Shaking Things Up

Shaking Things Up

The power of innovation isn't just shown through invention. Often, the true impact of innovation is felt in the barriers broken down, the processes improved, and the connections formed across disciplines and interests.

Innovation is also a process through which leadership skills are developed. As IC students prepare themselves for a postgraduate world that is increasingly complex and globally intertwined, the opportunity to take part in a global conversation with other aspiring leaders can provide invaluable experience.

Spencer Thorne '26, Jack Cabot '26, Vasilisa Ragulina '27, and Ryan Cooke '26 discovered this firsthand when they took part in the2024 University Innovation Fellows (UIF) program. Last year was the first time Ithaca had a cohort in the program, and the 2025 cohort selection process is underway.

The UIF program aims to "empower students to become agents of change at their schools," which aligns with the teaching goal of Ithaca College. As Michael Johnson-Cramer, dean of the School of Business, puts it, "The University Innovation Fellows program is a natural fit with IC's commitment to creative leadership. When we sponsor a UIF cohort, we invest in students who can become catalysts for change and innovation here on South Hill and beyond."

UIF was created in 2012 as part of the National Center for Engineering Pathways to Innovation, a five-year National Science Foundation grant hosted by Stanford University and nonprofit VentureWell. In 2016, it was adopted by Stanford's Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, and in 2025 found a new home at the DesignLab at the University of Twente in the Netherlands.

But despite the new home, the goal remains the same as it did when the program was founded: to prepare students to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world by providing opportunities for innovation and collaboration, by teaching them new ways to think and to solve problems.

The program features both an eight-week course, and a project phase, where students from each school can work individually or in groups on an innovative project of their choosing that will impact their campus. They then travel to the university to present their ideas and to connect with scholars from other participating schools.

"The focus is on design thinking," said Paul Martin, a lecturer in the School of Business, who served as the IC students' instructor for the course. "Essentially, that's defined as taking a human-centered approach to try to find innovative solutions to problems. You create processes and solutions and bring them into reality."

"There's value to students in learning a new way to assess what needs their campus community needs," he continued. "And then there's the hands-on approach to the project itself. It's something you don't typically get."

The quartet of IC students split into three groups, each with their own focus.

"The work our students chose was interdisciplinary, which wasn't a surprise, because we wanted to bring in four people from across campus," Martin said.

Ragulina, who is an architectural studies major, describes herself as a "high achiever," and wanted something that would challenge her beyond the classroom.

"I wanted to work on something that would impact society and my community," she said from Australia, where she is studying abroad this semester. "I started thinking about how the Makerspace at IC is such a great opportunity for students interested in entrepreneurship, and all the people who would benefit from it. But for a lot of students, it can feel intimidating to take that first step. I wanted to lower the perceived barrier for entry to the space, so people could get comfortable exploring it."

Her idea? Partner with groups and organizations across campus and create a series of Makerspace-centered contests for students to enter.

"For example, working with the Eco Reps and taking donated shirts, and challenging people to use the Makerspace to create something useful out of them, like a reusable tote bag," Ragulina explained. "The winner would get to use the e-bikes around campus.

"Not only would that hopefully get more people interested in exploring their entrepreneurial side, but it would introduce them to campus organizations they might not know about," she added.

Ragulina's project will start when she returns to the United States, though she has already found the experience invaluable, in particular the opportunity to travel to the Netherlands for three days.

"It was so energizing and exciting to meet other people and learn about their projects," she said. "I've made great connections with like-minded students from around the world, and that's been fantastic."

Thorne is a part of IC's Park Scholar program and a film, photography, and visual arts major who is also pursuing an entrepreneurship and innovation minor, which is why the program appealed to him. He partnered with Cooke, a business administration major, and the pair chose to focus on the School of Business's annual Business Plan Demo Day.

"Traditionally, that's something that's been the domain of students in the business school, and we wanted to open it up to students across campus," Thorne said. "So, we contacted the other schools and arranged to speak in some classes about Demo Day. We also focused on increasing publicity on social media and revitalizing the brand guidelines for the program.

"I learned a lot about myself through this process about how to ideate your goals and bring them into your community," he continued. "It was incredibly valuable and I'm glad I got to take part."

Cabot originally came to Ithaca to study business administration but is now a history major with a minor in entrepreneurship and innovation.

"Taking part in UIF was an opportunity for me to forge my own path here at IC," he explained. "I was really interested in ways to help the school save money, and one of the ways I saw an opportunity to do that was through IT. Essentially, I wanted to automate systems that transferred information from one department on campus to another so that it would be more efficient."

He explained the problem to Elliot O'Connor '26, a computer science major who works for the Office of Information Technology and Analytics. Though not part of the UIF program, O'Connor's immediate reaction of "we can solve this" energized Cabot.

To gather information, Cabot reached out to people across campus like President Cornish, Vice President for Advancement Laine Norton, Senior Vice President and CFO Tim Downs, and Associate Director of College Applications Technical Services Ilene Parlin, to learn more about the systems in place and how they work together.

"They were immediately receptive to the idea, which I was incredibly appreciative of," he said. "I think that's the beautiful thing about going to a school the size of Ithaca. I couldn't believe I was meeting with the president and the CFO of my college to discuss my ideas. You would not get that type of experience at a bigger college."