One of the most pervasive global pollution problems of the 21st century is a group of human-made chemicals called PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances). Used since the late 1930s in consumer and industrial products to repel water and resist stains, these compounds earned the nickname "forever chemicals" because they don't naturally break down over time. As a result, PFAS has accumulated for decades in air, water and soil worldwide.
New Jersey Institute of Technology and its affiliated innovation enterprise, New Jersey Innovation Institute, are well-represented among the honorees recognized in the 2026 INNOVATE100 awards, a distinction that celebrates leaders advancing innovation across industries, research, public service and entrepreneurship. The recognition highlights a broad cross-section of NJIT and NJII talent — from academic leadership and scientific discovery to health care transformation, venture development, artificial intelligence and athletics administration.
New Jersey Institute of Technology is partnering with Made Scientific, Inc. to help develop a new graduate bioprocessing elective within NJIT’s Master of Science program in Chemical and Materials Engineering. Launching in Spring 2027, the course is intended to prepare students for work in cell and gene therapy manufacturing while further strengthening NJIT’s ties to New Jersey’s growing biopharma sector.
Richard Calbi, director of Ridgewood Water, was astonished to discover the extent of PFAS contamination in New Jersey drinking water when the state adopted pollution standards for the industrial chemicals in 2020.
“The first thing we did was determine if we were affected and found them in every one of our 52 groundwater wells. We couldn’t find water to buy that didn’t have PFAS in it. We had to reimagine and rebuild our entire system to accommodate new filters,” Calbi said.
Several leaders and faculty affiliated with New Jersey Institute of Technology and the New Jersey Innovation Institute (NJII) have been named to committees supporting Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill’s transition, bringing experience in transportation, economic development, environmental law, life sciences and computing research to the advisory effort.
Over a decade ago, an NJIT health care startup took up a daunting challenge: to train 5,000 primary care providers in the state to adopt electronic health record systems that would allow them to better track their patients, improve their quality of care and securely share information.
The federal government, which funded the $50 million effort, had identified cumbersome and sometimes illegible paper records as one of the health care system’s principal vulnerabilities. The group, NJ-HITEC, ultimately trained 6,500 providers.
New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) and the New Jersey Innovation Institute (NJII) today announced the launch of PureTrace Labs, a startup created to bring NJIT-developed technology for rapid detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to market.
The company marks the first official launch from NJII’s Venture Studio, supported by an investment of up to $1 million.
Three members of New Jersey Institute of Technology’s leadership are included in NJBIZ’s 2025 Education Power List, which highlights influential figures shaping the state’s education landscape.
Written by: Andrew McMains and Tracey Regan
Published: Tuesday, August 5, 2025
The Research & Development Council of New Jersey is recognizing medical technology developed at New Jersey Institute of Technology and Stryker executive Robert C. Cohen’s leadership in surgical device and robotics innovation.
New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) has been awarded $1 million through the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development’s (NJDOL) Digital Literacy and Equity Training Grant Program to launch its Building Digital Bridges initiative — a comprehensive program that will provide digital literacy training, career coaching and certification opportunities to underserved New Jersey residents.
