SSTI Digest

Momentum Mississippi, the state’s public-private economic development strategy first funded with $28 million last summer, could see an additional $4 million for new TBED initiatives if the state legislature passes Gov. Haley Barbour’s recommendation during its next session. Gov. Barbour announced his plans during the annual board meeting of Momentum Mississippi, which was attended by more than 75 industrial, academic and civic leaders.   TBED topics dominated the first half of the group’s board meeting, outlining the need for increased public support to seed three grant programs intended to support university-industry research, technology commercialization and innovation grant programs. The programs, collectively called the Mississippi Technology Commercialization Fund, include:

In late October, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed an executive order designed to stimulate the growth and utilization of broadband networks throughout the state of California. Some the major components of this initiative include:

$190 million? $200 million? $250 million? Each of these figures has been advanced in Maine to support three different approaches toward tech-based economic development. The bottom line for the 2007 legislative session is Maine’s elected leaders - from the governor and the state assembly - believe a sizable injection of public funding is required to accelerate research and technology commercialization in the Pine Tree State.  

As Ohio's General Assembly is poised to vote this week on whether or not to join a multi-state/province compact to govern use of Great Lake waters, the Brookings Institution is recommending a similar regional approach for coping with the area's economic future. The states within the Great Lakes region need to leverage their aggregate strengths and implement a number of policy innovations in order to adapt to the changing nature of the economy, according to a report released by the Metropolitan Policy Program of the Brookings Institution. The Vital Center: A Federal-State Compact to Renew the Great Lakes Region defines this region as the parts of 12 states that share a common geography, history, access to natural resources and economy - an economy that is struggling to change its perception from a rust belt area to one based on knowledge production.

Anyone connected to state and local efforts to increase the performance and commercialization success of SBIR awardees will not be surprised to learn the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a report critical of how well the participating federal agencies and the Small Business Administration (SBA) provide information regarding awardees.

In compiling the results for Small Business Innovation Research: Agencies Need to Strengthen Efforts to Improve the Completeness, Consistency and Accuracy of Awards Data, the GAO found several structural issues in how the participating agencies approach the administration of the grant program. Some agencies stated they did not collect all of the information required. In addition, GAO found approximately one-fourth of the data agencies submitted to SBA in 2004 and 2005 did not comply with formatting requirements, rendering it difficult to use in program evaluations and reporting.

The U.S. may lose its edge in advanced military technology if it does not increase national investment in basic defense research, according to a new report issue by the Task Force on the Future of American Innovation. The group, comprised of organizations from academia and industry supporting investment in basic research, notes that though military R&D spending is at a record-high, the share of Department of Defense (DoD) science and technology investment dedicated to basic research has declined from 20 percent to 12 percent over the past 25 years.  

ANGLE, an international venture management and consulting company with broad experience in technology development initiatives at the regional and national level, has position openings for a consultant and a senior executive. These starting-level positions would assist ANGLE's U.S. Consulting and Management operation on domestic and international projects. Both positions require someone with a Ph.D. or a master's degree in business, public policy, development studies, economics, or technology and interests in technology-based economic development, technology transfer, technology and innovation policy, and strategy. A full description of these opportunities and others is available through the SSTI Job Corner at http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm.

Columbus State University (Ga.) appointed James Bowie as director of its Columbus Technology Incubator. Ohio Gov.-elect Ted Strickland announced he will nominate Lieutenant Gov.-elect Lee Fisher to be the state's development director. Art Garcia has resigned as director of the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund to accept a job with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in his home state of New Mexico. Dr. Anthony Green has been appointed vice president of regional technology initiatives for Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania.

Columbus State University (Ga.) appointed James Bowie as director of its Columbus Technology Incubator.

Ohio Gov.-elect Ted Strickland announced he will nominate Lieutenant Gov.-elect Lee Fisher to be the state's development director.

Art Garcia has resigned as director of the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund to accept a job with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in his home state of New Mexico.

Dr. Anthony Green has been appointed vice president of regional technology initiatives for Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania.