Dr. Radenka Maric

Dr. Radenka Maric

Vice President for Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (VPRIE), is Interim President of the University of Connecticut, the state’s flagship public university. She also holds the rank of Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor and Chair Professor in Sustainable Energy in UConn’s Departments of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and Materials Science and Engineering. She previously served as Executive Director of the UConn Technology Park and Innovation Partnership Building. Dr. Maric is a world leader in technologies for clean energy and sustainability. She brings her technical background in materials and energy to create, manage and lead innovative programs designed to commercialize new products and develop emerging markets. She was born and raised in the former Yugoslavia and earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Belgrade in Serbia, then earned her master’s and Ph.D. in materials science and energy at Kyoto University in Japan. She is a talented painter and pianist, an amateur chef, and speaks four languages fluently (Croatian, English, German, and Japanese). She holds the rank of Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2019), the National Academy of Inventors (2019), and the International Association of Advanced Materials (2020).

New Nonprofit Operates Immigrant Heritage Hall of Fame

The Immigrant Heritage Hall of Fame was initially a project of the Polish American Foundation of Connecticut, Inc., a 501(c)3 charitable organization, which launched and operated the Hall of Fame from inception.  It was succeeded by the establishment during 2021 of the National Immigrant Heritage Center (NIHC), an independent 501(c)3 organization established as a multi-ethnic Center, inclusive in its mission, structure and governance. 

NIHC aims to promote and publish research, lectures and conferences on the many dimensions of Connecticut’s immigrant heritage and the role of immigration throughout the American economy and culture.  Its work, and the annual Immigrant Heritage Hall of Fame induction ceremony, is to be supported by an endowment that organizers anticipate will sponsor, support and provide research fellowships, to further these activities and expand public awareness and understanding.

Email us at info@immigrantheritage.org or call 860-614-3488.