SSTI Editorial: FY08 Budget Request: Research Up; Economic Development Down
When one looks beyond the first few pages of many sections of the agencies’ fiscal year 2008 budget request summaries, the mental concept of a television rerun appears. As SSTI staff pored through the budget this week, several found ourselves saying, “Didn’t we read the same thing last year?”
Editor's Note: Special Digest Edition as Part of Entrepreneurship Week
It is the nation’s first Entrepreneurship Week, with many events, workshops and contests taking place across the country to encourage more people to consider becoming entrepreneurs. A complete list of activities is available at www.entrepreneurshipweekusa.com. With this issue, SSTI honors America’s tech entrepreneurs – and the state and local TBED efforts designed to ensure more of these firms succeed!
Entrepreneurship Reports Available
This week's issue of the SSTI Weekly Digest exposes just the tip of the iceberg of information available on entrepreneurship. That's where the TBED Resource Center comes in handy. The TBED Resource Center, developed by SSTI in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Commerce's Office of Technology Policy, is an interactive website providing a wealth of information for practitioners, policymakers, university faculty, and researchers alike.
TBED People
John Griffin has been named acting director of the Ohio Department of Development's Technology Division.
SSTI Board Approves New Mission Statement
The field of tech-based economic development has changed dramatically since the creation of SSTI in 1996 and continues to change almost daily. With these changes in mind, SSTI is releasing a new mission statement that better defines the organization's current direction.
SSTI's new mission is to lead, support, and strengthen efforts to improve state and regional economies through science, technology, and innovation.
People
Steve Gage announced he will retire as president of MAGNET, the Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network, effective July 13. Fatima Weathers will serve as acting president for the manufacturing advocate in Northeast Ohio, beginning July 16.
Time to Apply for 2007 Excellence in TBED Awards
With the deadline less than two weeks away, we hope you are putting the finishing touches on your Excellence in TBED Award application.
SSTI Welcomes New Members
Together, we’re growing a strong and vibrant tech-based economic development community.
State Sponsors
Virginia Economic Development Partnership
Washington Life Sciences Discovery Fund
Affiliates
Are Dual Enrollment Programs a Good Option for Increasing Postsecondary Opportunities?
With the goal of improving the competitiveness of their workforces, many states and regions are searching for the best policies to encourage participation in educational opportunities beyond high school. Dual enrollment plans are one type of such policies that enable students to enroll in postsecondary level courses while still in high school.
Ohio Location Chosen as Home for New Defense Metals Technology Center
North Canton, Ohio, has been chosen as the site for the nation's newest Department of Defense (DoD) Center of Excellence. Centers of Excellence deal with specific military technology needs that are deemed critical to the nation's defense and security.
Partnership Opportunities Available at SSTI's 2007 Conference
SSTI’s Annual Conference provides the opportunity to place your organization at the center of the tech-based economic development community, reinforce your brand, and build relationships in 2007 and beyond.
Ohio Rewarding Commercializing Universities with Cash
University administrators most commonly measure success for their technology transfer efforts by revenue generation. Public institutions, however, increasingly have state legislators, governors and local civic leaders expecting those licenses and spinoffs to occur within their political borders. Tech transfer does not always equate to regional economic development to the degree desired by policymakers.
Call for Nominations for TBED Research Award
At the 2007 SSTI annual conference, the Trent Lott National Center of Excellence for Economic Development & Entrepreneurship <http://www.trentlottcenter.com/> intends to make an award to the researcher or research team that has made the most significant impact on the field of technology-based economic development in the last five years.
SSTI Conference 2008 Bid Packet Now Available
The 2008 SSTI Annual Conference could come to your city!
Increase your national and international visibility by showcasing the success of your state and/or community’s tech-based economic development efforts to thousands of TBED professionals through SSTI's conference. This is your opportunity to shine in the spotlight.
Some of the host benefits include:
People & TBED Organizations
Jim Cookinham, founder of the Northeast Ohio Software Association and vice president of networks and education for COSE (Council for Smaller Enterprises), said he will retire at the end of 2007.
SSTI Selects Cleveland for 2008 Annual Conference: October 14-16, 2008
On the heels of our successful 2007 annual conference, held last week in Baltimore, SSTI is pleased to announce that Cleveland will be the location for our 12th annual conference. The nation’s premier event for sharing ideas on the best ways to encourage technology-based economic development and foster regional prosperity in a global economy will be held at the InterContinental Hotel in Cleveland, Oct. 14-16, 2008.
Recent Research: New Report Offers Advice for Emerging Tech Transfer Universities
While discussions of successful university technology transfer programs tend to revolve around a select set of high-achieving institutions, a number of less-recognized institutions are now being proposed as national models for their approaches to entrepreneurial support and regional outreach.
SSTI Weekly Digest “Planning Innovation Spaces” Special Issue
Edison had Menlo Park. Monet had the gardens at Giverny. Ubiquitous computing had PARC. To what extent were the great things that happened at each of these localities influenced by the places themselves?
Reducing that question to economic development policy terms: Can the places of great creations be created by design?
SSTI Calendar of Events: Something for Everyone
Looking for that perfect professional development opportunity for you or your staff. If so, the SSTI Web calendar of events should prove useful in your search.
By visiting www.ssti.org/calendar.htm, you can view more than 170 technology-based economic development events.
Events include:
Ohio's Third Frontier to Make Second Pass on Quasi-Transportation/Economic Development Ballot Initiative
A ballot initiative designed to bolster the Ohio economy and create jobs by continuing the state’s public works infrastructure program and supporting the commercialization of science and technology-based research was announced last week by Gov. Bob Taft and other legislative leaders. The initiative, to appear on the Nov.
University of Toledo Seeks Director for S&T Corridor
The University of Toledo and its partners are seeking a director for the Toledo Science and Technology Corridor. The Corridor is an initiative to enhance the region's innovation-based economy through investments that promote linkages and collaboration among academic institutions, business industries and government entities.
People
The University of Cincinnati has appointed Anne Chasser to serve as associate vice president for technology transfer and commercialization in the school's Office of Research.
Final Component of Ohio's Third Frontier to Be Placed On Nov. Ballot
Following defeat at the polls two years ago, Ohio's state legislature has agreed nearly unanimously to again have voters decide on whether or not the state can issue bonds in support of the final component of Gov. Bob Taft's tech-based economic development strategy -- Ohio's Third Frontier Initiative.
Publisher's Note: Stickley, Sheets Join SSTI
SSTI is proud to announce the addition of two new staff members to its team. Sheri Stickely will join SSTI on Aug. 15 as a Vice President. Sheri is leaving the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Technology (OCAST) to join SSTI. She has served most recently as Interim Executive Director and has been with OCAST since its inception in 1987.
People
Citing a reorganizing, the Delaware Economic Development Office fired 20 percent of its staff (10 positions) last Thursday. According to the Associated Press and local news sources, among those relieved of their duties were Janet Wurtzel, chief operating officer, and Rob Propes, entrepreneurial and small business support director.