Board Member

James Howard is a lecturer, design historian, and industrial designer/inventor of some 300 products with 20 patents. He owns and operates Entrepreneurial U, a specialty private career school of Design Thinking. Mr. Howard's course, “Bridge” Exploring New Career Pathways, takes students through the problem-solving processes: problem/necessity, solution, and execution and leads them to new career pathways and job opportunities. Mr. Howard serves as Executive Director of The Black Inventors Hall of Fame, a virtual museum devoted to immortalizing African Americans whose noteworthy inventions have improved lives yet gone unnoticed. Mr. Howard also serves on the board of directors for the United States Intellectual Property Alliance, and recently assisted the National Inventors Hall of Fame to curate their very first Black inventors exhibit: Breaking Barriers. Mr. Howard serves on the advisory board for the American Institutes for Research, addressing the question - Does Race and Gender of the Patent Examiner Matter for Innovation? He is also the recent recipient of the TAGIE award for his documentary film, The Gathering, and the co-producer of the groundbreaking film, The Great Equalizer, examining fairness in the patent system. Mr. Howard has served as a subject matter expert on design thinking for the Keller Innovation Center at Princeton University. He is also a visiting lecturer for the University of Texas Center for Integrated Design. Mr. Howard earned a Master's and Bachelor of Fine Arts -Industrial Design at the University of Illinois, Urbana, IL. Mr. Howard was recently awarded as an honorary member of the National Academy of Inventors, and he serves on the panel for diversity, equity, and inclusion in the innovation ecosystem. He is also a recent recipient of the Inspire Top 100 award. For the past two years, Mr. Howard has served as a keynote speaker for various USPTO Black History Month symposiums.