KINGSTON – Retired R.I. Supreme Court Justice Robert G. Flanders Jr., chairman of the University of Rhode Island Commission for Innovation and Research, today announced the full roster of national and international leaders who will serve with him on the commission.
The panel is charged with proposing actions to strengthen URI’s position as a nationally competitive public research university and a key institution in Rhode Island’s efforts to grow an innovation economy. The commission was initially proposed by the R.I. Science and Technology Advisory Council and was formed by the R.I. General Assembly last year.
Justice Flanders’ selection as the panel’s chairman was announced on April 25, by Gov. Donald L. Carcieri. (READ MORE)
The nine-member team will evaluate research capacity at URI and make recommendations for how the university can grow the size and competitiveness of its research and development programs; produce a larger, better-trained and more science-and-technology oriented work force; and increase the levels of both industry involvement in its research programs and technology transfer/commercialization activities.
The other commission members are:
• Dr. James Coleman, vice provost for research at Rice University.
• Constance Howes, president and CEO of Women & Infants Hospital.
• Carol Grant, a business and civic leader in Rhode Island.
• Dr. Peter Alfonso, URI’s vice president for research and economic development.
• Dr. Margaret S. Leinen, chief science officer for Climos.
• Saul Kaplan, executive director of the R.I. Economic Development Corporation and the Carcieri’s executive counselor on economic growth and community development.
• Dr. David Hibbitt, former chairman of Providence-based ABAQUS Inc. (now part of Simulia, a division of Paris-based Dassault Systèmes).
• Lord Alec Broers, a renowned scientist and research administrator in the United Kingdom.
In addition to having spent nearly 20 years with IBM here in the United States, Lord Broers is the former head of the engineering department at Cambridge University and vice chancellor of that university. His ongoing activities include chairing the science and technology committee of the British House of Lords and presenting the prestigious BBC Reith lectures last year on “The Triumph of Technology.”
“It is a great pleasure to serve on this important commission,” Lord Broers said. “A strong state research capacity is a vitally important engine for economic growth. I look forward to working with Justice Flanders and my colleagues on the commission to help define a clear path for strengthening the University of Rhode Island’s ability to serve as a nationally prominent research institution.”
STAC will provide staffing support for the commission, which is slated to begin its work in October and report its findings and make recommendations to Carcieri and the General Assembly by September 2008.
“URI is one of Rhode Island’s most important resources and central to our efforts to create an innovation economy that produces good jobs for every Rhode Islander,” Flanders said. “I am thrilled to work with this commission, Governor Carcieri, the General Assembly and leadership at the University of Rhode Island to develop recommendations for how we can make the most of this valuable asset.”
