UC President Neville Pinto brings his record of innovation and collaboration to his new role as chairman of the UCI board, and he does so at a time when Uptown is poised for unprecedented growth. As Pinto notes, “we stand at an important threshold.”
University of Cincinnati President Neville Pinto, Ph.D., was named chairman of the Uptown Consortium Inc. (UCI) through April, 2019.
“As UCI prepares to launch the new Innovation Corridor, Uptown Cincinnati is poised to become the Midwest’s research and innovation engine,” said Pinto, who will serve a two-year term. “I am honored to serve as the Consortium’s incoming chair during this important threshold.”
Since its creation in 2004, the Uptown Consortium has spearheaded more than $1 billion in redevelopment, new construction and neighborhood improvements in Avondale, CUF, Clifton, Corryville and Mt. Auburn neighborhoods.
“The Uptown Consortium has been a catalyst for positive change in its five neighborhoods. The area has an $11.5 billion annual economic impact that promises to grow with current projects that are focused on fueling the future,” Pinto said, pointing to UC's 1819 Innovation Hub, the recently announced Cincinnati Children's patient tower, construction of the UC Gardner Neuroscience Institute and the new Uptown Innovation Corridor with the Uptown Gateway flagship as examples.
Pinto, who was elected to the National Academy of Inventors in 2010, brings expertise and a background in engineering to his role as chairman. He is well-known for a longstanding commitment to research and collaborative partnerships.
Pinto, who was a faculty member in chemical engineering at the University of Cincinnati from 1985 until 2011, returned to the UC as president in February of this year from the University of Louisville.
During his 26-years as a member of the UC Department of Chemical Engineering, Pinto helped foster the University’s academic research agenda. He established the Adsorption and Ion Exchange Laboratory, which resulted in over $6 million in external funding for study in biochemical and environmental engineering. As vice provost and dean of the Graduate School, he helped attract external awards of more than $10 million to support graduate and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education.
Pinto, replaces Beverly Davenport as chair of the UCI board. Davenport left her position as UC president in January to become chancellor of the University of Tennessee.