May 2, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Newport, Rhode Island – The Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Rhode Island (AICU Rhode Island) is partnering with local startups to host the inaugural Newport Startup Session, taking place on the campus of Salve Regina University from June 23 to July 1, 2012. The collaboration is a product of bRIdge, an economic development initiative connecting Rhode Island’s colleges and universities in a coordinated effort to develop the state’s knowledge workforce.

Newport Startup Session will provide college students in Rhode Island with the opportunity to work with early-stage ventures developing products and services for the higher education market. The nine days will be spent working in an experiential learning environment that will give participants an accelerated experience of what working at a startup is like. Participants will leave the program with an accessible mentor network and connections to students at nearby institutions who share their interest in innovation in higher education.

“It is extremely important for institutions of higher learning to continually identify the skillsets demanded in today’s ever-evolving workforce and to prepare students with the tools to meet those demands,” said Dr. Jane Gerety, Salve Regina President. “It is equally important that we foster networking relationships to bridge academia and the business community. We are proud to host the Newport Startup Session, which accomplishes all of these important objectives.”

The program will conclude with a 1-day conference on June 30. The event will bring together members from academia and the business community to discuss strategies to leverage academic institutions for local economic impact.

“We’re using the high density and diversity of colleges and universities in Rhode Island to develop a state-wide ecosystem for supporting entrepreneurial activity in the higher education sector,” says Adam Leonard, Program Manager for bRIdge.

“We want to give back to the community by sparking passion for and interest in entrepreneurship among students while they are still in school and can help achieve great change,” adds Kyle Judah, CEO of RecoVend.

Information about the program is available at http://www.bridge.jobs/newport.

About Salve Regina University

Founded by the Sisters of Mercy in 1947, Salve Regina is a private, coeducational university offering a comprehensive and innovative liberal arts education in the Catholic tradition that fosters the development of each student’s distinct and individual talents. Find out more at http://www.salve.edu.

About AICU Rhode Island

The Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Rhode Island is an alliance representing the eight independent institutions of higher learning within the State of Rhode Island. Designed to address common interests and concerns of independent colleges and universities within the state, the Association serves as the collective and unified voice of its member institutions. Visit http://www.aicuri.org to learn more.

About RecoVend

Founded in August 2011, RecoVend, Inc. is a free resource that saves colleges time and money by streamlining the purchasing of goods and services. Our collaborative purchasing platform makes it easy for schools and administrators to work together to discover, research and buy the products they need at the best price possible. RecoVend, Inc. is a privately held company and is currently based in Providence, Rhode Island. Learn more at http://www.recovend.com

Please join AICU Rhode Island, RIBGHE and Cutler & Company for the

Dormcubator 2011 End-of-Session Graduation

Celebration & Student Presentations

Thursday, July 28, 2011

6:00 – 8:30 p.m.

The Yena Presentation Center

Johnson & Wales University – Library Building

(corner of Dorrance & Webosset Streets)

111 Dorrance Street, Providence RI  02903

Dormcubator 2011 is a student engagement pilot program, which was born out of the bRIdge project, an AICU Rhode Island-led economic development initiative aimed at knowledge retention and attraction by better-connecting academics, business and community.  The overarching goal of bRIdge is to change the narrative for college students to one that identifies Providence, and Rhode Island, as a viable post-graduate destination for the 80,000+ students who attend colleges and universities in our state annually.

Designed with the idea that summer is a great opportunity to highlight Rhode Island to students, the six-week, live/work/learn Dormcubator 2011 was created for entrepreneurial-minded students from RI’s 10 colleges and universities.  Upon program graduation, these students will become bRIdge ambassadors for Rhode Island and its capital city.

Please join us for this celebration at which the 11 students who participated in the program will deliver presentations on their experiences and their perceptions of Rhode Island before and after participating in the program.

Dormcubator 2011 is a pilot program of the bRIdge initiative led by AICU Rhode Island with support from the RIBGHE, Cutler & Company, Hope Street Media, and Betaspring and hosted by Johnson & Wales University.

Funding was made possible and provided by the Innovation Providence Implementation Council (IPIC) of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce (GPCC), the Greater Providence Chamber Foundation, The Rhode Island Foundation, and the Providence Economic Development Partnership.

