DURHAM, N.H. - Reflecting the University of New Hampshire's efforts to strengthen its relationships with the local business community, UNHInnovation recently announced the appointment of Ellen Christo as manager of strategic partnerships.

Christo will help businesses to utilize university intellectual resources and scientific capacity, which will allow the results of UNH's research and development to better benefit the public. She will also serve as the program manager for the highly successful New Hampshire Innovation Research Center (NHIRC), which provides matching grants that further the growth and development of New Hampshire businesses.

"Christo will be a business concierge," said Marc Sedam, managing director of UNHInnovation. "She will shepherd businesses to university resources and aid the university in better interacting and partnering with the corporate world. UNH is at its best when its work is directly linked to solving the intellectual and economic needs of the state."

Christo is a UNH alumna with a B.A. in political science ('86), and a J.D. from UNH School of Law ('90). She was a business attorney for many years in Boston and New Hampshire. Her career has included positions with two governors and a United States senator, as well as international experience in Dubai, Jordan, Germany, Russia, Albania and Hong Kong, interfacing with government officials, embassies, and international suppliers.   

"I am thrilled to be joining the UNHInnovation team and the UNH community," said Christo. "My goal in this position is to help UNH create mutually beneficial commercial partnerships that will in turn help fuel the economic engine of our state."

Christo can be reached at ellen.christo@unh.edu or (603) 862-5446.

UNHInnovation is responsible for managing UNH's intellectual assets, spearheading efforts to use the university's research base as an economic development engine, and promoting entrepreneurship across the entire campus. In recent years, UNH has set records for invention disclosures, patent filings, licenses, and licensing income.

The University of New Hampshire, founded in 1866, is a world-class public research university with the feel of a New England liberal arts college. A land, sea, and space-grant university, UNH is the state's flagship public institution, enrolling 13,000 undergraduate and 2,500 graduate students.