People
Dr. Frederick Humphries, president of Florida A&M University and SSTI Board member, has announced he will retire this summer from the university.
Arizona Partnership for New Economy Releases Strategic Plan
With as much emphasis on accessing and applying technology as on creating it, the final report of the Arizona Partnership for the New Economy (APNE) outlines several recommendations to improve Arizona’s position and performance in a tech-based economy.
Tech-Talkin’ Governors II: The State of the State and Budget Addresses
Editor's Note: We continue our look at the priority Governors are placing on tech-based economic development and math & science education with highlights from recent speeches and budget proposals. Based on this week's announcements, it appears 2001 appears will be a third strong growth year for state and local tech-based economic development activities.
Delaware Creates Biotech Institute and Passes R&D Tax Credit
Delaware increased its commitment to technology businesses recently with two new initiatives: the creation of the Delaware Biotechnology Institute and the passage of a state research and development tax credit.
Delaware Biotechnology Institute
People & Organizations
Bob Dayton was named president of the Delaware BioScience Association.
Two States Consider Paying Tech School Tuition
In what could be the beginning of a new trend in state economic development incentive/inducements, bills receiving bi-partisan support in the Michigan and Delaware state legislatures would address businesses= needs for more technically skilled workers by having the states pick up the students' tab for community college tuition and technical training.
PEOPLE
Sue Rhoades, formerly of Delaware, has taken a new position with Pennsylvania's Ben Franklin Partnership as State Coordinator. She will be working with the four regional Ben Franklin Technology Centers on a variety of statewide collaborative and strategic initiatives. The Delaware Economic Development Office (DEDO) is seeking a Manager of Technology Programs to fill Sue’s position. The DEDO is the state agency responsible for economic development in Delaware.
PEOPLE IN THE NEWS
NGA Leadership --- At its 1998 Annual Meeting in Milwaukee, the National Governor’s Association (NGA) named its new leadership to steer the initiatives and agenda for the association.Delaware Governor THOMAS R. CARPER was named NGA’s chairman, and Utah Governor MICHAEL O. LEAVITT vice chairman. The positions are for a term of one year.
People
Jackie Norton, director of the Arizona Department of Commerce for the past five years, has announced she will be leaving the position this summer.
South Carolina, Florida Get New Tech Councils
On Wednesday, South Carolina Governor Jim Hodges announced the appointment of a 38-member Steering Committee of the Technology Transition Team. The group, chaired by the president of the South Carolina operations of BellSouth, consists of business leaders, technology entrepreneurs, financial executives, research university leaders, and government representatives. Technology Transition Team responsibilities include:
Accessing Capital: News from the South
While venture capital is harder to come by these days in most parts of the country due to the dot-com crash and stock market declines, investment capital may flow more easily in two southern states based on two initiatives.
Florida: $450 Million for CAPCOs Considered
The Difficult Task of Clogging the Brain Drain
Growing and keeping an educated workforce, one ready to help build a technology-based economy, is one of the greatest challenges even the most high-tech areas. The problem can be quite severe. For example, a new statewide survey of Florida college students, conducted by Leadership Florida and Nova Southeastern University, revealed that only 48 percent of the students plan to remain in Florida after graduation.
Delaware Funds Two New Centers
The Delaware Economic Development Office recently announced the selection of two new Advanced Technology Centers (ATC). The Centers will focus on semiconductors and advanced optics.
The Centers are public/private partnerships designed to bolster Delaware's technology base and to create and retain quality high-tech jobs. The State of Delaware is investing $4 million over three years in these two Centers through grants from the 21st Century Fund.
National Governors' Association Has New Chairman
Ohio Governor George V. Voinovich, began his term as the National Governors' Association (NGA) Chairman at the association's annual meeting in Las Vegas this week. He succeeded Nevada Governor Bill Miller.
Governor Tom Carper, a Democrat from Delaware, has been chosen as the Association's Vice-Chairman. Governor Carper will become Chairman of NGA next summer when Governor Voinovich's term expires.
Tackling the Digital Divide. . . and S&T Worker Preparedness
Activities to address the digital divide and the S&T workforce shortage have increased recently. The following are a sampling of efforts underway to understand and address the growing inequalities in technology access and assimilation.
Arizona New Economy Partnership Formed
Arizona Governor Jane Dee Hull has announced the formation of the Arizona Partnership for the New Economy, a 35-member steering committee appointed to purse the following goals:
$1 M from AT&T to Support Tech Capacity at Historically Black Colleges
AT&T has made a $1 million grant to support the development of technological expertise in 13 institutions of higher education in Virginia, North Carolina, Delaware, Maryland and West Virginia.
The grant was made to the Virtual Institute for Technology Advancement in Education and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (VITAE- HBCU). The VITAE-HBCU program is a partnership to foster collaboration between Virginia Tech and the HBCUs.
People
Jack Haenichen has been promoted to Deputy Director for the Arizona Department of Commerce.
Florida Space Research Institute Off the Ground
The Florida legislature recently approved legislation creating the Florida Space Research Institute (FSRI), an independent, industry-led organization designed to coordinate the space-related research capabilities of several public and private universities. FSRI will strive to expand the universities’ involvement in space research and education, and to insure that state academic resources are available to support the space-related needs of industry, NASA, and the military.
People
William Harris is the new president and CEO of Science Foundation Arizona, a recently formed nonprofit organization.
People
Brent Gregory has announced his resignation as Vice President for Technology Development with Enterprise Florida to accept a position in the private sector.
IT Florida Issues Annual Report
Encouraging venture capital investments, creating R&D tax exemptions, and establishing three new technology-based organizations are just a few of the recommendations included in the first annual report of ITFlorida.com. The 34-member Information Service Technology Development Task Force was created by state legislation last year to assess the health of Florida's information technology industry.
People
George Atkinson is taking a year-long leave of absence from his position as a professor in chemistry and optical sciences at the University of Arizona to serve as the first American Institute of Physics science fellow at the U.S. State Department.