SSTI Digest

The April 2025 issue of NBER Digest, a publication of the National Bureau of Economic Research, includes the following summary of a recent working paper. NBER grants permission to reproduce the piece here. While the research focuses on students’ experiences only in Texas, SSTI believes the findings likely could have policy value in other geographies striving to increase workers’ skill sets in an increasingly innovation driven economy. In Texas, disadvantaged students often forgo college entirely when far from a community college, while more advantaged students substitute towards four-year colleges. Proximity to a community college impacts college enrollment and degree completion, particularly for minority and low-income students. Consequently, disparities in geographic access to higher education contribute to educational attainment gaps across demographic groups. In Distance to Degrees: How College Proximity Shapes Students' Enrollment Choices and Attainment Across Race-Ethnicity and Socioeconomic Status (NBER Working Paper 33337), Riley K. Acton, Kalena Cortes, Lois Miller, and Camila Morales analyze administrative data covering all Texas public high…

How one applies and has their proposal reviewed to gain a small share of the world's largest funding source for life science research is changing. The following highlights modifications affecting grant applications submitted to the National Institutes of Health for due dates on or after January 25, 2025, as posted on their Implementation of New Initiatives and Policies page. NIH narrowed the framework for the peer review of most competing research project grant (RPG) applications. Excluded from the change are proposals for small business and multi-project grants. The new framework will reorganize the five regulatory criteria into three factors:  Importance of the Research, scored 1-9; Rigor and Feasibility, scored 1-9; and Expertise and Resources, to be evaluated as either sufficient for the proposed research or not.  In addition, NIH staff will now review the following additional review considerations: applications from foreign organizations, select agent research, and resource sharing plans. Peer reviewers will focus on whether or not the proposed research project should be conducted and, if so, whether it can be performed. More details…

April 16, 2025, 2:00pm EDTFree, registration required As the research article in today's Digest attests, tech transfer offices (TTOs) must adapt and evolve to maximize their institution's innovation potential! Join our upcoming webinar to explore the strategic landscape of centralized Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs). Discover how they are rethinking intellectual property management, licensing, and commercialization, and learn to weigh the advantages—like cost savings and enhanced service quality—against potential challenges, such as reduced flexibility. We'll delve into real-world examples of successful centralized TTOs, revealing the best practices driving their achievements. Gain invaluable insights tailored for policymakers, university administrators, and technology transfer professionals, and optimize your TTO's impact. Register now to revolutionize your approach! Speakers: Kayla Meisner, Executive Director, Kentucky Commercialization VenturesCharles Layne, Senior Technology Advancement Manager, Launch TennesseeCarlos Baez-Pagan, Associate Director, Puerto Rico Science, Technology, and Research Trust, Technology Transfer Office …

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro has asked the state legislature to inject $113 million into programs that support the commonwealth’s innovation economy—including $50 million for the PA Innovation Program, which provides a $30 million allocation specifically designated for the commercialization of life sciences and a $20 million fund to “support large-scale innovation, match federal awards to mitigate risks for start-ups, and leverage Pennsylvania’s best-in-class research and development assets.” Shapiro presented his FY 2025-2026 budget proposal and policy recommendations to state lawmakers in his Feb. 4 budget address. The balance of the $113.5M injection for innovation includes: $17 million for the Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority which funds the nationally recognized Ben Franklin Technology Partners, full funding for Keystone Innovation Zone research and development tax credits, which offer early-stage tech and life sciences companies up to $100,000 annually in sellable tax credits from a statewide pool of up to $15 million, $25 million for Agricultural Innovation Grants $3.5 million for a Pennsylvania Regional Economic…

As U.S. research institutions face funding uncertainty, countries and universities worldwide are launching initiatives to lure away our scientific talent: Twelve EU countries signed a letter calling for dedicated funding and an immigration framework in the next EU budget. Individual countries are taking separate actions. Belgium’s Vrije Universiteit Brussel has allocated €2.5 million ($2.7 million) for 12 postdoctoral fellowships specifically targeting American researchers through its European Marie Skłodowska-Curie program.

NOTE: The nation's community of technology-based economic development organizations is in its annual report season, and we've already seen several releases from SSTI members. All document TBED's impact on advancing research, moving it to market, and helping businesses improve their profitability and competitiveness. To help the TBED community prepare their own annual reports, SSTI is speaking with a few of our members to learn more about their evolving approaches to preparing their annual reports. This week, we share insights from our conversation based on an interview with Kate Calabra, interim CEO of the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition. The first three parts of this four-part series are available here, here and here. In recent years, the Illinois Science & Technology Coalition’s (ISTC) annual report was a landing page on the organization’s website. It was primarily text summarizing what the organization had done. However, the most recent report, a PDF document that spans 25 pages (minus front and back covers), is much different. That difference was "definitely intentional," said Kate Calabra, interim CEO of the Illinois…