Please RSVP by July 27, 2011

Patricia Mulcahey

pmulcahey@aicuri.org

(401) 272-8270

From the July 7, 2011 edition of the Providence Journal

By Jennifer D. Jordan
Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE –– A new charter high school designed to train nurses is expected to win final approval from the state Board of Regents for Elementary and Secondary Education Thursday afternoon.

The school, which would be public and paid for by taxpayers, is scheduled to open in downtown Providence in September, starting with 136 10th and 11th graders.

Read the original article in its entirety:

http://www.projo.com/news/content/nurses_middle_college_07-07-11_GKP1K8I_v59.330e5.html

From the June 14, 2011 edition

By Gina Macris

Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE — It has become gospel that Rhode Island suffers from a brain drain as newly minted college graduates depart for jobs elsewhere.

But for the first time, researchers have come up with data that suggests about one in three graduates stay in Rhode Island. That retention rate is better than college officials and business leaders anticipated, but not as good as they want it to be.

Read the original Providence Journal article in its entirety:

http://www.projo.com/education/content/KNOWLEDGE_RETENTION_06-14-11_4TOIJL6_v14.3b126.html

Click here Dormcubator 2011 for details of the bRIdge summer program.

From the June 6, 2011 edition

By Denise Perreault
PBN Staff Writer

Daniel P. Egan, president of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Rhode Island, is challenging the notion of a “brain drain” and says more college graduates than previously thought are willing to settle in the Ocean State after graduation.

Read original PBN article in its entirety.
http://www.pbn.com/AICU-head-challenges-Ocean-State-lsquobrain-drainrsquo,58741

HealthCanal.com
Credit: Mike Cohea/Brown University

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — New parents sometimes seem like they have a thousand questions about what will affect their babies’ health for the rest of their lives. In Providence County as part of a huge national study, 1,000 babies will help provide the answers.

Read original story in its entirety at 

http://www.healthcanal.com/child-health/16984-Officials-hail-research-effort-solve-childhood-health-mysteries.html

01:00 AM EDT on Monday, May 9, 2011
By Andy Smith
Providence Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE — When brain researchers at Butler Hospital need to exchange information with colleagues at Brown University where a sophisticated brain scanner is located, the amounts of data are so large that scientists must often load the information onto USB drives and take them by car from one location to another.

That will change with the completion of a $32.4-million project to install 339 miles of fiber-optic cable that will connect hospitals, universities, school districts, libraries, law-enforcement organizations and governments around Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts, vastly increasing broadband capability.

Click here to read original Providence Journal article in its entirety. http://www.projo.com/news/content/OSHEAN_PROJECT_BEGINS_05-09-11_J7NVRBB_v15.2ccfc9b.html

Students Chat with Former President of Chile

By Valerie Ferdon ‘12
Published: Thursday, April 28, 2011
Updated: Thursday, April 28, 2011 08:04

On April 14, five Providence College students, accompanied by Jeffrey Pugh, Ph.D., professor of Political Science, traveled to Brown University to meet with Ricardo Lagos, former president of Chile. This meeting took place at the Watson Institute for International Studies at the University.

Click here to read original article in its entirety.

The Brown Daily Herald

Students, educators seek answers to RI’s ‘brain drain’

Kat Thornton
Senior Staff Writer
Published: Thursday, April 28, 2011

As with the classic question of the chicken or the egg, political leaders, students and educators are scratching their heads over which came first — brain drain or the lack of jobs in Rhode Island.

“Brain drain” refers to the migration of students who, after graduation, leave the state in search of jobs elsewhere. High unemployment is an issue nationally but is particularly acute in Rhode Island, where double-digit jobless rates have been the norm since 2009.

Click here to read original article in its entirety http://www.browndailyherald.com/students-educators-seek-answers-to-r-i-s-brain-drain-1.2554938

March 8, 2011

PROVIDENCE, RI – Mayor Angel Taveras today announced that Providence is a winner of the IBM Smarter Cities Challenge.  The grant provides Providence with access to IBM’s top experts to analyze and recommend ways that the City can become an even better place in which to live, work and play.

Read the entire article at:

http://cityof.providenceri.com/mayor/providence-named-by-ibm-as-smarter-cities