UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State has launched the Innovation Lions Award, a recognition program celebrating individuals, offices and administrators who help bring University research to the marketplace.
The Innovation Lions Award is designed to spotlight those who go above and beyond to create connections that result in licensing deals, startup formation or other pathways to commercializing Penn State intellectual property. This includes making introductions to industry contacts, entrepreneurs or investors who may be instrumental in moving a discovery forward.
“Technology transfer is a team effort,” said Andrew Read, senior vice president for research. “This award highlights the often unseen but incredibly impactful work of people across the University who help us turn ideas into real-world impact.”
The award supports the broader goals of Penn State and of President Neeli Bendapudi and Read to elevate Penn State as a top tier research university in technology transfer, startup generation and economic development.
“Innovation is everyone’s business,” said Bin Yan, associate vice president for research and director of the Office of Technology Transfer (OTT). “Whether you’re in alumni relations, academic advising or a research institute, your networks matter. A single introduction can lead to a licensing deal, a new venture, or a product that benefits society.”
The Innovation Lions Award directly supports the roadmap’s call to build a University-wide culture of innovation by recognizing those who contribute to commercialization beyond traditional research roles. Potential honorees can include faculty or staff who help connect Penn State technologies to potential partners or play an instrumental role in translating research into impact.
Rather than relying on a formal nomination process, the selection will be data-driven. OTT actively tracks the origin of introductions and other key connections in its internal database. At the end of the 2025 calendar year, OTT will review all of the licenses executed during the year. If any of these licenses can be directly attributed to a specific introduction or effort facilitated by an individual, office or alumni contact, those contributors will be recognized with an Innovation Lions Award, to be presented at the Innovation Awards Gala, scheduled for March 2026.
To learn more or to make a connection, visit the Office of Technology Transfer.