Leaders of Central Indiana's top research, academic and economic development organizations announced on Wednesday an effort to develop the region as a world-class center for the life sciences industry.

Companies seeking venture capital investments through the Great Midwest Venture Capital Conference have until August 25 to apply for consideration. The conference, this year taking place October 30-31 in Knoxville, Tennessee, annually draws around 200 investors and other financial professionals. The tenth annual event is organized by the Indiana Business Modernization and Technology Corporation and Technology 2020, located in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. 

Purdue University plans to seek $15 million in matching funds from the state to establish and support five technology business incubators or regional technology centers around Indiana. The state also will be asked to provide $6.25 million in funding for administrative support over the first four years of the centers’ operations.

Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue appointed Debra Lyons to lead the newly created Office of Workforce Development.

Dr. R. Kelly Dawe was named the inaugural Georgia Research Alliance (GRA) Distinguished Investigator, a new level of investment made by GRA.

Few private foundations across the country have made a comparable commitment in size or duration toward improving a single state's ability to participate in a knowledge-based economy as the Lilly Foundation has for Indiana. The latest round, reported in this week's online Chronicle of Higher Education, promises a total of $138 million to match donations received by Indiana's accredited colleges and universities.

Joseph Hornett has been selected to serve as senior vice president and treasurer of the nonprofit Purdue Research Foundation (PRF). Hornett currently is COO for Sport Service, Inc. in Indianapolis. PRF holds more than 130 properties and 10,000 acres of Indiana farmland near Purdue University, including the Purdue Research Park.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) requests cooperative agreement proposals to support an intervention epidemiologic research study of HIV/AIDS. The purpose of the program is to evaluate how different levels of antiretroviral therapy affect HIV-1 infection. Eligible applicants include public and private nonprofit organizations, governments, universities, research institutions, hospitals, and Indian tribal organizations. A total of $400,000 is anticipated to fund two awards.

Georgia Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism commissioner W. Glenn Cornell has announced his retirement, effective June 30. Craig Lesser is Gov. Sonny Perdue's recommendation as Cornell's successor.

Elizabeth Gatewood has been named director of Wake Forest University's new Office of Entrepreneurship and Liberal Arts. At Indiana University, Gatewood was the Jack M. Chair of Entrepreneurship and the director of the Johnson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

A massive state budget deficit, partisan squabbles, and a longstanding need to restructure the state's tax code almost derailed Indiana's largest commitment toward building a technology-based economy.

The Georgia Research Alliance (GRA) is facilitating the expansion of VentureLab at the state’s research universities. Piloted at the Georgia Institute of Technology, VentureLab is a strategy for enhancing and accelerating the process of spinning new technology-based enterprises out of university research.

The United States Innovation Partnership (USIP) reported on a recent roundtable discussion on the 21st Century Economy. The topic of the discussion was the role of states in science and technology. The roundtable highlighted "best practices" in technology-based economic development in five states (Oklahoma, Kansas, Indiana, Utah, and Pennsylvania).

The 1998 annual report of the Indiana Business Modernization and Technology Corporation (BMT) addresses various changes encountered by the organization this year.

The Indianapolis-based Lilly Foundation is providing nearly $60 million in two grants to help make Indiana more competitive for technology research and education and high-tech business development. The grants were made to Indiana University and the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

Last week, Indiana Governor Frank O'Bannon named the Board of Directors to oversee the design and administration of the new 21st Century Research & Technology Fund. By law, the Lieutenant Governor serves as chairman for the board.

The State Science and Technology Institute’s (SSTI) third annual conference will focus on how to meet the challenge of the New Economy through science and technology programs.

The conference will focus on some of the largest issues facing policy makers and practitioners, including:

One year ago this month, in the midst of a booming economy, Georgia Governor Roy Barnes announced a new $100 million, five-year initiative to advance the state’s position in the research and production of key components of the global economy. The Yamacraw Mission, named after one of the state’s first colonial settlements, focuses on research, education, and economic development in microchip design and high-bandwidth communications.

Bill Todd, President of the Georgia Research Alliance (GRA), has announced he will leave GRA early in 2000 to join a new technology seed investment fund.