Union College Joins NY I-Corps Hub
Knowledge of Distinctive Entrepreneurial Experience at Undergraduate Institutions
Key Asset for CUNY-Led Consortium
NEW YORK, NY – September 16, 2026 – Union College in Schenectady, NY is joining the NY National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps) Hub, led by the City University of New York (CUNY), as a new partner institution. Union will bring its experience supporting entrepreneurship at undergraduate institutions to the Hub, helping more faculty and students explore how their research could benefit society.
“We are thrilled that Union is joining the Hub,” said John Blaho, director for Industrial-Academic Research, CUNY. “Our partnership with Union has long been ready for this step. Union is particularly experienced with the challenges of forging an entrepreneurial pathway at undergraduate institutions that don’t often have tech transfer experience or resources, and I’m excited to see how that expertise can impact and grow the entrepreneurial ecosystem in our region.”
Union’s faculty lead for I-Corps is Ann Anderson, professor of mechanical engineering and director of energy studies. An entrepreneur as well as an academic, Anderson’s research focuses on creating and refining aerogels, one of the lightest solid materials ever created; they look like frozen smoke or a cloud, because they mostly comprise empty space. Anderson and Blaho first worked together in 2013, when she participated in a New York-based I-Corps session—the very first one. That I-Corps cohort helped lead her to co-found SunThru, which is developing a window that incorporates aerogels for improved insulation and exploring other potential applications of the technology. Ann Anderson will serve as Union College’s faculty lead for the NY I-Corps Hub, alongside co-faculty leads Bradford Bruno and Mary Carroll.
“We have experience of navigating tech transfer from the perspective of being an undergraduate institution; we understand what it takes and the challenges often found along the way,” said Anderson. “The National Science Foundation offers important support for research at undergraduate institutions, but very few of those entities are involved with I-Corps or other programs supporting entrepreneurship. We know how to address that disconnect, and I’m excited to bring that understanding to other institutions like ours and share pathways for faculty to see a broader impact to society from their work.”
Anderson spearheaded the SUITED (Supporting Undergraduate Institutions in Technology and Entrepreneurship Development) workshop, which was held in 2023 and 2024, to help fill information and resource gaps for faculty and students at predominantly undergraduate institutions (PUIs) who are pursuing entrepreneurship in STEM fields. SUITED, which was supported by a National Science Foundation grant, convened speakers and participants from PUIs across the country to share best practices of how to make the evolution from undergraduate academic lab research to the marketplace.
“As a Hub partner, we are excited to plan for a SUITED Roadshow to launch this fall, offering in-person meetings that will bring our expertise to undergraduate institutions in the Northeast region, and perhaps even beyond,” said Anderson. “We are also hoping to implement a follow up system to help those who participated in our past SUITED workshops to maintain their momentum, specifically addressing the needs of PUIs.”
“Along with the Roadshow, I am most excited to access knowledge and resources from others in the Hub, and to in turn educate others about what PUIs have to offer,” added Anderson. “I went to the National Innovation Network meeting last year, and it was wonderful to connect with others working towards these same goals. It’s a great community.”
The NY I-Corps Hub seeks to add new partner institutions as part of its growth strategy. The NSF I-Corps Hubs form the operational backbone of the National Innovation Network, comprising universities, NSF-funded and other researchers, established entrepreneurs, local and regional entrepreneurial communities, and federal agencies. The I-Corps program is designed to support the commercialization of “deep technologies” such as those based on fundamental discoveries in science and engineering by addressing the skill and knowledge gap associated with the transformation of promising basic research outcomes into deep technology ventures.
Founded in 1795, Union College is a highly selective, private, residential, liberal arts college with engineering that is consistently ranked among the nation's top colleges. Set on 100 acres in downtown Schenectady, N.Y., the college enrolls approximately 1,900 full-time undergraduates from across the United States and dozens of countries. As the first institution chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, Union redefined traditional liberal arts education with the inclusion of modern languages, science, and engineering. Union’s engineering curriculum, which continues as a robust component of the campus to this day, began in 1845. What once were parallel courses of study have blossomed into an integrative approach to the liberal arts and engineering.
