Five new West Virginia University faculty members have been selected by the Office of the Provost following a rigorous application process as the recipients of the 2021-2023 Innovation, Design and Entrepreneurship Applied Faculty Fellowship, a multi-disciplinary initiative to bolster WVU’s culture of entrepreneurship and innovation.
The IDEA Fellows will infuse entrepreneurial ideas in their coursework for the coming academic year. In addition, as a cohort, they will work to champion entrepreneurship and innovation across the University over the next two years.
The 2021-2023 IDEA Faculty Fellows are:
Ajay Aluri, Associate Professor, Hospitality and Tourism Management
Alison Peck, Professor of Law
Elizabeth Shorrock, Visiting Assistant Professor of Fashion, Dress and Merchandising
Krista Sarraf, Teaching Assistant Professor, English
Crosby Hipes, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice
“We are excited to welcome our fifth cohort of IDEA Fellows to this program. Working in a wide variety of academic disciplines, they will encourage our students to think creatively while also impacting the economic and social future of West Virginia and beyond,” said Carrie White, executive director of the LaunchLab who oversees the IDEA Faculty Fellows program. “While we continue to infuse a greater culture of innovation across our University, we also have shown that these unique teaching experiences impact our students with new ways to problem-solve, think creatively and take on innovative opportunities in their own fields of discipline.”
During the 2021-2023 academic years, each Fellow will offer a course in their academic discipline that incorporates exciting new approaches and best practices in innovation, design and entrepreneurship. For example, hospitality and tourism students will explore current and new strategies of innovation, entrepreneurship opportunities, and technology needs to solve problems for the hospitality and tourism industry. English and General Education curriculum will equip faculty to teach writing as an ideation and problem-solving tool to enhance innovative thinking and infuse innovation into the curriculum for all students regardless of major. Law students will engage in global entrepreneurship through implementation of skills for business development abroad. Students in all disciplines will have the opportunity to become engaged in understanding the interconnective process of regenerative farming and the impact on the fashion and textile industry. Students will engage in research as to how entrepreneurship applies to social sciences and what outcomes to look for and measure.
The IDEA Fellows program is overseen by the Office of the Provost and presents an opportunity for faculty to become involved by directly creating curriculum to enhance student skills in the areas of innovation, design and entrepreneurship.