SSTI Digest

Southern Growth Policies Board is polling citizens on their attitudes and ideas about building a competitive Southern Workforce. Visit http://www.southern.org/surveyintro.shtml and share your ideas on how to build a competitive, entrepreneurial workforce to support the southern region's economic development initiatives in high-growth industries. The 16-question survey only takes a few minutes to complete and your feedback will be included in Southern Growth's 2007 Report on the Future of the South and in presentations at the Southern Workforce Summit conference on June 3-5, 2007. To learn more about the Southern Workforce Summit conference, visit http://www.southern.org/conf.asp.

Complete descriptions of the position openings described below are available at http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm. The Allegheny Conference on Community Development, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing private sector leadership to grow the economy and improve the quality of life in the 10-county Pittsburgh region, is seeking a senior vice president for its Workforce Quality Program. This position represents an opportunity to work at the highest levels of corporate, government and community leadership to ensure the Pittsburgh region develops a skilled workforce of sufficient size and quality to satisfy the needs of businesses. A postgraduate degree and 10-plus years of relevant experience are required.

The venture capital fund investing in biotechnology companies that locate to the North Carolina Research Campus is doubling its holdings to $200 million. This substantial increase is a result of a donation provided by David Murdock, the billionaire businessman and owner of Castle and Cooke Inc. who also provided the initial $100 million to start the fund. The venture capital fund is an integral component of the $1.5 billion biotechnology hub being constructed in Kannapolis, N.C.    Located between Charlotte and the Research Triangle, Kannapolis is a city of 39,000 residents that was heavily impacted by the bankruptcy of the Pillowtex textile corporation in 2003. The subsequent closing of the local manufacturing facility laid off 4,300 employees in Kannapolis, alone, part of the largest permanent layoff in the history of North Carolina.  

Dr. Raymond Taylor has joined the Southern Growth Policies Board leadership team as senior fellow and director of the organization's Council on the New Economy Workforce.

North Carolina could boost its economy by further leveraging the science of atoms and molecules, a new report finds. In A Roadmap for Nanotechnology in North Carolinas 21st Century, released earlier this month, a state task force comprised of academic and business leaders offers a number of ways North Carolina can use nanotech to provide secure more high-paying jobs for its economy. Of the group's 22 recommendations, 12 focus on enhancing the states overall technology economy, while 10 focus specifically on improving and developing North Carolinas nanotechnology community.

As part of plans to build a biotechnology campus in Kannapolis, N.C., Clyde Higgs has been hired to oversee a $100 million venture capital fund that will serve to attract biotech companies and other corporate tenants.

Last week, North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley signed the budget agreement passed by the state's General Assembly for fiscal years 2006-07. The budget contains many adjustments favoring K-12 and higher education and several allocations for technology-based growth initiatives. Education received the most attention in the General Assembly's negotiations. The largest new allocation in the budget is $664.1 million for a 5.5 percent raise among most state workers. Public school teachers will receive an average 8 percent raise, while community college and university faculty will get 6 percent with a one-time 2 percent bonus for community college faculty and staff. The higher ed pay raises, along with $79 million for new professors and staff, are intended to attract high-quality faculty and meet projected enrollment increases at North Carolina universities.

Lew Ebert announced he is leaving the Kansas Chamber of Commerce to become president and CEO of North Carolina Citizens for Business and Industry.

The Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC) named Dr. Steven Hillenius to replace Dr. Ralph Cavin as vice president. Cavin is retiring from the SRC leadership team at the end of the year

The advances being made in nanotechnology-based research are likely to impact most industry sectors eventually as more commercial applications are identified. As a result, the National Nanotechnology Initiative has been a research priority for the federal government for many years. Nanotech research is occurring around the world, but, at this point, the majority of effort is concentrated in several leading universities and private companies. A new report by the Southern Growth Policies Board (Southern) reveals the South, while performing about 20 percent of all nanotechnology research activity in the U.S., would benefit greatly through a formalized regional nanotechnology network.

Probably everyone involved in tech-based economic development (TBED) can name at least one research building, innovation center or tech park named after a significant contributor to the project. And has become commonplace individual components of the structure have been named for individual donors: a wing, the auditorium, the foyer, the artwork, the chairs in the board room. The difference between naming rights, endorsements and sponsorships of business marketing, particularly evident in sports, and "patron recognition" in the arts, education and now, TBED, is increasingly blurred.

As that great English bard reminded us, what's in a name?  Naming rights can be a relatively free thing to give away for an organization or institution short of resources to advance its mission. Does it really matter, other than changing the website and stationary, if the Center for Whatever is now the John Q. Public Center for Whatever?

The Carolina Center for Competitive Economies (C3E) at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, invites applications for the position of Associate Director for Research. In addition to overseeing research activities and helping to generate new projects, the successful candidate will have an important role in supervising graduate students in applying regional models and providing other types of technical assistance to businesses and communities. Applicants should have graduate training in economics, regional science, city planning, business, public policy or a related field and 3-5 years of experience. A Ph.D. is preferred. A complete job description is available through the SSTI Job Corner at http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm.