SSTI Digest

Kentucky and New Hampshire recently have announced job training initiatives to address the needs of key industries at both the local and state levels. The Kentucky Work Ready Skills Initiative, a $100 million statewide bond program, is intended to meet “the needs of employers and promote sustainable incomes for Kentuckians.” Meanwhile, the launch of New Hampshire’s Manufacturing Sector Partnership, a statewide collaboration for industries to address their workforce needs, was announced. The effort will build a network that includes manufacturing professionals, educators and state economic development officials to develop a cross-collaborative career pathway for future workers.

The National Science Foundation (NSF), in partnership with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), announced the winners of the Community College Innovation Challenge – a competition that challenged teams of community college students to propose innovative science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)-based solutions to real-world problems. A team from Forsyth Technical Community College in North Carolina placed first in the challenge with its Energy Efficient Nanotech Solar Greenhouse idea. Minnesota’s Normandale Community College placed second with its proposals to install and implement hydrokinetic turbines in wastewater treatment plants to generate renewable energy. The top-ranked teams were decided after 10 finalists attended a four-day innovation boot camp. Other finalists proposed projects on innovative, research-based solutions to challenges at the nexus of food, energy, and water systems such as autonomous technology lake algae, junk-yard generators, water conservation technologies, and improvements to wind towers.

At the end of 2015, there were concerns that the Venture Capital (VC) industry had peaked and there would be a quick return to 2013 VC investment levels. While there is still six months for the VC markets to see a more rapid slow down, Q1 and Q2 VC numbers indicate that there has only been a slight slowdown in the VC markets. However, a troubling trend from 2014 continues to dominate the VC industry – the strong VC market is driven by investment in mature, late-stage companies – either full-fledged unicorns or their slightly lower-valued counterparts.

Around the world, accelerator programs continue to multiply, prompting the need for continued research on what they are, how they operate, and how they can be evaluated. The Global Accelerator Report 2015, recently released by Gust and Fundacity, highlights the global development of the accelerator industry and includes details on how accelerators are funded and insights into the industry’s future. The report, which examines accelerator programs in five regions, includes several ways to characterize the global industry, including profit structure, monetization sources, corporate partnerships, and exits. A separate analysis, as featured in CB Insights, suggests the importance of follow-on funding as a measure to evaluate accelerator programs.

Skilled technology workers are gravitating toward cities where the cost of living is lower and more jobs are available, according to real estate research firm CBRE's annual Scoring Tech Talent report, a ranking of 50 U.S. and Canadian markets based on their perceived ability to attract and grow tech talent. Large, established tech markets such as the San Francisco Bay Area, Washington, D.C., and Seattle ranked the highest in CBRE's Tech Talent Scorecard index, which uses 13 metrics for each market and weights each by their relative importance to those companies seeking tech talent. Columbus, home of SSTI's 2016 Annual Conference, ranked first among smaller markets analyzed in the report.

Indiana Gov. Mike Pence announced plans to invest $1 billion over the next 10 years to advance innovation and entrepreneurship in the state, and to ensure the Hoosier State plays a leading role in solving 21st century challenges, while supporting Indiana’s long-term economic growth, job creation and talent attraction. The 10-year proposal centers on and seeks to enhance the collaborative partnerships between government, education and research institutions, as well as communities in the private sector, while focusing on further advancing Indiana’s current economic momentum and innovation activities.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) announced approximately $10 million in new funding through its Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) program. The PFI program offers NSF-funded researchers at institutions of higher education opportunities to connect new knowledge to societal benefit through translational research efforts and/or partnerships that encourage, enhance, and accelerate innovation and entrepreneurship. Via the new announcement, Accelerating Innovation Research- Technology Translation (AIR-TT), NSF intends to make up to 50 awards to institutions of higher education (including community colleges) to move previously NSF-funded research results with promising commercial potential along the path toward commercialization. Eligible proposers are required to submit a letter of intent to NSF by September 8. Read the FFO...

In June, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced that Virginia businesses can offer registered apprenticeships to individuals in three cybersecurity occupations – Information Security Analyst; Cyber Security Analyst; and, Incident Response Analyst. The Virginia Apprenticeship Council approved the three new registered apprenticeships as well as the criteria that registered apprentices in cybersecurity must learn and demonstrate through the program for the necessary proficiency in the cybersecurity field.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) released its Strategic Framework for Investments in Graduate Education for FY 2016-FY 2020 that addresses NSF’s goals in supporting graduate education and formulates a set of strategic objectives to meet those goals by 2020. The three goals outlined by NSF include:

• Advance Science and Engineering (S&E) Research;
• Broaden Participation to Promote Excellence in Research and Build the Next Generation STEM Workforce; and,
• Build Effective Models of Graduate Education and Workforce Development.

To advance these three goals, the document also provides five strategic objectives:

As the potential nexus of tech-based economic development and community development, cities play an important role in not only making their cities attractive to startups that help drive economic prosperity, but also in bringing together community members to take collective action and generate solutions to common problems. In an attempt to address both of these important issues, several metros have announced new city-backed investment funds that support both startup growth and impact the lives of city residents. These city-backed investment funds are intended to help create, expand, and retain high growth startups. Efforts are being undertaken in Sacramento, Kansas City, San Antonio, and Montreal. 

You talk about your program often, tout its successes (?) and share with stakeholders your program’s impact. Why not let the entire country in on your good work? The SSTI Excellence in TBED awards program can provide your organization with that national audience of your peers! All you have to do is send us a five-page narrative describing your most successful innovation-focused efforts and our expert panel of judges will select the initiatives that best exhibit the value of investing in science, technology, innovation and entrepreneurship to create vibrant regional economies and improve our nation's competitiveness. Winners are announced during a special ceremony at SSTI’s Annual Conference in Columbus, November 1-3, and are provided a forum to showcase their initiative. Applications are due July 15 by 5:00 P.M. ET. Learn more and apply at: http://www.sstiawards.org/.

The Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship held America Without Entrepreneurs: The Consequences of Dwindling Startup Activity last week. Citing the decades-long decline in new business creation as a motivating factor, senators’ remarks and questions identified regulation and student debt as contributing factors to this decline and to supporting basic research and immigration policy as potential solutions. The majority of the discussion focused on geographic disparities in innovation and how to better share the promise of economic prosperity going forward.