SSTI Digest

North Carolina does not, at first glance, seem to be a venture capital underperformer. In 2006, venture capitalists invested close to $510 million in North Carolina, almost $60 million of which was invested in seed and early-stage businesses, according to the Pricewaterhouse Coopers Moneytree Survey of VC investment. However, while the state ranks 12th in seed/early-stage investment, many in the state perceive the lack of seed funding to be a major obstacle to economic growth. Earlier this year, a survey conducted by the Wilmington-based Council on Entrepreneurial Development (CED) revealed that access to capital, particularly to seed-stage equity investment, was one of the top concerns of entrepreneurs in the state.   Last week, the North Carolina Small Business and Technology Development Center (SBTDC) announced a new plan to make capital available to entrepreneurs and begin building a stronger early-stage investment industry. In 2003, SBTDC launched the Inception Micro Angel Fund (IMAF) in the Piedmont Triad area of North Carolina, with an investment zone that included Greater North Carolina and selected areas of South Carolina and Virginia.…

The field of nanotechnology is progressing in terms of size and maturity. The federal investment, alone, as proposed by the Administration in the 2008 Budget under the National Nanotechnology Initiative, was $1.45 billion. As public and private sector investments are pumped into this field, distinct concentrations of nanotech activity are being created in regions across the country. One might think these emerging hotspots are located in close proximity to the leading nanotechnology research institutions. The May/June 2007 edition of Small Times magazine lists the top universities in the micro and nano fields, in categories such as research, education, facilities, and commercialization leadership. Two versions of these top 10 lists are provided, one for the universities that completed the Small Times survey and one version developed from opinions of peers in the field. Besides these rankings, the magazine provides a profile of many of these research-intensive universities where nanotechnology clusters may develop. A simple, yet novel, tool to view these concentrations recently was unveiled by the Project on Emerging…

With a projected national shortage of more than 280,000 math and science teachers by 2015, key stakeholders must begin initiating strategies to recruit, retain and renew the nation’s teaching workforce, says a new report by The Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF).   The report provides a comprehensive action plan to transform the quality of the teaching workforce and address the growing shortfall of math and science teachers. According to the authors, the annual turnover rate for math teachers is the highest of all subject areas at 16.4 percent, followed by science teachers at 15.6 percent. In addition, U.S. students are losing ground to their international counterparts in math and science performance - areas imperative to American economic competitiveness.   Recommendations fall under three key factors of recruitment, retention and renewal, recognizing the need to align and coordinate contributions from federal government, state government, school districts, higher education and business and foundations. Key recommendations include: Implement recruitment strategies such as scholarships, bonuses and…

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) has published its latest update on the real gross domestic product (GDP) growth of each state. The update includes advance estimates for 2006 data, as well as revisions to data from 2003-2005.   SSTI has prepared a table showing every state’s real GDP per capita from 2003 to 2006. Besides these values, the table also includes: Ranking for 2006 state GDP per capita Comparison of 2006 GDP per capita to the national average Four-year percent change in state GDP per capita Ranking of percent change With a per capita real GDP of $59,288, Delaware ranked first among the states in 2006, with a value 57 percent higher than the country’s average. Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and New Jersey rounded out the top five.   Over the period from 2003 to 2006, Idaho witnessed the largest per capita GDP growth from $26,673 to $30,896 – a rise of 15.8 percent. Oregon, ranked second, had a 13.6 percent increase. This was followed by Louisiana, New Mexico, Hawaii, New York, and then California. Michigan was the only state to have a decrease in per capita GDP over this…

The field of tech-based economic development has changed dramatically since the creation of SSTI in 1996 and continues to change almost daily. With these changes in mind, SSTI is releasing a new mission statement that better defines the organization's current direction. SSTI's new mission is to lead, support, and strengthen efforts to improve state and regional economies through science, technology, and innovation. SSTI has many ongoing mission driven initiatives, including: The SSTI Weekly Digest The SSTI Funding Supplement SSTI's Annual Conference The Excellence in TBED Awards SSTI's Network of Members The TBED Resource Center To find out more about how SSTI can enhance the future of your organization, please visit our website at www.ssti.org or contact Noelle Sheets, director of membership services at sheets @ ssti.org.

Alabama Gov. Bob Riley and lawmakers recently gave the state's Department of Education a substantial boost by increasing the budget for the Alabama Math, Science and Technology Initiative (AMSTI) by two-thirds for fiscal year 2008 – a leading example in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education. Historically, Alabama has ranked low in educational attainment compared to the rest of the country. In 2005, Alabama ranked 47th in the nation in percentage of adults age 25 or older with a bachelor’s degree or higher (see the Nov. 27, 2006 Useful Stats table in the Digest). However, last week, Gov. Riley signed into law a record education budget, investing more funding than ever before in Alabama’s history. AMSTI, the Department of Education’s initiative to improve math and science teaching statewide, will receive $35.8 million, a significant increase from the FY07 appropriation of $22 million. Created in 2002 as a pilot program, the initiative is similar to one of the proposed goals within the America COMPETES Act, introduced in Congress in March. Schools in Alabama become official AMSTI…

