Engineers may be regarded for their technical knowledge and creative solutions, but these skills are just as important for entrepreneurs to make strategic decisions for an organization. Engineers and entrepreneurs seek out opportunities, secure and employ resources, and provide leadership to create something of value. Engineers may lack entrepreneurship development and exposure due to curricula focused on technical content, but these very skills and mindset can be developed. A culture of coachability is a key factor in creating successful, fundable ventures. The Center for Medical Innovation’s Innovation Fellows (IF) Program has developed a distinctive mentoring strategy to nurture innovation and engineering entrepreneurial mindsets in early-career engineers and scientists. This year-long program enhances expertise in engineering, life sciences, and clinical disciplines with additional training in key commercialization areas and provides multi-perspective mentorship to advance translational research and bring novel medical technologies to the marketplace.
Authors
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Anne DeChant is the Associate Director for the Center for Medical Innovation (CMI) at Penn State University Hershey College of Medicine. Ms DeChant leads education and training programs for CMI, providing specialized programming for healthcare innovation and commercialization. Ms DeChant also manages a portfolio of therapeutics and diagnostic technologies, and provides expertise and support for translational research development, strategic planning, and implementation of major projects. Ms DeChant is a dynamic leader with 20+ years of experience in higher education, and earned her MBA at Case Western Reserve University, her MS in Cell Biology at Cleveland State University, and her BS at Ohio State University.
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Erika Swift is a Professor of Practice and Center for Medical Innovation Director at The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine. Before joining Penn State University in 2015, she worked in various industry sectors, including medical devices, dental equipment, and consumer goods. She has over 25 years of experience in regional economic development, technology commercialization, new business development, entrepreneurial coaching, and startups. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing with a Concentration in International Business from Bloomsburg University, an MBA from York College of Pennsylvania, and an MHA from Penn State University.
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Dr. Eggleston is an Associate Research Professor with Penn State Hershey College of Medicine and Director of Evaluation for the Penn State Clinical and Translational Science Institute. A graduate of Purdue University, she earned a PhD in Language Science with a focus on language effects in spatial cognition, large language datasets, and conducted community-driven research with indigenous communities in Nicaragua. As a social scientist, she was tenured faculty at The Citadel – Military College of South Carolina and served for 8 years in advisory accreditation and evaluation roles at the pleasure of the Provost. Her research and teaching background focus on program assessment, STEM technical communication, industry-informed curricula, and educational outcomes for Veteran and active duty students.
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Robert Rabb is the associate dean for education in the College of Engineering at Penn State. He previously served as a professor and the Mechanical Engineering Department Chair at The Citadel. He previously taught mechanical engineering at the United States Military Academy at West Point. He received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the United Military Academy and his M.S. and PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. His research and teaching interests are in mechatronics, regenerative power, and multidisciplinary engineering.
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Note
The full paper will be available to logged in and registered conference attendees once the conference starts on
June 22, 2025, and to all visitors after the conference ends on June 25, 2025
http://orcid.org/0009-0007-1163-7444
Pennsylvania State University
[biography]