NCInnovation Names Hub Director for Fayetteville State University
Alison Beatty brings national security, DoD contracting experience to lead NCInnovation’s work in the Fayetteville region
Fayetteville, NC – Alison Beatty has been named NCInnovation’s hub director for Fayetteville State University, where she will be responsible for NCInnovation’s activities in the region, including at UNC Pembroke. Beatty has years of experience at the intersection of national security, applied research, and technology commercialization. She has worked with startup companies and the Department of Defense to support promising research and advance the Department’s military contracting work.
NCInnovation recently expanded its regional locations from four UNC System institutions to seven, including Fayetteville State University.
Michelle Bolas, NCInnovation’s chief innovation officer and executive vice president, said, “Researchers at Fayetteville State University are working on groundbreaking discoveries to solve real-life problems here in North Carolina. Alison will work daily with researchers, university administrators, and industry to support applied university research that has commercial promise. This university-to-industry pipeline has been the backbone of American technological might for decades.”
FSU Chancellor Darrell T. Allison said, “We’re excited to leverage the expertise of an impressive leader in this industry. Dr. Beatty brings extensive experience into serving as the conduit to position FSU as the premier hub for innovation in the Sandhills region. She will be integral in strengthening relationships between FSU researchers and commercialization opportunities, particularly within the defense industry.”
UNC System President Peter Hans said, “Research is a pillar of the UNC System’s mission and a critical part of our service to North Carolinians. Already, NCInnovation has funded projects for institutional researchers who are developing cancer treatments, vaccines, and clean drinking water solutions, among other important innovations.”
Beatty said, “Fayetteville State University and UNC Pembroke researchers are working right now on projects that can have real-world impact, especially in the defense sector. I’m thrilled to help accelerate that work through the university research and development sequence, to the point it can attract private sector or Department of Defense interest.”
Beatty earned a bachelor’s degree in international political economy from the University of Texas at Dallas, and a Ph.D. in political science and public policy from the University of Michigan. She speaks six languages.
NCInnovation is a nonprofit organization that unlocks the real-world research potential of North Carolina’s world-class public universities. The organization provides grant funding and other support to university researchers working on discoveries that have practical application and commercial promise. NCInnovation last year approved its first slate of research grants. Regional directors at NCInnovation hubs serve researchers on their respective campuses and at nearby universities. They connect NCInnovation research grant recipients with industry and business services to advance their research towards commercialization.
NCInnovation, Inc. is a Research Triangle Park, NC-based 501(c)(3) public-private partnership designed to accelerate commercialized innovation from North Carolina’s research universities. Backed by more than $25 million in private philanthropic commitments, NCInnovation uses the interest and income from a $500 million State-funded endowment to provide non-dilutive grant funding, mentors, and support services so that North Carolina university proofs-of-concept return value to the regional communities that created them. Learn more at NCInnovation.org.
