Dr. Melvyn Schiavelli, senior program officer for the Harrisburg Polytechnic Development Corporation, has been named acting president and CEO, succeeding Dr. Charles Clevenger.

Lt. Gov. Gary Sherrer has left his position as secretary of the Kansas Department of Commerce and Housing to become executive vice president with GoldBanc Corp. Sherry Brown, who had retired from the department, will return to serve as interim secretary.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently announced 24 awards under the new Math and Science Partnership (MSP) Program — an anticipated investment of $240 million over five years in projects to improve the achievement of K-12 students in science and mathematics. The Department of Education is an NSF partner in this effort, co-funding two projects involving state education agencies.

Innovation Philadelphia (IP), the public-private partnership dedicated to enhancing the global innovation economy of Philadelphia through technological leadership, received on Monday a $442,500 investment from the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration.

Universities and the investment they pour into R&D are "major factors" that contribute to a region's economic growth, concludes a recent report funded by the Ewing Marion Kaufman Foundation, NCOE and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The report's results show the growth occurs in less time than traditionally has been noted and that small firms innovate at a rate almost twice that of large firms.

The continuing layoffs of thousands of workers, particularly in the information and communication tech sectors, creates significant hardships for the affected local and regional economies. For instance, a recent Federal Reserve Bank report noted office vacancy rates in Silicon Valley hovering around 40 percent.

Leslie McGranahan, in Unprepared for Boom or Bust: Understanding the Current State Fiscal Crisis, highlights the problems that are inherent in state policy when dealing with the cyclical behavior of the economy.

NASA has announced the Langley Research Center in Hampton, VA, will team with the National Institute of Aerospace Associates (NIAA), Reston, VA, to create the National Institute of Aerospace (NIA) to perform aerospace and atmospheric research, develop new technologies for the nation and help inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers.

The Association of American Universities has posted the text of a September 17 letter written by Rita Colwell, Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF), that outlines the Bush Administration's opposition to S. 2817, a bill to double the size of the NSF budget over a five-year period.

The future of Virginia's Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) became clearer on Wednesday with Governor Mark Warner's release of Commonwealth of Virginia Strategic Plan for Technology for 2002-2006. CIT has a lead position for half of the eight initiatives outlined in the 129-page document.

Highlights of "One Virginia," CIT's portion of the plan, call for:

Following President Bush's call for the nation to "be aggressive about the deployment of broadband," the Technology Administration within the U.S. Department of Commerce recently issued Understanding Broadband Demand — a 25-page paper examining the state of broadband demand and usage in the U.S. and identifying successes, challenges and actions to promote more aggressive uptake.

Joined by actor Christopher Reeve and several of California's leading biotech researchers, Governor Gray Davis Sunday signed legislation designed to promote stem cell research in California.

On Thursday, Illinois Governor George Ryan announced nearly $3 million in state grants for eight Illinois Technology Enterprise Corporation (ITEC) centers, quadrupling the number of ITECs. Funded by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs (DCCA), the centers assist technology-based start-up businesses and serve as incubators for the new ventures.

A $500,000 state grant approved Thursday by South Dakota Governor Bill Janklow will help create a center in Sioux Falls for fledgling technology businesses.

Cluster-based economic development policy has gained wide acclaim in recent years as interest has grown in utilizing “cluster theory” in economic development. Some have found this idea to be appealing while others have been a bit less receptive of its ideas. Three recently released papers address cluster-based economic development from different angles. The first article explores options for utilizing cluster-based economic development in less advantaged regions.

A regional partnership of economic development organizations, led by the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), announced the launch of the Northwest Technology Investor Network last week. The network is an online forum that links investors and entrepreneurs in the high-tech sector.

True technology growth for Orange County hinges on a broader, more supportive infrastructure, argues the latest research report by the Los Angeles Regional Technology Alliance (Larta).

From angel capital to university technology commercialization, there are myriad facets to technology-based economic development (TBED). The key to success lies in a solid understanding of your respective element of the field — from grasping the policy issues to developing effective programs and practices to implementing sound evaluation techniques.

The SSTI Weekly Digest and Funding Supplement will not be published next week as the office will be closed during SSTI's 6th Annual Conference, Building Tech-based Economies: From Policies to Practice on October 1-3.

The next issue of the SSTI Weekly Digest will be released on October 11.