Building on a decade of rapid growth in innovation and entrepreneurship, Princeton University launches the Department of Innovation, a bold step to foster, nurture, and advance the university’s expanding pursuit of innovation. .
This office wants to be involved in building a collaborative ecosystem that fosters real progress on society’s most pressing challenges and creates pathways for great ideas to find their place in a life-changing world. It will be an important resource for teachers, researchers, and entrepreneurs in the field.
Craig B. Arnold, the Susan Dodd Brown Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and associate dean for innovation, has been named Princeton’s first university innovation officer and will lead the new office.
“This new office is founded on the principle that innovation at Princeton must be essential, comprehensive, and impactful, and we aim to ensure that all “We are committed to increasing innovation across fields,” said Arnold, an inventor with 17 patents and the founder of three companies based on research at Princeton University. “Our mission is clear: We aim to foster and support an environment where bold ideas take root, interdisciplinary collaborations thrive, and new ways of thinking challenge established norms.
“At Princeton, we are at a critical generational moment for innovation as we develop leaders, thinkers, and problem solvers who will shape the future across all fields, not just through products and technology but through transformative impact. ”
Professor Arnold said the university has in recent years created new funding opportunities to support innovation, expanded academic programs and built infrastructure to strengthen links with business. He added that there is. More and more faculty are engaging with industry, collaborating across sectors, filing patents, licensing intellectual property, and establishing for-profit and nonprofit organizations.
The Innovation Office is part of the Office of the Dean of Research.
“The goal of establishing the Office of Innovation is to integrate innovation under one collaborative umbrella with focused leadership,” said Peter Schiffer, research director and professor and Class of 1909 professor at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. “It’s about organizing the infrastructure that supports it.” Physics.
The office also works on Princeton University’s broader efforts to serve and advance the economic ecosystem of New Jersey and the region. For example, the office played a role in the development of the New Jersey AI Hub, which the university and state announced last year, and will continue to deepen and expand connections with business, government, academic and nonprofit partners.
Headquartered at 34 Chambers St. in downtown Princeton, the Innovation Division includes three divisions: Strategic Partnerships and Engagement, Technology Licensing and Start-ups, and Innovation Infrastructure and Programs.
Strategic Partnerships and Engagement is under the direction of Executive Director Colleen Burruss. The team is focused on building collaborations with industry, nonprofits, alumni, and government, and includes the newly created Innovation Communications team.
The Technology Licensing and New Ventures team, led by Executive Director John Ritter, works with faculty to facilitate the translation of scientific and technological discoveries into products and services for societal benefit. I’m focusing on that.
The Innovation Infrastructure and Programs (IIP) team is a multi-state, multi-institutional project led by Princeton University and including the National Science Foundation (NSF) I-Corps hub in the Northeast region, which includes 11 other public and private universities. We plan to cover the following consortiums. The IIP includes an NSF-funded development plan for a potential Advancing Photonics Technologies engine. IIP also provides support to the Princeton Innovation Center BioLab.
The Office of Innovation will be highlighted at the annual “Celebrating Princeton Innovation” event on campus on October 10th.
“We are really excited about the opportunities these changes bring,” Arnold said. “We look forward to seeing how they will continue to drive lasting and meaningful contributions to the innovation landscape in New Jersey and beyond in the years ahead.”
