MOC Innovations

The University’s Billion-Dollar Blind Spot: Why the Arts & Humanities Are Left Behind Universities are powerhouses of innovation—but only if you’re in STEM. The arts and humanities? Left to struggle, underfunded and undervalued. The problem? Universities treat the arts as an intellectual exercise rather than an economic engine. Meanwhile, STEM fields thrive thanks to tech transfer offices, structured commercialization pathways, and investment in R&D that leads to real-world impact. Imagine a world where universities treated artists, musicians, and scholars with the same resources as scientists and tech founders: where new operas, video games, and storytelling innovations were funded and scaled like biotech startups.?Where cultural ideas weren’t locked in ivory towers but built, shared, and monetized—creating sustainable careers and real returns. It’s not just about money. It’s about impact. Culture moves society. Stories shape history. And innovation in the arts deserves the same investment and infrastructure as STEM. We don’t have to?“sell out”?to?scale up.?We need systems that support artists and scholars in building sustainable careers—without relying on broken funding models, endless grant cycles, and outdated academic traditions. The arts?can?be a financial and cultural powerhouse. But first, universities need to stop playing defense and start playing offense. https://lnkd.in/eFzUf2FE

Excited to announce that the Arts Track at the Yale Innovation Summit is returning for its third year on May 28-29, 2025! As partners to Yale Ventures , we are thrilled to bring together leaders to reimagine funding and development for creative projects. This year, we’re focusing on building a scalable, sustainable creative ecosystem aligned with cutting-edge innovation practices. Join us to explore how the arts can drive economic growth and position Connecticut as a trailblazing hub for cultural production. Let’s think big, act boldly, and reimagine how the arts can meet our current moment! https://lnkd.in/eDVyBdqe Frances Pollock Allison Chu Emily Roller

MOC Innovations (and our very own Allison Chu) is featured in University of Michigan - School of Music, Theatre & Dance’s Muse Magazine for its work in “changing the calculus for the performing-arts ecosystem.”?We are excited to be entering our third year of collaborating with the EXCEL Lab in its EXCELerator program, advising and coaching students who are building new career pathways beyond the university. Read about our role in supporting UM students Andrew Otchere and Cortez Hill’s success at the Yale Innovation Summit here: https://lnkd.in/er_jKF4W

We are proud to partner with "The Bridge", an electrifying and groundbreaking new musical epic conceived and led by the visionary MOC artist Kathleen Wrinn! Based on the true story of Emily Roebling, the woman who secretly built the Brooklyn Bridge,?"The Bridge"?tells a tale of resilience and determination. When her husband falls mysteriously ill and can no longer serve as Chief Engineer, Emily takes up the reins of the most ambitious project of the age. Set in the fractured wake of the Civil War,?The Bridge?explores the forces that unite and divide us. It shines a light on the unrecognized labor behind this iconic American achievement, asking: Who really built the world around us? Check out first glimpses of the musical from Frances Pollock’s Doctoral recital at Yale School of Music:

I am so proud of the incredible team at MOC Innovations. Come check out our work in action next Thursday at 7:30 at Morse Recital Hall. I’m excited to invite you to my doctoral showcase in?Morse Recital Hall at Yale University, on November 21 at 7:30 PM. The evening will feature selections from my new musical?The Bridge. Written in collaboration with esteemed lyricist and book writer, Kathleen Wrinn,?The Bridge?tells the story of the building of the Brooklyn Bridge, a daring and exciting historical drama that includes all the things we love in stories about New York City–corporate espionage, public mismanagement, boardroom politics, Tammany Hall, the works! But what is more, we tell our story from the perspective of those who are often left out of the story and lost to history. Led by the perspective of Emily Roebling, the wife of the Chief Engineer who secretly took over the project when her husband fell ill, and of the laborers, some of whom lost their lives in its construction,?The Bridge?asks the question “who builds history?” and “what bridge will it take for us to move onward?” But the musical is just the beginning. If there is one reason to present a musical telling the story about building a historical bridge, it is with the hope of illuminating the possibility of building another. As part of the recital, I will also present a new model of construction–a bridge if you will—in how we might affect the building of large cultural assets, like musicals, going forward. This proprietary model, crafted in partnership with the Entrepreneurship & Innovation Clinic at Yale Law School and developed by MOC Innovations, draws on the efficiency of models in the world of STEM and startups. The project here is simple. How do you allow all of the people who build a bridge or a musical, to be recognized for their contribution so that they are not also lost to history? This, ultimately, is the project of?The Bridge?and of the bridge that I hope to build in a time when bridges are so desperately needed in this world. After the performance, please join us for a reception at the Yale School of Music, where you can meet the incredible people involved with this undertaking and continue the conversation about what’s next for the musical and the bigger bridges we are attempting to build in the world. The event is free and open to the public. ? If there’s one thing that I’ve learned at Yale, it is that progress is hard and that cynicism often outweighs possibility. But I've also learned at Yale that there is nothing like a story and shared song that makes the impossible possible. That’s what bridges do. I hope to see you there! Sean Park, Allison Chu, Emily Roller