In the March 31, 2000 Issue:

Copyright State Science & Technology Institute 2002. Information in this issue of the SSTI Weekly Digest was prepared under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration. Redistribution to all others interested in tech-based economic development is strongly encouraged — please cite the State Science & Technology Institute whenever portions are reproduced or redirected. Any opinions expressed in the Digest do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Subscription to the SSTI Weekly Digest is free. If you are reading a forwarded copy of this issue and would like to receive your own copy each week directly, please subscribe at: http://www.ssti.org/Digest/digform.htm Requests to unsubscribe should be sent to sstiwd@ssti.org

$15 Million Research Fund Proposed in Minnesota
Legislation to be reconciled by a conference committee of the Minnesota State Legislature next week includes language creating a $15 million fund to support industry-university research collaborations. The North Star Research Coalition, a non-profit, tax-exempt corporation, would be established by the Board of Regents of the University of Minnesota to administer the one-time appropriation. 

The Education Omnibus Bill, SF 3801, defines the duties ofthe Coalition to include: 

The legislation authorizes the use of the funds to support collaborative research projects by the University of Minnesota and private industry, the Mayo Clinic, nonprofit research institutions, or the Minnesota state colleges and universities. All coalition funding must be matched 1:1 by non-state sources. Permitted uses of the funds would include individual research projects, laboratory equipment purchases, and endowed chairs in technology-based areas of research. 

The legislation does not define any technology concentrations for Coalition investments or any continuity plans for the Coalition once the $15 million is distributed. The Coalition would be governed by a 12-member board of directors comprised of six university-appointed members and initially, six private sector members appointed by the Governor. Subsequent private-sector representatives of the board would be appointed by the incumbent directors. 

A copy of SF 3801 can be viewed under Senate Bills at: http://www.leg.state.mn.us/leg/legis.htm  

Return to the top of this page

Universities Must Help Communities Adapt to New Economy, Report Says 
 “[I]f this nation is to succeed in the new century, the covenant between our insitutions and the public they serve must be renewed and again made binding.” So begins Renewing the Covenant: Learning, Discovery, and Engagement in a New Age and Different World, the sixth and final report of the Kellogg Commission on the Future of State and Land-Grant Universities. Released last week, the 30-page report outlines several significant challenges facing higher education in the New Economy: 

In what may be viewed as an indictment of the efforts of many state and federal science and technology programs, the report states “Research, if thought of at all, is prized far more for its commercial promise than for its capacity to push back the boundaries of knowledge. States once provided the lion’s share of institutional financing, while federal funds supported research and financial aid -- and tuition, fees and gifts rounded out the picture. Today, state support is uneven; federal support for basic research is often narrowly circumscribed; and institutions are encouraged to plan for growth through a variety of public/private partnerships.” 

The report defines seven elements for the Covenant to which each of the commission’s members commit, including working more closely with local communities and states. The report also identifies responsibilities for the public, including passage of a Millennial Partnership Act, “the Information Age equivalent of the original land-grant enactment.” The Act would provide seed funding to create partnerships between public universities and public schools to improve K-12 education and would fund the development of a telecommunications infrastructure within higher education “to create a genuine national learning society.” 

Federal tax policy, the report recommends, should encourage more private-sector partnerships with universities for joint research and educational activities in university-based research parks. 

The Kellogg Commission on the Future of State and Land-Grant Universities was comprised of 24 presidents and chancellors from state university systems across the country.  Staff support was provided by the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges. The report can be downloaded from the NASULGC website: http://www.nasulgc.org  

Return to the top of this page

NSF Releases Data on Scientists & Engineers
The South Atlantic region leads the nation in doctoral scientist and engineer employment rates, according to Characteristics of Doctoral Scientists and Engineers in the United States: 1997 (NSF 00-308), prepared by the National Science Foundation (NSF). NSF completed an in-depth demographic and employment study of doctoral scientists and engineers taken from the 1997 Survey of Doctorate Recipients (SDR). It includes a ranking of doctoral scientists’ and engineers’ employment and salary levels by region and by state. 

Of the 10 regions, the study found the South Atlantic region (DE, DC, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, VA, and WV) employs 18.4 percent of the nation’s 518,440 doctoral scientists and engineers. Following closely behind is the Pacific region (AK, CA, HI, OR, and WA), with employment rates of 18.1 percent. The East South Central region (AL, KY, MS, and TN) employs the fewest, accounting for just 4.3 percent of the total. 

