Innovation and entrepreneurship are, and have long been, central to The University of Akron’s (UA) mission. As a strategic priority, it is my goal to raise the profile of innovation and entrepreneurship on UA’s campus and in the Greater Akron community.
In service of this goal, I have designated the University of Akron Research Foundation (UARF) to take on an enhanced leadership role in coordinating programming on innovation and entrepreneurship for UA students and faculty.
In this regard, UARF will work closely with the EXL Center for Experiential Learning and Civic Engagement, Fitzgerald Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, the UA School of Law’s SEED Clinic, and others to promote existing and create new programming in these critical areas.
These new efforts will benefit from UARF’s many resources:
- Nationally-recognized I-Corps Site, Spark Fund, and ARCHAngels Investment Network
- Long-standing membership in JumpStart and Ohio Angel Network
- Key role in the Elevate Greater Akron initiative and the Bounce Innovation Hub
- Prominent participation in the State of Ohio’s “Ohio IP Promise”
I therefore strongly encourage all members of our UA community — deans, faculty, staff and students — to share their ideas with UARF about how innovation and entrepreneurship can be more strongly integrated into courses and co-curricular activities.
Please contact Elyse Ball, executive director of the I-Corps program, at 330-972-6532 or eball@uakron.edu for more information and to share your good ideas.
Sincerely,
Dr. John C. Green
Interim President
The University of Akron