SSTI Digest

Less than two years into his first term, Illinois Governor George Ryan has made tech-based economic development a leading priority. The cornerstone of the state's new commitment to science and technology is the $1.9 billion five-year Illinois VentureTech initiative, which was profiled in the February 18, 2000 edition of the SSTI Weekly Digest (see http://www.ssti.org/Digest/2000/021800.htm) Under the leadership of Director Pam McDonough, the Illinois Department of Commerce & Community Affairs (DCCA) is playing a crucial role in carrying out the Governor's S&T agenda. Several DCCA tech initiatives have been launched or expanded over the past 18 months: The Technology Challenge Grant Program provides matching funds for science and technology projects, partnerships between universities and industry, high-tech commercialization projects, transfer projects, and infrastructure improvements. Illinois Technology Enterprise Centers (ITEC) Program provides operational support for regional centers to serve technology entrepreneurs, innovators and small business and provide…

Thank you! The overwhelming response to Beyond the Hype: Tools for Building Tech-based Economies has resulted in the conference being sold out. With attendees from 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, SSTI's fourth annual conference promises to be a great one. Please note, there will be no walk-in registration possible at the conference doors. A first for SSTI at the conference will be an on-site bookstore offering nearly 100 of the top titles in technology-based economic development. Subjects covered include: performance measurement, e-commerce, industry-university partnerships, entrepreneurial development and assistance, the innovation process, commercializing technology, biotechnology, venture capital, science and technology policy, and many more. For your convenience, we will be able to process credit card orders on-site and will have several copies of each title on hand for reading during your return flight home. Catalog and website orders from the new expanded bookstore will begin in  October.

After many years with the variously named New York offices for science & technology, Bruce Layton is moving to Illinois to become the Director of Government Relations for Northwestern University. In addition to working for the New York State Science and Technology Foundation and the New York State Office of Science, Technology, and Academic Research (NYSTAR), Bruce served in a variety of positions with the Science and Technology Council of the States (STCS), most recently as Secretary and keeper of institutional memory. 

Registrations for SSTI’s fourth annual conference, Beyond the Hype: Tools for Building Tech-based Economies, have been brisk. As a result, the Regal Knickerbocker Hotel has no more vacancies at our special conference discount rate -- if any rooms are available at all by the time of this release. The hotel was kind enough to extend our room block by 50 percent before the discount deadline this past weekend. To help those of you planning to attend Beyond the Hype but are without accommodations, we have posted on our web site the phone numbers for several hotels within easy walking distance to the conference site that had rooms available as of Wednesday, Sept. 6. The deadline for early conference registration is September 15. Please be advised though, that seating is limited at this point: we may have to close conference registration prior to the 15th. If necessary, we will develop a waiting list for cancellations for those registrations not paid or secured by a credit card before September 15. More conference details and the additional hotel list are available on our web site at: http://www.ssti.…

As sponsors of Beyond the Hype: Tools for Building Tech-based Economies, the Great Lakes Industrial Technology Center, the NASA Glenn Garrett Morgan Commercialization Initiative and the NASA Illinois Commercialization Center will share space in the conference exhibitor’s area. Brief profiles of each organization are provided below: Great Lakes Industrial Technology Center -- One of six NASA Regional Technology Transfer Centers (RTTCs), GLITeC provides technology and business solutions to industry in the Great Lakes region (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin). GLITeC also works to commercialize NASA Glenn Research Center technologies throughout all 50 states. Its services include matching needs with specific expertise, providing business and technology planning and evaluations, and helping companies acquire and adapt technology. GLITeC works with industry to acquire and use NASA technology and expertise. GLITeC has dedicated in-reach into NASA and bridges the gap between federal discovery and commercial application. GLITeC and its regional affiliates provide industry…

