working at the intersection of science, healthcare & entrepreneurship

COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES

Thirteen Minnesota private colleges and universities currently participate in Innovation Scholars programming with over 40 faculty and staff providing coaching and support for Innovation Scholars teams.

Since the program’s founding in 2006, over 850 students have engaged with ideas and inventions in development and wrestled with the array of opportunities and challenges in tech transfer and commercialization of new products, including issues of bioethics and health equity.


If you are a student at a participating college and are interested in being part of a future Innovation Scholars team, please contact your Campus Liaison (see lists below).

If you are a current program participant and have administrative questions, please email: innovationscholars@mnprivatecolleges.org

Media inquiries may be directed to: innovationscholars@mnprivatecolleges.org

PARTICIPATING UNDERGRADUATE COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES

Augsburg University
Dixie Shafer
shafer@augsburg.edu

Bethel University
Seth Paradis
s-paradis@bethel.edu

Carleton College
Sara Nielsen 
snielsen@carleton.edu

College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University
Lindsey Gutsch
lgutsch001@csbsju.edu

Concordia College
Krys Strand
strand@cord.edu

Gustavus Adolphus College
Emilie Moeller
emiliemoeller@gustavus.edu

Macalester College
Lisa McCarthy
lmccarth@macalester.edu

Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota
Matthew Klosky
mklosky@smumn.edu

St. Catherine University
Kurt Olson
kholson@stkate.edu

St. Olaf College
Kirsten Cahoon
cahoon@stolaf.edu

The College of St. Scholastica

University of St. Thomas
Laura Bru
laura.bru@stthomas.edu

PARTICIPATING GRADUATE UNIVERSITIES

Augsburg University
George Dierberger, dierberg@augsburg.edu

St. Catherine University
Kristin Tupa, kmtupa@stkate.edu

University of St. Thomas
Steve Vuolo, sdvuolo@stthomas.edu

“The Innovation Scholars Program is an outstanding and perhaps unique undergraduate program, one that encompasses several of the priorities of a contemporary education in the liberal arts and sciences… a flagship example of effective education for our time because it cultivates disciplinary and interdisciplinary thinking, collaborative problem-solving, the intersection of science and enterprise, and the need for effective oral and written expression.”

– PROFESSOR HOWARD GARDNER,
HARVARD UNIVERSITY GRADUATE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION