Morehead State partners in implementation of NIH Reach grant
Morehead State University is partnering with other public universities in Kentucky to help implement the state’s recently awarded National Institute of Health (NIH) REACH grant. This grant will provide $6.6 million in funding to deploy via sub-grants to promising health-tech research projects, up to $200,000 per project, across all public universities.
The NIH has awarded a total of $20 million to fund a total of five hubs designed to speed up the transition of biomedical discoveries into commercially viable diagnostics, devices, therapeutics and tools to improve patient care and enhance health. Kentucky is one of the select few Research Evaluation and Commercialization Hubs (REACH) that are part of a national network of proof-of-concept centers linking 34 academic institutions developing best practices to create biomedical innovations to benefit the general public.
“I look forward to helping to facilitate successful interactions with the REACH grant to enable our faculty at Morehead State to bring biomedical and health-related innovations to the marketplace, which is an endeavor directly linked to our University mission to foster innovation, collaboration and creative thinking,” said Dr. Michael Henson, associate provost for research and dean of the Graduate School.
The Kentucky Network for Innovation and Commercialization (KYNETIC) plans to build a REACH network of commercialization resources accessible across the commonwealth to accelerate the translation of academic innovations into biomedical products. The University of Kentucky will lead KYNETIC in partnership with the University of Louisville, as well as all of Kentucky’s public regional universities and the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS).
KYNETIC will nurture innovations and academic innovators by providing funding, mentoring, education and a network of relevant expertise. The overall impact of KYNETIC will be opportunities for collaboration and synergy, well-prepared innovators, a statewide pro-entrepreneurial culture and delivery of de-risked technologies to benefit health and overcome the state’s health disparities.
MSU’s involvement with the NIH REACH grant is facilitated through the University’s collaboration with the Commonwealth Commercialization Center (C3). C3 was created to fuel economic growth and positively impact individuals, businesses and communities. As a newly created science and technology nonprofit, it provides resources to the state’s public universities and colleges to transform ideas into patents, business plans and investment. This new collaboration provides a dedicated resource for Morehead State University and the community that will help move great ideas and research to products on the market for public benefit.
To learn more about MSU’s Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, visit www.moreheadstate.edu/research or contact Dr. Henson at m.henson@moreheadstate.edu or 606-783-2010.
