The Piedmont Triad Research Park laid off Bill Dean, director of the park, and Nancy Johnson, marketing director. Park officials said that the park's project manager and executive assistant also were laid off.

In response to an economic development study calling on the state to diversify its operating system, support regionalism and invest in innovation, Nevada's newly established Governor's Office of Economic Development (GOED) released a plan of action to align resources and establish partnerships for meeting those goals over the next three years. The statewide plan builds on legislation passed last session to unify economic development efforts through a regional approach and private sector engagement.

The second installment of SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Colorado, Nebraska, Nevada, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin. Our first installment was in the Jan. 9 Digest.

Governors in several states recently unveiled spending proposals for the upcoming fiscal year or biennium. While fiscal conditions in most states remain fragile, new or continuing investments focused on science, technology and innovation were introduced as pro-growth measures to aid in states' recovery efforts. With the exception of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's ambitious economic development plan (see the Jan. 9 issue of the Digest), most of the proposals were on the modest side.

On Thursday, the Obama administration announced it had selected the TechBelt region, encompassing northeast Ohio, western Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia, to host the pilot institute of the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (NNMI). The new National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute (NAMII) will operate as a partnership of more than 60 companies, research universities, community colleges and nonprofit organizations from the region.

The Department of Commerce announced the winners of the Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2) Challenge, the Economic Development Administration-led competition seeking to help cities and regions develop a comprehensive economic development strategy. Greensboro, North Carolina, Hartford, Connecticut, and Las Vegas, Nevada each were awarded $1 million to assist in the refinement and implementation of their respective plans.

On November 6, in addition to the presidential election, eleven state and two territorial gubernatorial contests will be decided. Seven of these races (Delaware, Missouri, North Dakota, Puerto Rico, Utah, Vermont, and West Virginia) include a sitting governor running for re-election, while the remaining six (American Samoa, Indiana, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina and Washington) are open races.

Caren Franzini, the CEO of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, stepped down after leading the agency for 21 years. Michele Brown, Gov. Chris Christie's appointments counsel, will take over as CEO.

Jill Kline has been named the State director of the Wyoming Small Business Development Center.

Daniel Hasler has been named the Indiana Secretary of Commerce, effective Sept. 16. He will replace Mitch Roob who is leaving the post to accept a position in the private sector.

The National Governors Association named David Moore as the director of its NGA Center for Best Practices.

This week, the Nevada Governor's Office of Economic Development announced the ten organizations that will serve as local partners in state economic development initiatives. The new Regional Development Authorities (RDA) will lead regional economic development efforts by linking partners in their respective communities. Gov. Brian Sandoval introduced the RDA concept in his State Plan for Excellence in Economic Development earlier this year (see the Feb. 8 issue).

As budgets for economic development tighten across all sectors, measuring and reporting impact becomes even more crucial for sustaining support. The Association of University Research Parks points to three impressive impact reports released this year from Indiana's Purdue Research Park, Nebraska Technology Park and North Dakota State University Research and Technology Park.

Jeffrey Brancato has recently joined NorTech as vice president. Prior to joining NorTech, Brancato was the associate vice president for Economic Development at the University of Massachusetts.

Randal Charlton has announced his retirement as executive director of TechTown, the Wayne State University research and technology park. Leslie Smith, the general manager of TechTown has been appointed to fill the position beginning Nov. 1.

To leverage the state's opportunities, Nevada needs to upgrade its diffuse economic development system to empower its regions more fully and set a statewide platform for new growth, finds a report commissioned by the state. Building on legislation passed earlier this year to reorganize and elevate the importance of the state's economic development activities, the report calls on the state to unify its operating system for 21st century economic development, support smart sector strategies in the regions, and set a platform for higher-value growth through innovation and global engagement.

Much of the recent economic recovery plans coming from governors across the country have focused on growing and nurturing existing businesses through a regional approach to economic development. The idea is that by identifying and defining the unique needs of a region, policymakers and practitioners can then provide the necessary tools and resources to grow industries likely to succeed within a given region, thus improving the overall economic landscape of the state. This approach is happening both in states and at the local level.

Lawmakers in several states wrapped up their 2011 sessions in time for the new fiscal year, which begins on July 1 for most states, allocating funds and passing bills in support of tech-based economic development. Read more...

Focusing on job growth and promoting the state for new business development, Gov. Brian Sandoval announced his plans to reorganize the Commission on Economic Development into a public-private partnership and increase funding for the state's economic development efforts by an additional $2.2 million in general fund appropriations each year. The governor also included in his 2011-13 biennial budget $10 million in FY12 for a proposed Nevada Catalyst Fund designed as a closing fund to bring new businesses to the state.

The fourth installment of SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Alaska, Delaware, Hawaii, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, and Vermont. The first three installments are available in the Jan. 5, Jan. 12 and Jan. 19 issues of the Digest.

Often credited with contributing significant revenue to states' economies, research parks also house facilities for workforce training and provide resources for tech-based industries, which is especially important as the nation's employment begins to pick up steam. In West Virginia, officials are building a $15 million advanced technology-training center at the state-owned research and technology park, and in Utah, officials recently broke ground on a building that will house engineers and analysts working on the nation's Intercontinental Ballistic Missile program.

During the campaign trail and in speeches delivered during their first few weeks in office, governors in Florida and Nevada announced plans to overhaul economic development efforts without providing many details on how the new systems would operate. Draft legislation recently was introduced in the respective states, providing some insight on the structure and governance of the proposed agencies.

Budgets recently approved in West Virginia and Wyoming will dedicate new funds for TBED initiatives in the coming year. TechConnect West Virginia is slated to receive $250,000 for its efforts to develop immediate and long-term strategies to capitalize on the state's technology strengths.

TechConnect WV, a nonprofit advancing technology-based economic development, is seeking an executive director and solicits interest from individuals and entities able to provide services on a contractual basis.

The West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission is seeking a highly talented and experienced individual for the position of Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer for the West Virginia Regional Technology Park located in South Charleston. The selected individual will have the opportunity to help refine and implement the vision for this property and its role in technology development, economic development, education, research and innovation in West Virginia and the surrounding region.

Karel Schubert has been appointed executive director of the Bioscience Association of West Virginia. Schubert most recently founded and is the chief executive officer of BioSynectics, a St. Louis-based bioscience firm.

J. Michael Saul, deputy director of the R.I. Economic Development Corporation, who served as interim director for a year, is stepping down. Saul had overseen the agency's capital programs such as the Small Business Loan Fund.