Lemelson-MIT Program

Mission The Lemelson-MIT program has become a national leader in efforts to prepare the next generation of inventors and entrepreneurs. Our work focuses on the expansion of opportunities for young people to learn ways inventors find and solve problems that matter. We are devoted to bringing invention education opportunities to all students, while prioritizing work with young women and Black, indigenous populations, Latinx and other people of color. Our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion aims to remedy historic inequities among those who develop inventions, protect their intellectual property and commercialize their creations. One of U.S. history’s most prolific inventors, Jerome Lemelson and his wife Dorothy, founded the Lemelson-MIT Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1994. The family continues to support this vision through The Lemelson Foundation and grant funding administered by MIT's School of Engineering.