University of New Haven Announces Landmark Collaboration with New England Nonprofits to Commercialize Student Inventions

The University of New Haven is partnering with commercialization experts FORGE and mentorship program NextMinds to offer student inventors a tuition-free college degree and a clear path to commercialization.

The University of New Haven, FORGE, and NextMinds (formerly the Connecticut Invention Convention), today announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) establishing Connecticut Invents, a first-of-its-kind collaborative framework to support the commercialization of student-created inventions. The landmark agreement creates a comprehensive ecosystem in which student inventors from NextMind’s Invention Convention, a premier STEM education program, can receive full tuition from the University of New Haven, and benefit from expert productization and manufacturing guidance from FORGE.

Under the terms of the MOU, the University of New Haven will provide select student inventors with a tuition-free, four-year undergraduate education. The University of New Haven will assume full responsibility for IP maintenance, legal protections, and business support, while supplying entrepreneurial resources, research facilities, and faculty mentorship.

FORGE will contribute commercialization expertise, including product development advisory service, introductions to prototyping and manufacturing resources, and industry strategy. NextMinds and its flagship Invention Convention program will serve as a critical youth talent pipeline, guiding the most marketable of its 10,000+ annual inventors toward the novel program.

The partnership was conceived by Paul Lavoie, vice president of Innovation and Applied Technology at University of New Haven. Lavoie recognized an opportunity to unite the three organizations around NextMinds CEO Nick Briere’s vision of creating a structured, supported pathway for young inventors emerging from the Invention Convention, helping to bring their ideas to full commercialization.

“When Nick shared his vision, I knew we had the pieces to make it real,” said Lavoie, who is spearheading the development of the University’s Elevation Center. The Center serves as a hub for applied research, entrepreneurship, and industry collaboration. Connecticut Invents will be housed in The Elevation Center.