Venture capitalist and Northeastern University graduate Richard D’Amore ’76 has pledged $5 million to his alma mater to support innovation, entrepreneurship and research. Inspired by Northeastern’s track record of producing innovations and graduates that contribute to the economy, D’Amore intends the gift to serve as a catalyst for innovations that drive economic growth and create jobs.

The donation from D’Amore, general partner at North Bridge Venture Partners, will establish the Anthony and Mary D’Amore Interdisciplinary Innovation Fund, named in honor of the donor’s parents, who placed tremendous value on education. The fund will be used to promote entrepreneurial research activities that take place at the intersection of academic disciplines.

“Northeastern is an institution that generates ideas and produces entrepreneurs who turn those ideas into businesses that fuel our economy,” said D’Amore. “The university has a history of educating entrepreneurs, such as Richard Egan,Roger Marino and Robert Shillman—people who have taken their Northeastern education and created vibrant, innovative businesses in our region. We need to make more of this possible, particularly through interdisciplinary work, which is where the greatest discoveries and innovations will be created in the years to come.”

Local businesses founded by Northeastern alumni include EMC Corp., Cognex and Thermo Electron. The university’s College of Business Administration was recently recognized by “Entrepreneur” magazine and “The Princeton Review” as one of the top undergraduate entrepreneurship programs in the country. “Business Week” magazine also recently recognized Northeastern’s business programs in its latest national rankings, including ranking Northeastern number one in the country in business education internships.

“Richard D’Amore is an outstanding example of someone who has turned innovation and entrepreneurship into a remarkable career that has launched countless successful ventures, both here in greater Boston and around the world,” said Northeastern President Joseph Aoun. “We are deeply grateful for his commitment to Northeastern and his confidence in our ability to create and translate knowledge at the intersection of disciplines.”

D’Amore’s commitment to fostering entrepreneurship has inspired him to give back to his alma mater before, when his joint contribution with Alan S. McKim ’88 established the McKim-D’Amore Distinguished Professorship of Global Management and Innovation. Motivated by their former professor’s accomplishments and contributions at Northeastern and in the business community, the two former students of Distinguished Professor Daniel McCarthy endowed the position.

Richard D’Amore has been a venture capitalist for more than two decades. He co-founded North Bridge in 1994 and continues to serve as a general partner. In addition, he serves as a director of Phase Forward, Inc. and Veeco Instruments Inc. and sits on the board of a number of private companies.

D’Amore earned a B.S. from Northeastern, summa cum laude, in 1976 and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School, where he was a Baker Scholar.