Kennesaw State Launches Office Of Intellectual Property Development

Press release from Kennesaw State University:

Jun 9, 2021

Kennesaw State launches Office of Intellectual Property Development

Chris Cornelison

KENNESAW, Ga.
(Jun 9, 2021) — For all that researchers do well – from identifying problems to generating world-altering
solutions – they often struggle to see their research reach its full potential by
placing it in the hands of consumers said Chris Cornelison, who serves as the director
of KSU’s Office of Intellectual Property Development.

The office, launched as a unit within the Office of Research, acts as a one-stop shop for university researchers looking to advance their discoveries.
In his role, Cornelison is responsible for guiding inventors through the process of
filing disclosures and connecting with attorneys, as well as linking with potential
industry partners for the licensing of property and discovery of market opportunities.

While many functions have existed informally over the years, formalizing it into an
official part of the university’s infrastructure signals a renewed commitment to realizing
its goal of becoming the premier Carnegie-designated R2 research institution, said
Phaedra Corso, vice president for research.

“We have an incredibly rich research culture that spans a myriad of disciplines and
industries,” she said. “When a discovery has the potential to positively impact society,
it is incumbent upon us to do everything we can to advance it. By launching the Office
of Intellectual Property Development, we are empowering our inventors to take the
next step and realize their potential.

The office addresses commercialization questions and concerns by funneling faculty
and students to the appropriate resources. Through the Kennesaw State University Research and Service Foundation (KSURSF), the entity responsible for protecting and managing intellectual property
on behalf of KSU, inventors are provided all the financial and legal means.

More resources arrive with the Innovation Launch Pad, a workshop modeled after the
National Science Foundation Innovation Corps program to provide training and guidance
to KSU researchers on lean start-up methodology and customer discovery in an effort
to advance their scholarly products to consumer markets.

“All of this combines to make KSU a very favorable place to be for inventors,” Cornelison
said. “If there is an ability to commercialize an idea, our inventors have the potential
to realize revenue, and our structure allows for a bigger share of that revenue than
any other institution in Georgia.”

Still in its infancy, Cornelison said there won’t be any single unit of measurement
to demonstrate the overall impact of an ever-expanding intellectual property portfolio.
However, in the future he expects to see significant growth in the number of disclosures
filed, start-up companies spawned from university research and licensing deals secured,
among many other metrics.

“Ultimately, we strive to achieve our mission to be the liaison into the corporate
world by connecting our academic talent to industry sponsors who have real-world problems
that need solving,” he said. “At Kennesaw State, we have the talent pool to solve
them.”

– Travis Highfield

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A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers more than 150 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its more than 41,000 students. With 11 colleges on two metro Atlanta campuses, Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia and the second-largest university in the state. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the region and from 126 countries across the globe. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 6 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.

This press release was produced by Kennesaw State University. The views expressed here are the author’s own.