SSTI Digest

James Weyhenmeyer has been named the vice president for Research and Economic Development at Georgia State University. Previously, Weyhenmeyer was the senior vice provost for Research and Economic Development in the Office of the Provost of the State University of New York system. He succeeds Robin Morris, who has assumed the position of associate provost for Strategic Initiatives and innovation.

Robert McMahan Jr. has been named president of Kettering University. McMahan joins Kettering from Western Carolina University, where he was the founding dean and professor of The Kimmel School.

As the cost of a college education continues to rise and good paying jobs are seemingly scarcer than ever before, many Americans are questioning the value of a college degree. A recent survey from the Pew Research Center found 57 percent of Americans believe the U.S. fails to provide good value for the money students and their families spend, and about four in ten college presidents say the system is headed in the wrong direction. At the same time, however, studies find the lifetime earnings of college graduates to be much higher than those of high school graduates. Further, students majoring in engineering, computers and mathematics can expect to make more money than any other undergraduate major.

This week, White House officials announced several new initiatives to modernize the U.S. electrical power grid and boost the development of clean energy technologies.The initiatives include $250 million in loans for smart grid technology deployment, a private sector effort to provide consumers with detailed energy usage information and a new White House Renewable Energy Rapid Response Team to speed the review of proposed renewable energy projects. By improving consumer access to energy usage data, the White House hopes to spur the development of entrepreneurial businesses that help Americans make informed decisions about their energy spending. The announcement was accompanied by a new report from the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) that outlines the Administration's long-term goals for its smart grid investments.

Lawmakers passed two major jobs bills during the 2011 legislative session; one modifying several economic development programs and supporting entrepreneurship and innovation, and the other providing incentives to attract large companies to the state. A proposal dubbed Bioscience Connecticut, centered on renovating and expanding the University of Connecticut Health Center, also won legislative approval.

HB 6525 establishes and modifies several economic development programs, including two measures aimed at retaining recent college graduates. Under the new Learn Here, Live Here program, students graduating in the state after 2014 will be eligible for a first-time home-buyers tax credit up to $2,500. The bill requires recipients to remain in the state for five years. Another measure expands eligibility under the student loan reimbursement program to residents receiving degrees in biomedical engineering and the manufacture of medical devices. The program provides tuition reimbursement for students who obtain degrees related to green technology, life science or health information technology.

On June 13, President Obama's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness presented their initial "progress report" on their ongoing projects to catalyze short-term job creation in the U.S. Eleven ideas were offered at the meeting, including working with community colleges to train and employ advanced manufacturing workers, building public-private partnerships to graduate and retain 10,000 new engineers, expanding the EB-5 visa-for-entrepreneurs program and simplifying the process for Small Business Administration loans. Read the Ideas Factsheet...

In an effort to persuade foreign and domestic companies to set up shop or expand operations in the U.S., President Obama signed an executive order establishing the SelectUSA initiative. A major component of the initiative includes a searchable database of federal programs and services such as information on grants, loans and tax incentives. The website also provides a clickable map of the U.S. directing companies to individual state economic development agencies and an industry snapshot page showcasing innovative sectors of the U.S. economy poised for global growth. The announcement was made today during the Business Roundtable in D.C. Visit the website...

The Council on Competitiveness in partnership with Deloitte released Ignite 2.0: Voices of American University Presidents and National Lab Directors on Manufacturing Competiveness, the second installment of a three-part series on improving U.S. manufacturing competitiveness. According to the report, talent-driven innovation, education and advanced skills development coupled with research, science, technology and full life-cycle commercialization are the necessary drivers for a U.S. manufacturing resurgence. Five goals for colleges, universities and the national labs to improve U.S. manufacturing competitiveness are outlined including:

"Investment in science, technology and innovation is increasingly being seen by African countries as an essential element in responding to the continent's socio-economic development needs and challenges," according to a statement by Dr. Ibrahim Assane Mayaki, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency to announce the release of the African Innovation Outlook 2010. The African Innovation Outlook 2010 is "first in a series of reports that are intended to inform the people of Africa and other interested parties about the status of science, technology and innovation activities in African countries." Using survey response and data from 19 members of the African Union, the report is the first African-led, politically authorized effort to generate a comprehensive and comparative survey of science, technology and innovation (STI) on the continent. NEPAD Agency's African Science Technology and Innovation Indicators (ASTII) Initiative collected data for the report. The six-chapter report examines:

Maine Gov. Paul LePage has nominated George Gervais, the acting commissioner of the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development as commissioner. His nomination must be reviewed by the Joint Standing Committee on Labor, Commerce, Research and Economic Development and confirmed by the Senate.

Ned Staebler, former vice president of entrepreneurial services of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, has taken the position of vice president of economic development at Wayne State.

Much of the recent economic recovery plans coming from governors across the country have focused on growing and nurturing existing businesses through a regional approach to economic development. The idea is that by identifying and defining the unique needs of a region, policymakers and practitioners can then provide the necessary tools and resources to grow industries likely to succeed within a given region, thus improving the overall economic landscape of the state. This approach is happening both in states and at the local level.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that the Bayh-Dole Act does not grant universities the unlimited right to patents resulting from federal research grants. In a 7-2 vote, the Court found that a professor could sign over the right to intellectual property (IP) that resulted from collaborative research with a private company. Stanford University argued that Bayh-Dole granted universities a right to IP that could not be signed away by the inventor. The ruling means that universities will have to clarify their claim to IP rights in their contracts with inventors, according to an article in The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Michigan state agencies in collaboration with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and several private industries and organizations will offer economic development incentives, startup capital, and support services valued around $3 billion to help grow Michigan-based small businesses in emerging industry sectors. The Pure Michigan Business Connect initiative matches people with resources and strengthens relationships to fuel economic growth, according to a press release. Incentives offered by some of the participating organizations include $2 billion in lending over four years from Huntington National Bank and $100 million for second stage funding for Michigan businesses with innovative technologies to accelerate large-scale commercialization. Consumers Energy and DTE Energy also pledged to dedicate an additional $250 million each over five years to purchase goods and services from Michigan-based suppliers. The initiative builds on Gov. Rick Snyder's economic development plans centered on regionalism and economic gardening outlined during his State of the State address.