SSTI Digest

Many states across the country already have, or will soon have, signed budgets ready for the 2017 fiscal year.  Over the past few months, SSTI has examined gubernatorial addresses and proposed budgets for a preview of technology-based economic development spending in the coming year. This week, we take a look at what initiatives and spending levels survived spending negotiations in Alabama, Florida, Idaho and New Mexico, as well as an update on the budget situation in Pennsylvania. AlabamaIn February, SSTI reported that Gov. Robert Bentley’s $1.9 billion fiscal year 2017 budget proposal included $7.5 million in funds for the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA), with another $202.4 million in earmarked funds. The enrolled bill, delivered to the governor last week, includes these allocations. The governor has pledged to veto the general fund budget due to an “unacceptable” allocation for the state’s Medicaid program and other issues. The Republican leadership, which controls both houses of the legislature plan to override any such measure, according to AL.com. FloridaOn March 17, Gov. Rick Scott…

Illinois and Michigan are among the few states that support regular comprehensive examinations of the role higher education plays in the overall innovation economy. Organizations in both states recently completed studies on university-generated entrepreneurship, licensing, investment and employment, finding a steady rise in university economic impact over the past five years.  In both cases, the increase in university impact was linked to an expanding university role in supporting entrepreneurs and researchers. However, while the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition (ISTC) focuses on the creation of startups directly supported by university programs, the Michigan University Research Corridor (URC) takes a more expansive view, encompassing alumni entrepreneurs as a key pillar of university impact. In the most recent edition of the Illinois Innovation Index, ISTC reports that the state’s universities more than doubled their annual rate of startup creation between 2011 and 2015. More than 600 companies were launched during that period, with about 80 percent still active as of 2016. About 73 percent of the surviving firms were still based in Illinois. …

Last summer, SSTI and JumpStart Inc. conducted a survey of tech-based economic development (TBED) organizations on how groups use and invest in information technology tools. The goal of this survey was to gather a greater understanding of the basic challenges TBED organizations face with regard to information technology, as well as their self-identified strategic goals and whether they believe their IT spending priorities are helping them achieve these goals. Professionals from nearly 250 organizations, including universities, incubators, accelerators and economic development organizations took the survey, and the results are now available in the form of a whitepaper. The results confirmed a trend many experts have suspected for some time. Economic development leaders realize that technology can help them do more impactful work and satisfy increasingly demanding stakeholders. However, most are dealing with small to non-existent technology support teams as well as limited technology budgets. Read the whitepaper, Making the Most of TBED Technology Investments: A Survey of Industry Goals, Spending Priorities and Overall Strategic Confidence, to learn more about how TBED…

Earlier this month, SSTI highlighted recent research from the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) that detailed the critical role immigrants play in developing some of the most notable innovations in the U.S. While that study looked at particular inventions, new research from the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) finds that immigrants also play a major role in helping to found and nurture innovative startups. In an analysis of startup companies valued at $1 billion dollars or more, 51 percent (44 out of 87) were started by immigrants. Overall, more than 45 percent (20 out of 44) of the immigrants who started a company originally came to the United States as international students. In addition to helping found these high-growth companies, immigrants also played an important support role. In one of the first studies to analyze the role immigrants play on the management or product development teams leading these unicorns, the report notes that 62 of the 87 companies, or 71 percent, had at least one immigrant in a critical position, such as chief technology officer, CEO, or vice president of engineering. On average, the number of jobs created…

Despite its location more than 180 miles south of Gainesville, FL,  Sarasota County – which is far better known for its cultural and environmental amenities than industrial strength – will be home to the University of Florida’s first engineering extension office. Supported by more than $3 million in financial contributions from civic, philanthropic, and university organizations, the Sarasota County Innovation Station will be a physical location designed to encourage local students to look into UF's engineering program, provide internships through relationships with local businesses, and support startups and other entrepreneurial endeavors. Working out of 1,500 square feet at an office space selected by the university, the Innovation Station staff will include a director, a programs coordinator and a workforce programs coordinator. Seed money for the Innovation Station comes from the University of Florida and the Sarasota County Commission, both of which are providing $1 million in financial support. Furthermore, the Innovation Station would receive a five-year, $980,000 grant from The Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation, the center’…

In partnership with the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), the Economic Development Administration (EDA) announced the availability of $65.8 million in new funding through the Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) initiative. The POWER Initiative is a multi-agency effort aligning and targeting federal economic and workforce development resources to communities, regions and workers that have been affected by job losses in coal mining, coal power plant operations, and coal-related supply chain industries. The new funding will help communities and regions develop new strategies for economic growth and worker advancement. According to the Federal Funding Announcement, funds are available for a range of activities, including: Developing projects that diversify local and regional economies, create jobs in new and/or existing industries, attract new sources of job-creating investment and provide a range of workforce services and skills training; Building partnerships to attract and invest in the economic future of coal-impacted communities; and, Increasing capacity and other technical assistance fostering long term economic…

