September 1, 2021 ST. GEORGE \u2014<\/p>\n
A St. George couple has donated to Dixie State University\u2019s Atwood Innovation Plaza in support of its mission of enabling aspiring and established entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n
The couple, Scott and Kristin Nielson, have established themselves as innovators and entrepreneurs in Southern Utah. Along with his brother, Mike Nielson, Scott Nielson built a successful RV dealership from the ground up. In addition to his business achievements, Scott Nielson is actively involved in the St. George area community, focusing on giving back, supporting others and backing other private enterprise efforts.<\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2221.jpg?w=650&ssl=1\")
In tandem with this mentality, he and his wife have embraced another local project that shares the same philosophy. Upon the announcement of the sale of his 6th Nielson RV business to Marcus Lemonis of Camping World, the Nielsons gifted Dixie State University\u2019s Atwood Innovation Plaza with a substantial contribution in March. This was one of multiple donations to the plaza, going back to August 2018.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe believe that the education system is flawed and students are not necessarily taught the real world inside the classroom,\u201d Scott Nielson said. \u201cInnovation Plaza allows the student to bring their ideas to fruition from a thought to a reality. The Atwood Innovation Plaza helps students set up companies and create their ideas through innovative workshops, CNC machines, 3D imaging and creation, and so much more. I wish Innovation Plaza existed when I attended DSU as a youth. I would encourage anyone interested in engineering, innovation, invention and business to seek out Innovation plaza.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cScott and Kristin Nielson\u2019s generosity represents exactly what makes the Innovation Plaza special,\u201d Jenkins said. \u201cThey are not only giving back to the plaza, and the university by extension, they remain engaged, sharing ideas, offering mentorship and seeking more ways to help. Their example to other entrepreneurs working in the plaza inspires hope and a drive to continue working hard. Scott and Kristin truly let their actions speak louder than any words. We are grateful to have their support.\u201d<\/p>\n
Atwood Innovation Plaza <\/span><\/p>\n Located at 453 S. 600 E. Street in St. George, Atwood Innovation Plaza is part of Dixie State University, but it\u2019s not limited to students. It\u2019s also a hands-on gathering place for members of the community and aspiring business owners. Anyone can rent private offices, open areas or podcast rooms at the plaza\u2019s 55,000 square foot campus, which houses the following four primary services:<\/p>\n * Business Research Center sponsored by Zions Bank: Planning and preparation, business consultations. Innovation Plaza success stories<\/span> September 1, 2021 ST. GEORGE \u2014\u00a0A St. George couple has donated to Dixie State University\u2019s Atwood Innovation Plaza in support of its mission of enabling aspiring and established entrepreneurs.The couple, Scott and Kristin Nielson, have established themsel…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,4,5,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-recent-news","category-success-stories","category-technology","category-top-banner"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=180"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":345,"href":"https:\/\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180\/revisions\/345"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgeorgeentrepreneur.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
* Makerspace: Create prototypes, attend workshops.
* Research and guidance: Protect concepts with patents, trademarks, copyrights.
* Startup incubator: Beyond the basics with in-depth research on market size, customer focus, et cetera.<\/p>\n
While Innovation Plaza has only been around for a few years, its influence is already quantifiable, including a major effort to stamp out water scarcity.
Eden Technologies CEO Hunter Manz and Co-Founder Zack Manweiler working on a prototype together at DSU\u2019s Atwood Innovation Plaza, St. George, Utah, date not specified. | Photo courtesy of Dixie State University, St. George News
Along with cofounder Zack Manweiler, Hunter Manz, a DSU student and founder\/CEO of Eden Technologies, secured $100,000 in funding for their innovation. The project is designed to remove salt from ocean water for clean drinking water. Scott Nielson met with the two young entrepreneurs where they displayed a functioning prototype, and Nielson pledged a commitment to the Eden project in an effort to help spur the project along.
The young men also met with a top government official from Sadia Arabia, who made a special trip to meet the innovators and see the prototype in action. Currently the desalination machine is being tested for six months before a potential contract with the country.
Finding solutions during pandemic<\/span>
Innovators that emerged from the plaza during the COVID-19 pandemic worked to come up with multiple solutions to rapidly emerging problems.
Soft Cell Biological Research is part of the Innovation Plaza family and developed a fast and affordable COVID-19 saliva testing system with 24-hour results.
Healthcare facilities in Southern Utah also took advantage of ventilator splitters. The splitters allowed multiple patients to share a single ventilator and were produced through Innovation Plaza\u2019s 3D printing equipment.
Nielson\u2019s road to success<\/span>
Over the years, Scott Nielson has been involved in various business endeavors, starting with RV sales back in 1997. At the time, he was selling them out of Bob\u2019s Enterprises in Hurricane, in a small dilapidated building before partnering with his brother Mike to launch their first Nielson RV location.
Nielson RV expanded with showrooms in Hurricane, Salt Lake City and on the I-15 corridor in St. George. The chain quickly became the predominant RV dealership in Southern Utah, a feat that didn\u2019t go unnoticed by national players. In March, Scott Nielson announced the sale of Nielson RV to the U.S. retail giant Camping World.
Following the sale, the Nielsons have focused on giving back, with their recent donation to the Innovation Plaza resulting from that deal.
Scott Nielson\u2019s latest project, Glampers Inn in Hurricane, just north of Sand Hollow State Park, will also contribute financially to the plaza. A portion of the profits from the resort will go to support young entrepreneurs at the Innovation Plaza. The resort is expected to open later this year.
Visit DSU\u2019s website for more information about Atwood Innovation Plaza.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"