During her senior year, Dani Hartmann ’24 never thought she would be working with an NFL team on a marketing project, wrapping it up the year they won the Super Bowl. And Luke Graf ’21, a marketing major, never expected to be working for the PGA Tour in Jacksonville, Florida.

They are two of the hundreds of students who have developed their skills and boosted their resumes through the Hagge Innovation Institute, which celebrated its third anniversary this month.

Launched with a $1 million gift from Steve ’73 and Sharon Hagge ’73 in October 2022, the institute, located on the first floor of the State Farm Hall of Business, includes a spacious conference room that is equipped with technology to facilitate brainstorming. It has quickly become a university hub for innovative thinking, hands-on learning, and creative problem-solving.

Dr. Peter Kaufman, inaugural director of the Hagge Innovation Institute and marketing professor, said the institute has brought together students from every college on campus to work with clients that have included the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, the Joffrey Ballet, and COUNTRY Financial, along with business startups and nonprofits.

What he’s most proud of is the institute’s ability to work with unique educational opportunities, from researching ways to get fresh produce to students, to working with the Joffrey Ballet in Chicago on a merchandise line and developing strategies to engage children.

“Sometimes the institute identifies the opportunity, and sometimes it is an external entity, like an ISU alumnus,” Kaufman said. “We don’t care much where a good idea comes from, but rather, is it a good fit for ISU students, and what resources are needed to effectively implement it.”

At the heart of the institute is the Innovation Consulting Community (ICC). Small teams of students lead and manage projects, interview clients, conduct research, design strategies and present their ideas. Clients have come from a wide range of areas, including education, financial services, health care, consumer packaged goods, the arts, government, sports marketing, and technology.

“The institute has improved project team management over the years by providing teams with simple-to-use documents and methodologies such as specific roles for members like project manager, project recorder, and student consultants,” Kaufman said. “We’ve also implemented the use of biweekly status reporting, a team project plan document, and sometimes we use digital online whiteboard tools.”

Developing skills through direct application in innovation isn’t just for students focused on entrepreneurship, Kaufman said. Students have come from every college on campus, with a diverse group of faculty, business leaders, and alumni serving as mentors.

For Graf, the ICC became a launch pad for a fast-moving career. The ad product specialist with the PGA Tour said his experience working alongside a CEO, the ICC client, gave him insight into business strategy beyond the classroom.

“It transformed classroom concepts into practical problem solving and showed me how leadership decisions shape a company’s direction,” he said. “It was a rare and invaluable chance to collaborate with someone at that level before graduation.”

Housed in the State Farm Hall of Business, the Hagge Innovation Institute continues to grow. A Social Innovation Lab is in the pilot stage. Here, interdisciplinary student teams, after background research, use systems thinking and design thinking to more holistically understand the issue and provide recommendations to clients about complex social and community challenges. This fall, they are partnering with the YWCA McLean County to study and make recommendations about alleviating the high cost of child care.

As the institute evolves from its core focus of student consulting projects for various clients, it recently launched Student Innovation Coaching, funded by Perma-Seal Basement Systems, and it continues to offer a Visiting Innovators speaker series that invites innovators to campus.

“With the support of project coaches who are faculty, staff, and often, alumni—many of them volunteers—we are able to have a much larger positive impact on students and client organizations,” Kaufman said.

The institute also offers intellectual property coaching, with support from the Means Center for Entrepreneurship, led by intellectual property technology lawyer Warren McCarty ’09. Students have the opportunity to learn about patents, trademarks, and copyrights.

Hartmann, a public relations major and recent graduate, credits her experience with helping her stand out to employers. As a communications specialist for Chartwell Agency in Rockford, a full-service marketing agency, she could talk about her work with the NFL team, a project she called a “surreal and unforgettable experience.”

“The institute gave me real-world opportunities I couldn’t get in a classroom,” she said.  “My advice to future students would be to take risks and lean into all opportunities. The institute is a space where you can test new ideas, learn through real-world projects, and make a genuine difference for the people you work with. It is a really great experience and a wonderful resume builder.”

As the institute enters its fourth year, it is gaining momentum while its focus remains clear. Innovation is valuable in every field.  

“We found that starting small, celebrating small wins, and building momentum is important,” Kaufman said. “Identifying others around campus who are also passionate about innovation is also very helpful. Often, faculty, staff, and students are interested in innovation and innovating but may need a nudge or support in a particular area. In these cases, we are energized to help.”

The ICC began as an extracurricular opportunity and is now available for academic credit. It is open to any major and class year. Accepted students commit about 15 hours in the fall semester to plan for spring, followed by five to 10 hours per week in the spring. Students interested in applying for fall 2026 can email Kaufman for application information.