TOMBALL, TX: Always striving to stay ahead of the higher education curve, this fall Lone Star College-Tomball is celebrating the opening of the Research and Innovation Center (R&I Center), an on-campus hub for students, faculty, and staff to explore, create, and implement new inventive ideas.
“Pulling all the imaginative concepts together to create the R&I Center has been an absolutely amazing experience,” said Isabelle Chen, LSC-Tomball R&I Center coordinator. “The nature of innovation is invigorating and challenging. It takes relentless learning, plenty of input, and the support of community. Those are the things the R&I Center will provide. Our goal is to nurture a culture of innovation.”
The sophisticated R&I Center space was thoughtfully designed and constructed to form an environment that is conducive to investigation and ideation. The state-of the art learning technology including virtual reality devices and computers are available for community use. The center’s programs encompass concepts in technology, data, human literacies, and cognitive skills, including critical thinking, systems thinking, entrepreneurship, and cultural agility. All the tools and resources strategically incorporated to aid the LSC-Tomball community on their quest to find answers to the unknown.
Malyse Domingue, student President of the LSC-Tomball Phi Theta Kappa honor society chapter, helped develop the design, layout, and plans for the R&I Center. She believes the green room created for virtual experiences and the multimedia production area could “transform and energize” the way students learn and teachers teach.
Domingue plans to use the new space for personal study and group meetings. “I love places that push me to complete my schoolwork, increase my knowledge, and grow my personal strengths to further my future career,” said Domingue. “The R&I Center is that place. It represents progress and achievement for everyone on campus.”
Seeking to open the minds of his students to possibilities and pique student curiosity, Carlos Aguilar, LSC-Tomball Digital Imaging and Computer Information Technology professor, plans to use the new space to expose his students to new technologies and innovations.
“Students have great ideas, but sometimes, if they can’t find a place to channel and organize their interests, those ideas simply die,” said Aguilar. “But now in the R&I Center, our students will have the support and resources to explore their interest, exchange their ideas with peers, and possibly see those ideas come to life.”
The mission of the R&I Center is to pursue research, power collaboration, foster innovation, and inspire work that aligns with the LSC system’s mission to provide comprehensive educational opportunities and programs that enrich lives.
“We want to prepare students strategically and creatively for their future in the workforce and to ignite within them a lifelong passion for learning and invention that will catalyze positive changes that benefit all,” said Chen.