Iona Faculty Member Recognized for Leadership in Innovation, Entrepreneurship
Hynes Institute’s Lendynette Pacheco-Jorge Named Faculty Innovation Fellow by the University of Twente’s DesignLab
As Iona University hosted its annual University Innovation Fellows (UIF) pinning ceremony on Friday, Jan. 23, celebrating students newly inducted into the program, the moment also served as a reflection point for Lendynette Pacheco-Jorge, whose own journey with UIF underscores Iona’s growing leadership in entrepreneurship and innovation.
“The University Innovation Fellows program is a wonderful opportunity, and my time as a Faculty Innovation Fellow challenged me to think more intentionally about how students engage with their experiences,” said Pacheco-Jorge, associate director of the Hynes Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation. “At Iona, we create so many pathways for learning, and guiding students to reflect on and connect those moments is central to the work I do every day.”
Pacheco-Jorge was recognized for her global engagement in the field after being named a Faculty Innovation Fellow (FIF) by the University of Twente’s DesignLab in April 2025. Her cohort of 15 educators from institutions around the world were recognized for their commitment to advancing innovation ecosystems on their campuses.
“We designed this program to address needs expressed by the faculty and staff in our community. These campus leaders wanted similar resources and a community of practice just like their student Fellows have,” said Humera Fasihuddin, founder of the University Innovation Fellows program. “These new Faculty Innovation Fellows have worked together for the last two years in a close-knit community to develop new ways to engage their students. Our team is so thrilled to see their efforts realized, and we can’t wait to see what they accomplish in the future.”
Her selection for the fellowship stems from her work at Iona, where she helps shape entrepreneurial programming that emphasizes experiential learning, interdisciplinary collaboration and real-world problem solving. Pacheco-Jorge becomes the second Iona representative to earn the distinction, joining endowed professor and founding program director of the Hynes Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation Christoph Winkler in the international FIF network.
Over the past two years, Pacheco-Jorge collaborated closely with other Faculty Innovation Fellows, sharing resources, exchanging feedback and developing projects focused on strengthening innovation and entrepreneurship at colleges and universities worldwide. Beginning in 2023, the fellows met regularly in small groups to identify opportunities for change and growth within their respective campus communities.
For Pacheco-Jorge, the experience centers on reflection—particularly around how Iona students engage their skills, interests and experiences during their time on campus and how those experiences translate into meaningful professional pathways.
“My time in the program was about community and learning from others, which allowed my original project idea to pivot,” Pacheco-Jorge said. “At Iona, student success it at the center of it all. And to this day, the one thing that prides me the most is the vast number of intentional opportunities that we are providing to our students.”
As part of the fellowship’s culmination, Pacheco-Jorge presented her work during the Faculty Summit & UIF meetup held in April 2025 at the University of Twente’s DesignLab. The three-day event brings together nearly 300 student and faculty fellows from institutions around the world for sessions, talks and collaborative activities focused on innovation, creativity and design thinking.
The summit presented Pacheco-Jorge with an opportunity to not only share her findings but provided a dedicated space to reflect on the impact her and her peers were making in their communities.
“When you go to this summit, not only do you get the chance to share the work you've done, but you get the chance to really reflect on the impact of that work as speaking to your peers,” Pacheco-Jorge said.
ABOUT THE FACULTY INNOVATION FELLOWS
The Faculty Innovation Fellows initiative operates under the University Innovation Fellows program, which empowers students and faculty leaders to increase campus engagement with innovation, entrepreneurship, creativity and design thinking. University Innovation Fellows is a program started by Stanford University’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design (d.school) and now lead by the University of Twente.
PACHECO-JORGE AT IONA
At Iona, Pacheco-Jorge oversees the development and implementation of programs that foster entrepreneurial thinking and action among students, faculty, staff and alumni. She also teaches Introduction to Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Social Entrepreneurship, and Entrepreneurial Internship courses, supporting students as they build entrepreneurial mindsets, refine skills and access resources to launch ventures—work that continues to shape Iona’s expanding role as a hub for innovation.
ABOUT IONA
Founded in 1940, Iona University is a master's-granting private, Catholic, coeducational institution of learning in the tradition of the Edmund Rice Christian Brothers. Iona's 45-acre New Rochelle campus and 28-acre Bronxville campus are just 20 miles north of Midtown Manhattan. With a total enrollment of nearly 4,000 students and an alumni base of 55,000 around the world, Iona is a diverse community of learners and scholars dedicated to academic excellence and the values of justice, peace and service. Iona is highly accredited, offering undergraduate degrees in liberal arts, science and business administration, as well as Master of Arts, Master of Science and Master of Business Administration degrees and numerous advanced certificate programs. Iona students enjoy small class sizes, engaged professors and a wide array of academic programs across the School of Arts & Science; LaPenta School of Business; NewYork-Presbyterian Iona School of Nursing & Health Sciences; and Hynes Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Iona also continues to be recognized in prestigious national rankings. Most recently for 2025, Iona has been named one of the nation’s best colleges by The Princeton Review, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes and others. Additionally, U.S. News & World Report recognized Iona as one of top for social mobility in the country, while Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce (CEW) ranked an Iona degree in the top 6 percent nationally for long-term return on investment. Iona’s LaPenta School of Business, meanwhile, is also accredited by AACSB International, a recognition awarded to just 6 percent of business schools worldwide. In addition, The Princeton Review once again named Iona to its “Best Business Schools for 2025,” recognizing both its on-campus and online MBA programs. Connecting to its Irish heritage, Iona also opened a new campus in County Mayo, Ireland, located on the historic 400-acre Westport House Estate. A school on the rise, Iona officially changed its status from College to University on July 1, 2022, reflecting the growth of its academic programs and the prestige of an Iona education.