higher ed

While touting broad support from lawmakers for his 2012 legislative agenda during the regular session, Gov. Bob McDonnell also expressed concern about several economic development and education initiatives left out of the 2012-14 biennial budget passed by lawmakers during a special session that ended last month. Just in time for the deadline, Gov. McDonnell submitted $43.9 million in budget amendments, which include restoring funds for research, life sciences and teacher recruitment.

Proposals introduced in Florida and Ohio would have changed the funding model for universities that meet certain benchmarks to elevate their standing for research and innovation. Both proposals ultimately were rejected, however. In Ohio, the state's plan for enterprise universities is on hold, and in Florida Gov. Rick Scott recently vetoed a bill to establish preeminent universities.

Only 11 percent of business executives believe the U.S. educational system prepares workers for today’s economy according to a recent survey by ConvergeUS — Preparing America’s 21^st Century Workforce: the Business Sector Weighs in on Educational Gaps & Common Core State Standards. In the report, ConvergeUS surveyed almost 300 business executives on their attitudes regarding the current state of the U.S. workforce.

U.S. community colleges are in dire need of an overhaul, according to a report issued by the 21st Century Commission on the Future of Community Colleges. Currently, fewer than half (46 percent) of all student who enter community college with the goal of earning a degree or certificate achieve that goal. About 60 percent of students entering community college after high school must take developmental education classes to prepare for college-level work.

“Disinvestment in public education and increasing costs are pricing low-income students out of an education,” according to a new report from Demos.org — The Great Cost Shift: How Higher Education Cuts Undermine the Future Middle Class. Over the last two decades, the authors highlight a trend of state disinvestment has shifted the cost education from state governments to students and their families. The result of this trend is students and their families are paying and/or borrowing a significantly more for a college.

Life sciences advocates in Arizona are celebrating the passage of HB 2272, a measure to tighten open records laws that require details of intellectual property be disclosed. Passage of the legislation will protect against the loss of current research contracts or the possibility of missed opportunities due to concerns over the state's previous law, according to a statement by the Arizona Bioscience Industry Association (AZBio).

As many states near the mid-point of their 2012 legislative sessions, we thought it would be a good time to take a look at some of the bills advancing in statehouses that could impact states' efforts to improve economic conditions. Several states are seeking to advance access to capital initiatives as they continue to struggle with declining revenue and tight credit restrictions. The following overview provides a sampling of TBED bills supporting access to capital, R&D enhancements and higher education standards.

Providing Access to Capital

To help meet the goals of Virginia's Top Jobs Act enacted earlier this year, Gov. Bob McDonnell proposed $200 million in additional higher education funding over the next two years. A large portion of the new funds would support cancer and high-tech research, competitive research grant awards, and efforts to graduate more science, technology, engineering, mathematics and healthcare (STEM-H) majors.

Innovative companies involved in commercializing research with universities and federal agencies often cite complicated contracts and uncertainty surrounding the process as a barrier to bringing more technologies to the marketplace. In an effort to remove some of those hurdles, two new initiatives recently were announced from the University of Minnesota (UM) and the Department of Energy (DOE).

The state of Washington's Governor Chris Gregoire announced the state will contribute $5 million to the W Fund, a new $25 million investment fund intended to spin more startups out of research labs at the University of Washington, Washington State University and other state research institutions. Administered by the Washington State Department of Commerce, key growth sectors targeted by the W Fund include biotech and clean tech. The fund intends to start considering investments in early 2012.