SSTI Digest

Millennials internalized the effects of the most recent recession and revealed their beliefs about the economy and jobs future in a recent poll conducted by EY, a professional services company, and the Economic Innovation Group. Nearly one-third believe their community is still in a recession and 78 percent are worried about having good-paying job opportunities, according to the poll. Hard work is an important factor to get ahead in life, say 88 percent of the 18-34 year olds, and two-thirds say having a college education is important, but just 49 percent believe the benefits of a college education will be worth the cost.

The Economic Development Administration (EDA) requests public comment on the overarching regulatory framework for the Regional Innovation Program. Comments should focus on the structure and implementation of the Regional Innovation Program, including Regional Innovation Strategies (RIS) grants. Through the RIS program, EDA awards grants for capacity-building programs that provide proof-of-concept and commercialization assistance to innovators and entrepreneurs, as well as operational support for organizations that provide essential early stage funding to startup companies. Comments should address one or more of several topics including, but not limited to:

• Purpose and scope of the Regional Innovation Program and/or RIS program;
• Program eligibility and matching share requirements; and,
• RIS Application components, evaluation, and selection criteria. 

Comments must be submitted by November 21. 

Over the last several months, the Economic Development Administration (EDA) has announced millions of dollars in grants to support tech-based economic development efforts in communities across the country (see recent Digest articles from August 18 and September 8). The most recent announcements of grant funding will provide targeted funding to expand and build facilities that support entrepreneurial/business development in Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Wyoming as well as workforce efforts in South Carolina. Each of the grants also addresses a specific regional need or key industries including growth in advanced manufacturing sectors, attraction of foreign direct investment, and support for key regional tech-focused industries such as agriculture and healthcare.

Oklahoma

U.S. research and development (R&D) performance rose to $477.7 billion in 2014 – an increase of $21.1 billion over 2013, according to a recent National Science Foundation (NSF) InfoBrief. When adjusted for inflation, growth in U.S. total R&D performance (1.2 percent annually between 2008 and 2014) matched the average pace of U.S. gross domestic product (GDP). Of the $477.7 billion in R&D funding, approximately 63 percent ($300.1 billion) went to experimental development with the remaining 37 percent supporting basic research ($84 billion) and applied research ($93.6 billion).

As U.S. cities increasingly focus economic development strategies on technology and innovation to spur economic growth, they should be cognizant that growing these businesses and jobs can also exacerbate local inequities and should, therefore, develop plans to address this issue, according to a newly released report from the Equitable Innovation Economies Initiative (EIE). Prototyping Equity: Local Strategies for Equitable Innovation Economies is a report of the EIE, a multi-year project launched by the Pratt Center for Community Development, PolicyLink, and the Urban Manufacturing Alliance focused on inclusive growth strategies for innovation and manufacturing. In addition to describing the importance of pursuing an equitable innovation economy, the report also documents the initiative’s cross-sector efforts in piloting new approaches across four regions: New York, NY; Indianapolis, IN; Portland, OR; and, San Jose, CA.

The U.S. Department of Commerce has announced that 30 individuals will serve in the third membership cycle of the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE). NACIE, which was established in 2010, advises the secretary of Commerce on transformational policies to help communities, businesses and the American workforce become more globally competitive. With members serving two-year appointments, the newest appointments tothe council include representatives from the private, nonprofit and academic sectors, including several organizations involved in technology-based economic development. Furthermore, five of the NACIE members are returning to provide institutional knowledge that helps bridge the transition to the next presidential administration, according to a blogpost written by Julie Lenzer, director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the U.S. Economic Development Administration.

A spate of recent news challenges many common perceptions of venture capital. Academic researchers have identified critical shortcomings with widely used industry data. Major investors have revealed smaller than anticipated returns. An analysis of thousands of investments indicates fund success requires superstar deals of well more than 10x. These articles should drive new evaluations of public policy and programs to support early stage capital.

A NBER working paper authored by Steven Kaplan and Josh Lerner recently described the dearth of credible data and analysis of VC fund investments and VC performance. Kaplan and Lerner argue that available VC data is incomplete and biased and raise concerns with a reliance on the release of proprietary data from self-selected funds. Their arguments raise questions as to whether investors are giving enough thought before investing billions of dollars into VC funds.

Occurring on the first Friday of October, Manufacturing (MFG) Day is October 7 this year. MFG Day is an annual event that showcases the strength of American manufacturing, as well as those who produce its goods and services, and which continues to advance the new technologies that grow the U.S. economy, create jobs, and keeps the nation competitive globally.  It empowers manufacturers across the nation to come together to address their collective challenges, highlight their successes, and illustrate how they can help their communities thrive. Last year more than 2,600 events were held with some 400,000 visitors participating.

MFG Day, first observed in 2011, started as a grassroots movement that co-partnered with industry-leading organizations such as the Fabricators & Manufacturing Association, International (FMA), the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), the Manufacturing Institute (MI), and the National Institute of Standards & Technology’s (NIST) Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) to draw the public’s attention to both manufacturing and its career opportunities

The U.S. Census Bureau announced on Tuesday that median household income increased to $56,516 in 2015, a jump of 5.2 percent from the 2014 median income of $53,718 and the first increase since 2007.  However, real median household income in 2015 was 1.6 percent lower than in 2007, the year before the Great Recession, and 2.4 percent lower than the median household income peak, which occurred in 1999. Ten states (HI, KY, MT, NH, OR, RI, TN, VT, WI and WY) and the District of Columbia saw median household incomes increase by more than 5 percent, although with the margin of error it is possible that some of these states saw increases of less than 1 percent, according to data presented in Table 1 of Household Income: 2015. Only Puerto Rico saw the median household income decline from 2014 levels; ID and NJ saw increases of less than 1 percent. The U.S.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has announced the recipients of 37 Design and Development Launch Pilots as part of its INCLUDES initiative. NSF INCLUDES invests in alliances and partnerships that seek to broaden STEM participation among underrepresented groups, including women, Hispanics, African Americans, Native Americans, persons with disabilities, people from rural areas and people of low socioeconomic status. The program was originally developed as a response to a 2013 report by the congressionally mandated NSF Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE), which recommended a new initiative focused on broadening participation of underrepresented groups in STEM. 

As the school year kicks off, several corporate foundations have announced new commitments to support hands-on K-12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) experiences for children across the country. These new partnerships continue a trend of corporate funders bypassing funding for STEM curriculum development to focus on active learning experiences that are shown to have positive impact on STEM retention. Among the corporate foundations making announcements include Microsoft Philanthropies, Motorola Solutions Foundation, and Qualcomm.

On September 2, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced $7.2 million in funding for the newly established Texas Industry Cluster Innovative Academies. An element of Gov. Abbott’s Tri-Agency Workforce Initiative established in March 2016, the initiative will provide competitive grant funding to establish Innovative Academies within Texas high schools to provide students with learning opportunities in high-demand occupations while earning college course credit prior to high school graduation.