State universities and research programs depend on public support to develop and commercialize new technologies, but the actual science involved in these discoveries can seem intimidating and arcane to the layman. How then should a state go about engaging the public in scientific research?

 

It won’t come to any surprise to Digest readers that there’s a connection between universities and economic prosperity. In addition to educating students and advancing science and technological innovation, the localized economic impact of institutions, alone, provides a buffer to economic swings for many mid-sized and smaller cities and college towns. How best to incorporate universities into regional tech-based economic development strategies without compromising core missions is an art not every community has mastered.

In his recent combined State of the State and budget address on March 7, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich proposed the formation of the Illinois Community Assets Fund (ICAF), a $100 million venture designed to increase access to capital and financing to economically distressed communities and populations that have had inadequate access to mainstream capital markets within the state. The assets of ICAF would be contained within the State Treasury, and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) would administer the fund.

In his inaugural address last week, Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas announced a four-part plan to bolster research and high-tech economic development. The governor’s Vermont Way Forward strategy would promote high-tech business, particularly in the state’s emerging environmental engineering industry. In addition, the strategy includes a plan to make Vermont what the governor says would be the country’s first “e-state,” one in which universal access to broadband and wireless technology are available anywhere within the state’s borders.

With Randall Olson's resignation, Pat Dillon has become the executive director for Minnesota Project Innovation.

Minnesota Technology Inc. (MTI), the leading technology-based economic development organization in the state of Minnesota, is seeking a Deputy Director to serve as the right hand to the CEO. This critical position will be responsible for the following:

Advanced Technology Program

The Advanced Technology Program (ATP) within the National Institute of Standards and Technology is accepting applications for three leadership positions: the Deputy Director for ATP, the Director of the Economic Assessment Office, and Director of Information Technology and Applications. Starting pay for all three positions is $115,811 - $130,200. Position descriptions and application procedures are available at the following webpages:

Less than two years into his first term, Illinois Governor George Ryan has made tech-based economic development a leading priority. The cornerstone of the state's new commitment to science and technology is the $1.9 billion five-year Illinois VentureTech initiative, which was profiled in the February 18, 2000 edition of the SSTI Weekly Digest (see http://www.ssti.org/Digest/2000/021800.htm)

Thank you! The overwhelming response to Beyond the Hype: Tools for Building Tech-based Economies has resulted in the conference being sold out. With attendees from 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, SSTI's fourth annual conference promises to be a great one. Please note, there will be no walk-in registration possible at the conference doors.

After many years with the variously named New York offices for science & technology, Bruce Layton is moving to Illinois to become the Director of Government Relations for Northwestern University.

The city of Montpelier, Vt., will soon join the ranks of other high-tech cities as it prepares to implement its first Wi-Fi “hotzone” in the central downtown area. With support from Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt), city officials and local businesses, the Vermont Broadband Council recently launched MontpelierNet, a high-speed Internet network that will bring wireless broadband Internet access to the city.

The NanoBusiness Alliance has named Sean Murdock to serve as its new executive director.

Cleveland Fed: "Innovation, Growth, and Economic Policy in an Environment of Change,"

At a time when manufacturing jobs are relenting to the pressures of an expanded service sector, foreign competition and productivity growth, the idea of economic prosperity has a renewed urgency with innovation as the greatest strength and flexibility the greatest asset, argues a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently selected Texas A&M University and the University of Minnesota to lead the second and third Homeland Security Centers of Excellence (HS-Centers). The department anticipates providing Texas A&M University, the University of Minnesota and their partners with a total of $33 million over the course of the next three years to address security in two key agricultural sectors -- foreign animal diseases and food security.

Robin Siss, Vermont's first commissioner for the Department of Information and Innovation, has announced her resignation. Siss began the position in August. Denise Fehr will serve as acting commissioner.

The launch of a targeted small business development program designed to foster the success of new high growth, high-tech firms in Vermont was announced last month at a press conference by Sen. Patrick Leahy, Gov. James Douglas and University of Vermont (UVM) President Daniel Fogel.

Hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in Illinois could produce sustainable economic growth and environmental benefits for years to come, suggests a report recently released by the Illinois Coalition. Prepared by the Illinois 2 H2 Partnership, The Hydrogen Highway: Illinois’ Path to a Sustainable Economy and Environment looks to establish the state as an international leader in the fuel cell industry.

Innovations in public and private institutions could be the key to aligning governance with opportunity, according to the Center for the Study of Rural America's latest annual report.

The University of Vermont announced that Janice St. Onge has joined the Vermont Business Center as the director of business education.

The need for tax cuts, reduced and simplified regulations, a well-trained workforce, lower employee health care costs, and a state-sponsored industry advocate are among the top concerns shared by a core group of Minnesota manufacturers.

Peter Bianco has been named executive director of University Enterprise Laboratories, a nonprofit entity created by the University of Minnesota that provides incubator laboratory space for bioscience start-up companies.

The presentations from last week's conference, Knowledge Clusters and Entrepreneurship in Regional Economic Development, now available online, provide a good introduction to many of the topics and issues to be discussed at SSTI's annual conference, Building Tech-based Economies: Preparing for Tomorrow's Challenges, in Philadelphia, Oct. 13-15.

Jay Tieber is the new president of the National Association of Seed and Venture Funds.

This past fall, Vermont released what may be the nation's first statewide effort to lay out an economic development strategy based on the creative economy theories advanced most prominently by George Mason professor Richard Florida.

Study Suggests Cultural Changes in Universities Could Be Key to Promoting Greater Tech Transfer