Rowan University innovators honored by INNOVATE100

Four Rowan University leaders were recognized by INNOVATE100 and the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA) for their contributions to New Jersey’s innovation ecosystem during a May 13 event at the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center in New Brunswick.

Led by James Barrood and Innovation+, the annual INNOVATE100 initiative highlights New Jersey’s innovation leaders and collaborations within companies and organizations.

The list of Rowan innovators included:

• Mohammad Abedin-Nasab, Ph.D., inventor of Robossis, the first surgical-robotic system designed to repair long-bone fractures. He is an associate professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering in the Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering and Rowan-Virtua School of Translational Biomedical Engineering & Sciences.
• Mira Lalovic-Hand, Ph.D., senior vice president and chief information officer. Under her leadership, Rowan has improved network speed, reliability and access, fortified its cyber infrastructure, developed business intelligence and analytics programs, and established an information security risk management program that drives process improvement. 
• Mei Wei, vice president for research. An expert in biomaterials, Wei is leading Rowan’s efforts to become a Carnegie R1 (very high research activity) public institution. Named the third fastest-growing public research institution in the nation, Rowan offers 17 doctoral programs and is one of only two universities in the nation to offer three medical degrees. 
• James Grinias, professor of chemistry and biochemistry in Rowan’s College of Science & Mathematics. Recognized by INNOVATE100 as an “innovator to watch,” Grinias leads research to develop new techniques to speed and improve testing using a miniaturized version of a chemistry lab, allowing for faster results in the field.