SSTI Digest

Lonnie Emard has been named interim director of the Consortium for Enterprise Systems Management, a recently formed collaboration of business, academic and economic development organizations intended to build information technology (IT) opportunities in South Carolina. Boise State University has tapped Mary Givens as director of the newly formed Office of Technology Transfer within the university's Division of Research.   G.P. "Bud" Peterson, chancellor of the University of Colorado at Boulder, was named the eleventh president of the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn named a former aide, Warren Ribley, as director of the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire named former Microsoft Corp. Executive A. Rogers Weed IV as state commerce secretary. The governor also is seeking to reconstitute the agency Weed will head, currently the Department of Community Trade and Economic Development, as the state Department of Commerce. The measure, HB2242, is awaiting a floor vote in the house.

Through exclusive interviews with Excellence in TBED Award recipients, find out first-hand how these award winning initiatives successfully responded to a critical need by applying innovative approaches to generate substantial economic gains for their region. Recently released podcasts include: Mike Cassidy of the Georgia Research Alliance discusses their Eminent Scholars program. The podcast is available at: http://www.ssti.org/media/cassidy.html. Sheryl Bryan of the Virginia Council on Advanced Technology Skills (VCATS) provides details on replicating the program in other states and regions. The podcast is available at: http://www.ssti.org/media/bryan.html

SSTI has an effective new learning tool for TBED policymakers and practitioners seeking guidance in approaches to building and sustaining tech-based economies. Through exclusive interviews with Excellence in TBED Award recipients, find out first-hand how these award winning initiatives successfully responded to a critical need by applying innovative approaches to generate substantial economic gains for their region. Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholars® 2007 Winner for the Expanding the Research Infrastructure category Listen to a six-minute clip of SSTI's interview with Mike Cassidy. The Georgia Research Alliance (GRA) Eminent Scholars program brings pre-eminent scientists to Georgia's research universities and provides them with the tools they need to lead R&D teams with the greatest potential for generating significant gains for the state. The program is principally an endowment based program that couples $750,…

As governors across the nation seek to fill record deficits, many new and longstanding TBED initiatives are facing challenging cuts or elimination. At the same time, governors are shoring up support for critical, targeted investments in the economy that they say are needed now more than ever. Using the platform of the state of the state, budget and inaugural addresses, several governors have announced new or increased investments in workforce innovation, bioscience, and alternative energy (see the Jan. 7, 14, and 21 issues of the Digest). Summarized below are executive recommendations from budget proposals in Georgia, Idaho and Vermont outlining new plans and proposed cuts to ongoing TBED efforts. GeorgiaGov. Sonny Perdue unveiled his fiscal year 2010 budget earlier this month alongside a $1.2 billion bond proposal focusing on infrastructure projects to boost the state's economy. The governor is seeking to fill a projected $1.2 billion deficit in the current fiscal year. Within the Board of Regents, the Research Consortium would be reduced by $9.2 million in FY10. This includes elimination of funding for the Traditional Industries Program ($3.1 million…

The second installment of the Tech Talkin' Govs series includes highlights from state of the state, budget and inaugural addresses delivered by the governors of Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Oregon and Vermont.  Arizona  Gov. Janet Napolitano, State of the State Address, Jan. 9, 2009 "Arizona must stay on the path toward a greener future..We also must work to limit our greenhouse gas emissions through the Western Climate Initiative, and move forward in building a strong renewable energy sector, particularly with respect to solar energy. The entire nation is going in this direction - and Arizona has much to gain by being a leader." Colorado  Gov. Bill Ritter, State of the State Address, Jan. 8, 2009  "By reviving the Colorado Credit Reserve Program, we can give thousands of small businesses vital access to credit and capital. .. ". By enacting House Bill 1001, the job-creation tax credit I announced last month, we can level the playing field with other states when it comes to attracting new companies and new jobs. ... …

On December 9, two NIST programs will be hosting a meeting to explain how businesses can better take advantage of them. Officials from the Technology Innovation Program (TIP) and the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) will provide an overview and discuss future directions for the programs. SSTI is co-hosting the meeting because we see it as an excellent opportunity for TBED organizations and their clients to learn more about and provide input on programs that could see dramatic increases in funding in an Obama administration. The meeting will explore important topics, including: funding opportunities for businesses and joint ventures through TIP, explaining what "areas of critical national need" are and how companies and TBED groups can contribute, and exploring the Next Generation MEP including growth services, technology acceleration, supplier development, and sustainability. The meeting is being held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis Hotel. There is no fee to attend, but participants are asked to register at: http://www.ssti.org/tipreg/tipreg.htm A limited number of rooms are available at $141/night plus tax and can be reserved by calling 1-800…

Complete descriptions of these opportunities and others are available at http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm. The Georgia Institute of Technology announces a search for the position of vice provost for development and technology ventures.  The vice provost for development and technology ventures is the Institute's chief economic development, reporting to the senior vice provost for research and innovation. The selected candidate will function as the executive director of the Enterprise Innovation Institute, whose mission is to serve as the catalyst for entrepreneurship, commercialization and economic development at Georgia Tech.  In addition to operating the economic development activities at Georgia Tech, the vice provost for development and technology ventures serves as the Institute's chief liaison with State government on matters pertaining to economic development. Successful candidates are expected to have successful relevant experience within an academic setting and have earned graduate degrees in business, sciences and/or engineering.

