SSTI Digest

The fourth installment of SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Tennessee and Texas. Our first three installments were in the Jan. 9, Jan. 16 and Jan. 23 issues of the Digest.

Maryland
Gov. Martin O'Malley, State of the State Address, Jan. 30, 2013
“Creating jobs through innovation is not just the responsibility of the private sector. There are things we can do together ”“ through the common platform of our government ”“ to accelerate innovation and improve the business climate ... expanding our successful job creation tax credits for biotech, and research and development. And, by creating a new cyber security tax credit. ...

Upbeat revenue forecasts and shared economic principles have Republican governors in four states requesting more funds for higher education tied to performance metrics or workforce outcomes. Recent budget proposals introduced in Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas focus on competing for talent and jobs through efforts to encourage STEM learning and teaching and incentivizing outcomes such as graduating more students in high-demand fields, conducting research and more. College affordability is addressed through measures that would freeze tuition or cap increases.

Highlights from the governors' budget proposals as they relate to higher education and economic development for the upcoming year or biennium are outlined below:

Former Oklahoma Treasurer Scott Meacham has been named president and CEO of i2E.

LaunchTN announced Charlie Brock as the organization's new president and chief executive officer and Stuart McWhorter as the organization's new vice-chair.

BioCrossroads President and CEO David Johnson was named President and CEO of the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership, while continuing to lead BioCrossroads, CICP's life sciences initiative, along with his new duties at CICP. David Johnson succeeds Mark Miles.

Dan Sharp has been named director of UT Austin's Office of Technology Commercialization. Sharp, who holds both law and engineering degrees from UT, formerly was associate director of intellectual property and licensing at the office.

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.

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.

With the goal of integrating STEM learning into schools and strengthening teacher effectiveness in STEM areas, Science Foundation Arizona (SFAz) is launching the Arizona STEM Network, which will be implemented over the next five years in school districts throughout the state. In Texas, officials are counting on a new $30 million fund to produce more STEM graduates by recruiting top-notch research faculty to the University of Houston (UH). The Arizona STEM Network builds on Gov. Jan Brewer's plan for STEM education announced in 2010. SFAz will serve as the operational management hub to provide focus, commitment and structure to achieve the goals outlined in the implementation plan. Four strategic concentrations will guide the work of the STEM Network over the next five years. These include: Integrating STEM into schools and districts by working with the governor's office, Department of Education and county superintendents to extend STEM expertise through Regional Education Service Centers.

Finding new and creative ways for high-tech companies to succeed is an important component in business incubation. A recent study examining best practices for supporting new company formation finds it is the synergy among multiple practices, policies and services that produces optimal outcomes. At the same time, collecting standardized measures, reporting on progress annually, conducting external independent evaluations, tracking programs, and continuing to enhance practices are singled out as important policy implications. Over the past few months, several new incubator models have emerged — including a concept for a hybrid-accelerator and a startup incubator that floats. Select announcements are included below. 

Louisiana and Texas voters approved measures to provide funding sources for student loans while voters in Colorado rejected a measure that would have temporarily increased taxes to offset cuts for public schools and colleges. Meanwhile, Ohio voters repealed a bill passed earlier this year limiting collective-bargaining rights of state employees. Official results are outlined below:

In what is considered typical for an odd-numbered year, only 34 questions have been certified in nine statewide ballots this election year. Some of those measures include redirecting funds to support higher education, revenue enhancements for states, and repealing legislation that limits collective bargaining for public employees.

Ballot Initiatives

Colorado
Voters in Colorado will decide on a measure to increase the state income and sales tax to 5 percent and 3 percent, up from 4.63 percent and 2.9 percent, respectively. Reports estimate the measure would generate about $3 billion to help fund education. The measure is Proposistion 103.

Job Corner
The Invest Nebraska Corporation is hiring a CEO to join their team in Lincoln, NE. The CEO will manage Invest Nebraska's programs throughout the State of Nebraska. Invest Nebraska Corporation is a private, nonprofit venture development organization focused on developing high-growth companies in Nebraska and growing the state's economy.

Baylor University currently is accepting applications for the position of director, BRIC Innovative Business Accelerator. The Baylor Research and Innovation Collaborative is a 300,000-square-feet facility housing university and industry collaborative research, advanced manufacturing and high technology workforce development, symposia meeting and conferencing space, and the business incubator. The BIBA director will manage university and external business support organizations to leverage business start-up competitive status

As state and federal funding for higher education dwindles and the workforce needs of the new economy continue to shift, state and university officials are reevaluating how higher education is funded, its return on investment for the state, and how universities can better drive economic growth. Recent examples in New York, Ohio and Texas demonstrate how states are implementing new policies to adapt to the changing times.

New York
Gov. Andrew Cuomo recently signed into law the NYSUNY 2020 legislation, an initiative the governor says will both help New York's public universities become a leading catalyst for regionally-focused economic development and stabilize tuition. The new law allows the four university centers located in Albany, Binghamton, Buffalo, and Stony Brook to apply for challenge grants of $35 million each to expand facilities and enhance research-focused programs. A total $140 million is available through the program, including $80 million in capital funding authorized under the new law and $60 million in existing SUNY funds.

Spending time at a technology or business incubator may be the key to learning about entrepreneurship. Some universities, seeking to ramp up entrepreneurship programs, are turning to incubators as real-world teachers. A recent Washington Post article points to several business schools pairing traditional education, such as courses and lectures, with less-conventional approaches, including incubators and business competitions to prepare students for opportunities outside the classroom. Recent announcements of new and emerging technology incubators from across the U.S. and Canada are included below.