Indiana Institute of Technology receives $21 million from College and Community Collaboration initiative by Lilly Endowment

Lilly Endowment has granted $21 million to Indiana Institute of Technology under its College and Community Collaboration initiative, which seeks to give Indiana universities and colleges the means to make their communities more inviting and attractive places to live and work for the development of a vibrant community. Indiana Tech will use the grant funding to establish a new advanced manufacturing and innovation center, develop student support services, develop attraction and retention strategies, and develop programs that will help local entrepreneurs.

According to an article on Indiana Institute of Technology’s website, Karl Einolf, the president of Indiana Tech, shared his thoughts on the grant and the wide-reaching initiatives it is helping to fund. He is quoted as saying, “All of us at Indiana Tech are grateful for the support of Lilly Endowment for this innovative initiative. Our goals when developing our project proposal were to help our city and the entire region thrive by developing and retaining talent, supporting innovation at area companies, and advancing the work of area entrepreneurs. By doing so, we’ll grow the economy from within, and improve our community’s quality of life and place by connecting student energy, talent, and skills to economic and civic projects. We believe this project will be transformational for our region.”

One of the major components of Indiana Tech’s plan for the funding is the establishment of a new advanced manufacturing and innovation center in Building 36 on the Electric Works campus. This will provide major benefits to both the university and local companies, which will now have access to university research and training. Building 36 will become a space for many uses, including community meeting spaces, creator and maker spaces, testing and prototyping areas, and research and development areas.

The initiative will also allow for the establishment of the Next/Gen program and the Next/Gen Fellowship. The program’s main interest is attracting and retaining talent within the region and helping to foster relationships between students and the local community. Students will have service learning opportunities through the program and the Fellowship program will recruit students from across the country to work on tackling the various problems that local businesses, nonprofits, and communities have submitted as issues.

The Public Workshop program is another aspect of the Indiana Tech initiative. It will help entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds reach their potential by providing wraparound services to help with the outside issues that often keep people from being able to pursue their ideas and passions, such as early childhood education, health resources, and affordable housing.

Of the grant proposals submitted by all the institutions who have received funding from Lilly Endowment’s College and Community Collaboration, Jennett M. Hill, the president of Lilly Endowment, said, “While varied in scope and reach, the proposed initiatives and projects reflect a commitment by all stakeholders, inclusive of faculty, staff and students from these institutions, business leaders, government officials, and community leaders, to creating vibrant communities for all residents to enjoy and in which to thrive. The Endowment looks forward to seeing all the projects in the CCC initiative evolve. We are enthusiastic about the prospects for both the institutions and communities and are eager to see these institutions and their community stakeholders collaborate to breathe life into their promising projects.”

In total, 13 institutions in Indiana received this funding from Lilly Endowment. 

For more information about Indiana Institute of Technology, visit the school’s website.