SSTI has an effective new learning tool for TBED policymakers and practitioners seeking guidance in approaches to building and sustaining tech-based economies. Through exclusive interviews with Excellence in TBED Award recipients, find out first-hand how these award winning initiatives successfully responded to a critical need by applying innovative approaches to generate substantial economic gains for their region. Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholars® 2007 Winner for the Expanding the Research Infrastructure category The Georgia Research Alliance (GRA) Eminent Scholars program brings pre-eminent scientists to Georgia's research universities and provides them with the tools they need to lead R&D teams with the greatest potential for generating significant gains for the state. The program is principally an endowment based program that couples $750,000 raised from the State of Georgia with $750,000 raised by the host university through private sources to create a $1.5 million permanent endowment. The income generated by the endowment is used to fund the discretionary activity of the scholar.   To date, the program has recruited…

Tony Armstrong, Indiana University executive director for engagement, has been chosen as the Indiana University Research and Technology Corporations new president and CEO. Jeff Costantine will retire this fiscal year as president of the Nashville Technology Council. The board of directors has begun the search for a new president. Joseph G. Danek stepped down as executive director of the EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation. He will continue work at the foundation as its senior advisor and will also remain senior vice president of the Implementation Group, a Washington consulting firm. James B. Hoehn, a senior associate at the foundation, became its executive director.  Monica Doss, the longtime president of the Council for Entrepreneurial Development who stepped down earlier this year, has been named director of the Kauffman Foundation FastTrac program. Mike Edwards, former assistant vice president and director of the Office of Research at the University of Notre Dame, has been named associate vice president for research in the Office of Research and Technology Management at Case Western Reserve University. Liam E. Leightley has been tapped as the new executive director of the…

Steve Bazinet has been hired as executive director of the Maine Center for Enterprise Development. Rahindra Bose is Ohio University's new vice president for research and creative activity and dean of the graduate college. David Fouts was selected as the next president and chief executive of MAGNET, the Manufacturing Advocacy & Growth Network. Fouts replaces Fatima Weathers, who served for a year as acting president. Denichiro Otsuga was named the first director of technology transfer at South Dakota State University. Harris Pastides was selected to replace Andrew Sorensen as University of South Carolina system president. Sorenson retired after six years at the helm. Linden Rhoads was appointed as vice provost of the University of Washington's TechTransfer unit. Rhoads starts her new position Aug. 14. Hunter Roberts, South Dakota's interim state energy director, was appointed to the post of energy policy director. Brent Tolman is the new executive director of the Workforce Development Alliance in Idaho. Sterling Wharton was hired as program director for Georgia's Centers of Innovation program.

President Bush announced he will nominate Assistant Secretary of Commerce Sandy Baruah to serve as the administrator of the Small Business Administration. The Rensselaer County Regional Chamber of Commerce has created the Economic Development Partnership to help businesses relocate to or expand in the county. Barbara Fleisner has been hired as executive director of Centergy, the Central Wisconsin Alliance for Economic Development. Dr. Lee Herron has joined the Georgia Research Alliance (GRA) as vice president of commercialization. Herron previously was general manager, Biosciences, for the Advanced Technology Development Center. Linden Rhoads was named vice provost of the University of Washington's TechTransfer department. Rhoads replace Jim Severson, who left to join a start-up company. Gary Rose announced he will step down as chief of New Jersey's Office of Economic Growth. Angie McGuire, the office's deputy chief since March 2006, will serve as acting chief until a replacement is found.

Since the inception of the HOPE scholarship program in Georgia 15 years ago, the number of state-sponsored merit-based scholarship initiatives to increase the number of students attending in-state colleges and universities has increased throughout the country. One such statewide initiative, Florida’s Bright Futures Program, was established in 1997 and has since become the second largest merit-based scholarship program in the U.S. At the recent annual forum of the Association of Institutional Research held in Seattle, Dr. Shouping Hu of Florida State University presented a paper examining the possible unintended consequences for student bachelor degree enrollment in the STEM fields before and after the implementation of Florida’s program.   The research finds in the two years before Bright Futures was introduced, enrollment in the STEM degree programs was at 48.0 percent of total baccalaureate enrollment in 1995 and 47 percent in 1996. In the two years after the program was started, STEM enrollment dropped to 39.2 percent in 1998, then to 37.7 percent in 1999. This represents a nine percentage point decline when comparing the two-year intervals, even…