In a country marked by regional diversity, gaining insights into economic performance often means looking beyond conventional state and county boundaries to economic hubs. This edition of Useful Stats uses Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) data to first compare U.S. metropolitan and micropolitan GDPs broken down by industry for the last 20+ years, then consider each Metropolitan Statistical Area’s GDP by private industry, highlighting patterns and changes over the past decades.   Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), as defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), “have at least one urban area of 50,000 or more population plus adjacent territory that has a high degree of social and economic integration with the core urban area as measured by commuting ties.” Approximately 86% of the nation's population resides within the 392 MSAs in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.[1] In addition to MSAs are micropolitan statistical areas (μSAs), defined by OMB as having “at least one urban area of at least 10,000 but less than 50,000 population, plus adjacent territory that has a high degree of social and economic integration with the core as measured by…

In the last twenty years, there has been a critical shift in the technology transfer landscape that calls for a fundamental overhaul of university Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) from focusing on passive IP management to active startup development, according to a recent SSRN article. In "Transforming TTOs: Filling the Existing Technology Commercialization Void," Timothy L. Faley argues that the traditional "patent and license" model, wherein TTOs facilitated the licensing of university-developed intellectual property (IP) to established corporations, has become increasingly obsolete. He identifies a "product-development void," a consequence of corporations pivoting towards acquiring market-validated startups rather than licensing raw IP. Faley argues for TTOs to adopt a "business building" model, actively nurturing startups from their inception, providing mentorship, and facilitating access to early-stage funding. He emphasizes that this transition requires a departure from traditional TTO metrics, such as licensing revenue and patent numbers, which he deems inadequate for assessing the success of a startup-driven ecosystem. Faley highlights the evolution of…

White House The Senate has confirmed Michael Kratsios to serve as director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy.  Ethan Klein of New Jersey has been nominated as associate director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy.Department of Commerce Paul Dabbar of New York has been nominated as deputy secretary of commerce. Harry Kumar of New York has been nominated as assistant secretary of commerce. John Squires of Florida has been nominated as under secretary of commerce for intellectual property and director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.Department of Defense Michael Dodd of Indiana has been nominated as an assistant secretary of defense for critical technologies. Katie Sutton has been nominated as an assistant secretary for cyber policy.  Laurie Buckhout has been selected to serve as the deputy assistant secretary of defense for cyber policy.Department of Health and Human Services The Senate confirmed Jay Bhattacharya to serve as director of the National Institutes of Health.  Marty Makary has been confirmed to serve as…

A recent Executive Order from the White House could jeopardize the Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) Fund and put at risk investments in small businesses. The EO calls for the “non-statutory components and functions” of several governmental entities, among them are the CDFI and the Minority Business Development Agency, “to be eliminated ... and such entities shall reduce the performance of their statutory functions and associated personnel to the minimum presence and function required by law.” The EO requires the listed entities to submit a report to the Office of Management and Budget within one week, March 21, explaining “which components or functions of the governmental entity, if any, are statutorily required and to what extent.”  The Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) pushed back on the notion that CDFI Fund programs engage in non-statutory components in a press release that stated, “all CDFI Fund programs are undertaken pursuant to statutory authorities and thus are not subject to the Executive Order.”  The CDFI Fund is a critical component of many regional economic development programs. For example, Launch NY, the only U.S.…

California Gov. Gavin Newsom recently released the state’s new  Jobs First Economic Blueprint, a comprehensive plan and major statewide economic initiative designed to spur sustainable economic growth on a region-by-region basis, to reflect the diverse character of the many parts and peoples of California.  Made up of 10 strategic industry sectors, including clean energy, advanced manufacturing, healthcare, agriculture and agtech, technology, and innovation, the California Jobs First Economic Blueprint will guide the state’s investments into the policies and programs that seek to create more jobs, faster and to ensure that the investments are sustainable and inclusive (including the regions’ rural, disadvantaged, or underserved communities). As such, the plan provides for: $125 million in funding to support new, ready-to-go projects that advance the regions’ strategic sectors (which includes manufacturing, construction, agriculture, tourism/recreation, the creative economy and tech), $92 million in total funding for new apprenticeship and jobs programs, of which $52 million is allocated towards new apprenticeships with a focus on high-demand sectors…

In this final coverage of gubernatorial addresses as they discuss the innovation economy, the following highlights have been selected from State of the States or budget addresses given between Feb. 18 and March 14, 2025, by the governors from Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, and Ohio.  Information on previous 2025 State of the States and/or budget addresses can be found here, here, here, and here. With revenues for many states relatively consistent with forecasters’ expectations, lawmakers, with a few exceptions, continue to maintain cautious or constrained views of their funding priorities and proposed initiatives. As a result, many governors in SSTI’s analysis of addresses delivered this season speak more to previously implemented programs and their continued successes rather than rolling out many new programs. However, new priorities for growing stronger innovation economies have not been completely overlooked.  On March 4, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis gave his State of the State address. Prior to his address, the administration rolled out a number of legislative priorities and budget proposals for fiscal year (FY) 2025-2026, including a tax…