President Caboni

Dear Colleagues,

It’s important to know that while managing through COVID-19 specific challenges, WKU continues to press forward in advancing our institutional priorities and our work to position our institution for sustained success. To this extent, I’d like to share with you a brief update on our Innovation Campus.

Our strategic plan, Climbing to Greater Heights, sets as a goal for our institution to serve as a regional lighthouse that provides resources, attracts talent and nurtures intellectual capital in the communities we serve. One of the key strategies to achieve this goal is the transformation of the WKU Center for Research and Development (CRD) into a true Innovation Campus that engages corporations in collaborative research, incubates faculty, staff and student ideas, cultivates and grows local businesses and provides a hub for entrepreneurial growth and investment. Dr. Bruce A. Schulte, Associate Vice President for Strategy, Performance and Accountability, is leading the efforts to establish WKU’s Innovation Campus. Acquiring input from campus members, community business leaders and directors of business services, the WKU Research Foundation Board of Directors is currently drafting a planning document to launch the initiation of the Innovation Campus.

Planning partners include the Central Region Innovation and Commercialization Center Inc. (CRICC), the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce, the South Central Workforce Development Board, the WKU Corporate Council, WKU Industrial Partners, CRD business tenants and small business accelerator participants and WKU alumni. Additionally, input will be sought from the WKU Faculty and Staff Senates, SGA, the Board of Regents and various leadership groups across campus.

Formal input from all faculty and staff relating to the development of the Innovation Campus will be requested soon, but we also welcome questions or suggestions now; please contact Dr. Schulte (bruce.schulte@wku.edu). I appreciate the remarkable efforts of so many working on this important endeavor and look forward to sharing the plan with you, once finalized.

Thank you for your continued attention to caring for one another and for our students. I couldn’t be more proud of our WKU Family. Go Tops!

Best,

Timothy C. Caboni