Chancellor Blank: UW Needs to Play Role in State’s Entrepreneurship

Chancellor Becky Blank told the Wisconsin Innovation Network Tuesday that UW-Madison needs to play a role in entrepreneurship in the state and the university will “work in partnership with the local and state community of entrepreneurs and venture capitalists to help start new businesses and stimulate economic growth everywhere in the state.”

While at the Department of Commerce, Blank recognized a three-way partnership between state and local officials, the private sector, and higher education is necessary to attract growth, and major research institutions, like UW-Madison, provide a skilled workforce while leading in new technology and invention.

The chancellor said UW-Madison is well-positioned in its outreach efforts, citing the launch of D2P (Discovery to Product), a three-year pilot program that intends to strengthen the commercialization of discoveries on campus.