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The Discovery Partners
Institute will be a public-private initiative
in the South Loop led by the
University of Illinois System.
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GOVERNOR BRUCE Rauner and University of Illinois System
President Timothy Killeen late last
year announced plans for the DPI, a public-private research partnership led by
the U of I System and expected to grow on part of a 62-acre parcel bordered by
Roosevelt Road, Clark Street, 16th Street, and the Chicago River. It
will leverage U of I System expertise and resources, including from UIC and the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) as well as from Northwestern
University and the University of Chicago.
NOTING THE proximity of the proposed innovation
center to UIC, Chancellor Michael
Amiridis last year called DPI
“an innovation ecosystem” that has “the potential to provide collaborative
research and educational opportunities to UIC,” as well as supporting
scientific discovery across the city and state.
THE TOTAL cost is estimated at $1.2 billion to be
raised through private donations, government support, and partnerships with
business and industry. The State of Illinois has appropriated $500 million.
DPI LEADERSHIP guiding the forum included Dr. William H. Sanders, Interim
Director of the DPI; Dr. Edward Seidel, Vice
President for Economic Development and Innovation for the U of I System; Chancellor Amiridis of UIC; Dr. Jerry Krishnan, Professor of
Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep and Allergy, Department of Medicine, UIC; and
others.
“THE VISION of DPI is to transform the role of the land-grant
university to improve the quality of life across Illinois,” said Dr. Seidel,
noting that the DPI will have “a focus on transdisciplinary collaborative
partnerships, equitable development among societal changes and challenges, and
educating the current and future workforce.”
DR. SEIDEL noted, “there is a large commitment by
the state thus far” to the tune of $500 million. He noted that the goal is to
increase student access to resources and involvement, and also to involve
universities worldwide, because, “DPI is dedicated to research and teaching on
important global issues, based on the principles of collaboration, equity, and
wealth creation and civically engaging students.”
THE DPI student experience, Dr. Seidel said,
will include a program of research and team building. Undergraduates will take
part in up to four semesters at the DPI, and also will be able to take classes
abroad with partner institutes. The DPI will provide internships at startup
businesses both locally and abroad, and adopt, grow, and develop existing and
new courses.
FACILITIES WILL be developed by 2021 as part of what Dr.
Seidel called an “innovation city.”
DPI WILL make Chicago the starting point for
technological innovation and attract global talent, Dr. Seidel said.
ONE
UIC faculty member, Professor of Medicine Dr. Nadera Sweiss, who hails from the Middle Eastern
country of Jordan said that Dr. Seidel already visited her hometown, and that
many universities are interested in partnering with the DPI. She noted her
support for the DPI as a tool for bettering education and jobs.
DPI HAS already forged a partnership with Tel
Aviv University in Israel and is developing agreements with the largest
university in Latin America, the National Autonomous University of Mexico, and
Mexico’s leading private university, Tech de Monterrey. Collaborations with
institutions in Jordan, Iceland, Singapore, and China also are in the works.
DR. SANDERS noted that he expected that there would
be more hiring to kickstart DPI, including both faculty and staff.
DR. KRISHNAN said that, “the details of the DPI are
not 100 percent set in stone, meaning this is a participatory process mechanism
and we want ideas and feedback from multiple sources. The DPI is an opportunity
for a bigger contribution to higher learning.
DR. SEIDEL concluded by asking, “How can we make
Chicago and the State of Illinois a hub and global talent destination? Through
the DPI. To do this, we must make investment in capital infrastructure—expanding
the innovation center, creating a specialized computing and design building,
and creating a drug and pharmacy discovery center. This will only work with
input that is given.”
GOVERNOR RAUNER in June said, “The end result will be an
economic engine for Illinois and the Midwest that surpasses Silicon Valley,”
noting that the DPI will provide “ideas that investors will put money behind to
create Illinois-based businesses and jobs.”
DR. SANDERS also led a discussion on the DPI at the
Sept. 12 APAC meeting. He called the DPI a “purpose-driven research
laboratory,” and noted that it goes together with the Illinois Innovation
Network, “which has several sites, several hubs, and UIC will be one of those.
The DPI will be the central hub, and work as an amplifier of all the individual
hubs, including UIC. Think of DPI as an amplifier of what we do at UIC, not a
replacement. UIC is going to be a major driving force of this.”
PRESIDENT KILLEEN called the DPI “a cornucopia of
possibilities—a once-in-a-generation opportunity. And we are committed to
collegial collaboration. It’s about academia supporting the public
good—something for which UIC is known.”
THE DPI “has to be about social equity, and
that’s why I’m excited about UIC’s involvement,” Killeen said.
“WE ALL work for UIC because we believe in and
are excited by social equity,” said Tracy
Sikorski, APAC Chair.
“WE WANT this to be a coalition not of the
willing but of the excited,” Killeen responded. “If we create more haves
without helping the have nots, we will not have succeeded.”
APAC’S MARY Berta asked if DPI will partner with the
Chicago Public Schools, and Killeen replied that partnerships not only with the
CPS but with Chicago City Colleges are in the works.
FOR MORE about the DPI or to provide feedback,
log on to dpi.uillinois.edu.
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