Washington State is attempting to replicate the success of North Carolina’s Research Triangle in promoting regionalism and industry clusters through a new Innovation Partnership Zones initiative.
The angel market may be showing the first signs of leveling off following four years of moderate sustained growth. Angel investment in U.S. companies fell 6 percent in the first two quarters of 2007, according to the University of New Hampshire's Center for Venture Research (CVR).
The National Governors Association (NGA) Center for Best Practices has selected seven states to participate in a year-long policy academy named State Strategies for Promoting Innovative Clusters and Regional Economies. Teams from the seven states – Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Oregon and West Virginia – will collaborate with staff from the NGA to create action plans for improving each state’s competitiveness and economy through cluster development.
Announced last week, Ivy Tech Community College will receive a $3.18 million grant for training individuals from a 14-county region in North Central Indiana in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. The grant, a component of the $15 million Indiana Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Labor, will establish the New Pathways to STEM-based Careers program. The New Pathways program will be concentrated into three distinct areas:
Arizona State University professor James Collins is the new assistant director for biological sciences at the National Science Foundation.
Larry Cox is the new director of the Ball State University Entrepreneurship Program, effective Aug. 22.
Arizona State University professor James Collins is the new assistant director for biological sciences at the National Science Foundation.
Larry Cox is the new director of the Ball State University Entrepreneurship Program, effective Aug. 22.
Louisiana Department of Economic Development announced Robert Fudickar will be the technology industry director for the state agency.
Russel Hancock is the new president and CEO of Joint Venture: Silicon Valley.
The U.S. Department of Commerce is promoting Chris Israel to serve as coordinator for international intellectual property enforcement. The new position will coordinate interagency protection efforts to combat international IP piracy.
William "Bill" Mahoney is the new president and CEO of the South Carolina Research Authority.
Joan Myers, president and CEO of Raleigh-based N.C. Technology Association, is the 2005-2007 president for the Council of Regional Information Technology Associations (CRITA).
Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski appointed Bill Noll as commissioner of the Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development. Noll has been serving as the governor's communications director.
Jack Pfunder is the new executive director of the Manufacturers Resource Center in Bethlehem, Pa.
Pat Snider, the first CEO for BioGenerator in St. Louis, announced her departure from the two-year-old organization by the end of the year.
The new director of the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship at Purdue University will be Jerry Woodall.
President Bush is nominating John Young Jr. to serve as director of Defense Research & Engineering. Young is currently Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition.
Only a dozen seats remain available for new registrations to attend SSTI's 11th Annual Conference, which will be held Oct. 18-19 in Baltimore's fun-packed Inner Harbor. That's 12 seats, not a baker's dozen of 13. Given the two-week lead time before the event, SSTI strongly anticipates we will not be able to accommodate walk-in registrations the day of the conference. We encourage those of you making arrangements or planning to attend to register as soon as possible.
Just a few short months ago, many states were wrapping up their 2007 legislative sessions and preparing for the start of a new fiscal year. Laying the groundwork for a successful 2008 session, two governors recently announced major TBED initiatives that will be presented to lawmakers in the coming months.
Socially-responsible entrepreneurs at the University of Maryland now have a new financial resource available to help them get new businesses off the ground. The university's Impact Pre-Seed Fund program will offer grants to students with business plans that could offer potential benefits to global society.
Earlier this year, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano and the Arizona State Legislature committed $100 million over four years to support Science Foundation Arizona, a nonprofit public-private partnership to coordinate the state’s R&D investments in science and technology. The catch? The law required a dollar-to-dollar match of non-government funding of the annual $25 million allotment before the state could release its funding to Science Foundation Arizona.
At some point, most start-up businesses require an infusion of outside capital to grow into a profitable enterprise. This infusion often comes in the form of venture capital (VC) investment, which provides capital and some degree of managerial guidance in exchange for an equity stake in the company.
Within economic development literature, many researchers believe the success of regional industry clusters is dependent on the strength and quantity of local “gatekeepers” – the organizations, firms and individuals that both draw knowledge from outside the region and distribute knowledge within the region. But what are the characteristics of these gatekeepers that may lead to a more productive exchange of knowledge?
Early registration is nearly over and the conference hotel is full, but you still have the opportunity to join representatives from 47 states and Canadian provinces at SSTI's 11th Annual Conference in Baltimore, Oct. 18-19, 2007 -- the nation's premier gathering for the tech-based economic development field.
Congress may be able to use a Continuing Resolution to keep most of the federal government open after the fiscal year ends Sept. 30, but the Technology Administration (TA) will be closing forever this Sunday.