SSTI Digest

Geography: Kansas

TBED People and Organizations

J. Mike Books is leaving his post with the Indiana Health Industry Forum to become the first economic development director for the city of Columbia, Missouri. He also will serve as president of the Regional Economic Development Inc. Brooks will assume his new responsibilities on July 15.

SSTI Editorial: The Difference a Year Makes for Federal Economic Development Policy

For nearly every budget issue SSTI has prepared during the first decade of the 21st century, our opening paragraphs read like obituaries. The previous administration was ideologically opposed to the government taking an active role to support economic development, even tech-based economic development, beyond increases for university and federally based research. Spending for federal programs that support regional community and economic growth were slashed repeatedly. The memories are fresh of having to fight for every dollar in Congress, and, watching appropriation levels slide. Earmarks grew as programs were forced to fend for themselves. Unless you've been in the TBED field for nearly a decade, those may be your only perceptions of the federal role for innovation.

TBED People and Organizations

W. Steven Burke is the new president of Biofuels Center of North Carolina.

SSTI Invites Applications for the 2009 Excellence in TBED Awards

Seize the opportunity for recognition of outstanding achievement in tech-based economic development.

Research Park Round Up

The following overview is a synopsis of select recent announcements from research parks across the nation, including groundbreakings and development plans to support vibrant regional economies based on science, technology and innovation. 

TBED People and Organizations

Kentucky Highlands Investment Corporation has named Jim Carroll as director of its Center for Entrepreneurial Growth.

Kansas Gov Puts TBED Programs in Jeopardy with Budget Request

Tech entrepreneurs in Kansas would lose a long-time independent friend and ally in their efforts to expand the state's economy if the FY10 budget proposed by Gov. Kathleen Sebelius passed the state legislature. The governor has proposed many of the functions of KTEC, a program spanning more than two decades as a quasi-public agency developing Kansas' technology-based economic development efforts, would be cut substantially and absorbed by the state Department of Commerce (DOC).

Tech Talkin' Govs, Part II

The second installment of the Tech Talkin' Govs series includes highlights from state of the state, budget and inaugural addresses delivered by the governors of Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Oregon and Vermont. 

National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility Impact Report Released, Kansas Preferred Site

This week, the Department of Homeland Security released its environmental impact statement comparing several locations nationwide regarding the future site of the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF).  After considering factors such as environmental, economic, technical, security and safety concerns, the preferred site is situated on the campus of Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas.

Several Statewide TBED Issues Win Voter Approval

The outcome of Tuesday's election resulted in several wins and some defeats for TBED among the more than 150 ballot measures presented to voters across the nation. Outlined below are the unofficial election results of select ballot measures from each state's respective election office and local media reports as of Wednesday, Nov. 5. More detailed information on the measures is provided in last week's issue of the Digest, which is available at: http://www.ssti.org/Digest/2008/102908.htm#election.

Incubator RoundUp: Encouraging Entrepreneurship and Supporting Tech Commercialization

Technology-focused incubators are an important component to fostering entrepreneurial development in a region by nurturing businesses in the earliest stages of development and helping them grow into larger companies that employ high-wage workers and bring new technologies to the market. The following select announcements provide an overview of new incubators from across the nation, illustrating the vital role of entrepreneurial development in growing high-tech regional economies.

SSTI Job Corner

Complete descriptions of these opportunities and others are available at: http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm.

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