Southern Growth Accepting Nominations for Innovative Programs in South
Southern Growth Policies Board, a regional public policy think tank, is accepting nominations for its 2007 Innovator Awards.
These awards are presented annually to recognize innovative southern initiatives that improve the quality of life in the organization's 13-state region - Ala., Ark., Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia - and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Filling in the Pieces to Build the High-Tech Economy in Kansas City
The Kansas City region is obtaining funding for high-tech research in the life sciences, but entrepreneurship is stifled because of fragmented efforts to improve the innovation environment and the region’s lack of an overall strategy for its various stakeholders. This finding and others were identified in Completing the Puzzle: Creating a High-Tech and Life Sciences Economy in Kansas City, a recent report prepared for the Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Program.
People
The Kansas Technology Enterprise Corp. promoted Kevin Carr to the position of chief operations officer.
Great Plains at Center of Mounting Brain Drain
The agricultural states that lie east of the Rocky Mountains are at the center of an escalating decline in population, far exceeding that of other regions of the country. Of particular concern is the effect of population loss among young, educated workers on the states’ economies, resulting in a brain drain that could leave the region lagging the rest of the nation for many years to come.
People & TBED Organizations
Kansas University has appointed Steve Warren as its first full-time vice provost for research and graduate studies.
TBED People
Clay Blair resigned as chairman of Kansas Bioscience Authority.
Participate in Southern Growth's Manufacturer Information Technology Survey
Southern Growth Policies Board, in partnership with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), has designed a survey to identify the needs of small and medium-sized manufacturers in the area of information technology. The 20-question survey takes only a few minutes to complete and the results will be used to develop new programs to help small and medium-sized manufacturers.
People
Joni Cobb is the first president of KTEC Pipeline, Kansas's new technology entrepreneurship fellowship program.
People
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has appointed former Kansas Gov. John Carlin to the Kansas Bioscience Authority.
People
The Kansas Bioscience Authority named Thomas Thornton as its first president and CEO.
KTEC Pipeline to Match Kansas Entrepreneurs with Training, Mentors, Money
The metaphor of a pipeline is often used for describing the innovation process and, specifically, the health of a regional innovation system. Sustaining knowledge-based growth requires a steady flow of ideas, people and capital. Often, the flow can be weak in one of these areas -- or clogged by other factors such as lack of key resources or programs.
South Must Shift Values to Accommodate Knowledge Economy, Report Says
Promoting the policies and harnessing the habits that will make innovation central to a Southern way of life requires a fundamental shift in the approach to knowledge itself, says the latest report by the Southern Growth Policies Board.
The report, Innovation with a Southern Accent: The 2006 Report on the Future of the South, offers recommendations for 13 states and Puerto Rico to transition the region into a more knowledgeable, innovative and prosperous South.
People
Angela Kreps is the first president of the year-old Kansas Bioscience Organization.
People
Sandy Johnson was promoted to CEO of the Mid-America Manufacturing Technology Center.
People
SSTI is sad to report the October death of Gloria Timmer, executive director of the National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO). Ms. Timmer was very helpful to SSTI on several projects in her capacity at NASBO and previously as the Kansas state budget director.
South Takes on Digital Divide
In an economy driven increasingly by computer literacy and connectivity, leading the nation in the percentage of households not connected to the Internet is a distinction many in the South are working to eliminate. One South, Digitally Divided, the second annual TelecomSouth conference of the Southern Technology Council (STC), and its accompanying report Creating the CyberSouth are efforts in that direction.
Save the Date!: KTEC to Host SSTI's 2009 Conference
It only seems natural that SSTI celebrate the premiere professional development event for the nation's tech-based economic development community in 2009 in a state that, for 20 years, has pioneered innovative approaches to transform regional economies - Kansas. SSTI's 13th annual conference and pre-conference workshops will be held at the Sheraton Overland Park Hotel on Oct. 20-22, 2009.
People
The board of directors of Mid-America Manufacturing Technology Center (MAMTC) has appointed Lavon Winkler as its new president and CEO.
Kansas Primes Biotech, Entrepreneurship with Cool Half-Billion
A minimum $500 million 10-year investment to encourage biotech and entrepreneurship may soon become a reality for Kansas. With Gov. Kathleen Sebelius' approval of the Kansas Economic Growth Act, Kansas will set in motion a variety of new programs to encourage research, innovation and technology commercialization.
Southern Region Progressing in TBED, But Lags in Private Investment
Southern states may have a justifiable reason to be proud of their progress in technology and innovation, but their leaders should be concerned with the lack of investment in venture capital and industrial research and development (R&D), suggests a report released last month by Southern Growth Policies Board and the Southern Technology Council (STC).
People
Kenneth Lynn has been appointed president of KCCatalyst. Lynn formerly was a consultant to biotechnology companies assisting in technology acquisition, strategic planning, and commercial development.
People
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius named Howard Fricke to serve as secretary of the state's Commerce Department.
People
Jerry Lonergan is Kansas Inc.'s new president.
Kansas City Prepares Life Sciences Primer
A group of Kansas City bi-state community development organizations, led by KCCatalyst and the Kansas City Area Life Sciences Institute (KCALSI), released a report Friday that illustrates Kansas City’s bi-state life sciences initiative and lays out how the region can become a national and global center for life sciences research and commercialization.
Kansas Governor's Revitalization Plan Favors TBED
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius made public on Wednesday the details of a statewide economic revitalization plan designed to stimulate and strengthen the Kansas economy. Included in the plan are several items that could help boost tech-based economic development (TBED) in the state: