University Innovation Fellows

From left, Sam Warach (‘17, Paul College of Business and Economics), Matt Griswold (‘18, College of Engineering and Physical Sciences), Christin Badylak-Reals (‘19, College of Engineering and Physical Sciences), and Shawn Venti (‘17, College of Engineering and Physical Sciences)

The University Innovation Fellows is an international program of Stanford University’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design and created as part of the National Center for Engineering Pathways to Innovation grant from the National Science Foundation.


The goal of the University Innovation Fellows (UIF) program is to empower students to be agents of change at their respective schools.

Innovation is one of the six brand pillars of UNH, and our students demonstate this everyday. The UNH Fellows, all nominated by UNH and accepted by UIF, focused their efforts on the UNH Durham campus. Each year, the Fellows travel to Silicon Valley to further develop skills and connect with other Fellows. UNH is one of 164 universities with a UIF program. 

Quotes from the Fellows:

“Through the UIF training program, I acquired the practical skills necessary to effectively connect UNH students to campus innovation and entrepreneurship initiatives. “ - Fellow Christin Badylak-Reals. 

“Training to be a University Innovation Fellow was an incredible experience. Delving into progressive concepts like design thinking contributed to my understanding of how to create lasting impact in the UNH community. I’m excited to see how our cohort’s work will help influence future innovation and entrepreneurship!” - Fellow Sam Warach

"UIF is an exceptional organization that will not only aid in the growth of I&E at UNH, but in my professional career as well." - Fellow Shawn Venti

The first cohort of the UNH UIF took place during the fall semester of 2016.