Tables 24 and 58 of the report provide state-by-state breakouts of employment and salaries by broad field. These statistics can be useful measures of the progress and effectiveness of regional and state investment in science and technology-based economic development. The report is issued by NSF every two years. For more information or to view the complete report, visit: http://www.nsf.gov/sbe/srs/cdse/start.htm  

Additionally, in February, the National Science Foundation released detailed statistical tables for science and engineering degrees awarded from 1966 through 1997. Bachelor’s, Master’s and doctoral degree data are included in the 87-page report. While none of the 63 tables characterize the data geographically, the information may still be useful for state S&T programs as they explore workforce issues and educational trends for science and engineering in their own states. Science and Engineering Degrees: 1966-1997 (NSF 00-310) can be downloaded from: http://www.nsf.gov/sbe/srs/sed/start.htm  

Return to the top of this page

NSF Offers Research, Technology Funding 
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has several solicitations open currently. Four opportunities of particular interest to the S&T community are highlighted below. These and additional funding opportunities from NSF can be found on a web page that conveniently lists the solicitations by deadline: http://www.nsf.gov/home/deadline/deadline.htm 

New Technologies for the Environment (NSF 00-49) 
The Directorate for Engineering is soliciting proposals from U.S. academic institutions and nonproft research institutions to support individual investigators or small groups toward high risk/high return exploratory research feasibility studies on new technologies applied to environmental sensing, remediation, and environmentally benign manufacturing. Approximately 20 awards will be made from the pool of $3.0 million available in FY 2000. Successful Phase I projects may compete in FY 2001 for Phase II funding of up to $500,000 per project. The deadline for proposals under the current solicitation is May 15, 2000. 

Biophotonics Partnership Initiative (NSF 00-54) 
The Directorate for Engineering is soliciting proposals from U.S. academic institutions and nonproft research institutions to support individual investigators or small groups toward high risk/high return multidisciplinary studies of novel concepts in biophotonics. NSF anticipates five awards will be made with the $1.5 million available in FY 2000. Projects may last up to 36 months. The deadline for proposals under the current solicitation is May 15, 2000. 

Science & Technology Centers: Integrative Partnerships (NSF 00-67) 
Preproposals from US academic institutions are due June 15 for the Office of Integrative Activities' solicitation to fund 8-10 new Science and Technology Centers (STCs) or “radically different research topics or themes” from existing STCs.  Preproposals involving integrated partnerships are encouraged. Proposals may request $1.5M to $4.0M per year in NSF support. A mimimum of 30 percent cost share is required for consideration. Approximately $30 million will be available in FY 2002 for the awards. 

Collaborative Research in Environmental Molecular Science (NSF 00-68) 
The Division of Chemistry within the Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences is soliciting proposals to support interdisciplinary group efforts by universities in partnership with industry for basic research that increases fundamental understanding of natural processes and processess resulting from human activities in the environment at the molecular level. NSF anticipates 204 collaborative awards will be made from the $4 million available in FY 2000.  Projects may last up to five years. Letters of intent are due by April 10, 2000; the deadline for full proposals is June 8, 2000.

Return to the top of this page

Other Federal R&D Opportunities

Department of Defense 
The Defense Logistics Agency seeks applications to assist state and local governments and other nonprofit entities to establish or maintain Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTACS). The centers help businesses market their goods and services to the Department of Defense, other federal agencies, and state or local government agencies.  Applications are due May 5, 2000. A limited, but unspecified amount of funding is available for new awards. More information is available at: http://www.dla.mil/scaa  

Environmental Protection Agency 
The EPA seeks proposals under five separate solicitations for investigator-initiated grants. All five can be found on the EPA web site: http://es.epa.gov/ncerqa/rfa/  Deadlines, eligibility and submission requirements vary across the five. Brief details are provided below: 

Department of Energy 
The Office of Biological and Environmental Research (OBER) in the Office of Science seeks proposals for the Atmospheric Chemistry Program Science Team (Notice 00-11). Proposals are invited for three categories of study: oxidant studies, aerosol studies, and heterogeneous chemistry. Any university or other institution of higher education or other non-profit or for-profit organization, non-Federal agency or entity is eligible for a grant or cooperative agreement. An unaffiliated individual also is eligible for a grant or cooperative agreement. Collaboration with DOE laboratories are strongly encouraged. Approximately $2 million is anticipated to be available for first year awards in FY 2001; typical award sizes will range from $60,000 to $200,000. The deadline for submission is May 3, 2000. More information is available at: http://www.sc.doe.gov/production/grants/grants.html  

OBER also seeks proposals for research on the Terrestrial Carbon Processes (Notice 00-12). The deadline is April 27, 2000. Approximately $2 million is anticipated to be available for first year awards in FY 2001; typical award sizes will range from $200,000. Eligibility criteria and web source are the same as above. 

Return to the top of this page

State Science & Technology Institute
5015 Pine Creek Drive
Westerville, OH 43081
Phone: (614) 901-1690
Fax: (614) 901-1696
Email: ssti@ssti.org

  © 2002 State Science and Technology Institute. All rights reserved.