Drexel University's Recent Academic Activity: Sponsored Opportunities and New Partnerships From Summer 2026

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Drexel University's Recent Academic Activity: Sponsored Opportunities and New Partnerships From Summer 2026

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Last term, Drexel University's colleges, schools and departments received funding, created partnerships and otherwise contributed to the success of Drexel's academic enterprise. This update offers a snapshot of activity, courtesy of the Office of the Provost.

Major Gifts, Honors and Recognition

Senior Vice Provost of Career Development and Global Engagement Ian Sladen recently secured a $200,000 grant from the Freeman Foundation to support international co-ops for U.S. students interested in co-oping in East and Southeast Asia. The grant will support 10 students for 2026-27.

Libraries, Collections & Archives, stewarding the Atwater Kent Collection, received a $75,000 planning grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to plan for a prospective multiyear implementation proposal: "Finding Philadelphia's Industrial Past Through the Atwater Kent Collection."

Researchers at the Drexel Urban Health Collaborative, in the Dana and David Dornsife School of Public Health, will support social service provider Puentes de Salud with their 2026 Local Data for Equitable Communities grant. This program, funded by the Urban Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, will facilitate meaningful engagement with immigrant communities and translate findings into actionable recommendations. Mariana Lazo, MD, research professor in the Dornsife School of Public Health, will lead this work.

New Key Partnerships

Drexel University Libraries is partnering with the Drexel Muslim Students Association (DMSA) to open a new multi-faith prayer and meditation space in the W.W. Hagerty Library, with student members advising on location and supplying all material for the space. The idea emerged from student feedback and requests for such a space in a central location on the University City Campus.

The Environmental Collaboratory is conducting interviews and roundtable discussions among stakeholders on local workforce issues to prepare an assessment of workforce needs and solutions tailored to different stakeholders. It plans to create a platform that connects employers, jobseekers and workforce organizations to share education and career opportunities, as well as to explore pathways to advance in the green sector through versatile skills-based training and stackable certifications.

Through the Bennett S. LeBow College of Business' Dornsife Office for Experiential Learning, undergraduate students from majors across the University will partner with Delta Cafés, Portugal's leading coffee brand, on an international business consulting course. During fall term, students will conduct research and analysis to develop recommendations addressing company business challenges, then travel to Lisbon for a one-week international residency to present their work to the company in person.

The Department of Physics in the College of Arts and Sciences, in partnership with Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, was selected for NASA's High Altitude Student Platform (HASP). Under the direction of Christina Love, PhD, teaching professor in the College of Arts and Sciences, students developed an experiment that was launched to the edge of space in a NASA high-altitude research balloon.

The English Language Center in the College of Arts and Sciences partnered with the nonprofit Generation Colombia to support young Colombian learners in developing the English language proficiency required to succeed in the workforce.

The College of Medicine has partnered with the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) to present a three-part webinar series on medical school pathway programs, as part of the AAMC's IDEAS Learning Series. The webinar series will bring together premedical pathway program directors, accelerated MD program directors and other educators and administrators from institutions across the country to examine emerging evidence and share practices that support the growth of a physician and biomedical workforce that reflects and responds to the communities it serves.

New Key Civic Engagements

Drexel joined Heritage West: The West Philadelphia Community Archaeology Project, a partnership also including HopePHL™, the Community Education Center, Tabb Management, the Black Bottom Tribe Association, University of Pennsylvania students, Penn Anthropology and the Penn Museum. Multiple Drexel courses in the College of Arts and Sciences will engage in this community archaeology project. The Pennoni Honors College is partnering with the Lindy Center for Civic Engagement, College of Arts and Sciences, Nick Howley College of Computing and Engineering and Heritage West on a small-scale archaeological dig on campus near Rush Building along Lancaster Walk. As part of the Honors course "Our Cities in Layers," co-taught by Steve Dolph, PhD, associate teaching and associate dean for culture and community in the College of Arts and Sciences, and Mira Olsen, PhD, associate professor in Howley College's School of Engineering, students will participate and learn more about Philadelphia and Drexel history in this interdisciplinary and experiential opportunity. Over the next three years, leaders on the project will continue to provide opportunities for students, faculty and community members to engage with the dig and their findings.

The Drexel Founding Collection and Atwater Kent Collection are collaborating with the Dornsife Center for Neighborhood Partnerships on a community exhibit initiative planning for Homefield: Stories of Players Meant to be Heard, led by a graduate student in design research, to open summer 2027.

The Lenfest Center for Cultural Partnerships and Atwater Kent Collection are partnering with Independence National Historical Park to plan exhibits for the newly renovated and reopened First Bank of the United States, kicking off with a temporary exhibition, America's National Anniversaries & Philadelphia on the World Stage (July 1, 2026-Feb. 15, 2027), alongside an exhibition from the U.S. Department of State. The Lenfest Center will also develop the permanent exhibition for the First Bank of the United States, as a contract service for the Independence Historical Trust.

The Environmental Collaboratory has developed three Communities of Practice (CoP) - Heatwave Preparedness, Strengthening Community Partnerships and Public Health and Hospital Systems - based on the findings from past convenings and stakeholder interviews related to community preparedness and recovery for increasingly severe weather. The collective work focuses on building regional resilience against extreme heat and severe weather by empowering frontline organizations and health systems. By adapting modular tools from organizations like APHA and EcoAmerica into localized, actionable materials, ranging from clinical protocols to community infographics and social media templates, the CoPs aim to establish sustainable training infrastructure hosted by trusted regional entities. Concurrently, the effort prioritizes removing barriers for community-based organizations (CBOs) and faith-based groups, recognizing them as essential, trusted messengers who require formal integration into emergency management, direct funding and operational tools to lead proactive neighborhood preparedness.

Through its Community Outreach Team, the Center for Nonviolence and Social Justice in the Dornsife School of Public Health has established a new partnership with the Esperanza Health Center's CORE program to expand the network of community partners and opportunities to connect youth with supportive programming.

The Mantua Creative Standard for Aging in Place, a measure developed in the Design Research for Health Lab directed by D.S. Nicholas, PhD, professor in the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design, will be piloted this year at Bancroft, a housing facility for elders with autism and intellectual disabilities.

The Legacy Center Archives & Special Collections in the College of Medicine collaborated on "The Woman Question," a play that drew on its collections and explores the impacts of the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania (a Drexel predecessor institution). Archivist Matt Herbison and College of Medicine professor Steven J. Peitzman, MD, participated in post-show talkbacks and hosted related tours following the show's two-week run at People's Light.

The Public Health Institute for Leadership & Advocacy Pre-College Program in the Dornsife School of Public Health welcomed rising junior and senior high schoolers for a summer academic program held in July 2026 over two sessions. This year, the Dornsife School's external advisory council raised funds to double the capacity of the program. Now in its sixth year, the program introduces ambitious high school students to health professions and college life.