Hood Receives $1M from Maryland Department of Commerce

Aug 2, 2018

By Tommy Riggs

FREDERICK, Maryland—As part of a $15.8 million E-Nnovation grant for higher education institutions across Maryland, the Department of Commerce has awarded Hood College $1 million to support its new Endowed Chair in Project Management.

This position will serve the college’s new, graduate-level certificate program in project management, designed to serve industry and government in the Frederick region. The program is one of several initiatives stemming from a recently signed MOU between Hood College and Leidos Biomedical Research. Hood received matching funds from George B. Delaplaine Jr., and the new endowed chair will support the development of two initiatives within the college’s Delaplaine School of Business: Hood Ventures, a graduate-level business and technology consulting center, and Data-Driven Frederick, a research center that will house empirical work done by Hood faculty, partners, and students.

“We are grateful to the Department of Commerce for its role in funding the Endowed Chair in Project Management,” said Hood College President Andrea E. Chapdelaine. “We strive to meet the needs of the greater Frederick community, and this opportunity creates a pathway to continue that effort. This type of public-private partnership, which brings together the State of Maryland, business and higher education to fuel economic development, is in itself a distinctive innovation, and Hood is fortunate to be part of such a community where all entities work together to strengthen our economy and serve our students’ and employee needs.”

The Maryland E-Nnovation Initiative was created by the General Assembly during the 2014 legislative session and has provided $31.3 million in funding to leverage $37.7 million in private donations. The funding can be used to pay salaries of newly endowed department chairs, staff, and support personnel in designated scientific and technical fields of study; fund related research fellowships for graduate and undergraduate students; and purchase lab equipment and other basic infrastructure and equipment.