UNHInnovation at the University of New Hampshire has announced several initiatives that would help increase the school's commercialization success.

In an effort to expand entrepreneurship throughout the university and the state, the public research institution announced that it has established a new center, The Peter T. Paul Entrepreneurship Center, as well as a mentoring network and a seed fund. They will use the research output of faculty, staff and students to drive economic development in the state.

"The Peter T. Paul Entrepreneurship Center will extend the work of UNHInnovation and also provide support to students throughout the university," Provost Lisa MacFarlane said in a statement. "It is the next step in our efforts to integrate entrepreneurship across all seven colleges and we're grateful for Mr. Paul's ongoing commitment to increasing entrepreneurial activity on campus .... The center will support all students who want to take what they've learned and turn it into tangible actions in the world. It is the ultimate student learning outcome."

UNHInnovation advocates for, manages, and promotes the transfer of the university's research results to the public. It also strives to create partnerships between UNH and the business community that results in economic development, and is responsible for licensing UNH technologies and supporting start-up companies based on UNH's innovations.

"We take the outputs of the university and make them useful," Marc Sedam, associate vice president of innovation and new ventures, said in a statement. "It's not just about the money, it's about use. We want to spread ideas, and we are, whether they come from our excellent research or are student generated."

Licenses are one way to measure use and their number continues to rise.

"Just this year there were more than 120 licenses signed by UNHInnovation, many of them driven by the InterOperability Lab, and royalties more than doubled since 2010. These additional resources will allow us to continue to have a positive impact on the state's economy," Sedam added.