Amy Bridger, Ed.D.

Dr. Amy E. Bridger is Associate Research Professor of Higher Education Strategy and Assistant Dean for Innovation & Corporate Strategy at Penn State Behrend. Her work focuses on building partnerships between universities, industry, and communities to support applied research, student opportunity, workforce development, and regional economic growth.

Bridger leads initiatives that connect faculty, students, industry, and government partners through environments such as the Innovation Commons, Knowledge Park, and the Center for Manufacturing Competitiveness. Her efforts emphasize hands-on learning, industry-engaged research, innovation, and the development of systems that help students and organizations solve real-world problems.

She has served as principal investigator or co-principal investigator on more than $14 million in externally funded projects and was selected for the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Germany Today fellowship focused on higher education-industry collaboration.

In addition to her university leadership and research activities, Bridger is the founder of Farmstead Scattering Garden, an entrepreneurial venture developed on her family's fifth-generation farm. The venture explores how niche rural enterprises can create value through innovation, customer-centered design, digital market development, and strategic partnerships. The experience complements her longstanding work supporting entrepreneurs and startup formation across the region.

In 2026, Bridger received Penn State’s Faculty Scholar Medal for Entrepreneurship, Technology Transfer, and Economic Development, one of the University’s highest honors recognizing impactful scholarship and innovation beyond the University.