America Makes, the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute, announced the creation of the Additive Manufacturing Standardization Collaborative (AMSC) – an effort to coordinate and accelerate development of industry-wide additive manufacturing (AM) standards and specifications. In partnership with American National Standards Institute (ANSI), the collaborative will work with industry and other key stakeholders to identify existing standards as well as those in development, assess gaps, and make recommendations for areas perceived as needing additional standardization. To participate in the AMSC, email: amsc@ansi.org or sign up for email updates. In an effort to gain input from stakeholders, the AMSC inaugural meeting will be held from 9 A.M. to 3 P.M. on March 31 in Philadelphia, PA. The draft agenda and logistical information are available on the AMSC website. Advance registration for both in-person ($30) and remote participation is required. To guide AMSC efforts, Penn State researchers recently released an Additive Manufacturing Technology Roadmap to offer a strategy to help accelerate the design and…

Florida Higher Education – Is the Cheapest Fiscally Sound? provides evidence for the connection between state funding for universities and productivity. Florida Research Consortium and Florida Chamber Foundation combine a variety of data to advance three connections: 1) state funding for universities is exponentially related to total funding for universities; 2) total funding for universities is related to research quality; and 3) research quality is related to productivity within Metropolitan Statistical Areas. Although the report should be read with caveats regarding causality and constructed indices, the evidence and argument are worth discussing with university research stakeholders. Read more at: http://www.floridaresearch.org/files/Florida%20Higher%20Education%20-%20Is%20the%20Cheapest%20Fiscally%20Sound.pdf.

To celebrate the one year anniversary of the TechHire Initiative, the Obama administration announced an expansion of the program with the addition of 15 new communities. The administration also announced activities and commitments to help support career and technical education.  Originally announced in March 2015, the TechHire initiative seeks to educate workers through universities, community colleges, high-quality online courses, and other nontraditional approaches such as a coding bootcamp. Now representing 50 communities throughout the United States, examples of successful partnerships under the TechHire initiative include the use of: data and innovative hiring practices to expand openness to non-traditional hiring; models for training that prepare students in months, rather than years; and, active local leadership to connect people to jobs with hiring on ramp programs. Detailed in a fact sheet celebrating the program’s anniversary, the newest TechHire communities are: Atlanta, GA Austin, TX Burlington, VT Riverside, CA Flint, MI State of Hawaii Indianapolis, IN Jackson, MS Milwaukee, WI Raleigh, NC Jackson, TN Seattle, WA Tallahassee, FL Commonwealth…

Several recent studies have identified the roadblocks that females face in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields. These two roadblocks include gender bias in the classroom and too few mentors in K-16 STEM fields. In an attempt to increase opportunities for females in STEM education, both federal and foundation funders have announced programs that will increase scholarship and internship opportunities for young women in STEM fields. Males are more likely than females to be named by peers as being knowledgeable about the course content, according to a recent study from the University of Wisconsin – Males Under-Estimate Academic Performance of Their Female Peers in Undergraduate Biology Classrooms. The authors contend that this gender bias influences female students’ self-confidence and thus persistence in this STEM discipline. In another study, Rachel Robnett found that women who encountered gender bias in STEM education had lower self-confidence than participants who did not. In both studies, the authors contend that positive peer connections may be a valuable resource for girls and women in the STEM pipeline. In addition to the…

The Indiana Biosciences Research Institute (IBRI), first unveiled in May 2013, is a statewide public-private partnership advanced by BioCrossroads that considers itself the first industry-led collaborative life sciences research institute in the country. Late last month, the institute announced two new grants totaling $100 million that would support scientific innovation addressing metabolic disease and poor nutrition.  Of the $100 million in grants announced by IBRI, $80 million would come from the Lilly Endowment, with $45 million granted unconditionally and the remaining $35 million subject to dollar-for-dollar matching, encouraging contributions from the broader life sciences community. The Eli Lilly and Company Foundation contributed $20 million, which qualifies for the endowment’s match. An additional $15 million remains to be matched. This announcement comes just one month after the appointment of metabolic disease research scientist Raghu Mirmira as the first Indiana Research Fellow and interim Scientific Director for the Institute. IBRI’s research focus on diabetes, metabolic disease, and poor nutrition is directly related to the…

Angel investors are an essential component of the global economy, supporting ideas and innovators at their very earliest stages. In 2014, more than 200,000 American angels invested about $24 billion in 73,000 startups, according to the Angel Capital Association (ACA). Little data, however, exists on who these investors are and how they make their decisions. ACA, Wharton Entrepreneurship and the John Huston Fund for Angel Professionalism at Rev1 Ventures are launching a nationwide survey of angel investors to learn more. Angels who take the survey will be eligible to be in a drawing to receive complimentary tickets for angel education events, including the 2016 ACA Summit, May 9-11, 2016, in Philadelphia. The survey is available at: http://www.theamericanangel.org/