The Trent Lott National Center of Excellence for Economic Development & Entrepreneurship is pleased to announce its inaugural Excellence in Technology Based Economic Development Research award will be made to Dr. Edward Feser on Oct. 19, 2007, at the SSTI 11th Annual Conference in Baltimore.

 

Chris Engle, former vice president of Angelou Economics, has joined New Economy Strategies as chief project officer and principal.

Last month, New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine signed a bill that will contribute $270 million to the construction of five biotechnology research facilities across the state. The funding source will be bonds backed up by cigarette tax revenue, as issued by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority. Gov.

Angie Dvorak, vice president of research and economic development for the University of Southern Mississippi, is becoming president of the university's research foundation.

Virginia Bauer, former New Jersey commerce secretary, was sworn in as CEO and secretary of the New Jersey Commerce & Economic Growth Commission.

University of Southern Mississippi Research Foundation President Angie Dvorak was named president of the Area Development Partnership. Dvorak currently serves on the organization’s executive committee.

Fred Kocher has been elected president of the New Hampshire High Technology Council, which advocates technology-based businesses in New Hampshire.

Location-based tax incentives to encourage the clustering of technology companies in distressed areas or around research universities has grown in popularity since Michigan's smart zones were created several years ago.

Reports suggest New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey, resigning his office in mid-November, will be named the first director of the Stem Cell Institute of New Jersey. Securing funding for the center has been a legislative priority for the Governor this year.

In a move to integrate technology and traditional learning, New Hampshire Governor Craig Benson introduced on Tuesday a four-year pilot program to bring laptop computers into classrooms. The program, Technology Promoting Student Excellence, is intended to provide wireless connectivity to all 7th-grade students and teachers from selected schools.

John Tesoriero has left the New Jersey Commission on Science & Technology to become Associate Director of the Center for Advanced Information Processing at Rutgers University. David Eater is Acting Executive Director for the Commission as a search is conducted for a permanent replacement.

With the sustained depth of the recession, the IT crash, the rapid growth in unemployment and the speculative office construction craze of the late 1990s, one would expect office vacancies to climb and property lease rates to edge down in many cities. Following this thought further might suggest, with cheaper office space available, the need for publicly supported low-rent technology incubator space would decrease.

The Fourth of July might just be a paid holiday for New Jersey's tech-based economic development agency after all. Since Governor James McGreevey released his FY 2004 budget request six months ago, the New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology has been living under a June 30 death sentence. Facing a deficit forecast in excess of $4 billion, the governor had called for the elimination of the $15 million program.

To help make his state a leader in research, development and innovation, New Jersey Governor James McGreevey recently signed an executive order establishing the Commission on Jobs, Growth and Economic Development. Highlighting the state's strengths but calling for it to move forward, even with a $5 billion budget shortfall looming, the governor said the commission is needed to put New Jersey in position to be more competitive.

The Mississippi Technology Alliance has released a second annual index focusing on the process of innovation, the links between innovation and technology-based economic development, and activities that government, academia and the private sector provide to support innovation and economic development.

Community buy-in to building a technology-based economy is vital for TBED success. Establishing a strong private sector commitment to science and technology can make a significant difference, particularly as elected officials are deciding what to cut or trim from the budget. TBED organizations use different approaches to get the buy-in. In states such as Massachusetts (see story in this Digest), the top-down direction from the Governor could provide the group critical access.

NJCST Out, Cancer Research In

Sean O'Kane, a hotel manager from Manchester, N.H., has been confirmed as the new commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Resources and Economic Development.

Dave Eater has announced his departure from the New Jersey Science and Technology Commission.

George Bald, Commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Resources and Economic Development, has announced his resignation to become executive director of the Pease Development Authority.

Sherrie Priesche, the science and technology advisor to New Jersey Governor James McGreevey, has been appointed as the new executive director for the New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology.

"We cannot be satisfied with simply passing stem cell research legislation."

As the nation's economy shifts to knowledge- and technology-based industries, Mississippi's colleges and universities must provide expertise and leadership to attract new jobs and build a stable state economy, members of a special committee told the state House of Representatives last week.

Leland Speed has been named the new executive director of the Mississippi Development Authority.

Andy Taggart has been appointed president and chief executive officer of the Mississippi Technology Alliance.