University of Oregon Announces Opening of the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact to Speed the Pace of Scientific Discovery

EUGENE, Ore., Dec. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The University of Oregon (UO) announced today the official opening of the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact, a bold new model that accelerates the cycle of scientific discovery and development through world-class research, training, and entrepreneurship in a collaborative cross-discipline environment.

"This marks a transformational moment in our university's 144-year history. The Knight Campus builds upon our proud history of exceptional basic science and immediately broadens and deepens our impact to encompass applied science and engineering," said Michael H. Schill, UO President and professor of law. "The generosity and inspiration of the Knights allows the University of Oregon to leverage the brilliance, creativity and accomplishments of our researchers and faculty in ways that previous generations of Oregonians could only have dreamt of. The Knight Campus puts the world on notice: The University of Oregon is once again changing the game in terms of the way that research and science can serve students and society."

The Knight Campus was made possible by a $500 million lead gift from UO alumni and Nike co-founder Phil Knight and his wife Penny. Knight, who earned his business degree at the UO in 1959, has been the university's largest benefactor over the years; the Knight Campus contribution was the largest gift ever to a public flagship institution at the time and has since been augmented by $70 million in state bonds and additional philanthropy. The first phase marks a $225-million building project.

"Penny and Phil's extraordinary act of philanthropy powers us to new heights while creating opportunities for students and faculty that will leave an indelible imprint on the community, state and, ultimately, the world," said Robert Guldberg, VP and Executive Director of Knight Campus. "Operating at the intersection of science and society, the Knight Campus will serve as a biotech incubator that will push the frontiers of science and inspire and accelerate global problem solving."

Designed by internationally-acclaimed architecture firm Ennead Architects in New York and Bora Architects in Portland, the Knight Campus sets a new standard for lab design, setting up diverse teams of scientists, researchers and students in four research neighborhoods, where no single lab belongs to an individual faculty member. Situating researchers collaborate on related work, which allows a team to problem solve and shorten the time from discovery to deployment. This design, along with cutting edge facilities for imaging, 3D-printing and rapid prototyping, will allow Knight Campus researchers to dramatically reduce the average time of 10 years that it takes to move the average biotechnology discovery to market.

"The Knight Campus allows scientists to work in new, highly integrated ways," said Patrick Phillips, UO Provost and Senior Vice President and a biology professor who served as the acting director of the campus and led the design team. "The entire building is adaptable, allowing researchers to be hyper-nimble and to work across fields—be it engineering or biology or nanotechnology. COVID-19 and the pandemic have really highlighted the importance of translational research, of collaboration, and of quick impact. With on-site, cutting-edge equipment for rapid prototyping and an innovation center to develop the commercial potential of ideas, the Knight Campus' intelligent design inspires all involved to tackle important societal problems while shaping the next generation of scientists."

The Knight Campus serves graduate students with a graduate internship program and a doctoral program in bioengineering, in partnership with Oregon State University. The internship program provides a career-focused accelerated master's degree, with a nine-month hands-on internship; 90% of graduates launch careers in their fields within three months of graduating. The Knight Campus Undergraduate Scholars Program offers select undergrads a rare opportunity to be immersed in comprehensive research, pairing promising young scientists with mentors in campus-affiliated labs.

"The Knight Campus Graduate Internship Program is exactly what I was looking for to launch my career. Even through remote learning, I have been able cultivate the technical and soft skills needed to be successful in my field. The program's emphasis on teamwork and collaboration make me feel confident and prepared," said Demi Glidden, who's pursuing a master's degree in bioinformatics at the Knight Campus.

With its focus on biotechnology, the Knight Campus has the potential to reshape Oregon's statewide economy and have a major, long-term impact on economic development by creating new businesses and jobs in Eugene, the state's third largest city. Added Guldberg, "The Knight Campus serves as a hub for new partnerships, inspiring discovery and innovation across campus, the region and the country. We're creating an ecosystem of collaboration, supporting diverse perspectives dedicated to the pursuit of breakthroughs that improve people's lives."

In addition to Guldberg, the UO has already recruited eight top faculty to the Knight Campus, and several have since launched three start-up companies, moving their new technologies into the marketplace. One company is 3D-printing patient-specific orthopedic implants, shortening the innovation timeline from years to weeks. A second startup is creating implantable screws and other devices with built-in sensors to monitor healing. And a third company, formed by a faculty member who is both a physician and a scientist, is commercializing a molecule to treat vision disorders such as macular degeneration.

The collaborative potential of the Knight Campus is already fostering regional partnerships. In 2019, the UO and Oregon Health & Sciences University launched a joint center for biomedical data science, designed to tackle cancer and other complex diseases with big data; and the UO recently launched a joint center for biomedical research with PeaceHealth.

Learn more about the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact at Accelerate.uoregon.edu.

Media Contact:
Chris Crabb, Weinstein PR
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SOURCE University of Oregon

Related Links

https://accelerate.uoregon.edu