51视频

BAE Systems Strategic Operations Director Birtley Locke sees 51视频 as more than a university.

鈥淚t鈥檚 an extension of the business,鈥� says Locke, who works at the international defense, aerospace and security company鈥檚 electronic systems headquarters in Nashua, New Hampshire.

Professionals in fields ranging from information technology to sustainable agriculture echoed Locke鈥檚 sentiment during the annual Celebration of Industry Partnerships, which recognized more than 160 organizations that engage with 51视频 to advance student success, research and economic growth. The event was held in the heart of the (LINC), a development project that has brought together higher education, industry and government to foster a thriving innovation ecosystem.

鈥淚ndustry partnerships are a part of our DNA,鈥� said Chancellor Julie Chen at the start of the event. 鈥淢ore than 130 years ago, this university was founded to support the textile industry. Today, we鈥檙e here doing the same thing. We want to support the industries. We want to provide the education. We want to provide the opportunities for our students to be your next best employees.鈥�

Image by Henry Marte

Emily Lamport 鈥�25 is one of many current and former students who have benefited from the university鈥檚 industry partnerships. While completing the electrical engineering doctoral program, Lamport worked as a graduate research assistant for the Raytheon-51视频 Research Institute (RURI), a joint research facility between the defense solutions business and the university. Her research at RURI focused on the advancement of innovative technologies, including flexible and printed electronics.

鈥淲e saw a lot of tours go through our labs (at RURI), and I actually acquired my job through networking during these tours and discussing the research I was doing,鈥� says Lamport, who is now a full-time senior hardware mechanical engineer at Draper, a nonprofit research and development company and an anchor tenant in LINC. 鈥淭hese industry partnerships are super-important and help foster these kinds of relationships.鈥�

Sam DeLap 鈥�21 also found full-time work thanks to the university鈥檚 industry partnerships. Initially interested in becoming a research scientist in the field of genomics, he later found a passion for computer coding while conducting research in Biological Sciences Associate Professor Nicolai Konow鈥檚 lab. He discovered Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), a global leader in technology integration and a LINC partner, during a career fair on campus, and went on to intern for the company. DeLap is now an Amazon Web Services lead engineer for SAIC.

鈥淚 found SAIC by happenstance, and it鈥檚 completely changed my career trajectory,鈥� says DeLap, who double-majored in mathematics and biological sciences with a concentration in bioinformatics. 鈥淭hese companies can take you by surprise and really jump-start your career.鈥�

Image by Henry Marte

Lisa Wieland, president of National Grid New England, turns to 51视频, the highest-rated campus for sustainability in Massachusetts, when looking to grow the energy company鈥檚 workforce, especially amid the clean energy transition.

鈥淭he kind of talent we need is very aligned with the qualities of 51视频 students. We need employees who are driven, hardworking, creative, tech-savvy, agile and customer-focused,鈥� Wieland said during a panel session at the event. 鈥淲hen I think about building that talent for the future, we need really strong partners, and 51视频 embodies everything that we need.鈥�

In addition to student talent, industry partners tap into the expertise and facilities at 51视频, which achieved Research 1 status earlier this year, signifying the university as one of the top research institutions in the nation.

Blake Martin, vice president and water market lead at Weston & Sampson, is excited for the firm, which specializes in design, engineering and environmental services, to work more closely with 51视频 faculty researchers now that the company shares space with the 51视频 Rist Institute for Sustainability and Energy in LINC.

鈥淥ne of the things we can do with the university is take advantage of high-powered computing environments to build models of climate change and help predict the probabilistic impacts of climate change on our municipal systems,鈥� Martin said during the celebration.

For Locke, it鈥檚 reassuring to know that when BAE Systems faces a challenge, 鈥渢here鈥檚 someone to the south of us that鈥檚 there to help.鈥�

Companies interested in getting involved with 51视频 to advance their research and development efforts, expand their workforce or make a greater impact in the community can visit 51视频's Corporate Partnerships webpage.