.

Kathy Hovis is a writer/editor for Entrepreneurship@Cornell.