Student Innovation Center named Nonprofit of the Year
The University of Maine Foster Center for Student Innovation has received the Nonprofit of the Year Award from the Bangor Region Chamber of Commerce. The award was presented at the chamber’s annual dinner, Jan. 21 at the Cross Insurance Center, Bangor. The Foster Center supports student entrepreneurs and innovators. In FY14, it counseled students, provided business workspace for student-run companies, and supported internships and extracurricular training in workplace skills. The center is the home of the Innovation Engineering program and is part of the Blackstone Accelerates Growth initiative. The Foster Center is part of the UMaine Office of Innovation and Economic Development, which provides leadership in working with organizations to leverage UMaine’s assets to build and grow Maine’s economy. In addition to commercializing technologies developed in its research facilities, Innovation and Economic Development offers access to R&D expertise, facilities and equipment to Maine companies, coaches businesses bringing products to market, trains innovators and entrepreneurs, and provides business incubation services for startups.