Dayton Engineer
UD Engineering faculty member receives Institution's first VentureWell grant
By Cara Stevens, marketing communication intern
Dr. Emily Fehrman Cory, faculty of practice in innovation and entrepreneurship in the School of Engineering and director of Leonardo Enterprises, has received the University of Dayton’s first VentureWell grant to expand the focus of the School’s multidisciplinary capstone engineering course.
The goal is to develop technologies, products, and social enterprises that can be launched as new businesses and non-profit ventures in the Dayton region. The senior capstone design projects will address regional societal concerns, such as food deserts, generational poverty and the opioid addiction crisis.
VentureWell is a non-profit network of academic institutions, organizations, and individuals supporting inventors, innovators and entrepreneurs across the country. VentureWell builds communities of practice among faculty and helps early-stage innovators develop products and ventures that improve life for people and the planet.
The University’s membership is funded by a grant from the Kern Family Foundation with support from the Visioneering Center. As a member of the VentureWell network, UD professors and students are eligible to apply for grants and funding for various projects. Student entrepreneurs can apply for grants to help commercialize new technologies, while faculty members can apply for monies to integrate entrepreneurial skills into curricula.
Cory is the first recipient of this grant from the University of Dayton. The grantees go through a competitive national review process. Ultimately, grantees were picked from 16 different colleges and universities nationwide, with a total of $300,000 being awarded. These grants support STEM innovation and entrepreneurship, and recipients were chosen based on the potential of their course program and impact on environmentalism.
“Emily Cory is doing an outstanding job of leveraging our relationships with KEEN and VentureWell to provide exceptional learning experiences for our students. These projects are also in direct alignment with our vision as the University for the Common Good” said Dr. Ken Bloemer, director of the Visioneering Center.
Congratulations to Dr. Cory and her future endeavors to enrich the Dayton region with the entrepreneurial mindset and future creations.