People
Stefanie Sanford has joined Texas Governor Perry's office as Policy Director for Technology & Telecommunications
Tech-Talkin’ Governors III: The State of the State and Budget Addresses
Editor's Note: The third installment of SSTI's look at recent speeches and budget proposals to demonstrate the priority governors are placing on tech-based economic development and math & science education.
Georgia
Governor Roy Barnes, FY2002 Budget Address, January 11, 2001
– new and increased funding
Texas Workforce Plan and Governor’s Budget Priorities In Sync
With his past efforts to strengthen the state’s position in the tech-based economy, new Texas Governor Rick Perry’s budget priorities — $251 million in new spending for college scholarships and math & science programs — should come as no surprise.
People
Joel Bauman, Senior Policy Analyst with the Southern Technology Council, is leaving to attend the University of Texas - Austin. Joel has been a great resource for SSTI over the past few years and we wish him success in business school
Health Research Funding Opportunities
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) requests cooperative agreement proposals to support an intervention epidemiologic research study of HIV/AIDS. The purpose of the program is to evaluate how different levels of antiretroviral therapy affect HIV-1 infection. Eligible applicants include public and private nonprofit organizations, governments, universities, research institutions, hospitals, and Indian tribal organizations. A total of $400,000 is anticipated to fund two awards.
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.
Local Incubator & Tech Park Gleanings
Atlanta, Georgia
The Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported on June 20 that the
2001 Texas Legislature Acts Favorably For Tech-Based ED
More than $800 million for science, engineering, research, and commercialization activities
Walkin' the Tech Talkin' Gov Walk
Over the past six years, SSTI has dedicated a portion of the Digest to coverage on the legislative priorities of governors across the nation through the Tech Talkin' Govs series. As they say, talk is cheap. So this year, we are extending that coverage to track how the Governors' proposals fared in the respective legislative sessions.
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.
People
Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue appointed Debra Lyons to lead the newly created Office of Workforce Development.
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.
New Approaches to State S&T: Georgia's Yamacraw Mission
One year ago this month, in the midst of a booming economy, Georgia Governor Roy Barnes announced a new $100 million, five-year initiative to advance the state’s position in the research and production of key components of the global economy. The Yamacraw Mission, named after one of the state’s first colonial settlements, focuses on research, education, and economic development in microchip design and high-bandwidth communications.
Job Corner: Rice Seeks Baker Institute Fellow
Rice University invites applications for a Baker Institute Fellow (postdoctoral researcher) to lead a new and potentially long-term project sponsored by the Baker Institute of Public Policy, the Computer and Information Technology Institute, and the Fondren Library.
$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
Bill Todd, President of the Georgia Research Alliance (GRA), has announced he will leave GRA early in 2000 to join a new technology seed investment fund.
People
The University of Texas at El Paso hired Tony Woo as the assistant vice provost for research and technology transfer.
Texas Passes R&D Tax Credit
On October 1, Texas will begin offering a tax credit for business research and development expenditures. The new law, Texas Senate Bill 441, provides Texas corporations with a franchise tax credit equal to five percent of eligible R&D expenses for up to 50 percent of a company’s total franchise tax liability. Unused portions may be carried forward for up to 20 years.
State & Local Tech-based ED Round Up
Albany, New York
Ag-Related Tech-based ED Shorts
The 2001 Farm Bill