Per Stromhaug named senior associate vice president for economic development

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Per Stromhaug, who has guided economic development and innovation activities at Binghamton University for more than a decade, has been named senior associate vice president for economic development at the University at Buffalo.

The appointment was announced today by Venu Govindaraju, UB vice president for research and economic development.

Stromhaug (his first name is pronounced pear, like the fruit) has a PhD in cell biology and an MBA, has worked at Binghamton University since 2013. He most recently served as associate vice president for innovation and economic development, a role in which he helped the university and Binghamton region become a national leader in battery innovation and manufacturing.

“We are incredibly pleased that Per has joined the University at Buffalo,” said Govindaraju. “His extensive experience in economic development and as a research scientist will help further technology commercialization and innovation throughout the region and beyond. His leadership in connecting university talent and assets to entrepreneurs, businesses and the community will be foundational to drive Western New York’s growth in artificial intelligence, life sciences, advanced manufacturing and more.”

Stromhaug, who will lead the university’s economic development strategy and initiatives, replaces Rick Gardner, who previously held the position.

He will oversee the Business and Entrepreneur Partnerships (BEP) team, which connects companies and startups to UB resources – including world-class experts, state-of-the-art research labs and equipment, entrepreneurial programs and other support services – to help businesses grow.

The BEP team also leads UB’s technology transfer activities to license and commercialize research; it oversees the university's incubators and early-stage startup programs; and it builds pathways between faculty and students to companies in the region and throughout the state to address workforce gaps.

Stromhaug will lead multiple grant-funded programs such as UB’s Cultivator, which nurtures Western New York-based startup founders in their earliest stages by providing mentorship, investments and other resources to transform their innovative ideas into viable, scalable businesses.

Stromhaug will also oversee operations and programming for UB’s Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences (CBLS), Center of Excellence in Materials Informatics (CMI), and Center for Advanced Technology in Big Data and Health Sciences (UB CAT). These programs match New York State companies with experts, wet labs, office space, shared equipment and funding sources to accelerate research and development.

“I am extremely excited to take on this role at UB,” said Stromhaug, “UB has a strong and growing research portfolio and is a national leader in multiple fields. The Business and Entrepreneur Partnerships team has done a tremendous job translating UB innovation into community benefits, and I look forward to joining the team and helping to grow economic development efforts further.”

Stromhaug led Binghamton University to win numerous prestigious grants, including $113 million in funding from the U.S. Economic Development Administration and Empire State Development for the Build Back Better Regional Challenge to start the New Energy New York initiative aimed at building a nationally leading battery innovation and manufacturing ecosystem.

His efforts also led to $15 million – with a potential to be extended to $160 million – from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to be one of 10 inaugural Regional Innovation Engines. He also secured one of 31 national tech hub designations for the New Energy New York program, as well as $6 million from NSF’s Accelerating Research Translation program.

At Binghamton, he led the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Partnerships, which oversees numerous technology commercialization programs including NSF’s Innovation Corps site in Binghamton, the Koffman Southern Tier Incubator in downtown Binghamton, and other incubator programs.

Additionally, Stromhaug oversaw the Small Business Development Center for the Southern Tier, and the Trade Assistance Adjustment Center for New York, New Jersey and Puerto Rico. He also secured the Binghamton’s partnership in the University Technology Licensing Pool, the first of its kind university patent pool aimed at streamlining licensing of patents to industry.

Prior to Binghamton, Stromhaug worked for the Research Foundation for the State University of New York (SUNY) coordinating technology commercialization across the SUNY system. He also worked at the University of Missouri.

From 2003-10, Stromhaug was an assistant professor of cell biology at the University of Missouri, where he led a lab that conducted research on the molecular and cellular biology of intracellular transport and organelle biogenesis. Prior to that, he held postdoctoral positions at the University of Michigan, the University of Florida and the Norwegian Cancer Society.

He earned a Bachelor of Science in chemistry and biochemistry, a Master of Science in cell biology, and a PhD in cell biology, all from the University of Oslo in Norway. He earned an MBA from the University of Missouri.