SSTI Digest

The fourth installment of SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Alaska, Connecticut, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, and Oklahoma. The first three installments are available in the Jan 13, Jan. 20 and Jan. 27 Digests.

Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell, State of the State Address, Jan. 20, 2010 "We will create even more jobs by funding construction of two new statewide buildings, the Anchorage crime lab I mentioned earlier and we will construct the Life Sciences building at [the University of Alaska, Fairbanks]. …

"… Where energy is concerned, we will continue reducing dependency on diesel across Alaska. And we are putting $25 million toward more in-state renewable energy projects. …

Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell dropped his previous nomination, Robert Sledd, as his secretary for Commerce and Trade and instead nominated businessman James Cheng. Cheng, whose nomination needs to be confirmed by the Democratic-controlled Senate, was sworn in on January 17.

Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell said that the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) Secretary George Cornelius will step down on June 30 to become the president of Bridgewater College in Virginia.

Rick LeFaivre and Tom Clement are joining the UW Center for Commercialization as key deputies to vice provost Linden Rhoads. LeFaive will split his time evenly between the university and his other job as a managing director at OVP Venture Partners, while Clement is expected to work full-time for about 18 months.

In an effort to improve the percentage of city residents with college degrees, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter announced his administration will be opening an office within City Hall to help potential students considering higher education. The “PhillyGoes2College” office will direct residents to assistance with filling out financial aid forms and applications, preparing for standardized admission tests, and writing college essays. In addition, the first-term mayor stated a goal of attaining up to 1,000 fully funded college scholarships for city students from the region’s universities by the end of 2012, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. More details on the PhillyGoes2College initiative is available at: http://www.phila.gov/residents/education/fafsa.html.

Carl Bauer is retiring from federal service and leaving the National Energy Technology Laboratory effective Feb. 28, following a four-year tenure as the laboratory’s director.

Joining the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse as executives in residence are Maureen Peszko and Michael Lang. Pierre Queiroz de Oliveira will be joining the program as an executive associate.

The North Carolina Biotechnology Center has tapped Gwyn Riddick, director of its Piedmont Triad Office, to lead a new statewide agricultural biotechnology initiative as the vice president, Ag/Bio Initiative.

The recent creation of the Energy Alliance of Southwestern Pennsylvania is intended to advance the energy-related economy of the Pittsburgh region by funding companies, coordinating projects, devising policies, and marketing the region's assets. While staff for the Energy Alliance will come primarily from the Allegheny Conference and Innovation Works, other partners of the effort include the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon, and various energy-related firms in the region. Specific sectors within both the traditional and alternative energy fields have been targeted by the Alliance, including the advancement of natural gas extraction, in part due to Pittsburgh's proximity to the Marcellus Shale – one of the largest natural gas reserves in the world. Read the full press release from the Allegheny Conference..

TBED People Eric Abelquist has been named executive vice president of Oak Ridge Associated Universities and deputy director of the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education.

Arn Boezaart, who has been interim executive director of the Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy Center the past six months, will take over the position permanently.

Melanie Brandt has been hired as chief operating officer for the Technology Association of Georgia.

President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate Nicole Y. Lamb-Hale to serve as assistant secretary of commerce for manufacturing and services within the International Trade Administration.

The first third of the current fiscal year was over before Pennsylvania leaders could agree on a $27.8 billion FY10 budget that sharply reduces spending across many areas of community and economic development. It does boost funding for basic education to historic levels, however.

State spending in FY10 is $1.9 billion lower than in FY09 and $524 million less when federal stimulus dollars are taken into account, according to the governor’s press office. In addition to spending cuts across most agencies, the state will raise cigarette taxes by 25 cents per pack and institute a new tax on small cigars.

Southwestern Pennsylvania is on course to add 11,640 green jobs to its economy by 2015, according to a new report commissioned by two local organizations, the Green Building Alliance and Growing Technology through Energy and Community Health (GTECH) . The region’s green services sector is on the verge of a major boom and will be the driving force in the growth of the green economy, according to the report. The report is bullish about the future of Pittsburgh’s green economy, though it relies on a methodology intended to produce a more conservative estimate of green jobs than other approaches, the authors contend.

In order to maximize the growth of green sectors, the authors recommend that Pittsburgh implement a more coordinated and comprehensive strategy to prepare and train workers for green jobs.

Listen to SSTI's Interview with Rich Lunak of Innovation Works

SSTI has an effective new learning tool for TBED policymakers and practitioners seeking guidance in approaches to building and sustaining tech-based economies. Through exclusive interviews with Excellence in TBED Award recipients, find out first-hand how these award winning initiatives successfully responded to a critical need by applying innovative approaches to generate substantial economic gains for their region.

As credit and early-stage investment capital become increasingly scarce, more state, regional and local governments and organizations are stepping in to help local entrepreneurs get their companies off the ground. In many cases, offering equity investments is not always an attractive option to the public organization.

Pittsburgh's Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), for example, recently announced a new low-interest loan fund to provide the early-stage capital needed to start new high-tech businesses in the midst of a troubled economic situation. The Pittsburgh Entrepreneur Fund will award up to $200,000 to high-tech entrepreneurs and companies, as well as pair awardees up with organizations that can offer guidance and technical assistance. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl noted that the program is not just for existing companies, but also is targeted toward young entrepreneurs and researchers who might otherwise take their intellectual capital elsewhere.

The  complete description of this opportunity and others are available at http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm.

Penn State seeks a director for the newly formed Economic Engagement Initiatives unit in the Office of Economic and Workforce Development. The director will work collaboratively with academic, outreach, research, and other centers and units to present a unified point of entry to resources in support of economic development. The director is expected to generate significant grant-funded initiatives to Penn State. Qualifications include a master's degree (PhD preferred) or equivalent, plus five years of work-related experience in economic and workforce development or related fields that include evidence of organizational leadership and supervisory roles.

Karl Fooks, a past managing director for J.P. Morgan & Co. in Asia, is the new president of the Hawaii Strategic Development Corporation. Fooks replaces John Chock who retired last year.

The U.S. Senate confirmed by unanimous consent President Barack Obama's nomination of Karen Gordon Mills as the 23rd Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration.