SSTI Digest

Witnessing the success experienced by its neighbor, West Virginia is creating a university R&D matching endowment program similar to Kentucky’s. The legislature approved $50 million for Gov. Joe Manchin’s “Bucks for Brains” initiative to be allocated from lottery surplus funds (see the Jan. 16, 2008 issue of the Digest). The West Virginia Research Trust Fund will receive $50 million to match research endowments at the state’s two research universities, West Virginia University (WVU) and Marshall University. Another $30 million will fund the “Training Bucks” program establishing two community-college affiliated training centers throughout the state.   Lawmakers appropriated more than $200 million in budget surplus funds during a special legislative session that adjourned Sunday, including $10 million for economic development loans and $7.1 million for expansion of allied health programs recommended by the governor.   Not all of Gov. Manchin’s proposals survived the legislative process. The effort to transform the Promise Scholarship into a loan forgiveness program for students who remain…

Aiming to resolve the state’s projected $935 million deficit in its current two-year budget, Gov. Tim Pawlenty introduced a plan that closes Minnesota's budget gap and invests additional funding in rural entrepreneurship and teacher training initiatives for K-12 math and science educators.    Under the governor’s plan, state spending would be cut by $341 million and the state would tap into the budget reserve and surplus funds within the Health Care Access Fund for another $500 million.   The fiscal year 2008 supplemental budget recommends $12 million in FY09 for the Strategic Entrepreneurial Economic Development (SEED) initiative, focusing on rural areas of the state by facilitating business development through support of new and existing programs (see the Oct. 3, 2007 issue of the Digest). The following are among the governor’s recommendations for the SEED initiative: $2 million for the Minnesota Investment Fund to assist companies in Targeted Rural Opportunity Communities with R&D and technology upgrade expenditures; $1.5 million for the Job Skills Partnership initiative reallocating existing surplus funds for…

An overwhelming majority of residents in Georgia see higher education as vital to the state’s economic growth and quality of life, as more educational attainment is aligned with higher incomes, higher levels of entrepreneurship and less government spending. These conclusions are proclaimed in two reports – one poll-based and the other created from econometric data – by the Atlanta Regional Council for Higher Education (ARCHE) titled Georgians’ Perceptions of Higher Education and What Does Georgia Gain by Investing in Its Colleges and Universities? For example, 75 percent of Georgians believe higher education is “very important” for the state’s economic growth, compared to 21 percent stating it is “somewhat important” and 3 percent deeming it “not important”.   Like a stepladder, Georgians’ per capita income gradually increases with education attainment, ranging from $18,410 on average for those without a high school degree to $78,440 for those with a master’s degree or higher. An inverse effect can be seen for unemployment, as 8.5 percent of those without a high school degree are…

Though Silicon Valley and New England still dominate the U.S. venture capital landscape, several other regions - whether through local initiatives or the natural evolution of the economy - have emerged as respectable national hubs of investment over the last decade. Some areas, like San Diego, have seen greatly expanded investments and have joined the top tier of venture markets as VC firms turned their attention toward biotech.   A new report from the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) and PricewaterhouseCoopers highlights five regions – New Mexico, Pittsburgh, Seattle, Los Angeles and the Washington DC metroplex – that are not typically counted among the country's venture capital hotspots, but which have experienced remarkable growth in venture investment since 1997.   The report cites the five U.S. regions that have grown the most in sheer number of venture deals and total dollars invested since 1997. Areas that received less than $100 million in investment last year were excluded from consideration, but none of the final five ranked in the top tier for total investment in 2007. The top two high-growth regions, New…

On the heels of SSTI’s successful inaugural year awards program, recognizing exceptional achievements in approaches to improving state and regional economies through science, technology and innovation, we are pleased to invite applications for the 2008 awards cycle.   The purpose of the awards program is to showcase best practices across a broad spectrum of categories encompassing several elements that have been found in successful technology-based economies. The categories are: Expanding the Research Infrastructure; Commercializing Research; Building Entrepreneurial Capacity; Increasing Access to Capital; Enhancing the Science & Technology Workforce; and, Improving Competitiveness of Existing Industries. Recipients will be selected based on their ability to clearly define a need for the initiative, demonstrate results, and describe how the impact is communicated to key stakeholders. Award-winning initiatives will also stand out among others in its field.   As an Excellence in TBED Award winner, you are provided with a forum to showcase your accomplishments during dedicated breakout sessions at SSTI’s annual…

Publisher's Note: SSTI notes with much sadness the March 5 passing of Indiana State Sen. David Ford, following a battle with pancreatic cancer. David was a good friend not only of SSTI's, but also of the tech-based economic development community across the nation. In addition to being a tireless and cheerful advocate for investing in science and technology, he was also a gentleman in the true sense of the word, and we miss him greatly. David Abbott, executive director of the George Gund Foundation, was elected the new chairman of the Northeast Ohio-based Fund for Our Economic Future. Abbott replaces Robert Briggs of the GAR Foundation, who had served as chairman since the Fund was formed in 2004. Birgitte Ahring has joined Washington State University as the director of the Center for Bioproducts and Bioenergy and as the Battelle Distinguished Professor, based at WSU Tri-Cities. Eddie Ashworth, president of Research Park Corp., the managing entity of the Louisiana Technology Park, is resigning to become undersecretary of the state Department of Social Services. The Tucson-based BioIndustry Organization of Southern Arizona, known as Bio-SA, has…

