When Zoran Petrovic, PhD, came to Pittsburg State in 1994 as the first employee of a new center for research, he worked in an office supply storage room in a converted residence hall.

“I had a computer and internet connection, and that was enough for me,” he said.

He also had ideas — ideas to one day conduct ground-breaking research for industries right here on campus.

Such research would be a win-win: it would benefit students by giving them practical experience that would prepare them for lucrative careers, and would quench Petrovic’s thirst for using science to positively impact the world.