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IPO Education Foundation Board Adopts New Strategic Plan
2023 Newsletter: October-December
December 31, 2023
The IPO Education Foundation Board adopted a new strategic plan at the December 6 board meeting. Activities in 2024-2026 will ELEVATE awareness of and appreciation for IP as an economic driver and EDUCATE next generations about IP as an economic driver. IPO Education Foundation will continue to share updates as well as ways in which you can get involved through this newsletter and the IPO Daily News™. We look forward to sharing more information about our activities the new year.
Celebration of Innovation and IP
Thank you to all who attended and supported the December 6 Awards Celebration. It was an inspirational evening attended by more than 300 members of the IP and innovation community. Phyllis Turner-Brim (HP Inc.) emceed the awards ceremony where IPOEF recognized four prestigious honorees, left. IP Champion Irwin Jacobs (Qualcomm Inc.), Inspiration Award winner Audrey Larson (Student at University of Connecticut), Executive of the Year Sandra Leung (Bristol Myers Squibb Co.), and Inventor of the Year Dr. Cato Laurencin (University of Connecticut). Photos from the event can be found on IPOEF.org.
Nominate 2024 Inventor of the Year
Submit your nomination for the 2024 Inventor of the Year! The Inventor of the Year award recognizes the world’s most outstanding recent inventor(s) and how they benefit the nation’s economy and quality of life.
Volunteer for an IPOEF Committee
The Foundation created a volunteer committee in 2021 to support the strategic pillars of IPO Education Foundation and its mission to promote innovation and creation by, within, and for underrepresented communities. The committee developed a beta toolkit to teach students about patents, trademarks,and copyrights and has piloted the presentation to over 200 students in person and virtually. We are looking for additional volunteers to help disseminate and scale these resources. Volunteers meet once a month and work with subcommittees as needed.
If you’re interested in learning more and volunteering, please contact Kristen Lurye, klurye@ipo.org.
Why Didn’t I Think of That?
“Why Didn’t I Think of That?” is a virtual invention competition in partnership with Invention Convention. The IPOEF Review Committee selected nine student inventors to be highlighted in a 2024 communications campaign. The goal of the campaign is to demonstrate the value of intellectual property to both the general public as well as the media. These nine students will be asking for your vote in order to win one on one coaching with an industry professional and a trip to the 2024 Awards Celebration in Washington, DC. The coaches include: Louis Foreman (Enventys Partners), Elizabeth Scallon (HP Inc.), and John Underfer (Worldwide IP Solutions). Click here for a sneak preview of our finalists and stay tuned for more information about how to vote!
Thank you to our program sponsors!
Welcome New IPOEF Board Members
Andrei Iancu, Sullivan & Cromwell
Andrei Iancu is a partner in S&C’s Intellectual Property & Technology practice and one of the leading voices in intellectual property law and innovation policy. He is a former Undersecretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property in the U.S. Department of Commerce and former Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), a position to which he was confirmed unanimously by the Senate. Andrei has decades of experience representing plaintiffs and defendants in IP matters across the technical and scientific spectra, including medical devices, genetic testing, therapeutics, the Internet, telephony, TV broadcasting, video game systems and computer peripherals. He represents clients in litigation and trials before the district courts, the U.S. International Trade Commission and the USPTO, the Federal Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court, and also counsels clients on obtaining, licensing, enforcing and defending against IP rights globally.
Alex Long, General Electric
Alex Long is the Chief Intellectual Property Counsel & General Counsel of the Engineering division at GE Aerospace. Alex leads the development and execution of the global intellectual property (IP) strategies for the business, and provides executive legal counsel to its expansive R&D engineering organization in navigating a broad range of technology development and protection challenges. Alex heads an international team of over 50 IP professionals including lawyers, paraprofessionals, IP operations and technology specialists located across multiple global GE Aerospace sites (US, IT, IN, UK) and remote throughout the United States.
Occasionally, there are vacancies on the Board. If you would like to be considered for a Foundation Board seat, please contact Kristen Lurye, klurye@ipo.org.
Thank you Bronze Donors!
Foundation activities are possible because of the support of our donors and sponsors. If you’d like to learn more about IPOEF or become a donor, please visit IPOEF.org/donate.
