A recently published InfoChart from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) presents an annotated walk through federal R&D obligations from FY 1951 through 2024, explaining key events influencing key moments in the surges and downswings along the nation’s path to supporting discovery, research, development and innovation. The data is presented in constant 2017 dollars. 

One of the top perennial concerns of America’s manufacturing and business communities relates to the workforce. The main issues may vary year to year; examples include too few workers available, skill mismatch, poor work habits or preparedness because of non-work issues such as basic education attainment, drug use, prison records or lack of work ethic. Among factors complicating workforce development responses are the diverse and disparate skill needs across the spectrum of occupations and sectors, the rapid advancement of technological innovation, and the array of private and public skill development and training efforts. 

As a result, federal involvement in workforce development has crept into many programs and funding priorities where, traditionally, skill development and training did not reside. That might all be changing with the executive order President Trump signed on Wednesday, April 23 2025.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) recently released a report on the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) program with data through December 31, 2024. As of the end of 2024, Treasury has disbursed nearly $4 billion of the $10 billion set aside for the program in the 2021 American Rescue Plan of Act. 

In terms of the three-tranche, formula-based allocation structure of the SSBCI program, the report documents the first disbursement to 130 jurisdictions, the second for 20, and the third, or final, tranche for six.

Within this article, SSTI provides two data visualizations to graphically compare states and their progress with accessing SSBCI funds. 

The graphics below include data for only the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, and not Tribal governments.

The same April 23 executive order as mentioned above requires Labor, Commerce and Education to work together and prepare by the end of August, a plan “to reach and surpass 1 million new active apprentices.” Apprenticeships were a preferred skill development program during President Trump’s first term in office as well. 

Priorities for the new strategy laid out in the order that may appeal to state and regional TBED efforts include expanding the Registered Apprenticeships to “new industries and occupations including high-growth and emerging sectors.”

Additionally, the plan highlights two particular federal programs as vehicles that may see increased support. The executive order says the plan shall identify “opportunities, including through the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education (Perkins V) Act and Federal student aid, to enhance connections between the education system and Registered Apprenticeships.

The short answer to the question, “Is college still worth it?” is, “It depends.”

Attending higher education institutions may impart an array of societal and personal development benefits. Still, one factor of increasing import that raises the question of the worthiness of attaining a college education in a market-driven economy is the personal cost involved. The question becomes even more pertinent based on three trends: rising costs, decreasing employment opportunities for college graduates and a fair share of Americans having little or no confidence in higher education. 

Consider these three trends: 

Earlier this week, SSTI participated in InBIA’s 39^thInternational Conference on Business Incubation (ICBI39) in Philadelphia. The event brought together entrepreneurship support professionals from around the world to tackle shared challenges and explore strategies for fostering entrepreneurial ecosystems. 

SSTI Program Director Casey Nemecek presented strategies for effectively communicating TBED concepts to broader audiences as part of the “Advocating for Entrepreneurship” panel session. The presentation emphasized three key approaches: making technical concepts accessible through relatable examples, centering local impact, and enlisting trusted community voices to demonstrate why innovation-driven economic development matters to communities and funders. This theme of clear, strategic communication resonated throughout much of the conference’s programming, from sessions on program sustainability to discussions about cross-organizational partnerships to build resiliency. 

Recognizing Louisiana’s lag in some prosperity metrics, loss of talent over the past decade, and need to build a more competitive economy among its southern state peers, the Louisiana Economic Development (LED) has created a strategic plan that emphasizes innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship as the means to address the challenges and opportunities it faces in creating a more robust and talent-attracting economy.

The Positioning Louisiana to Win: 2025 Comprehensive Statewide Strategic Plan, released in March 2025, details several recommendations and initiatives that seek to nurture homegrown entrepreneurs, startups and technology-driven businesses; attract and retain talent; and modernize the state’s traditional industries, educational, and training programs to ensure that key sectors and Louisianans are positioned to prosper from a more competitive technology-based economy.