NSF Grant Spotlights Southern CT State University as Emerging Technologies Leader

SCSU awarded key National Science Foundation grant that builds on a long history of leading the way in emerging technology research, innovation, and workforce development.

Southern Connecticut State University has received a $398,176 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) through its Enabling Partnerships to Increase Innovation Capacity (EPIIC) program. The three-year award will support the university’s efforts to grow academic-industry partnerships, boost research capacity, and foster workforce development across Connecticut and the region. The EPIIC program was inspired by the NSF’s commitment to accelerate scientific and technological innovation across the nation and ensure that all Americans can actively participate in the U.S. research and innovation enterprise. This commitment is aptly demonstrated through the NSF’s newly established Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (TIP).

Advancing Innovation Through Partnership

Southern’s project is part of Partnerships to Promote Research and Innovation for Societal Impact and Novel Engagements (PRISTINE), a multi-institutional initiative involving Southern Connecticut State University, Allegheny College (Meadville, Penn.), and Xavier University of Louisiana (New Orleans).

The initiative unites primarily undergraduate institutions (PUIs) dedicated to building academic–industry partnerships to strengthen workforce pipelines in emerging technology sectors. These sectors include advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, quantum information science, semiconductors, and new materials.

The PRISTINE cohort includes public and private universities, liberal arts colleges, and community colleges from urban and rural areas, uniquely positioning the group to support and improve the economic viability of small- and medium-sized businesses that often cannot participate in use-inspired research (UIR). UIR aims to solve real-world problems through collaborative innovation — leading to faster, more effective solutions than an organization could achieve alone.

At Southern, the project will:

  • Foster new external partnerships to attract funding and support for UIR in emerging technology sectors;
  • Use an experiential learning model to develop credentialed workforce training programs aligned with economic needs in Connecticut and the region; and
  • Enhance faculty and staff development in grant writing, research administration, and technology transfer to increase the number and quality of collaborative proposals and industry partnerships.

Additionally, the PRISTINE cohort will develop shared training resources, a public-facing virtual playbook, and a website to share best practices, templates, and strategies for building sustainable, research–innovation ecosystems at PUIs and smaller institutions nationwide.

The Werth Family Foundation’s leadership-level support has had a transformative impact on Southern’s research on emerging technologies, providing students with real-world experience and supporting industry. A recent campus visit included (from left): Vince Breslin, professor of environment, geography, and marine sciences; Peter J. Werth Jr., founder of ChemWerth; Christine Broadbridge, professor of physics; Sandra Bulmer, interim president of Southern; Peter J. Werth, III, the founder and director of Himalaya Currents; and O. John Maduko, interim chancellor of the CSCU system.

Southern’s Growing Research and Innovation Impact

This grant builds on nearly a decade of Southern’s leadership in New Haven’s innovation ecosystem and its recent distinction as Connecticut’s first and only Carnegie-classified R2 research university. The prestigious R2 designation recognizes high research activity, graduate degree programs, and a growing impact in science, technology, and workforce development. Since 2015, Southern has launched transformative initiatives such as BioPath and BioCity, which connect students directly to Connecticut’s thriving biotech sector at 100 and 101 College Street.

Jodie Gillon, president and CEO of BioCT, speaks at 101 College Street.

These efforts have contributed to New Haven becoming the second-largest biotech cluster in New England. Building on this momentum, Southern established the Innovation HUB (iHUB) in 2020. It now serves as a central base for research, industry collaboration, and workforce development initiatives across emerging technology sectors.

Southern is also a key contributor to Connecticut’s quantum and nanotechnology initiatives. As an integral member of QuantumCT, a statewide nonprofit focused on advancing quantum technologies, Southern is part of a team that was recently named a finalist for a $15 million NSF ENGINES grant, with the potential for future funding of up to $160 million.

Leveraging its R2 status and the pioneering work of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) Center for Nanotechnology (CNT), Southern plays a vital role in expanding research capacity and workforce pathways in emerging technologies across the CSCU system, the state, and the region.

“The NSF EPIIC grant is a powerful affirmation of Southern’s leadership in driving innovation, research, and workforce development in Connecticut and beyond,” said Sandra Bulmer, interim president of the university. “Through strategic partnerships and a commitment to inclusive excellence, we are preparing our students to lead in emerging technology sectors and helping to build a more resilient and equitable innovation ecosystem.”

Christine Broadbridge, professor of physics, works with students in Southern’s Werth Industry Academic Fellowship program.

