SSTI Digest

A new comprehensive study of the state of higher education in the United States says that as a whole, the nation has made large improvements in the percentage of high school students taking upper-level math and science courses.

However, taken individually, many states have a long way to go in order to adequately prepare students for college education, according to Measuring Up 2000, the first-of-its-kind report card by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, released November 30.

The report rated each state in five categories: preparation, participation, affordability, completion, and benefits. The authors used the familiar A-B-C grading scale and compared state-by-state.

Solicitations totaling more than $101 million have been released by the Department of Defense, Department of Energy, and the National Science Foundation (see the National Nanotechnology Initiative webpage at http://www.nano.gov for more details on each opportunity). The amount of funding available is one more indication of the importance that nanotechnology is expected to play in the future. The policy and programmatic implications for science, technology, and economic development programs will be significant as more applications are perfected and commercialized.

New legislation to help revitalize technology development in Washington, D.C. received unanimous approval from the Council of the District of Columbia and is expected to be signed by Mayor Anthony Williams.

The "New E-Conomy Transformation Act of 2000," contains eleven incentives designed to help transform the D.C. economy. Councilmember David A. Catania and the New E-conomy Advisory Group comprised of seven business leaders, developed the incentives targeted at companies engaged in e-commerce, Internet-based businesses, information technology, and other sectors of the New Economy. The Advisory Group identified barriers to locating in the District such as workforce development and affordable facilities, then crafted incentives designed to help businesses overcome them. The incentives include several tax credits, cuts, exemptions, and abatements, and lease guarantees for qualified companies.

All but one of the metro areas evaluated saw their high-tech industry employment grow during the last five years according to a 135-page report, Cybercities: A City By City Overview of the High-Technology Industry.

The report, assessing the U.S. high-tech industry in 60 metropolitan areas nationwide, was released Dec. 5 by AeA (formerly the American Electronics Association) and The Nasdaq Stock Market. As with previous AeA reports, the definition of high technology is narrowly defined as high-tech electronics manufacturing, communications services, and software and computer-related services.

The high-tech industry added 1.1 million new jobs nationally since 1993, or eight percent of the 13.8 million jobs created by the U.S. private sector in the same time span, the report said.

An analysis of 122 audits of economic development programs in 44 states revealed many areas for improvement, according to Good Jobs First, a project of the Washington, D.C.-based Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Minding the Candy Store: State Audits of Economic Development, released online in September, issues harsh criticism of many public economic development efforts. The report's remarks are spread across the individual economic development programs, the state auditing agencies, and the state elected officials.

Good Jobs First states properly designed performance audits or other external evaluations can be beneficial tools for policymakers to use in economic development program design, measurement, and refinement. Benefit analysis and evaluation of effectiveness were often lacking as goals or deliverables for most of the audits reviewed for the report. Among the report's other findings were:

"High paying jobs in growth areas are critically needed to offset the decline in wealth and employment from Alaska's North Slope. These new jobs require technical innovation, capital, management, and trained workers."

These two sentences summarize the findings of the first science and technology innovation index prepared by the Alaska Science & Technology Foundation (ASTF). The index provides a snapshot of the state's current position in science, technology and innovation. Using 31 measures distributed across four categories -- population and economic infrastructure, innovation, financial capacity, and infrastructure and human resources -- the 2000 Alaska S&T Innovation Index assessed those areas in which the state is doing well, average, or poorly compared with the national average and selected states. Other profiled states include California, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Washington, and Wyoming.

Continuing to rest on past academic excellence and research achievement would be costly to Greater Philadelphia, according to a new report prepared by the Pennsylvania Economy League. The region's "knowledge industry" must compete with other regions and states to succeed in the New Economy. A comprehensive study benchmarking Greater Philadelphia's knowledge industry was undertaken to gain a better understanding of the area’s colleges and universities and how they contribute to the region’s economic competitiveness. Three main suggestions and potential strategies for becoming one of the nation’s leading knowledge regions were offered in the report's recommendations:

Grow the Talent Base:

Kentucky Governor Paul Patton has appointed Bill Brundage to the serve as the state's first Commissioner for the New Economy. Dr. Brundage will oversee the new Kentucky Innovations Commission, which is attached to the Governor's Office and tasked to oversee the state's $55 million New Economy initiative.

Margie Boccieri has announced she is leaving the North Carolina Governor's Office to join Southeast Interactive Technology Funds, a Research Triangle Park venture capital firm, as its Vice President of Business Development and Strategy.

Lee Martin has stepped down as executive director from TennesSeed. Tom Rogers, CEO of Tech 2020, has agreed to serve as interim director of TennesSeed for a six-month period.

Kentucky Governor Paul Patton has appointed Bill Brundage to the serve as the state's first Commissioner for the New Economy. Dr. Brundage will oversee the new Kentucky Innovations Commission, which is attached to the Governor's Office and tasked to oversee the state's $55 million New Economy initiative.