Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett has signed off on a series of bills intended to give state-owned universities more flexibility in working with regional businesses and creating new advanced degree programs. The bills are collectively known as the Higher Education Modernization Act and apply specifically to the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE), which is the nation's tenth largest state university system, incorporating Pennsylvania's 14 state-owned institutions.

With veteran unemployment rates exceeding the already-high national unemployment rate, organizations and agencies around the country are seeking ways to plug veterans into the innovation economy. These efforts capitalize on the leadership skills and technical knowledge of military veterans by helping them become entrepreneurs. Operation Boots to Business is a new nationwide initiative, backed by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), that will provide entrepreneurship training courses at military bases to help veterans transition into business ownership.

The Obama administration today announced the 12 winners of the multi-agency Rural Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge. Approximately $9 million in federal funding will help support rural public-private partnerships to promote job creation, accelerate innovation and provide assistance to entrepreneurs and businesses in a wide range of industrial sectors in rural regions across the country.

With their vast knowledge about technology and access to expertise inside and outside the university, graduate and post doctoral students play an important role in helping spinoff successful companies. Moreover, universities should encourage students to explore entrepreneurship through spinoffs as a potential career option outside of academia. This recommendation is among three guidelines outlined in a recent report that examines the important roles of students and faculty in the university technology transfer process.

To better serve all parts of the state by connecting experienced mentors with startup companies, the Kentucky Innovation Network has a new name and logo, a tighter focus, and expanded services. Established in 2002 as the Innovation and Commercialization Center program, the Kentucky Innovation Network will offer services to entrepreneurs from 13 locations across the state, and as part of the re-branding effort, three smaller centers will be upgraded to full-service centers.

The State University of New York has released a ten-year strategic plan to help revitalize the New York state economy. One major element of the plan is increasing the university's involvement in statewide entrepreneurship through several new inititiatives, including SUNY Start-UP, which would invite entrepreneurial mentors on campus to work with students and professors, and SUNY-INC, which would align research teams across the state to accelerate the commercialization of new technologies. Read more ...

The TechColumbus TechStart Program supports and develops viable entrepreneurial companies from their earliest phase through their launch as significant economic contributors. SSTI's exclusive interview with Will Indest of TechColumbus digs deeper into the mechanics of the program to find out how the organization's impressive pipeline for entrepreneurs has led to the creation of high-wage jobs throughout the region. Download the interview ...

A group of Massachusetts CEOs, venture capitalists (VC) and entrepreneurs recently launched a new initiative to create new, successful companies. The 12x12 Initiative will allow successful CEOs to collaborate with entrepreneurs to develop their ideas into new businesses. The resulting "team" also would include an experienced VC and would help the companies connect to mentoring services, capital and other opportunities.

A nationally recognized nonprofit organization creating economic transformation in Northeast Ohio, JumpStart Inc. provides resources to entrepreneurs leading high potential, early-stage companies. JumpStart CEO Ray Leach discusses how the organization has successfully partnered with regional organizations and philanthropic institutions to achieve its tremendous success. Download the interview ...

On Monday, the Senate Banking Committee voted to amend language in the financial reform bill that had drawn criticism from many organizations supporting entrepreneurship and equity investment. In its original form, the bill would have raised the net worth requirements for accredited investors, significantly reducing the pool of angel investors and capital for early-stage businesses (see the April 14, 2010 issue). A vote is expected later this week.

Entrepreneurship in the U.S. reached a 14-year high in 2009, according to a new study. The Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity, which tracks national and state entrepreneurship rates, found that 340 new businesses were created for every 100,000 adult residents each month during 2009. Oklahoma and Montana led the nation with 470 new businesses per 100,000 adults. Read the report ...

A new Georgia center features a variety of resources to assist life science entrepreneurs. The Georgia Bioscience Commercialization Center, funded by Georgia Bio and the Georgia Research Alliance, offers incubation space, counseling for experienced bioscience executives, entrepreneur education, and connection to TBED organizations around the state. Read more ...