The NSF EPIIC award also complements Governor Ned Lamont’s recent $50.5 million investment in downtown New Haven through the Connecticut Innovation Clusters Program, which is accelerating growth in life sciences and quantum technologies. Southern is once again an active partner in this statewide initiative; the university is working closely with QuantumCT and other organizations including Yale Ventures, Climate Haven, BioLaunch, and BioCT to ensure that the state’s investment delivers impactful results for the local community and strengthens Connecticut’s position as a national leader in emerging technologies.

BioCT is a key stakeholder in the CT Innovation Clusters Program; as part of this initiative, it will receive $3 million to activate the New Haven cluster with programming that unites civic, academic, and business partners across Connecticut.

As part of its EPIIC-related activities, Southern Connecticut State University’s iHUB is organizing its inaugural Emerging Technologies Forum, scheduled for Friday, November 14 at 101 College Street in New Haven. The event will unite academic, industry, and community leaders to explore opportunities at the intersection of emerging technologies and workforce development — further solidifying Southern’s role as a catalyst for research, innovation, and workforce development.

“Southern’s EPIIC award is a testament to the power of collaboration in driving innovation and workforce development,” said Jodie Gillon, president and CEO of BioCT. “I am thrilled that Southern received this NSF grant. It is coming on the heels of the State of Connecticut investing $50.5 million into life sciences and quantum technologies in New Haven. Southern — with its world-class faculty — is one of the main pillars in the city where innovation has already taken root. I am confident this will add tremendous synergies to other investments, and I look forward to partnering to execute them.” 

The Southern Connecticut State University project team includes:

  • Matthew Enjalran, Principal Investigator — Professor of Physics
  • Christine Broadbridge, Co-Principal Investigator — Professor of Physics; Executive Director, Research & Innovation
  • Julia Irwin, Co-Principal Investigator — Interim Provost and Professor of Psychology
  • Peter Dimoulas, Co-Principal Investigator — Program Administrator, Research and Innovation

News at Southern | Original Article ↗

Recent News

U.S. National Science Foundation Announces Transformational Award to Connecticut’s Quantum Tech Sector