Should a fall of 11 places in international rankings for broadband penetration be of concern for U.S. policymakers? Expanding broadband access for business and residents has become a key element of many regional development strategies. The Internet has become a key resource for entrepreneurs and small businesses, as well as a necessary ingredient in preparing students for the modern workforce. Widespread broadband use offers many advantages for regional economies, especially in regions that have traditionally lagged in high-tech development, but may now be able to access information and markets that were once beyond their reach. A recent report from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) highlighted why state and regional efforts to expand broadband access are becoming vital to sustaining U.S. economic prosperity. SSTI reported on recent examples from two states, West Virginia and Vermont, that were implementing new strategies to expand broadband and wireless Internet access for businesses and individuals (see the May 14, 2007 issue of the Digest). OECD found, since 2001, the U.S. has fallen…

What are the main reasons the innovative output of one locale differs from another? If one wanted to explain the differences in patent production between two states, it may be reasonable to look at metrics such as the amount of R&D investments by each state, and the number of employed researchers in the state’s workforce. In other words, one can investigate how inputs to innovation affect the outputs of innovation. Taking this discussion a step further, what if the physical organization of these inputs within a locale also influences the development of innovation? That the differences in the spatial organization of these inputs, also referred to as the economic geography, can also explain the differences in the generation of innovation is the topic of a recent working paper by Riccardo Crescenzi, Andres Rodriguez-Pose, and Michael Storper. The Geographical Processes behind Innovation: A Europe-United States Comparative Analysis explores whether or not the "innovation gap" between the U.S. and the European Union (E.U.) can be explained by the differences in their economic geographies. Differences in the…

The National Science Foundation has released the 2004 results of its annual survey of Federal Funds for Research and Development series. The report provides a breakdown of federal R&D obligations by R&D and R&D plant for federal agency, type of performer, character of work, field of science and engineering, and geography. Estimates for 2005 and 2006 obligations are included for most statistical tables, with the exception of geographic distribution of funds. The most recent data available by state is for fiscal year 2004. Securing more federal R&D funds captivates significant attention from many state TBED initiatives. Tables 128-131 provide historical data by state from 1985-2004. To standardize the data to aid in comparisons, SSTI has prepared a table presenting federal R&D obligations by state on a per capita basis for the five-year period, 2000-2004. California tops the list in real dollars at just over $19 billion but falls to 10th overall on a per-capita basis. The District of Columbia, however, leads the states on a per-capita basis at $5,473. Second place is Maryland's distant $2,275. At $1,756…

Building on past reports calling for higher levels of educational achievement in the South, the 2007 Southern Growth Polices Board Report outlines a three-pronged strategy to aid the southern region in attaining its goal of building a globally competitive workforce. The annual Report on the Future of the South, released earlier this month, labels its new approach "Convene-Connect-Commit," addressing the process in detail. The report condenses information from many sources to illustrate the status of the Southern workforce. The authors reveal that, in 1980, 16 percent of the nation’s population 25 years and older had attained a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 14 percent in the South. However, in 2000, these numbers had risen to 24 percent for the nation and 20 percent for the South. While the percentage of degree attainment is rising, the gap is widening. Concurrently launched with the report was http://www.enterprisesouth.biz/, an Internet portal to promote and document the development of the southern economy and workforce. The site contains selected education statistics and achievements for the Southern Growth…

Fantastic Marketing Opportunities Still Available Excitement for SSTI's 11th annual conference is growing as the entire exhibit space is now sold out - several months before the event. There are, however, several other options available to build awareness of your TBED program and generate beneficial relationships with the nation's top state and regional TBED decision makers at this year's event. Learn how your organization can join with our current partners to take advantage of this powerful networking and outreach opportunity. Contact Noelle Sheets, SSTI director of membership services, at sheets @ ssti.org to discuss how an SSTI conference partnership can enhance your marketing strategy. SSTI would like to thank our current 2007 Conference Partners: Conference Kick-Off Breakfast: Greater Oklahoma City Chamber Exhibiting: Advanced Technology Program Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation Federal Laboratory Consortium GSP Consulting Manufacturing Extension Partnership New Economy Strategies NorTech University of Southern Mississippi WestCAMP …

Complete descriptions of the position openings described below are available at http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm. The Edison Materials Technology Center (EMTEC), a collaborative technology development organization, is seeking an assistant director for the Southwest Central Ohio Procurement Technical Assistance Center (SWCO PTAC). The assistant director is responsible for providing counseling effort to the PTAC office in the Columbus region. Other duties include in-depth, one-to-one client government procurement counseling, conducting training events, preparing reports and budgets for funding agencies, maintaining client counseling records, and networking with various commercial and government agencies, as necessary. A bachelor's degree in science or arts is required. Griffin Analytical Technologies, LLC, a high-tech, high-growth chemical weapons and explosives detection company, has openings for two positions: (1) senior electrical engineer and (2) software engineer. The senior electrical engineer should be able to bring novel ideas to designing and reducing the size of the instrument electronics, using the latest design…