Biography

As assistant vice president for economic development in the IU Office of the Vice President for Engagement, David Gard is primarily responsible for implementing IU’s statewide economic development strategy to advance the Innovate Indiana initiative through collaboration across the university’s eight campuses. He created and manages the IU Council for Regional Engagement and Economic Development (CREED) as a means to add value by extending and leveraging the university’s resources and expertise to enhance economic engagement at the regional level.

Prior roles

Before joining IU’s Office of the Vice President for Engagement in December 2008, Gard worked with the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC), the state’s lead agency for job creation, where he was deputy director of Small Business and Entrepreneurship and of Indiana’s 21st Century Research and Technology Fund. He managed the fund’s portfolio, which included more than $75 million invested in 60 Indiana ventures developing and commercializing innovative technologies.

Gard’s broad background combines experience in the public and private sectors. He is also a former venture development manager and business performance consultant with Duke Energy and a former corporate trust officer with Fifth Third Bank. His areas of experience include strategic planning, budgeting and forecasting, business plan development and evaluation, economic development, venture capital and investments, and technology incubation, among other areas.

Education

A Greenfield native, Gard earned a B.S. degree in business economics and public policy from the IU Kelley School of Business and began his career as a U.S. Navy Supply Corps officer in support of Operation Desert Storm. He later returned to Bloomington to earn an M.B.A. degree with a Certificate in Global Business Achievement from the Kelley School.