The Lelmelson Check-In

This is from somewhere between September and October 2008

The Lemelson center is alive and well. Last year, the Lemelson Assistive Technology Development Center went through some funding issues. The Lemelson Foundation had given Hampshire a two-year grace period after which time they would withdraw funding from Hampshire's Lemelson center.
While Hampshire College funds 30-40% of the operating budget of the Lemelson center, outside funding was needed to be able to keep the program intact. There were a number of grant possibilities, and each one fell through. At the last minute (end of the academic year last year), funding was solidified. In fact, Colin Twitchell, the director of the Lemelson program, said that the funding for the program is good through this academic year, and that they can continue the program at this level of funding. It is unclear how well fund raising will work with the economy in its current state. Unfortunately, bad economy means less philanthropy. To help the situation, a number of parents of students have started a Lemelson center parental fund-raising group. They are there to offer advice and, of course, funds.
Colin Twitchell states, “I'm fairly optimistic that we'll be Ok for the next academic year.” The Lemelson center has a small endowment that will be used to help pay for programs. Currently, very little is paid for by endowment, but as the endowment grows, so too will the possibility to pay with it.
So, what is the impact this year of decreased funding? It basically means that some of the extra events and speakers that Lemelson offered in the past had to be lessened this year. It also meant that administration positions in the center had to be cut back. The remaining administrative staff now has to do more than in the past. Colin remarked that now, sadly, he had less interactions with students because of increased responsibility. The other change to the program was the need to stop offering one of the Lemelson classes, “Introduction to soft goods design.”
The Sherman-Fairchild program has shown interest in Hampshire and in Lemelson. If we get this grant, it would mean $300,000 over the course of three years to create an art, design, and technology program involving the Lemelson program and interdisciplinary learning. There could be combinations of Lemelson and Cognitive Sciences or anything else, really. “The sky is the limit as far as what could be created,” says Twitchell. He is pretty sure that we will get that grant.
Lemelson is a very unique program. There are no other undergraduate liberal arts colleges in the country that have such a program. To find something similar on a higher education campus, you have to go to industrial design schools. What makes this program truly special is the combination of social entrepreneurship and assistive technology. Hopefully, funding will be found to allow such a unique program to grow and flourish.