Twenty-six members, spanning university presidents, investors, serial entrepreneurs, and nonprofit leaders, were appointed to the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship announced yesterday by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke. The group will support President Obama's innovation strategy by helping develop policies that foster entrepreneurship and identifying new ways to take ideas from the lab to the marketplace to drive economic growth and create jobs.

A plan to provide loans and specialized training to foster entrepreneurship recently was announced by Gov. Jennifer Granholm. The two-pronged, $43 million strategy consists of a loan partnership between credit unions and Michigan Small Business and Technology Development Centers with specialized training provided through the Michigan Economic Development Corporation's FastTrac NewVenture Program.

Last week, many states, universities and groups in the U.S. observed the fourth annual National Entrepreneurship Week. The Consortium for Entrepreneurship Education sponsored activities around the country and Canada, including educational events, competitions and entrepreneurship summits.

A bill recently introduced in the U.S. Senate would allow immigrant entrepreneurs to obtain a two-year visa if they have secured the support of a qualified U.S. investor. Supporters, including bill sponsors Senators John Kerry and Richard Lugar, argue that the measure would help ensure American competitiveness by drawing on global entrepreneurial talent. The bill would also help create new investment opportunities for U.S. venture capitalists.

Finance reform legislation, bound for the Senate floor in April, could have significant repercussions for investors and entrepreneurs. The bill, introduced by Senator Christopher Dodd (D-CT), would create a new consumer protection watchdog within the Federal Reserve, install new regulations and safety valves to prevent another financial meltdown, and provide greater transparency within the financial industry. Two short provisions, however, have caught the attention of the private equity community and could change the rules for investors.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last week signed a bill creating a sales tax exemption for equipment used by clean-tech manufacturers — a measure the governor hopes will attract entrepreneurs investing in the clean energy sector. SB 71 is part of the governor's $500 million jobs initiative announced during his State of the State address that aims to train up to 140,000 workers create 100,000 jobs.

By reducing legal and regulatory barriers to startups, states can harness the power to encourage the formation and growth of new companies, find two recent reports from the Kauffman Foundation. The reports were issued in conjunction with Kaufmann's third annual State of the Entrepreneurship address and call for state level initiatives and policy recommendations that have shown preliminary success but have yet to be widely adopted.

Dun & Bradstreet Credibility Corp. (Dun & Bradstreet) announced the launch of the Entrepreneurial Growth Initiative, a program that will sponsor business plan competitions at universities and colleges across the nation. The top place teams in both undergraduate and graduate programs will receive an award — including Dun & Bradstreet's suite of products — to help their enterprises establish and build business credit. Dun & Bradstreet also will donate discounted products and services to students, staff and alumni at participating schools.

The pace of business startups in the U.S. has exhibited a long-run decline that started in the early 1980s and has continued through 2010, according to a new report — Where Have All the Young Firms Gone? — from the Kauffman Foundation. Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau's Business Dynamics Statistics (BDS), the report found several other long-run declines in the business activity of U.S.

Michigan State University (MSU) launched Spartan Innovations, a newly formed subsidiary of the MSU Foundation, to help its faculty and students form spin-off companies based on technology developed at the university. To achieve this goal, it will provide five key resources to increase the MSU startups including:

Northeast Ohio's Lorain County Community College (LCCC) plans to bring its unique approach to entrepreneur assistance to other parts of the country with support from the Kauffman Foundation. On Thursday, LCCC announced a $1 million grant from Kauffman would help establish pilot versions of the community college's Innovation Fund in three U.S. communities. The current Innovation Fund provides entrepreneurship education, mentoring and early stage funding for the region's startups.

As global economies shift, developing nations are attempting to transition as suppliers of raw materials to nations that are producers of value-added goods. Africa has been a major supplier of raw materials to the developed world. However, it drastically lagged behind in the production of valued-added goods. Recently, African nations have attempted to reinvent their economic development efforts from suppliers to producers by developing programs to grow tech-based economies.

U.S. immigration policies are irrational and undirected according to a new report from the Partnership for a New American Economy and Partnership for New York City — Not Coming To America: Why the U.S. is Falling Behind in the Global Race for Talent. In sharp contrast, to attract immigrants that drive economic growth and increase international competitiveness, foreign countries have adopted targeted and strategic policies that include: