Proenza named co-chair of National Patent Reform Advisory Committee

University of Akron President Luis M. Proenza has been named co-chair of a new joint Patent Reform Advisory Committee formed by the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU) and the Association of American Universities (AAU). Rick Levin, president of Yale University, has been named co-chair representing AAU.

Officials from APLU — formerly the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges (NASULGC) — asked Proenza to serve as its committee co-chair due to his many years of experience and expertise in university-industry relations, the technology focus he has fostered at The University of Akron, and his past role as co-chair of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology’s (PCAST) report on University-Private Sector Research Partnerships, and as a member of the panel for the PCAST report on Technology Transfer of Federally Funded R&D.

In addition to his new duties, Proenza serves as a board member of APLU and was past chair of the organization’s Commission on the Urban Agenda.

Proenza notes that he is pleased that this important task is being undertaken through the new committee, which recently was formed by the two groups to provide more cohesiveness in the higher education approach to patent reform legislation as it is considered by the 111th U.S. Congress.

“It is most important that vital issues regarding patents — especially the honest differences that currently exist — are discussed, debated and resolved in ways that encourage innovation and investment, and that foster national prosperity,” Proenza says.

As chief executive officer of The University of Akron and through his leadership positions with numerous national and state organizations, Proenza has been a strong advocate for regional unity and identity, and boosting economic development throughout the State of Ohio and beyond.

Recognized as one of the most influential leaders in the region, Proenza's acknowledgements include the 2008 Visionary Award, the 2006 Northeast Ohio Regional Vision Award and the 2005 CASE V Chief Executive Leadership Award.

Nationally, Proenza is a member of the Council on Competitiveness, where he serves on the Executive Committee and the National Innovation Initiative Leadership Council, and co-chairs the Regional Leadership Institute Steering Committee. Proenza also was appointed to serve on PCAST, the nation's highest-level policy-advisory group for science and technology. Proenza is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a board member of the States Science and Technology Institute.

About the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities
With a legacy dating to 1887, the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities is the oldest higher education association in the nation. The voice of America’s leading public and land-grant universities, APLU encompasses 186 public research universities, including 74 land-grant institutions and 27 state university systems. For more information, visit APLU.

About the Association of American Universities
The Association of American Universities is a nonprofit association of 60 U.S. and two Canadian preeminent public and private research universities. Founded in 1900, AAU focuses on national and institutional issues that are important to research-intensive universities, including funding for research, research and education policy, and graduate and undergraduate education. For more information, visit the association.