Reservations for Beyond the Hype: Tools for Building Tech-based Economies and limited-seating, pre-conference workshops started coming in only hours after we posted the date (October 3-4), price (extremely reasonable) and location (Chicago) on our web site. We’re glad to see so many of you are as excited about this year’s conference as we are.  Sticking to this year’s theme, Beyond the Hype, we’ve identified great people from across the country to lead us in our exploration of 14 topics handpicked by SSTI’s state sponsors. The conference speakers will provide a good balance between discussion of the burning policy issues and practical techniques for tech-based economic development. The conference agenda and many of the speaker bios are now available on our conference web center at: http://www.ssti.org/Conf00/conf--00.htm 

Two venture capital associations and the Southern Technology Council are offering free electronic newsletters to the general public that may be of interest to SSTI Weekly Digest readers. Occasionally stories offered in these publications overlap with Digest articles, however, each provides additional information and perspectives for the S&T community. The Community Development Venture Capital Alliance (CDVCA) distributed the first issue of its periodic e-mail newsletter this week, which includes updates on the organization and a discussion of the status of the Clinton Administration’ New Markets initiative and the Republican’s Renewal Communities proposal. As the trade association of 82 community development capital funds, CDVCA promotes use of the tools of venture capital to create jobs, entrepreneurial capacity, and wealth to advance the livelihoods of low-income people and the economies of distressed communities. To subscribe please send a message to cdvca@cdvca.org. Membership information can be found at: http://www.cdvca.org The National Association of Seed and Venture…

The National Governors' Association has released its third paper in the New Economy Series. Nurturing Entrepreneurial Growth in the New Economy, written by Thom Rubel and Scott Palladino, outlines eleven different approaches states have implemented to encourage entrepreneurship: improving access to capital; providing technical assistance; streamlining securities regulation; improving state regulatory and licensing environments; implementing regulatory reform; building intellectual capacity at state universities; creating industry clusters; improving state tax environments; improving entrepreneurship education; reaching out to entrepreneurs; and recognizing entrepreneurial achievement. Several examples of each approach are described in the 23-page paper. Copies can be downloaded from the NGA website: http://www.nga.org

Mark Your Calendars! Book your Flights! Make your Reservations! Pack Your Bags! Planning is underway for SSTI's fourth and largest annual gathering of S&T policymakers and practitioners. The event will be held October 3-4, 2000 in Chicago, Illinois. As in the past, two limited-seating in-depth workshops will precede the conference on Monday, October 2. SSTI is particularly excited to hold the conference in Illinois – where technology-based economic development has become a focal point of the state's and Chicago's development strategies. The conference will be held at the historic Regal Knickerbocker Hotel (http://www.regal-hotels.com/chicago). The 305-room hotel provides an intimate-yet-formal setting for the event and is conveniently located on the top of Chicago's "Magnificent Mile" – home to the city's finest dining, shopping, and nightlife. A special room rate of $162 has been reserved at the hotel for SSTI conference registrants (mention the SSTI conference to get the discounted rate when calling 1-800-621-8140 to make reservations.) More details on the conference…

Jack MacLennan, Manager of the Office of Business Technology and Competitiveness within the Illinois Department of Commerce & Community Affairs, has announced he will be leaving state government at the end of February.

As part of his FY 2001 budget request, Illinois Governor George Ryan announced a five-year, $1.9 billion package of technology-related initiatives intended to put Illinois in a leadership position among states in science and technology. Illinois VentureTech includes several education and computer technology acquisition programs and the following S&T and research-related initiatives: More than $86 million would be used to boost funding for technology development programs in several organizations and agencies. The proposed budget for the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs (DCCA) includes the creation of a new Bureau of Technology and Industrial Competitiveness to enhance the state’s technology industry and to prepare workers for high-tech jobs. The bureau’s budget would include $25.8 million for technology programs, including an additional $4 million for the Technology Advancement and Development Act. Under the Act, DCCA would provide assistance to companies and research institutions to analyze, develop, and market technology products or processes that allow…

Shaye Mandle is the new President of the Illinois Coalition.