Penn State President Eric Barron made entrepreneurial and innovation initiatives a key priority of his eight years in office. So it seems fitting that during the final board meeting of his presidency, university trustees announced a cornerstone of that effort has been renamed in his honor.
The Penn State Innovation Hub at 123 S. Burrowes St. in downtown State College is now the Eric J. Barron Innovation Hub Building in recognition of his service and leadership to the university.
Barron’s Invent Penn State initiative has led to a LaunchBox and Innovation Hub Network with 21 public locations throughout Pennsylvania, including the $56 million, six-story State College building that opened last fall on the former site of the James Building.
The 85,000-square-foot Innovation Hub is home to the Happy Valley LaunchBox business accelerator program, as well as makerspaces, technology labs, co-working areas, event rooms and other entrepreneurial and innovation resources.
“This renaming, at Penn State President Dr. Eric Barron’s final Board of Trustees meeting, reflects his significant commitment to leadership, entrepreneurship and discovery during his tenure at the University,” a university statement said. “His leadership spearheaded the Innovation Hub and LaunchBox launches at University Park and across the Commonwealth, leading to the creativity and discovery of countless business owners and businesses.”
It also houses the deans suites for the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences — for which Barron served as Dean from 2002 to 2006 — and the College of Information Sciences and Technology.
Since 2015, the Invent Penn State initiative has supported 4,976 entrepreneurs, graduated 464 startups from accelerator programs and helped start 218 new Pennsylvania companies, according to the university.
Trustees presented several other honors to Barron on Friday as well.
He was awarded the status of president emeritus and professor emeritus of geosciences and received the Penn State Medal.
The medal, which was was first bestowed in 1957, is awarded to “individuals in Pennsylvania whose accomplishments in general or on behalf of higher education specifically serve as an inspiration for similar high-level achievement by Penn State students,” according to the university.
Rodney Erickson, Joab Thomas and Bryce Jordan are the only other presidents to receive the honor.
Trustees and members of the President’s Council and Academic Leadership Council also provided contributions to the Eric and Molly Barron Student Food Security Endowment. The Barrons gave $525,000 last year to establish the endowment to purchase university meal plans for undergraduate students who encounter food insecurity, another top priority of Barron’s presidency.
“During his past eight years as president, Eric has led Penn State through a remarkable period of transition, transformation and growth, while continuing to focus on the university’s mission of teaching, research and service,” Matthew Schuyler, chair of the Board of Trustees, said. “His efforts have touched every facet of campus life, including promoting greater access and affordability, as well as diversity and inclusion; bolstering the university’s support for active-military student veterans; and growing the university’s world-class research enterprise.”
Barron’s final day as president is Sunday, although he will enter into a one-year paid “consultancy” through June 30, 2023.
Neeli Bendapudi officially begins her tenure as Penn State’s 19th president on Monday.
