Arthur H. Nelson
Founder

In forty years of entrepreneurial experience, Arthur Nelson has founded seventeen diverse companies - a collection of eight corporations and nine non-profit organizations - ranging from manufacturing, real estate, social research, education, entrepreneurial studies, communications and civil service. Since 1952 Arthur Nelson has built his companies around the same foundation, the application of technology and innovation to solve social problems.

Early 1950's - Nelson founded General Electric Laboratories Inc., Associates for International Research, Inc. and The Nelson Companies. These organizations pioneered innovative industry solutions in the fields of electronics, database systems and commercial real estate.

1965 - Nelson co-founded Technical Education Research Centers (TERC), now a leader in K-12 math, science and technology research and curriculum development with over 40 projects nationwide.

1975 - Nelson began bringing new innovations to the commercial real estate world pioneering the executive office park concept and addressing employee quality of work life issues. These included the first on site child care center and accredited all day kindergarten in an office park in America, a Wellness Center, a banking and retail shopping center, a luxury hotel and heliport. Today The Nelson Companies manage over 2.5 million sq.ft. of office, retail real estate.

1976 - Nelson worked with a group of middle school entrepreneurs to establish the Boston Computer Society, which became the largest computer user organization in the world with 35,000 members. In 1980 Nelson was one of 10 co-founders of the Charles River Museum of Industry (CRMI). The museum's mission is to chronicle the history of innovation in industry and technology.

1987 - Nelson founded Prospect Communications to bring broadband Internet access to his office park by pioneering a fiber optic network throughout Prospect Hill. He also co-founded the 128 Business Council in association with Polaroid and GTE laboratories to plan and coordinate the continuing growth of the Route 128 regions as a premier innovative national technology center.

1996 - Nelson co-founded the Boston Computer Foundation (now known as the American Computer Foundation) with Dan DiBartolomeo (Northfield Information Services, Inc.) and Sandra McCarthy (Microsoft New England) to facilitate universal computer and Internet literacy in America.

1998 - Nelson developed and built The Charles River Public Internet Center, a walk-in technology education center in Waltham, MA where anyone can have free access to computers, the Internet and basic technology education. CRPIC is the first model project of the American Computer Foundation.