Allegheny College unveiled an additional location for the Allegheny Lab for Innovation and Creativity for Crawford County residents on Nov. 2. Dubbed “ALIC@Bessemer,” the initiative’s goal is to provide training and onboarding opportunities to work directly with industry partners, according to a press release from the college.
The facility contains computer and research labs, automation machines and equipment required for manufacturing, in addition to much more tailor-made equipment for any innovative mind.

The facility is led by Byron Rich, assistant provost of academic innovation, assistant professor and chair for the art department, and director of academic innovation partnerships.
“What we’re doing down there is actually establishing a facility where we can do a number of things,” Rich said.
The Allegheny Lab for Innovation and Creativity already functions as an on-campus resource for all things creative. Established in 2019, the lab houses equipment for robotics, 3D printing, scientific research and much more, allowing the college to reapply its strengths as a centuries-old liberal arts institution to new age technologies. ALIC had only been limited to the grounds of Allegheny’s campus, located within the walls of the Henderson Campus Center. With new developments, an expansion to ALIC’s reach is now possible with ALIC@Bessemer. This facility can be used by students of Allegheny, as well as residents of Meadville and all of Crawford County.
Rich described ALIC@Bessemer as an “external facing branch” for ALIC that works directly with the Meadville community.
“Everything from training and upscaling of incumbent workers — or underemployed individuals from our region — utilizing state of the art manufacturing equipment, to research labs that will be sponsored by companies so that our students and faculty will be able to actually get involved in hands-on material science research, supply chain research, fabrication technology research, automation, robotics, etc,” Rich said.
He added that other uses of the building include an incubator and accelerator for start-ups and office spaces.
When speaking about the goals of ALIC@Bessemer, Rich recognized that, at least right now, they seem a bit imposing. As Allegheny continuously proves itself as a stand-out amongst nationally recognized institutions, the relationship between the college and those who live in Meadville become more and more strained. There’s a stark difference between the community at Allegheny College and Meadville as a whole, and Rich wants to bridge that divide using ALIC@Bessemer.
“We can be a traditional liberal arts college that has a national reputation, but we can also help serve our region more meaningfully,” Rich said. “I guess, for me, that means helping inspire continued growth in our economy and new opportunities for our economy. The loftiest goal at ALIC@Bessemer is to inspire the continued development of a tech economy and a rural tech economy.”
For Rich, ALIC@Bessemer is a way to address technological needs to push the economy and community forward.
“We need to play a bigger role in ensuring that the people are here and that the technologies are available for doing research into what’s possible in these industries.”
Rich hopes that more students will take advantage of ALIC@Bessemer so that they can remain in Meadville long term. While it’s great that students earn their degrees and move to use their expertise in environments around the world, Rich says Meadville could also use that same expertise to further its community.
“Post-graduation, it’s a great place to live; you can pay off student loans, it’s a great place to live, it’s beautiful if you like the outdoors,” Rich said. “If you don’t mind living in a small town, it’s a really wonderful place to live and have a family and do all these things that are largely out of reach for Gen Z and my generation, too. We want to see more students stay in the area, so that’s another big goal.”
Not only could this initiative be a way to drive up revenue for Allegheny, it could also green light more access to grants and endowments because of its role in developing the community. To measure the success of ALIC@Bessemer, Rich will watch how many students remain in the area after graduation and how many new businesses open in Meadville.
“Deeper and more meaningful relationships in our town, ones that are based on mutual respect and mutual benefit is something that I really want to see,” Rich said.

Finally, Rich wants to see employers in the area able to draw from Allegheny, as well as local high schools and technical institutes, for employees.
“I want to see a much more cohesive educational ecosystem that helps western Pennsylvania prosper,” Rich said. “That would be my biggest, loftiest goal.”