Research shouldn’t be confined to a library, a lab or a lecture hall. Because when it goes beyond the norms, it brings about opportunity. In fact, when it comes to America’s research universities, across the Heartland and beyond, new data from the Walton Family Foundation show that when research universities and local and regional communities collaborate, the positive impacts on the workforce, tax base, startup activity and economy opportunity grow exponentially.
That’s why here at the Walton Family Foundation, we’ve released new research that outlines five key areas for collaboration, including operations; human capital; licensing and academic startup activity; business and economic engagement pathways; and enhancing quality of place through social capital building interactions with their communities.
Check out the research. If you have a research university in your community, explore ways to pursue greater collaboration. And, if you have a research university in your region, then let’s look at ways to ensure the positive impacts can serve as a catalyst for economic growth and opportunity in the Heartland and beyond.
