SSTI Digest

Ben Franklin Technology Partners (BFTP), Pennsylvania's tech-based economic development program, released a joint study by the independent Pennsylvania Economy League and KLIOS Consulting, which determined the economic impact of the organization between 2007-2011. These numbers aggregate the impact of the four regional Ben Franklin Technology Partners. In total, the activities of the organizations have resulted in 7,485 new jobs in client firms and an additional 12,715 indirect jobs as a result of these clients' activities, for a total of 20,200 jobs. The activities of BFTP increased the Gross State Product by $6.6 billion. The client companies directly returned $358 million in additional state taxes and a further $144 million in state taxes was received from related client services. In total, $502 million in state tax revenue was received, which represents a 3.6:1 tax return to the state on $137.7 million in state investments during the five year period.

In the January 2011 edition of the Harvard Business Review, Michael Porter and Mark Kramer called for a redesign of the existing business model and their role within society. Instead of simply embracing corporate responsibility and corporate giving, businesses should work to create shared value within their community by helping to support local clusters and institutions to address societal needs and issues. In the face of great uncertainty for the overall venture capital industry, it seems that some corporations might be heeding their advice. Over the last few years, there has been a rapid rise in the number of corporate-backed venture capital funds with long-term acquisition and absorption as the driving force. However, the lack of early stage capital in regions across the country also may be ushering in an era of public-private partnerships to create industry-led, locally focused venture capital funds.

Recent research on the evolving role of universities finds the emergence of an entrepreneurial society has contributed to a broader and more fundamental role for universities — that is to provide thinking, leadership and activity to enhance entrepreneurship capital. University-based entrepreneurship programs and initiatives seem to have gained steam following the recession with federal support for programs to enhance entrepreneurial efforts in states and regions and increased interest from students and out-of-work individuals. Freestanding entrepreneurship schools and creative programming to encourage risk taking are two recent examples of the evolving role of universities in the knowledge-driven economy.

Upbeat revenue forecasts and shared economic principles have Republican governors in four states requesting more funds for higher education tied to performance metrics or workforce outcomes. Recent budget proposals introduced in Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas focus on competing for talent and jobs through efforts to encourage STEM learning and teaching and incentivizing outcomes such as graduating more students in high-demand fields, conducting research and more. College affordability is addressed through measures that would freeze tuition or cap increases.

Highlights from the governors' budget proposals as they relate to higher education and economic development for the upcoming year or biennium are outlined below:

The Obama administration announced winners of the Advanced Manufacturing Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge on Tuesday. The challenge — publicized earlier this year — is one of the key initiatives of the interagency Taskforce for the Advancement of Regional Innovation Clusters and is sponsored by a partnership between the U.S. Department of Commerce, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Departments of Energy and Labor, and the Small Business Administration. Winners include programs in AZ, CA, MI, OK, TN, NY, PA, and a WA and OR bi-state partnership, each receiving approximately $2 million in grants. See the complete list of challenge winners and their reward amounts here. This is the third in a series of multiagency Jobs and Innovation Accelerator challenges administered since 2011. Learn more...

On Thursday, the Obama administration announced it had selected the TechBelt region, encompassing northeast Ohio, western Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia, to host the pilot institute of the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (NNMI). The new National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute (NAMII) will operate as a partnership of more than 60 companies, research universities, community colleges and nonprofit organizations from the region. As the pilot effort of NNMI, the partnership will receive $30 million in initial federal funding, with another $40 million from regional partners. The institute will be housed at Youngstown Business Incubator in Youngstown, OH.

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett has signed off on a series of bills intended to give state-owned universities more flexibility in working with regional businesses and creating new advanced degree programs. The bills are collectively known as the Higher Education Modernization Act and apply specifically to the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE), which is the nation's tenth largest state university system, incorporating Pennsylvania's 14 state-owned institutions. Under the new legislation, PASSHE universities would be allowed to create new applied doctoral programs to meet the needs of Pennsylvania businesses. Also, faculty, staff and students would be allowed to enter into agreements with businesses, enabling them to participate in entrepreneurial activities, internships and mentoring programs. Read the announcement...

Richard Bendis has been named the first president and CEO of BioHealth Innovation, Inc. a regional private-public partnership focusing on commercializing market-relevant biohealth innovations and increasing access to early stage funding in Central Maryland.

RI Gov. Chafee on May 17 accepted the resignation of Keith Stokes, executive director of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation. The RIEDC's deputy director, William Parsons, currently is serving in Stokes' place. Although a successor for Stokes has not been named yet, the governor has nominated six people to the board that oversees RIEDC after the vice chair and other members resigned. The nominations are subject to Senate confirmation.

In Pittsburgh, PA, The Technology Collaborative is dissolving. Innovation Works will take over some of TTC's programs.

Michael Pazzani, vice president for research and economic development at Rutgers, has accepted the position of vice chancellor for research and economic development at the University of California, Riverside, effective July 1.

Two common themes emerged in a trio of reports aimed at growing the bioscience sectors in Indiana, New York and Pennsylvania: the need for a sustained financial commitment from the states and the importance of a shared vision and better communication between policymakers and industry leaders. In all three reports, the authors say the payoff is big for the states. The bioscience and life science industries support high-wage jobs and attract significant federal funds.

Indiana

The Indiana Health Industry Forum unveiled a five-year strategic plan designed to create a renewed interest in growing Indiana's health sciences sector. Developing an early stage funding mechanism focused exclusively on health sciences and complementing the funding with a statewide support infrastructure geared towards health sciences-specific entrepreneurial support are listed as the top two recommendations.

The fifth installment of SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs' series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Ohio, Oklahoma and Pennsylvania. The first four installments are available in the Jan. 11, Jan. 18, Jan. 25, and Feb. 1 editions of the Digest. Ohio Gov. John Kasich, State of the State Address, Feb. 7, 2012 "And today I want to tell you about the best technology resource that you've never heard of. It's buried underground in Ohio. This will set us apart from every other state in America. "It's beyond high speed Internet. And I'm announcing today we're going to increase the speed of OARnet, from 10 gigabytes per second to 100 gigabytes per second and what does that mean? It's not Back to the Future with gigabytes. I mean, this really means something. ... This allows our research hospitals and universities to compete more successfully for the research grants that create breakthroughs in jobs. ... "We're also saying that it's not good enough to do research. If you don't commercialize and create jobs, what's the point? I can find you research on a top shelf in a building 140 years from now. Commercialize. Create jobs. Spinoff companies.

A newly established policy academy providing guidance and technical assistance will help seven states improve their environment for innovation and align state R&D investments, workforce development and education systems with current and future needs of advanced manufacturing industries. The policy academy will help each state develop a plan or overcome barriers for putting a plan into action through a highly interactive team-based process that includes input from NGA, MEP, EDA, SSTI, private sector consultants, and research organizations. Participating states include Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, New York, and Pennsylvania. Ideas and strategies resulting from the academy's work will serve as models for all states. NIST, MEP and EDA are providing funding, leadership and technical assistance to the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices. Learn more...

Maria Haley, the executive director of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission passed way Sept. 13 after suffering a brain aneurysm.

The U.S. Commerce Department's Economic Development Administration announced Matthew Erskine will join the agency as the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of Commerce for Economic Development and chief operations officer.

Tom Palisin has been named the acting deputy director of the Technology Investment Office at the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development.

The University of Utah selected Bryan Ritchie to be the next director of its Technology Commercialization Office.

Paul Washington has been named Denver's director of economic development.