New board to guide high-tech inventions

The University has formed a board to advise the institution in its efforts to commercially develop high-tech inventions and innovations made by researchers in its laboratories.

Chaired by Paychex founder and CEO Thomas Golisano, the nine-member Technology Transfer Advisory Board is composed of area business leaders with broad expertise in starting new companies. The members bring experience in areas such as developing business plans and finding venture-capital funding for new companies, assessing the market value of new technologies, and negotiating contracts and licensing agreements.

"In addition to educating students, part of the University's mission is to create new knowledge that benefits society," said José Coronas, special assistant to the president for corporate relations. "When that new knowledge takes the form of an invention, people don't benefit from it until it becomes a commercial product that is manufactured, marketed, and sold. The people who have agreed to serve on this advisory board are all entrepreneurs who have a wealth of expertise in shepherding new inventions and innovations into the marketplace."