U.S. and Non-U.S. Scholars

Fulbright New Century Scholars Program
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Iryna Lendel	Biography	Abstract
Program Manager Center for Economic Development Cleveland State University United States

Dr. Lendel is a Program Manager in the Economic Development Center at Cleveland State University’s Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs, where she manages the technology-based economic development program and writes on the role of universities in technology-based economic development and state technology-based economic development policies. Iryna also serves as Project Manager of the NSF-funded project “State Science Policies: Modeling Their Origins, Nature, Fit and Effects on Local Universities.” Dr. Lendel received a Ph.D. in Economics (Doctor of Economics) from Lviv Regional Institute of the National Science Academy of Ukraine in 1995 and a Ph.D. in Urban Studies and Public Affairs from Cleveland State University’s Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs in 2008. She received a Diploma of Higher Education in Economics with Honors (Master’s degree) from the Ivano-Frankivsk Institute of Oil and Gas (Ukraine). Iryna was presented with the 2007 Russel Kashian and Susan Oneson Award for a peer-reviewed published article and the Maxine Goodman Levin Discretionary Fund Award in 2005. While she was an assoc ate professor in Ukraine, Iryna received the Fulbright Research Scholar Award for conducting regional economic development research at Cleveland State University in 1997-1998.

The Role of Universities in Creating Emerging Technologies and Building Innovative Clusters

“In the era of romanticism the university is not only a source of knowledge, but also enlightenment, general education, culture, nationalism, and an emancipated future society. It is not only the power of knowledge - in its programme it declares much more: the power of knowledge spreading its influence consciously into the external world on behalf of its mission.”
(Source: Pavel Zgaga (2008). Knowledge and Power: University, Transition and Democracy. [discussing Habermas, (1987)] p.9, http://www.see-educoop.net/education_in/pdf/knowledge-and-power-slo-enl-t07.pdf)

Many public policies are based on a popular assumption that investment in universities advances the technological base of a region’s economy, leads to the creation of new companies and industries, and ultimately benefits all taxpayers by increasing regional wealth. Universities are seen as a core element of a region’s intellectual infrastructure in the emerging knowledge economy.

The objective of this study is to advance the knowledge about the impact of universities on regional, national, and global economies, and ultimately on the well-being of all people of the world. This research will collect, analyze, and disseminate the best of American and European experiences regarding the role of universities in stimulating creativity for emerging technology and building innovative regional and global industrial clusters.

The proposed research has two parts. The first part of the research will use the two concepts of university products and the factors necessary for technology-based economic development. These concepts underlie the methodology of qualitative research of the university impact on economic development. This phase of the project will deliver case studies based on interviews conducted at the host universities and utilize prior knowledge of other universities in the field. The second part of the research is an in-depth study on the impact of research-related products on creating and commercializing new technology, supporting formation of emerging science industries, and building innovative industrial clusters on a regional, national, and global scale. The example of optics (also called photonics or optoelectronics) as an emerging and constantly evolving science industry will be employed to conduct quantitative research and potentially to generalize the results of the study to any emerging industry.

As a scholar, I have first-hand experience with two different systems of higher education. I earned a Ph.D. in Economics from the Institute of Regional Science, the National Academy of Science of Ukraine, and a Ph.D. in Urban Studies (concentration – Economic Development) from the Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs, Cleveland State University. My latest dissertation research, The Influence of Research Universities on Technology-Based Regional Economic Development, became my career and my passion. In the last two years I have conducted research on the impact of university products on economic development and in-depth studies on the optical science industry. Combined with my work on the NSF-funded project regarding university-related state science and innovation policies, this research has equipped me with the theoretical background and practical skills required for the proposed project, along with a network of venues for disseminating the project results on the national level (e.g. NASULGC, SSTI, NGA).

Two visits to select host universities are essential for successful completion; the two universities have specific expertise in two fields that are integral parts of the project. The Free University of Berlin (Professor Dr. Jorg Sydow, Dean of the School of Business and Economics, and Frank Lerch) developed an expertise in studying the German optics industry and comparing German optics industrial clusters to Arizona optical clusters, as well as to the optical clusters globally. The Netherlands’ Utrecht University was rated the 9th best university in Europe (Professor Dr. Ron Boschma, world-respected expert in industrial clusters research and Director of the Urban and Research Center) participates in the “Task Force Innovation of the Utrecht Region” which makes it a perfect model for studying the impact of universities on the regional economy, emerging industries, and building an industrial cluster.