SSTI Digest

In an attempt to leverage the economic promise of young people, the state of Kentucky is launching a new public-private initiative designed to enhance creative thinking and entrepreneurial skills. The Governor's School of Entrepreneurs will be launched this summer as an experiential program that brings together representatives from Kentucky's science, engineering, design, entrepreneurial, and higher education communities to teach promising high school students from across the state on business fundamentals, entrepreneurship, product design, and creative thinking. The program is modeled after the long-running Governor's Scholars program for academically gifted students.

A new report released by Deloitte on "U.S. Public Opinions on Manufacturing" reveals that a strong majority of Americans consider manufacturing to be the most important industry in the country. But while nearly two-thirds of Americans (64 percent) believe our manufacturing industry can be globally competitive in the 21st century, most Americans (46 percent) see the manufacturing sector getting weaker or at best staying the same (32 percent). Nearly two-thirds of Americans view the government's current support for the manufacturing industry, as well as current trade and tax policies, to be harmful to our country's ability to remain globally competitive. Read the report...

In a report, the President's Council of Advisors on Science & Technology recommends that the federal government should launch a coordinated effort to boost American agricultural science by increasing public investments.

The report prioritizes seven key scientific challenges facing U.S. agriculture in the 21st century: increasing water efficiency; managing threats posed by new pests, pathogens, and invasive species; accommodating demands for bioenergy production; climate change adaptation; and reducing the environmental footprint of agricultural production while continuing to produce safe and nutritious food for domestic and international markets.

To re-focus the USDA's mission on these emerging challenges to U.S. agriculture the report proposes rebalancing the department's research portfolio and the creation of a public-private network of six multi-disciplinary agricultural "innovation institutes" to leverage the strengths of government scientists and commercial interest. Innovation institutes would be operated as a partnership between the USDA, NSF, DOE, NIH, and private partners.

Two organizations have in recent weeks called on the United States to create a national federal office of innovation to help focus and concentrate innovation across the country.

Following the election, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) announced its policy recommendations for the administration in their weekly news publication as part of their "Winning the Race 2012" series. Among other recommendations to improve the country's competitiveness, innovation, and productivity, ITIF calls for the creation of a National Innovation Foundation. Similar in scope and organization to the National Science Foundation, the National Innovation Foundation would support companies and other organizations in innovation activities. Read more...

The National Research Council has released a report that establishes key indicators for measuring improvement to the U.S. K-12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education system. The report lays out three key goals for national K-12 STEM education: expand the number of students who pursue advanced degrees and careers in STEM fields, and broaden sector participation for women and minorities; expand the STEM workforce and broaden the participation of women and minorities; and, increase science literacy for all students in the U.S. education system. The authors point out that progress has been made during the past decade; national common core standards in STEM education have already been adopted by 45 states.

In the face of the spiraling unemployment in Greece and Spain, the European Union (EU) received encouraging news regarding the economic recovery of firms across its 27-member states. According to the EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard, European firms reported increased R&D investment (8.9 percent nominal growth), sales (4.9 percent nominal growth) and profits (3.5 percent nominal growth) for the second straight year in 2011. The 8.9 percent growth in R&D investments by European firms puts them above world average and similar than that of U.S. firms (9.0 percent). However, U.S.-based firms continue to perform better than EU-based firms in terms of sales growth (12.3 percent for U.S. firms versus 4.9 percent for EU firms) and profits growth (12.4 percent for U.S. firms versus 3.5 percent for EU firms).

Gov. Lincoln Chafee has nominated Deputy Director William Parsons to lead the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation.

Gov. Rick Perry has appointed J. Bruce Bugg, Jr. as president and chairman of the Texas Economic Development Corp.

Gov.-elect Steve Bullock tapped Meg O'Leary to be the Montana Commerce Department director.

Thomas McDonnell, a Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation trustee since 2003 and board chairman since 2006, has been elected CEO of the foundation.

Blake Perry has been appointed as the interim president of the Arkansas Science & Technology Authority.

With U.S. private sector R&D activity declining and global competition intensifying in areas of U.S. expertise, it is clear the U.S. must take strategic action to maintain its position as the world leader in R&D and prevent innovation from leaving our shores. Last week, the Department of Energy announced 66 breakthrough energy-related projects would receive a total of $130 million through its OPEN 2012 program. Such federal support of early applied research is one of 17 specific recommendations to the president by the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) in a report released last Friday entitled Transformation and Opportunity: The Future of U.S. Research Enterprise.

PCAST highlights the United States' five key opportunities to preserve its global advantage in innovation:

Encouraged by promising commercialization efforts, new companies created and an impressive leverage of outside funding, Gov. John Kitzhaber has proposed a more than 50 percent increase in Oregon innovation efforts through the state's signature research centers. The governor's budget proposal for 2013-15 also includes funding to address small business capital needs and to better align workforce programs with employer needs. Calling his two-year spending plan an “education investment budget,” Gov. Kitzhaber also wants $8 billion to reverse the trend of cuts and layoffs in schools and proposed creating a Department of Postsecondary Education.

Performance-based funding for higher education has emerged as a top policy recommendation for addressing concerns ranging from accountability and affordability to helping keep states economically competitive. In states that already have performance-based funding in place, such as Pennsylvania and Ohio, efforts to revise and expand the programs are underway. Ahead of the upcoming legislative sessions, governors in Texas and Wisconsin called for education reform tied to outcomes, including how well colleges and universities are meeting the states' workforce needs, especially for high-skilled, in-demand jobs.

While Washington remains in political gridlock and the national economy continues sluggish growth, one key trend for political and economic success is apparent: U.S. metro regions experiencing high economic growth have invested federal, state, and private funds in high-speed broadband access.

In a recent NY Times Op-Ed, Thomas Friedman illustrates the impact of local investment in high-speed infrastructure that has contributed to an economic resurgence in Chattanooga, TN. Since installing a city-wide fiber network and smart meters, major global companies including Amazon and Volkswagen have moved operations to the city. The result is that corporate relocations, along with community-based tech-startups, have created over 3,700 new jobs in the past 3 years.

Recently, the Maine Technology Institute (MTI) announced a new outreach effort to connect the state's community banks with promising technology and innovation-based businesses. These businesses often have capital needs that differ from other small firms and less collateral to secure loans. As a result, it can be difficult for high-tech firms to secure bank loans. The initiative will kick off with a series of workshops, held in partnership with community banks, on the funding options available to tech companies. Learn more...

Learn more about financing company growth
Are you curious about how the capital needs of growing tech businesses and manufacturers differ from other firms? Interested in learning about the funding resources already available? Join us on Dec. 20 for an hour-long webinar on securing capital for expanding tech firms and manufacturers. Read more...