College of William and Mary orbits NASA

College of William and Mary’s Raymond Mason School of Business and Alan Miller Entrepreneurship Centre are set to work together with Nasa’s Langley Research Centre to accelerate spin-out technologies.

As part of the partnership, the college will be given access to business and commercialisation studies of Nasa’s own technologies and will be able to select those it deems most commercially viable.

This marks the first time the agency partners with an institution of higher education for the purpose of tech transfer. According to US law, all federal agencies must have a tech transfer programme to stimulate innovation and economic growth, but usually Nasa partners with US companies and specifically those in health care, consumer goods, transportation, renewable energy and manufacturing. Indeed, such partnerships have allowed a total of 174 companies in Virginia to license the space agency’s technology and bring it to market.

Richard Ash, professor of private equity and entrepreneurship at the college, said: “This partnership with Nasa will allow our students to participate in a real world, hands-on practical business experience. Enhancing the educational process in this way will provide our Mason School of Business students with an expanded opportunity to advance their interest in further studies in science, technology and commercialisation. At the same time, the students will gain valuable experience that will serve to sharpen their team and leadership abilities – all skills which will be useful in their future careers.”