The Canadian Government this week released its budget for the 2008-2009 fiscal year, which includes several new TBED-related initiatives and increases in funding for a few existing programs. The government plans to leverage its relatively strong fiscal position by providing tax relief and paying down the national debt, while providing $606 million for workforce development and $440 for research over the next two years. Major science and technology (S&T) initiatives in the 2008 budget include: $140 million for Genome Canada to develop the country's genetic research and workforce; $250 million over five years for research in the automotive sector, including greener and more fuel-efficient vehicles; $250 million to research and commercialize carbon capture and storage technologies; $75 million to support the creation of a new privately-run venture capital fund; An additional $80 million per year for Canada's three granting councils to support multidisciplinary research; and, Improvements to the Scientific Research & Experimental Development tax credit to enhance support for small and medium-sized businesses and to extend the credit to cover some research…

Three states recently wrapped up their 2008 legislative sessions, resulting in the passage of operating and capital budgets for the upcoming fiscal year. State lawmakers approved funding for new and existing TBED initiatives aimed at diversifying the states' economies through increased investments in energy programs, higher education research initiatives and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields.  South Dakota Lawmakers agreed to Gov. Mike Rounds’ recommendation of a one-time appropriation of $3.8 million for construction-related expenditures and $887,000 in operating costs to supplement an $8 million grant for a high speed data network connecting universities and research centers across the state (see the Dec. 12, 2007 issue of the Digest).   The legislature also supported a bond proposal for science facility and laboratory upgrades at the state’s six public universities. HB 1085 authorizes the South Dakota Building Authority to finance up to $74.5 million through the issuance of bonds for projects that are part of an overall strategy to boost the state’s research…

Earlier this month, three universities - Stanford University, the University of Texas at Austin and the University of California, Berkeley - announced partnerships with the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), a graduate-level research university set to open in Saudi Arabia by September 2009. Each of the U.S.-based universities will assist with the development of the following initiatives within specific academic fields of study at KAUST: Organize and evaluate the graduate curriculum. Nominate the initial faculty members. Define the requirements essential for graduate degree attainment. Conduct joint research projects. Collaborate in joint thesis advisory committees for KAUST graduate students. Exchange visiting fellows and host joint seminarsCollaborate on the acquisition of research equipment and needed facilities. Specifically, Stanford will assist in the creation of KAUST's Applied Mathematics and Computer Science field of study, UT Austin with the Computational Earth Science and Engineering field of study, and UC Berkeley with the Mechanical Engineering field of study. The partnerships will provide between $25 million to…

The presence of "surrogate universities" - that is, nonacademic institutions able to attract a skilled workforce, produce marketable innovations and cultivate local entrepreneurship - have greatly influenced the growth of the tech-based economy of Boise and Idaho's Treasure Valley. Furthermore, distinctions in these surrogates' culture, innovation model and marketable products may help to explain the development of new technology firms in the metro area. In Boise, Idaho: An Overview of the High-Technology Economy in the Treasure Valley, Heike Mayer of Virginia Tech follows the establishment and business activities of tech firms over the last four decades in a region without a research-intensive university, a factor often seen as a critical driver of economic development. In Boise's case, the selection of the region in 1973 as a branch location of Hewlett-Packard (HP) and the establishment in 1978 of the semiconductor-producing company Micron, were important early events for the region's growth. Mayer's survey work shows about 20 percent of entrepreneurs who went on to establish other companies in the region were employed at either HP or Micron, as…

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently announced the recipient universities to conduct security research through five new Centers of Excellence. These centers will develop new technologies to prevent natural and man-made disasters, improve government response to such crises and monitor the nation's shores and borders. The Department's Office of University Programs, under its Science and Technology Directorate, will manage the five new centers, which will each receive multi-years grants of up to $2 million per year for 4-6 years. The five centers include: Center of Excellence for Border Security and Immigration, co-lead by the University of Arizona and the University of Texas at El Paso; Center of Excellence for Explosives Detection, Mitigation and Response, co-led by Northeastern University and the University of Rhode Island; Center of Excellence for Maritime, Island and Port Security, co-led by the University of Hawaii and Stevens Institute of Technology; Center of Excellence for Natural Disasters, Coast Infrastructure and emergency Management, co-led by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Jackson…

State universities and research programs depend on public support to develop and commercialize new technologies, but the actual science involved in these discoveries can seem intimidating and arcane to the layman. How then should a state go about engaging the public in scientific research?   To address the issue, Vermont Public Television and Vermont EPSCoR have joined forces to launch a new television series that will introduce Vermont residents to the research and innovations being developed in the state's universities and labs. The program, Emerging Science, will explore the work of Vermonters engaged in scientific exploration and highlight the successes of the state's scientific community. Each episode will feature a developing scientific field, including nanotechnology, global climate change and remote sensing.   Vermont Public Television plans to issue eight short weekly podcasts on its website leading up to the April launch of Emerging Science. One can subscribe to these podcasts through iTunes or watch previews of the episodes at: http://www.vpt.org/programs/emergingscience.html  …