If two heads are better than one, imagine what can be done with four
universities working together with a $1.26 million grant.

CMU, Eastern Michigan University, Oakland University and Michigan
Technological University have been financed by the Michigan Economic
Development Corporation “to help Michigan be the best state for
sustainable economic performance and entrepreneurship,” said Peter
Radecki, Michigan Tech’s executive director of corporate services.

Radecki, head of University Technological and Expertise Assets
Management For Enterprise Development, said the grant will help the
institutions share research with one another.

“We desire to establish a technology transfer office to collaborate
research across all four universities,” said James Hageman, CMU vice
provost for research and dean of the College of Graduate Studies.

Radecki said during the past seven months, a group involving the
Michigan University Commercialization Initiative, the Presidents
Council and the State Universities of Michigan have been preparing a
multi-university collaboration plan called Accelerating Sustainable
State University Role in Economic Development.

Its objective is to substantially improve the speed and
effectiveness of linkages between the state universities’ key assets —
research, technology, expertise, facilities and education/training and
the needs of industry.

A coalition between U-TEAMED and ASSURED is in place and may serve
as a basis for statewide economic development that involves
universities in the future.

Both students and faculty will work on the research and development
of products and marketing at all of the institutions. The hope with the
tech office is to better the chances of having products utilized to be
patented.

U-TEAMED will service a number of potential innovators and
entrepreneurs and will finally be able to compete with the larger
research schools in the state of Michigan.

“This type of collaboration has never been done in Michigan,”
Hageman said. “I look forward to getting to know each other better and
being able to work together.”

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