Penn State's Office of the Senior Vice President for Research (OSVPR) will implement a strategic reorganization, effective July 1, designed to strengthen the University's ability to drive research commercialization, community-engaged research and statewide economic impact.
As part of the reorganization, the current Office of Entrepreneurship and Commercialization will transition into complementary units focused on accelerating Penn State's innovation ecosystem and expanding the University's public impact mission: Research Ventures and an expanded Office of Entrepreneurship within OSVPR. Concurrently, a new leadership role within Penn State Outreach will support statewide community-engaged research.
The new Research Ventures unit will focus on faculty-led research commercialization projects, while the Office of Entrepreneurship and Penn State Outreach's community-engaged research initiatives will focus on projects headed by students and members of the public not affiliated with the University. The restructuring is intended to expand and focus leadership capacity in two areas identified by University President Neeli Bendapudi as strategic priorities - accelerating the translation of Penn State research into local, national and global commercial and societal impact, and strengthening the University's engagement with communities, businesses and regional economies across the state.
"Penn State's research enterprise has tremendous potential to create impact far beyond the laboratory," said Andrew Read, senior vice president for Research. "This reorganization positions us to accelerate the commercialization of Penn State innovations while also deepening our engagement with communities, entrepreneurs, manufacturers and regional partners across the commonwealth. By creating dedicated leadership in both research ventures and community-engaged economic impact, we are strengthening Penn State's land-grant mission and expanding the ways we serve Pennsylvania."
Research Ventures: Support for faculty-led commercialization projects
James Delattre, who is currently associate vice president for research and director of the Office of Entrepreneurship and Commercialization, will serve as associate vice president for Research Ventures and will continue to lead Penn State's research commercialization and venture development efforts. Research Ventures will focus primarily on research commercialization, startup formation, venture development and investor engagement.
Delattre will provide leadership for the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) I-Corps, Nittany Angels, Invent Penn State Venture & IP Conference, Entrepreneur-in-Residence Program, and Startup Leadership Network. Delattre will also hold a joint appointment with Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central and Northern Pennsylvania, further strengthening collaboration between Penn State and one of Pennsylvania's leading technology-based economic development organizations.
"Penn State has built a nationally recognized innovation ecosystem, and this new structure allows us to sharpen our focus on moving research discoveries into the marketplace," Delattre said. "By strengthening our partnership with Ben Franklin Technology Partners and expanding our venture-focused activities, we can better support faculty innovators, startup companies and investors while increasing the societal impact of Penn State research."
Office of Entrepreneurship: Impact driven by Pennsylvanians
Rick Brazier, currently senior associate dean for faculty and research for the University College at Penn State, will serve as interim senior director of the Office of Entrepreneurship, providing strategic leadership for a portfolio focused on innovation, startup formation and statewide economic engagement. He will oversee programs including the LaunchBox and Innovation Network, the Penn State Small Business Development Center, Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program, the Penn State Veterans Business Outreach Center, The Brand Academy, the Summer Founders Program and a host of entrepreneurship-focused events.
Additionally, within Penn State Outreach, Brazier will serve as interim senior director for community-engaged research, helping advance Penn State's Community-Engaged Research Initiative through strategic coordination and statewide engagement activities. Working closely with the Social Science Research Institute's Community-Engaged Research and Practice program, Keystone Community Partnerships and Outreach leadership, Brazier will support academic colleges, Commonwealth Campuses and research centers in expanding community-connected research strategies and strengthening public impact across Pennsylvania.
Brazier will work closely with Larry Terry, vice president for Penn State Outreach, to support Bendapudi's statewide engagement and public impact priorities through initiatives that bridge community needs with Penn State research expertise across the Commonwealth Campuses. The partnership reflects Penn State's growing national leadership in public impact research and helps operationalize Bendapudi's leadership role in the Pew Charitable Trusts' Higher Education Public Impact Research initiative.
Together, the Office of Entrepreneurship and Penn State Outreach's community-engaged research initiatives will focus on entrepreneurial ecosystem development, community-connected research, statewide business engagement and economic development activities that extend beyond traditional research commercialization.
Brazier said the expanded alignment among entrepreneurship, community engagement and Commonwealth Campus initiatives creates new opportunities to strengthen Penn State's statewide impact.
"The Commonwealth Campuses, LaunchBox network and Penn State Outreach infrastructure are uniquely positioned to connect Penn State resources with communities, entrepreneurs, manufacturers and regional partners throughout Pennsylvania," Brazier said. "This structure enables us to deepen those connections, support local economic vitality and strengthen the University's role as a statewide driver of opportunity, innovation and community impact."
Reorganization brings sharper focus to complementary goals
The reorganization aligns with recommendations developed through Penn State's ongoing Research Commercialization Road Map efforts to close the gap between proof-of-concept research and market launch and reflects the University's continued investment in expanding the impact of its research enterprise as part of the broader Penn State Innovation ecosystem.
University leaders said additional operational transition planning will continue throughout the summer, with all units working collaboratively to ensure continuity of services and support for faculty, students, entrepreneurs, businesses and community partners.
Additional information about initiatives included in the reorganization is available online at the links below:
- Invent Penn State
- Eric J. Barron Innovation Hub
- LaunchBox and Innovation Network
- Happy Valley LaunchBox powered by PNC Bank
- OriginLabs
- Penn State Small Business Development Center
- Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program
- Summer Founders Program
- Penn State Startup Week
- Inc.U Student Pitch Competition
- The Brand Academy
- Penn State Veterans Business Outreach Center
- Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central and Northern Pennsylvania
- NSF I-Corps at Penn State
- Startup Leadership Network
- Invent Penn State Venture & IP Conference
- Penn State Alumni Entrepreneur Network
- Nittany Angels
- Penn State Outreach
- Social Science Research Institute
