Local Technology Benchmarking Study Released
Preparation of S&T indicators on a local or regional level continues to increase. The Institute of Advanced Manufacturing Sciences, located in Cincinnati, Ohio, has released Cincinnati's Technology Benchmarking Study. The report compares the technology assets and performance of 24 urban areas across the U.S. using 17 indicators, then makes recommendations for strengthening Cincinnati's technology base. The report is on the Internet at www.iams.org
Correction for DOD SBIR Table
In last week's issue of the SSTI Weekly Digest, several of the state rankings for the number of awards received under the DOD SBIR 99.1 selections were incorrect. Following is a list of the states and their correct ranks: Florida was tied for 7th with New Jersey; New Hampshire was tied for 17th with Washington; Hawaii, North Carolina, District of Columbia and Utah were all tied for 23rd.
Ohio Investment to Exceed $50 Million in FY 2000
Ohio's investment in technology-based economic development will top $50 million in FY 2000 as a result of the biennial budget passed by the Ohio General Assembly this week. Spending for the programs will grow nearly 35 percent from $40.4 million in FY 1999 to $54.4 million in FY 2000.
Position Available
The State Science and Technology Institute (SSTI) is seeking a Policy Analyst. The Institute serves as a resource center for initiatives in all 50 states that encourage technology-based economic development.
SSTI Publishes Directory of Technology Councils
Collaboration and partnership among public, private, and non-profit entities have taken on a renewed urgency as states and localities seek quick and cost effective methods to cultivate the necessary environment to foster and support technology-based economies.
SSTI News: A Note from the Executive Director
We try hard to be objective in the SSTI Weekly Digest and to present information without editorializing. This is one of the rare instances that we will not even attempt to be objective. We have several items involving SSTI to report:
Ohio Completes Assessment of E-Com Readiness
According to a new report by a public-private collaborative project called Ecom-Ohio, Ohio lags many others in the “Net” Economy. The group draws attention to the state’s digital divide among certain population groups and laments slow Internet adoption in small and medium-sized businesses and a lack of public incentives and investment to help correct the situation.
$5 Million in Community Technology Projects Announced
On Tuesday, WorldCom and Brown University announced grants for 20 programs in 19 states to link public schools or community organizations with local colleges or universities to develop educational technology projects for youth in underserved areas. The grants were awarded through Making a Civic Investment, a $5-million, five-year program funded by WorldCom and administered by Campus Compact, a national coalition of nearly 700 college and university presidents based at Brown.
People
Anna Darin has been named the executive director of the Council of Development Finance Agencies (www.cdfa.org)
SSTI Releases New Publication
Digest readers may have noticed in our headlines over the past few months that state efforts to improve their economic standing through science and technology are undergoing a tremendous period of growth and expansion. While state S&T programs have been in existence since the 1950s, most activity occurred in the early 1980s and early 1990s during severe economic downturns. The activity of the last 15 months rivals that of the early 1980s and will in all likelihood ultimately surpass it.
SSTI Website Changes
SSTI has added two new features to our web site to make your visits easier. Both are free services from Mind-It.com. First, a site search engine has been added to our home page http://www.ssti.org allowing quicker browsing and researching.
Conference Profile: Air Force Dual Use S&T Program
The Air Force Dual Use Science & Technology (AF DUS&T) Program is part of a congressionally mandated, tri-service program to cost-share research projects with industry for the development of a technology that has both military utility and sufficient commercial potential to support a viable industrial base.
Cincinnati Rolls Out "100-Day" Plan
The Greater Cincinnati Regional Technology Initiative has released revving up the tech engine, a strategic plan with more than 30 recommendations to improve Cincinnati's position in a tech-based economy. Giving themselves just 100 days to complete the plan when they started in Spring, the project was developed through six "Accelerator Teams" involving more than 200 volunteers from the three-state metro area.
Ohio Completes 2nd ECom Assessment
Ohio businesses experienced a 15 percent increase in overall Internet and website usage between 1999 and 2000, according to the 2001 report released by ECom-Ohio — a public-private collaborative project to increase Ohio's readiness for global electronic commerce.
Ohio Creates Aerospace/Defense Advisory Council
Ohio Governor Bob Taft last week signed legislation creating the Ohio Aerospace and Defense Council to examine state and federal laws, rules, and policies that affect the two industries and associated federal installations in Ohio. Ohio is home to Wright Patterson Air Force Base, the state’s largest single-site employer, and the NASA Glen Research Center in Cleveland.
Six objectives are to be addressed by the council:
Rhode Island Tech Council Assessing IT Industry Needs
The Rhode Island Technology Council (RITEC) is launching a benchmarking survey this week of the state’s information technology (IT) industry to determine how the council and state economic development organizations can be most effective at addressing the sector’s needs in light of the continued restructuring of the national IT industry.
Council Outlines Strategy to Strengthen Rhode Island Economy
A Rhode Island Economic Strategy: 10 Ways to Succeed Without Losing Our Soul recently was released by the Rhode Island Economic Policy Council. The report outlines 10 economic development initiatives through four themes centered on places, people, clusters and connections.
People
Bruce Johnson is the new Director of the Ohio Department of Development. Mr. Johnson formerly served in the Ohio Senate.
Butler County Lays Out $100 Million Tech Strategy
In an effort to create a high tech center, officials in Ohio's Butler County anticipate spending more than $100 million during the next five years to increase telecommunications, biomedical innovations, electronic commerce, and other research. Funding for the measure would come from as much as a half-penny sales tax hike, according to a story published August 1 by the Cincinnati Enquirer.
SMALL BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR NAMED
Ross Youngs, president of Univenture, Inc. of Columbus, Ohio, has been named the National Small Business Person of the Year. Youngs was selected from a field of 53 Small Business Administration (SBA) small business winners representing the fifty states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam.
Universities as Catalysts for Economic Growth Workshop
The National Business Incubation Association (NBIA) is sponsoring a workshop entitled "Building University Engines for Academic Excellence, Technology Commercialization and Entrepreneurship." The workshop will he held on May 30, 1998 in Philadelphia, PA.
SSTI Weekly Digest Takes August Recess
The SSTI Weekly Digest will be taking a brief summer break and will resume publication on Friday, August 22.
Rhode Island Boosts TBED Efforts
Before ending its 2003 session, the Rhode Island legislature signed off on nearly all of the technology-based economic development (TBED) initiatives at the core of Gov. Donald Carcieri's strategy to help the state rebound from the down economy. First outlined in his Feb. 4 State of the State Address (see the Feb.
Ohio Enacts TBED Components of Third Frontier Project
Ohio Governor Bob Taft today signed into law Am. Sub. House Bill 1, putting into place the newest components of his Third Frontier Project to foster tech-based economic development (TBED) and growth in Ohio.
Providence, R.I., Undertakes Initiative to Jumpstart Economy
Providence was listed among the top 50 cities in the U.S. in which to do business in a June issue of Forbes Magazine. Now, a new initiative to jumpstart economic development in the Rhode Island capital is aimed at solidifying the ranking.