SSTI Digest

Robert Fritzinger has been named the director of the new SUNY Fredonia Business Technology Incubator.

Ioanna Morfessis, a consultant from Phoenix, was unanimously appointed as the executive director of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation by the board of directors. Morfessis is expected to start work in January, and will serve as acting director until the Senate confirms her appointment.

Alan Rebar, senior associate vice president for research and executive director of Discovery Park, and Richard Cosier, dean and Leeds Professor at the Krannert School of Management, have been named to lead Purdue University’s Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship.

President Barack Obama recently launched Educate to Innovate, a campaign to partner with nonprofits and private companies to encourage K-12 students to pursue careers in science and technology. Initial partners include the MacArthur Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Time Warner Cable, Xerox, Kodak and Discovery Communications. The campaign will focus on involving students in STEM education opportunities outside of school. Read more at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2009/11/23/next-generation-innovators

Virginia Governor Tim Kaine announced the creation of The Ignite Institute, a nonprofit medical research institute to be housed initially at the Center for Innovative Technology. The state will provide $3 million from the Governor's Opportunity Fund and $22 million in incentive grants, subject to General Assembly approval. The institute expects to draw $200 million in initial financing and create 415 jobs. Read more at: http://www.ignitehealth.org/.

To foster strategic investments and policies in the knowledge and innovation economy, Gov. Bev Perdue recently signed an executive order establishing the North Carolina Innovation Council. The council is responsible for advising the governor on public and private investments and polices to promote innovation, move innovative ideas from the lab to the marketplace more efficiently, and strengthen collaboration among business, academia, and local government. A press release is available from the governor’s office at: http://www.governor.state.nc.us/NewsItems/PressReleaseDetail.aspx?newsItemID=773

Entrepreneurial activity in the U.S. increased from 9.6 percent in 2007 to 10.8 percent in 2008, according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2008 U.S. Entrepreneurial Assessment. Though the report found that fear of failure was on the rise among potential entrepreneurs, survey respondents indicated that they still believe there were ample opportunities for new businesses. Read the full report at: http://www.gemconsortium.org/article.aspx?id=131

Governors across the nation are trying to find ways to prevent their state finances from falling further in the red as revenues continue to fall while costs for Medicare and unemployment remain high. Deficit-reduction plans announced in two states seek to delay payments and cut funding to biomedical research initiatives that were established to expand the states’ research capacity and generate wealth.

Connecticut
Aiming to close a deficit of nearly $470 million in the current fiscal year, Gov. Jodi Rell announced a deficit-mitigation plan that includes delaying payments of $10 million to the state’s Stem Cell Research Fund and $6 million to the Biomedical Research Trust Fund. The Stem Cell Fund was established in 2005 with a budget surplus of $20 million to be used in fiscal years 2006 and 2007 and supplemented with $10 million per year from the Tobacco Settlement Fund through 2015 (see the May 30, 2005 issue of the Digest).

Calling for shared sacrifice among all state agencies, Gov. Haley Barbour outlined his FY11 budget recommendations reducing most agencies by 12 percent below the FY10 appropriation, excluding the Mississippi Development Authority, which would be cut only 5 percent because of its role in job creation. Tech-based economic development programs funded by the Authority are zeroed out in the governor’s proposal, however.

Gov. Barbour recommends $22.6 million in state funds for the Mississippi Development Authority in FY11, $1.2 million less than the FY10 appropriation, which included federal recovery funds. No funding is recommended for the Mississippi Technology Alliance (MTA) or the Enterprise for Innovative Geospatial Solutions, which received a combined $1.4 million last year. MTA is a nonprofit organization that assists emerging companies across the state through access to capital and entrepreneurial support, and the Enterprise for Geospatial Solutions works with industry and university research programs to support geospatial business development and research.

The current downswing in the economy is impacting appropriation levels to public institutes of higher education, requiring universities and colleges to pursue both short-term and long-term solutions to improve their revenues. In a recent survey to its membership, the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) found 85 percent of schools experienced a reduction this year in state appropriations compared to the previous year. For almost half of responding public universities, the cut exceeded 10 percent.

In Coping Strategies of Public Universities During the Recession of 2009, the APLU found 70 percent of its membership used federal stimulus funds to manage costs and close existing budget gaps.

Continued future decreases in state revenues may remain a problem for several fiscal periods. According to state-by-state information posted at the website for the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), new budget gaps have opened in at least 31 states since their 2010 fiscal years began.

The United Nation’s World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva recently announced an expansion of its online free searchable patent application database. In addition to containing an existing 1.65 million international patents filed for protection under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) from 30 countries, the database now includes digital information for 1.49 million additional records from the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Israel, South Africa, Singapore, Vietnam, the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO), and Cuba. The database is available at: http://www.wipo.int/patentscope/search/en/search.jsf

NorTech, the Northeast Ohio Technology Coalition, seeks applications for a Vice President. Reporting to the president and CEO, and serving as an integral member of the senior management team, the VP will be responsible for the development of several NorTech initiatives including technology commercialization, flexible electronics cluster building, and support on government engagement. It will be important to strategically manage these initiatives and build relationships with key stakeholders, including regional business leaders, board members, chambers, universities, elected officials, and policy makers in order to execute the goals.

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TBED People
Eric Abelquist has been named executive vice president of Oak Ridge Associated Universities and deputy director of the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education.

Arn Boezaart, who has been interim executive director of the Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy Center the past six months, will take over the position permanently.

Melanie Brandt has been hired as chief operating officer for the Technology Association of Georgia.

President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate Nicole Y. Lamb-Hale to serve as assistant secretary of commerce for manufacturing and services within the International Trade Administration.

This issue of the Digest unveils a new format and look for the Digest. Shorter but containing more material at the same time, we think this new format will permit you to get the most important news of the week for the TBED community in a format that works best for you. We consider literally hundreds of items each week for the Digest, so we’re particularly excited to introduce the Staff Picks section that will provide you with links to stories, videos, blog posts, etc. that we think you should be aware of. Let us know what you think by e-mailing us at digest@ssti.org.