UTSA Hosts Inaugural Innovation Awards to Recognize Research Excellence

(Dec. 2, 2013) -- To recognize excellence in research and innovation, UTSA President Ricardo Romo, Interim Vice President for Research Mauli Agrawal and the UTSA Office of Commercialization and Innovation will host the inaugural UTSA Innovation Awards from noon to 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 4 in the Main Building Regents Room (MB 3.106) on the UTSA Main Campus.
The new UTSA awards highlight the outstanding progress the university has made to foster innovation and technology commercialization among its faculty researchers.
This year's inaugural ceremony will spotlight the efforts of 16 scholars who have greatly contributed to creating a university environment that promotes innovation. Thirteen of those recipients will be honored for the patents they were issued during the past fiscal year. Two additional researchers will be honored for receiving licensing revenue for their discoveries.
Additionally, UTSA will name its inaugural Innovator of the Year. The award recognizes the UTSA faculty member with the highest innovation productivity based on technology disclosures, patent filings, issued patents and licenses signed over the past fiscal year.
Since fiscal year 2008, UTSA has built a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem to encourage faculty and students to develop and commercialize innovative products and discoveries. That environment includes:
- academic programs of study to spur entrepreneurship and technology management, technology development and technology transfer;
- research administration support through the UTSA Office of the Vice President for Research and the Office of Commercialization and Innovation that includes a clear invention disclosure and patenting process as well as a structure to help researchers explore licensing partners;
- a generous royalty policy, by higher education industry standards, that allows UTSA researchers to split revenue from license fees and royalties with the university 50/50;
- a New Venture Incubator to help UTSA faculty and students move their ideas from the university to marketplace;
- the bi-annual Center for Innovation and Technology Entrepreneurship (CITE) Boot Camp, a daylong crash course allowing entrepreneurs from throughout the region to explore key topics to nurture a successful start-up;
- CITE's $100,000 Student Technology Venture Competition, which allows undergrads the opportunity to develop and market an actual technology before they graduate;
- a regional network of partners and supporters such as the Commercialization Council, an elite group of C-suite executives dedicated to creating an entrepreneurial ecosystem in San Antonio, and SBIR, STTR and ETF partnerships, among others
"Technology innovation and commercialization are significant focus areas for top-tier universities," said Cory Hallam, UTSA Chief Commercialization Officer. "It's great to have researchers developing new products and technologies that have the potential to improve lives. It's even better when we see those ideas moving from the university to the marketplace where they can positively impact society."
For more about UTSA's Innovation Awards, visit research.utsa.edu/commercialization/innovation_awards.php.
Connect online with UTSA at www.utsa.edu, www.facebook.com/utsa, www.twitter.com/utsa, www.youtube.com/utsa or www.utsa.edu/today.
Events
Come celebrate the doctoral students graduating this commencement season.
H-E-B Student Union Ballrooms, UTSA Main CampusCelebrate the accomplishments of the graduates of the College for Health, Community and Policy, College of Liberal and Fine Arts and College of Sciences.
Alamodome, 100 Montana St, San Antonio, TX 78203Celebrate the accomplishments of the graduates of the Carlos Alvarez College of Business, College of Education and Human Development, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design and University College.
Alamodome, 100 Montana St, San Antonio, TX 78203First Friday Stargazing gives anyone free access to the night sky using university telescopes and teaching equipment. Weather permitting, experienced astronomers will provide a handful of telescopes of varying designs, give training on how each operates, and point to various astronomical objects that may appear in the sky for that given time of the year. If you have a telescope and do not know how to operate it, feel free to bring it and get instructions on its use.
4th Floor of Flawn Science Building, Main Campus