Children’s National Hospital and Virginia Tech announce a formal partnership that will include the construction of a 12,000-square foot Virginia Tech biomedical research facility within the new Children’s National Research & Innovation Campus.

The campus is an expansion of Children’s National that is located on a nearly 12-acre portion of the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and is set to open its first phase in December 2020.

The new collaboration brings together Virginia Tech, a top-tier academic research institution, with Children’s National, a U.S. News & World Report top 10 children’s hospital, on what will be the nation’s first innovation campus focused on pediatric research.

“Virginia Tech is an ideal partner to help us deliver on what we promised for the Children’s National Research & Innovation Campus – an ecosystem that enables us to accelerate the translation of potential breakthrough discoveries into new treatments and technologies,” said Kurt Newman, president and CEO of Children’s National. “Our clinical expertise combined with Virginia Tech’s leadership in engineering and technology, and its growing emphasis on biomedical research, will be a significant advance in developing much needed treatment and cures to save children’s lives.”

Earlier this year, Children’s National announced a collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC to launch JLABS @ Washington, DC at the Research & Innovation Campus. This site will be open to pharmaceutical, medical device, consumer, and health technology companies that are aiming to advance the development of new drugs, medical devices, precision diagnostics, and health technologies, including applications in pediatrics.

“We are proud to welcome Virginia Tech to our historic Walter Reed campus – a campus that is shaping up to host some of the top minds, talent, and innovation incubators in the world,” said Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser. “The new Children’s National Research & Innovation Campus will exemplify why D.C. is the capital of inclusive innovation – because we are a city committed to building the public and private partnerships necessary to drive discoveries, create jobs, promote economic growth, and keep D.C. at the forefront of innovation and change.”

Faculty from the Children’s National Research Institute and the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion (VTC) have worked together for more than a decade, already resulting in shared research grants, collaborative publications, and shared intellectual property.

Together, the two institutions will now expand their collaborations to develop new drugs, medical devices, software applications, and other novel treatments for cancer, rare diseases and other disorders.

“Joining with Children’s National in the nation’s capital positions Virginia Tech to improve the health and well-being of infants and children around the world,” said Virginia Tech President Tim Sands. “This partnership resonates with our land-grant mission to solve big problems and create new opportunities in Virginia and D.C. through education, technology, and research.”