Page 23 - BusinessWest May 12, 2021

Impactful Gift
UMass to Create Center for Nursing and Engineering Innovation
ichael and Theresa Hluchyj are no established a graduate fellowship program in engineers collaborate on clinical solutions in strangers to giving back to their alma 2008 to support students from the College of new ways.
mater — and seeing their invest- Engineering and the College of Nursing who are “We are excited to support UMass in this new
ments bear fruit. interested in clinical healthcare research. initiative,” Michael Hluchyj said. “Innovation is
For example, the couple, who graduated from UMass Amherst in 1976 and 1977, respectively,
One recipient of the fellowship, Akshaya Shanmugam, who earned a master’s degree and
often accelerated at the intersection of different academic disciplines. The worldwide health cri- ses resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic make clear the critical need for innovative solutions in clinical settings where both nursing and engi- neering play vital roles.”
The Center for Nursing and Engineering Inno- vation Fund will support participating students, staff, and faculty from both colleges, and provide financial support for activities and resources at the center such as graduate fellowships, seed funds for R&D pilot projects, and an annual sym- posium. Funds will be shared between the Col- lege of Nursing and the College of Engineering, enabling them to recruit top student research- ers from the College of Engineering’s more than 2,800 students and the College of Nursing’s 730 students, as well as others from outside the university.
The center will not only provide students with an environment to work together, but will also integrate innovation and entrepreneurship into the current nursing and engineering curriculum.
UMass
Continued on page 92
Michael and Theresa Hluchyj say there’s a need for innovative clinical solutions where both nursing and engineering play a role.
PhD from UMass in elec- trical and computer engi- neering, earned recogni- tion in 2017 in Forbes’ 30 under 30 for her achieve- ments in healthcare. She founded Lumme Inc. while at UMass, using her knowledge and research to create software to help people quit smoking.
That’s the kind of impact these alumni hope to see from their latest investment in the future, a $1 million gift
to create a Center for Nursing and Engineer- ing Innovation, bringing together two fields that can improve personal well-being and save lives. Simply put, they envision a place where nurses and
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