Lehigh has a long history of providing entrepreneurial solutions to a range of cultural and economic challenges. Our graduates' ingenuity as has lead to the creation of the first escalator and the first implantable working artificial heart, and has even helped to build one of the most successful automobile companies in the world. Now, with its cutting-edge, cross-disciplinary research and an engaged student body, Lehigh is well positioned to provide answers to a range of 21st century questions, too—whether it's making breakthroughs in nanotechnology, discovering drug-tree treatments for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or developing a system that filters arsenic from contaminated well water.

To get a sense of why entrepreneurship thrives here at Lehigh, learn a little more about our infrastructure and the network of agencies and partnerships the university already has in place.

• The City of Bethlehem was named one of the best places to “Live and Launch” by Fortune Small Business Magazine for 2008. The editors wrote, “Bethlehem, once the Lehigh Valley’s steel capital, is now bustling with tech and biotech start-ups, thanks to resources stemming from Lehigh University and health care centers in the region.”
• Lehigh University and the Southside Bethlehem Keystone Innovation Zone won the 2007 Award of Excellence in Partnership Development from the University Economic Development Association.
• Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania has also earned the prestigious Incubator of the Year award from the National Business Incubation Association.
• Lehigh's VentureSeries includes the largest collection of corporate entrepreneurship coursework of its kind in the nation.
• The PA Governor's School for Global Entrepreneurship educates more than 75 high-achieving high school students from Pennsylvania and around the world each year.
• Lehigh's Small Business Development Center annually consults with over 1,000 small businesses from eastern Pennsylvania.
• Over 500 firms have worked with Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC), a non-profit affiliated with Lehigh University.
• The Integrated Product Development (IPD) program, responsible for more than 300 new products and processes, has been recognized by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, BusinessWeek and The New York Times.
• Lehigh's IPD and Integrated Business and Engineering (IBE) cross-disciplinary programs have won 13 student awards and three awards for curriculum development from the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance (NCIIA).
• The Iacocca Institute was jointly formed in 1988 by Lee A. Iacocca and Lehigh University to increase the global competitiveness of organizations.
• Since 1997, the Global Village for Future Leaders of Business and Industry® has brought 850 leaders to Lehigh from more than 100 countries.
• The past four winners for the Joan F. & John M. Thalheimer '55 Student Entrepreneurs Competition have started up their own companies in and around the Lehigh Valley.