The IDC Foundation has awarded a second $1,000,000 grant to Pratt Institute to foster the next phase of the IDC Research Accelerator Hub in Pratt’s Research Yard, enabling an expansion of the initiative’s research, mentorship, and faculty fellowship programs through 2028.
The IDC Research Accelerator Hub was opened in 2023 to support research accelerators and centers, as well as initiatives by Pratt faculty and students. The first round of funding created the overall framework and supported the IDC Research Accelerator Hub, IDC Research Accelerator Mentoring Program, and IDC Accelerator Research Faculty, and allowed for technology and equipment upgrades in the shared space of the Research Yard.
“We are incredibly grateful for the IDC Foundation’s continued support of research leaders at Pratt who are working alongside local communities and global partners to develop solutions for today’s most complex challenges,” said Pratt President Frances Bronet. “From new mentorship and educational opportunities to fresh investments in technology and equipment, this generous grant will further elevate the Research Yard as a Brooklyn innovation catalyst and hub for creative enterprise, pioneering research, and intellectual curiosity.”
The new grant will support both existing and new programs. The IDC Research Innovation Fund and IDC Faculty Fellowship Fund are two new programs that will support annual seed funding for Research Accelerators, drive the creation of the commercialization process at Pratt Institute, and cultivate the next generation of research leadership and future Research Accelerators.
The IDC Research Accelerator Mentoring Program will continue to support emerging researchers with opportunities that will include workshops on project development, grant writing, one-on-one mentoring, and networking events. The IDC Research Accelerator Hub will upgrade technology, materials, and equipment to expand research capabilities for the Research Yard and within the Fabrication Lab.
The IDC Foundation promotes innovation in the fields of architecture, engineering, and building construction and has been a supporter of Pratt since 2018, with ongoing and past funding including scholarships and travel and research initiatives in the School of Architecture and the IDC Foundation Design Lab Initiative led by architecture faculty with student involvement.
For example, the Housing Futures Lab, an accelerator in the IDC Research Accelerator Hub, led by Professors of Undergraduate Architecture Lawrence Blough and Deborah Gans, received support from the IDC Foundation in its early stages. The team recently received a grant from Penn Praxis to write a case study on Church Grove, a self-built housing project on a land trust in London.
The other research accelerators in the IDC Research Accelerator Hub include AquaSteady, Decarbonization Group, Creative Xchange, Design Clinic, Future of Jewelry, Laboratory for Integrated Archaeological Visualization and Heritage (LIAVH), Mindfulness Collaboratory, and STEAMplant.
“The IDC Research Accelerator Hub at Pratt’s Research Yard has become a vibrant catalyst of interdisciplinary innovation,” said Raymond R. Savino, president of the IDC Foundation. “The IDC Foundation is pleased to be able to support this truly transformational initiative and the significant impact that it is generating for Pratt Institute, for Brooklyn, and for the solving of pressing global challenges.”
The IDC Accelerator Hub has helped to transform Pratt’s Research Yard into a space for practitioners and students to explore academic models, including digital and applied research that would allow for productive outcomes in areas relating to data visualizations, prototyping, or materials production. With its robust programs and partnerships, Pratt, as an Association of Independent Colleges of Art & Design (AICAD) institution, offers an innovative lens towards research initiatives.
There are currently more than 55 Pratt faculty and staff working from the Research Yard and more than 900 guests have been welcomed into the space. The Research Open House on April 24 will showcase faculty and student research within Pratt’s Research Centers and IDC Research Accelerator Hub, highlighting collaborations with industry, community, and university partners.