SSTI Digest

Geography: Georgia

Georgia Launches Aerospace Innovation Center

To expand on the state's Centers of Innovation strategy, Gov. Sonny Perdue announced in November the creation of the Middle Georgia Aerospace Innovation Center (MAIC). The center is comprised of numerous partners, including the Georgia Department of Industry, Trade & Tourism's Office of Science and Technology, the University System of Georgia, private institutions and companies, and the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center (ALC).

People

C. Michael Cassidy, president of the Georgia Research Alliance, has been appointed to the governing board of the Biotechnology Industry Organization.

People

Blair Carnahan will be the first director of the new Columbus Regional Technology Center in Columbus, Ga. The new facility will house an incubator, the Columbus Georgia Tech regional office and the Columbus office of the Small Business Development Center.

People

Stephen Jeffery has been appointed the new president/executive director of the Technology Association of Georgia.

People

Bill Todd, former CEO of the Georgia Research Alliance, has joined the staff of Gov. Sonny Perdue to work on special projects.

Georgia's Rural Divide Program Threatened in Budget Battle

The FY 2004 budget passed by the Georgia Senate last week eliminates all $32 million the House approved for the OneGeorgia Authority, the state's loan and grant program targeting rural tech-based and traditional economic development. Created in 2000, the OneGeorgia Authority was anticipated to spend $1.6 billion over 25 years (one-third of the state's tobacco settlement funds) to assist the state's most economically challenged areas based on unemployment and poverty rates. Governor Sonny Perdue had requested $70.8 million for OneGeorgia in his FY04 request.

Tech Talkin' Govs IV

As more states settle into their 2003 legislative sessions, fewer Governors are giving Inaugural or State-of-the-State addresses. During the past 10 days, the Governors of Alaska, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Vermont and Wisconsin offered outlines of their priorities for the coming year(s). The following excerpts are directly relevant to building a technology-based economy.

People

W. Glenn Cornell has been named commissioner of the Georgia Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism.

OneGeorgia Awards Include $1.5M for TBED

Nearly $1.5 million in grants from the OneGeorgia Authority will go toward specific initiatives promoting technology-based economic development in Georgia. The awards are part of almost $7.5 million in grants and loans being awarded to 16 of the state's most economically distressed communities.

People

Jack Spencer is the new president of the Georgia Biomedical Partnership.

GRA Expands VentureLab To Georgia’s Research Universities

The Georgia Research Alliance (GRA) is facilitating the expansion of VentureLab at the state’s research universities. Piloted at the Georgia Institute of Technology, VentureLab is a strategy for enhancing and accelerating the process of spinning new technology-based enterprises out of university research.

State and Local Tech-based ED RoundUp

Baton Rouge 

The Louisiana Business and Technology Center (LBTC) celebrated on Wednesday its 13th year of existence with a reception at the Louisiana State University Faculty Club, honoring those tenants to graduate from the center's incubation program. LBTC, a small business incubator located on the campus of LSU in Baton Rouge, began in 1988 as a joint venture between LSU, the Greater Baton Rouge Chamber of Commerce and the Louisiana Public Facilities Authority. The center has over 45,000 sq. ft. of office space that is currently leased to 20 tenant companies and has graduated 82 companies since 1988, including 66 companies still in operation. 



Folkston, Georgia 

A vacant school in Folkston soon will be home to the Okefenokee Education and Research Center, according to the Georgia Edition of The Florida Times-Union. Two million dollars from the state General Assembly and an agreement between the Georgia Wildlife Federation and Folkston is making way for the center. The first phase of the project will house researchers and student groups. The center also is expected to offset tax revenues and the jobs Charlton County lost when a local mining endeavor was abandoned. For more information, visit: http://www.nwf.org/okefenokee/edcenter.html 

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