BINGHAMTON, NY – Binghamton University is one of 18 universities to be named an Innovation & Economic Prosperity University by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU), in recognition of its strong commitment to economic engagement.
"Binghamton University continues to be a significant player in the economic development of Binghamton, the Southern Tier and New York state," said Binghamton University President Harvey Stenger. "We are honored to earn such a designation."
The designation acknowledges universities working with public and private sector partners in their states and regions to support economic development through a variety of activities, including innovation and entrepreneurship, technology transfer, talent and workforce development, and community development. Each university received the designation after conducting a thorough self-review with outside stakeholder input and subsequently submitting an application that went through a rigorous independent review process
"This designation is a testament to Binghamton University’s ability to leverage research, resources and brainpower into real economic impact," said Per Stromhaug, assistant vice president for innovation and economic development. "Binghamton doesn’t exist in a bubble, and we’re thrilled to know that we’re positively impacting the communities that, in turn, breathe life into the University."
"Public universities serve as economic engines for their local communities and states by conducting cutting-edge research to reach new breakthroughs and developing the talent to help existing businesses grow stronger and enabling new ones to develop and thrive," APLU President Peter McPherson said. "The 18 institutions in the 2015 class of Innovation & Economic Prosperity Universities serve as wonderful models of how public research universities extend beyond their campuses to engage their communities in economic development that create jobs and improve lives."
The other 17 institutions that comprise the third annual class of Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities are: Auburn University; Clemson University; East Carolina University; Mississippi State University; New Jersey Institute of Technology; New Mexico State University; Ohio University; Southern Illinois University; University of Arizona; University of Kansas; University of Louisville; University of Maryland; University of Nebraska-Lincoln; University of New Mexico; University of South Florida; Utah State University; and Western University.
The 18 new Innovation & Economic Prosperity University designees conducted an institutional self-study and solicited input from external stakeholders. Each university designee identified three areas of institutional strength in economic engagement and described programs in these areas. Designees also identified areas for growth and improvement for their university’s economic engagement enterprise, and developed an improvement plan. This work demonstrated a commitment to continuous learning and improvement in this kind of engagement vital to universities and their regional partners.
Applications for the designation were scored by a panel of reviewers representing other universities and also national partners, including the Association of University Research Parks, the Association of University Technology Managers, the Biotechnology Industry Organization, the Business Higher Education Forum, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Innovosource, the Lemelson Foundation, the University Economic Development Association, the National Association of System Heads, and VentureWell. Scoring was based on a range of criteria emphasizing universities’ development of their economic engagement enterprise, their planning efforts around economic engagement, strategic communications around these efforts, and participation in encouraging economic engagement among peer institutions.
