About the institute
The Kummer Institute for Student Success, Research and Economic Development was established in October 2020 through a gift of $300 million from June and Fred Kummer, longtime benefactors of Missouri University of Science and Technology.
The gift will enable the university to establish a new college of innovation and entrepreneurship, develop new areas for research, provide numerous scholarships and fellowships for students, and bolster the Rolla region’s economy.
Share your ideas
The Kummer Institute will transform higher education and research at Missouri S&T and across the nation,
but we need your best ideas to help make it a success.
Our mission and vision
Mission
The Kummer Institute for Student Success, Research and Economic Development will transform Missouri S&T and the south-central Missouri region by cultivating leadership and technological innovation; promoting an entrepreneurial mindset; fostering expansion of academic-industry partnerships to address emerging needs of industry; and creating jobs and economic growth for the region.
Vision
The institute will transform Missouri S&T, Missouri and the nation through student success, research and economic development. Institute faculty and fellows will build and nurture multidisciplinary teams that will create innovations in a variety of scientific and engineering fields. The technical breakthroughs of the institute will catalyze and grow the region’s and the state’s economic prowess — and will secure the relevance, excellence and future of Missouri S&T.
Our structure
The Board
A group of prominent engineers and scientists, as well as university leaders, serve as the Kummer Missouri S&T Foundation Board for the Kummer Institute assuring S&T is well-connected to and informed by leading technical and business minds from both the private and academic sectors. Led by S&T Chancellor Mo Dehghani, the board will advise faculty and students on identifying market needs that drive innovation, leveraging resources and technology in the discovery-to-market process, and identifying industry trends and workplace needs that underpin our economy.
The Executive
For the first two years, Chancellor Mo Dehghani will serve as the Kummer Institute's executive director, providing the entrepreneurial, creative and technical leadership to ensure the institute’s success. Missouri S&T will hire a dean of the Kummer College of Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Economic Development. In partnership with S&T’s provost and the vice chancellor for research and graduate education, the chancellor and dean will establish and lead progress toward institute goals, and will build an entrepreneurial mindset among faculty and students that allows Rolla, south central Missouri and the state to thrive and grow.
The Vital, Interested Partners
Corporate partners, civic and state leaders, entrepreneurs-in-residence, engaged alumni, and business leaders will be invited to participate in the Kummer Institute’s tangible and transformative activities that benefit the region and state.