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Georgia Cancer Coalition

An integrated approach to economic development

Working together, the GRA portfolio programs grow Georgia’s economy by expanding research capacity at universities, fueling the launch of new companies and helping companies make the connections that drive new product development and business expansion.

Eminent Scholars >

They are among the brightest minds in their disciplines – GRA’s Eminent Scholars, 62 enterprising scientists whom GRA helped recruit to Georgia. For each scholar, GRA invests $750,000 for an endowment, an amount that the research university matches in private funds on a minimum 1-1 basis. GRA also makes investments in developing the world-class research laboratories the scientists need.   

These investments pay tremendous returns: Eminent Scholars often bring a research team, significant federal funding and private support for their research. They advance science and technology toward new discoveries and technologies – often with great commercial potential. All told, Georgia’s investment in GRA Eminent Scholars has yielded more than $1 billion in outside grants and contracts for the state and helped to launch some 35 companies.

GRA VentureLab >

VentureLab is GRA’s signature technology commercialization program. Launched in 2002, VentureLab helps build high-growth companies around laboratory discoveries at GRA’s partner universities. VentureLab seeks out university-based research innovations, evaluates their commercial potential and provides resources to address the management, market and technology risks that come with new ventures. Each participating university -- Georgia Tech, Emory, the University of Georgia, Georgia State University and Georgia Health Sciences University – has an active technology incubator with which VentureLab can partner.

In the last five years through VentureLab, GRA has evaluated the commercial potential of more than 260 university inventions or discoveries and awarded VentureLab grants to form 107 active companies. At the end of 2010, these companies employed more than 640 professionals, had attracted $460.2 million in private equity investment and generated nearly $77 million in revenue.

Georgia Cancer Coalition >

After 10 years as an independent nonprofit organization, the Georgia Cancer Coalition became an initiative of the Georgia Research Alliance on January 18, 2012. The move was part of a larger effort to align Georgia’s economic development assets in a more effective way.

Over the past decade, the Coalition has sparked discovery through its Distinguished Cancer Clinicians and Scientists; promoted cancer prevention and education through six regional coalitions; expanded access to cancer clinical trials through its partner enterprise, Georgia CORE; and coordinated development of a statewide tissue and tumor bank.

As a GRA initiative, the program will continue as its collaborative efforts to address some of the most pressing issues pertaining to cancer prevention, treatment and research.

Centers of Research Excellence

To support each portfolio program, GRA invests in advanced technology needed to make the breakthrough discoveries that lead to the launch of new companies and the creation of jobs. This combination of tools and scientific talent has made Georgia home to dozens of Centers of Research Excellence.

The GRA Index

The Georgia Research Alliance creates opportunities to grow Georgia’s economy. This index shows a snapshot of the return on investment in GRA since 1990 – and the numbers grow each year.

62
GRA Eminent Scholars® recruited

28
New nationally recognized Centers of Research Excellence

$2.6 billion
Federal and private investment leveraged

Dozens
Major scientific breakthroughs from scholars’ work

100+
Existing corporations served by university partnerships

175/5,500+
Companies and jobs created