The University of New Haven has secured $10 million in private funding toward a $25 million campaign to develop a Center for Innovation and Applied Technology in a 130,000-square-foot facility.
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The University of New Haven has secured $10 million in private funding toward a $25 million campaign to develop a Center for Innovation and Applied Technology in a 130,000-square-foot facility near its main campus in West Haven.
The funding includes a $7.2 million anonymous donation and will support renovation of a commercial property on Campbell Avenue that the university purchased in late 2024. The 12-acre site sits across from the south end of the school’s campus.
The state’s former chief manufacturing officer, Paul Lavoie, is the center's inaugural vice president of innovation and applied technology. In that role, he will oversee development of the facility, which is designed to connect students with industry professionals on real-world projects.
"The interest in and excitement for our Center for Innovation and Applied Technology began with the extraordinary generosity of an anonymous donor," said Jens Frederiksen, the university's president. "This momentum is creating a unique opportunity for other trailblazing donors to match or surpass the support we have already received."
The center will feature collaborative spaces where students work alongside industry partners on projects addressing market demands. The university plans to create move-in-ready spaces for corporate partners through complete renovation and "white boxing" of the existing building.
Connecticut ranks high nationally in manufacturing innovation and patent creation, Lavoie said.
"Through our Center for Innovation and Applied Technology, we are building pathways from the university directly into industry so that companies can come into the center, work on projects with our students, and train them," Lavoie said. "Then they'll be able to hire them right out of our university with a couple of projects under their belt."
The university is pursuing research agreements and corporate partnerships with local, regional and national companies, building on its reputation as an industry collaborator.
The University of New Haven, founded in 1920, enrolls students in more than 150 undergraduate and graduate programs.
