Hood College in Frederick to Bolster Biomedical Research and Training Center with matching MD Department of Commerce Grant
Hood College among eight local colleges, universities who raised matching funds to promote research and technology through the Maryland E-Nnovation Initiative
According to an October 25, 2022 MEDA press release::
The Maryland Department of Commerce joined eight local colleges and universities in endowing a total of $16.4 million to fund new research professorships. The endowments were made through the Maryland E-Nnovation Initiative (MEI), a state program created to spur basic and applied research in scientific and technical fields at the colleges and universities. The schools raised a total of more than $8.2 million in private funding and Maryland Commerce approved matching grants of $8.2 million to support the endowments.
“Maryland is consistently one of the top-ranked states for innovation, and our colleges and universities are critical drivers of cutting-edge research and bold new ideas,” said Maryland Commerce Secretary Mike Gill. “We’re thrilled to support the groundbreaking and forward-thinking work being led by our higher education institutions.”
Hood College was awarded $500,000, matched by private donations, to fund a director of its new Biomedical Research and Training Center. The director will build and strengthen partnerships with the biomedical industry and other academic institutions. The director will also be responsible for program development and student recruitment as well as strengthening ties with the local and regional community, specifically the biomedical sector.
As previously announced by Hood College, this award coincides with $6M in funds received from the State of Maryland via the MICUA Capital Grant program to fund construction of the Center as well as $1M received via the MEI in the fall of 2021. The endowment is also supported by $1M in matching funds privately raised by the College.
“We at Hood are thankful for these important funds to allow us to establish the executive director position for our future Biomedical Research and Training Center within the Hodson Science and Technology building,” said Hood President Andrea E. Chapdelaine. “With this new position, the College will be well positioned to positively impact biomedical/biomanufacturing workforce development in Maryland. Working in tandem with other campus constituents, the executive director will strengthen and grow our partnerships with regional industry leaders, biomedical research organizations and other higher education institutions.”
The new Biomedical Research and Training Center at Hood College is coming at an essential time as the Frederick region’s biotech industry is among the fastest growing in the nation. Companies like Kite employe hundreds of biotech employees at their commercial production facility in Frederick that produces personalized CAR-T therapeutics for cancer patients. AstraZeneca’s Frederick Manufacturing Center is large-scale cell culture production facility home to hundreds of high paying manufacturing and bioprocessing and manufacturing jobs.
The startup environment in Frederick is supporting even more biotech industry growth with organizations like FITCI (Frederick Innovative Technology Center, Inc.) which is now currently expanding into its third building – EDGE@321, which stands for Enabling Development & Growth for Entrepreneurs. The EDGE@321 will double FITCI’s office and lab space in the new 25,000-square-foot space in the Ballenger Bio building in Frederick.
The Maryland E-Nnovation Initiative was created by the General Assembly during the 2014 legislative session and has provided $74.1 million in funding to leverage $80.7 million in private donations. The funding can be used to pay salaries of newly endowed department chairs, staff, and support personnel in designated scientific and technical fields of study; fund related research fellowships for graduate and undergraduate students; and purchase lab equipment and other basic infrastructure and equipment.
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