For Immediate Release
July 14, 2026 —
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) announced today that
Connecticut is one of twelve regions selected to receive an NSF Regional Innovation
Engines (NSF Engines) award, joining a portfolio of regional technology clusters that are
accelerating the development of critical technologies and building a durable U.S.
technology advantage.
The NSF Quantum Technologies Engine in Connecticut, led by the University of
Connecticut in partnership with Yale University, Southern CT State University, Connecticut
State Community College, ConnCORP, CT Innovations, and the State of Connecticut, aims
to advance American quantum innovation and secure the domestic quantum supply chain
by accelerating the commercialization of quantum technologies for national defense,
biotechnology, and financial services. Through innovation, applied research leading to new
technologies, support for inventors and entrepreneurs, and workforce development, the
NSF Quantum Technologies Engine will advance quantum sensing, secured
communications, computing, and materials through shared testbed, deep-tech incubator
and translation pathways.
“NSF Engines investments in critical technologies and future industries will transform
America’s innovation infrastructure for decades to come,” says Brian Stone, performing the
duties of the NSF director. “The NSF Quantum Technologies Engine will advance the
Nation’s quantum innovation by accelerating the commercialization of quantum
technologies for national defense, biotechnology and financial services.”
The NSF Quantum Technologies Engine in Connecticut (the QuantumCT Engine) team will
initially receive a two-year, $15 million award. The funds will support the Engine’s
technology translation, workforce development, and incubator operations. The funds will
also facilitate industry and community engagement to deliver broad societal benefits. By
demonstrating sufficient progress, the QuantumCT Engine has the potential to receive
$160 million from NSF over the next decade.
The QuantumCT Engine will leverage world-leading research and innovation expertise from
UConn and Yale to pursue translational research to benefit industry, generate technology
ventures, and train the region’s workforce to enter a high-growth field. It will also deliver
technology acceleration and startup support services to drive public-private partnerships
and create a quantum ecosystem that generates economic growth.
Quantum technology industries are expected to grow to $200 billion by 2040, with the
potential to reshape sectors important to Connecticut and the country, including
aerospace, defense, drug development, manufacturing, and finance and insurance.
Connecticut companies that are adopting quantum technologies support over 270,000
jobs, accounting for 38% of wages in the state. They also are responsible for millions of
jobs and over $28.7 billion in GDP nationwide.
“Connecticut is the nation’s leading state for quantum technology adoption,” says Pamir
Alpay, UConn’s provost and the principal investigator on the NSF-funded proposal. “The
award recognizes our team’s success in establishing partnerships with industry to
accelerate quantum technologies and build a quantum-ready workforce.”
“This award application process was highly competitive, and it’s a huge win for
Connecticut,” says Gov. Ned Lamont. “Our pioneering research and advanced application
pipeline helped set us apart from the competition. Whereas other states may be theorizing
about quantum, we’re already applying it together with corporate partners across the state.
These federal funds, combined with state investment, will accelerate Connecticut’s
progress in quantum technology and help establish our state as a national and global
leader in this field—and we’re grateful for NSF’s support in getting us here. This investment
will help create good jobs and new opportunities for workers across the economy as
quantum’s impact grows.”
The NSF Engines program invests in regional ecosystems with the potential to drive
economic growth through technological innovation. The QuantumCT Engine proposal was
chosen for funding from a field of 15 finalists following a highly competitive national
selection process.
“As Connecticut’s flagship public university and the state’s land-grant institution, UConn
takes pride in its leadership role within the QuantumCT Engine. Our university is home to
more than 60 esteemed faculty members who are experts in the field of quantum science
and will collaborate with Yale researchers to drive innovative advancements and
groundbreaking discoveries in quantum research,” UConn President Radenka Maric says.
“Over the past three years, we have been working hand-in-hand with our academic, state,
industry, and community partners to position quantum technologies as a catalyst for
economic development that will fuel prosperity in our state and nation. It is crucial that
America take the lead in the global quantum race to safeguard national security, secure our
digital economy, and drive future economic growth. Furthermore, we must excel
internationally in quantum healthcare to deliver life-saving therapeutics and diagnostics. I
am grateful to Governor Lamont and Dan O’Keefe, the commissioner of the Department of
Economic and Community Development, for their grand vision for our state.”
The State of Connecticut has pledged $121 million to the QuantumCT Engine, comprising
$60 million already invested and an additional $60 million upon receiving the NSF award.
This state support will build a quantum incubator in New Haven, the Engine’s hub, among
other initiatives.
In 2023, NSF awarded the QuantumCT Engine team a $1 million NSF Engines Development
Award through UConn, which established the operational structure and built the
partnerships to drive the ecosystem. QuantumCT, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was
founded by UConn and Yale as part of the NSF Engine Development Award to support
applied research, help companies explore quantum applications, generate startups, and
prepare a skilled workforce.
Industry partners are key to the QuantumCT Engine’s success. Quantinuum and D-Wave
are partnering to develop quantum computing testbeds with QuantumCT that will be used
for experimentation and technology translation activities.
Quantum technology adopters – including RTX, Travelers, Boehringer Ingelheim, Pfizer,
Amphenol, and Microsoft – have been working with the QuantumCT Engine team over the
past several years on applied research projects that bring quantum capabilities directly to
their product lines.
“With this transformative award, NSF has recognized the scale of the QuantumCT Engine’s
ambition and its potential to accelerate the quantum revolution for our state, region, and
the United States as a whole,” Yale University President Maurie McInnis says.
“I am so proud of this effort to develop real-world solutions that enrich our communities
and of the spirit of collaboration that it represents,” she adds. “Together with our partners at
UConn and across the state, we have been able to drive innovation and unleash economic
growth, while fulfilling Yale’s vital mission of research and education.”
Alongside industry partnerships and state support, sustained investments by UConn and
Yale have helped build the quantum ecosystem that this award will accelerate.
At Yale, this includes startups such as Quantum Circuits, co-founded by Robert Schoelkopf
and Michel Devoret — whose pioneering work in quantum computing earned him the 2025
Nobel Prize in Physics — and recently acquired by tech innovator D-Wave with plans to
double its workforce in New Haven.
Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU) also plays a critical role as the QuantumCT
Engine’s workforce lead, with its QNT (CSCU Center for Quantum and Nanotechnology)
serving as the optimal coordinator based on its successes in leading educational initiatives
and strong alliances with industry, community stakeholders, and IHEs throughout
Connecticut.
Through longstanding technical and education collaborations with Yale, UConn, and the CT
State Community College System, the QNT is a conduit to all academic institutions in the
state and to small and medium businesses including those in advanced manufacturing,
biotech, photonics, and other supply chain sectors.
“Southern Connecticut State University is more than ready to take the lead on workforce
development in Connecticut’s quantum ecosystem,” says Sandra Bulmer, interim
president of the university. “We are proud to be part of Connecticut’s ‘research triangle,’
along with Yale and UConn, serving as the support for the talent pipeline. Our mission is
grounded in access and opportunity, and the workforce piece of this effort enables us to
open up new frontiers in research and innovation to countless students across
Connecticut.”

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