In an effort to increase the economic impact of the state's university-based research, Gov. John Hoeven has included $50 million in his 2005-07 budget request to create Centers of Excellence on each of the North Dakota 's college campuses.

Commercialized research and Oregon's first signature research center are among those initiatives slated for funding in the governor's 2005-07 proposed biennial budget for the Oregon Economic and Community Development Department (OECDD). Gov. Ted Kulongoski's recommended budget, the "Oregon Principles," is centered around six core principles for targeted investments to deliver a strong return on taxpayer dollars.

Tight restrictions on student visas for foreign graduate students will hasten the erosion of America's global dominance in innovation, according to a University of Colorado at Boulder study.

Massachusetts' innovation indicators may be strong, but the conversion of innovation into new high tech jobs is lagging and the state’s median household income continues to dip, according to the latest Index of the Massachusetts Innovation Economy.

Public policies should seek ways to promote entrepreneurship in order to boost economic growth, according to a review of existing research by David Audretsch of Indiana University.

Foundations and philanthropists are playing increasingly important financial roles for many academic and regional technology-based economic development (TBED) efforts. The latest issue of Philanthropy News Digest, the weekly electronic newsletter of the FoundationCenter, highlights three recent announcements that provide examples of the size, scope and opportunity presented by these types of awards. The announcements are summarized below.

Evan Barrett was named chief business officer of The Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity in Montana.

Evan Barrett was named chief business officer of The Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity in Montana.

Betsy Biemann will be the new director of the Maine Technology Institute, pending legislative confirmation in January. Biemann currently serves as an associate director at The Rockefeller Foundation.

Peter Abramo has been named executive director of Cameron University’s Center of Emerging Technologies and Entrepreneurial Studies, effective Aug. 30.

Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich has appointed Robert Brennan to succeed Hans Mayer as executive director of the Maryland Economic Development Corporation. Mayer retired after holding the position for 17 years.

James Greenwood will take over as president of the Biotechnology Industry Organization from outgoing president, Carl Feldbaum. Congressman Greenwood has represented the Eighth Congressional District since 1993.

Florence Mendelson has resigned as president and CEO of Pittsburgh-based Innovation Works. She will remain in her position through the end of the year, helping to identify her successor and implement plans for fiscal year 2005.

The Purdue Research Foundation has appointed Robert J. Wichlinski as executive director of the new Purdue Technology Center of Northwest Indiana and Kathy DeGuilio-Fox as the center’s business development manager.

One word sums up today's efforts to build tech-based economies: challenging. A restructuring manufacturing base, revolutionary scientific breakthroughs, China and Inda heralding a truly global economy, and tight budgets have left many states and communities simply reacting to change or waiting for better times.

In the coming weeks, many Digest readers will receive the 24-page full color brochure in the mail. If you can't wait until then or want to make sure you get a copy, a PDF version is available for download on our conference website: http://www.ssti.org/conference04.htm [expired]

Slate of 30 breakout sessions SSTI's largest offering yet

The agenda is packed. Packed with great breakout session topics and engaging presenters. With as many as 30 breakout sessions, this year's conference offers something for everyone. The session titles are provided below. Brief descriptions of each topic are presented in the brochure and will be available our conference website:

The larger conference structure allows us to experiment with some of the sessions, adding elements to improve the event's value for most participants.

To get your experience at SSTI's annual conference off on the right foot, the City of Philadelphia proudly invites you to enjoy a private evening at its most beautiful and interesting new cultural center — the National Constitution Center. The evocative museum is the first devoted to one of the most important and innovative documents in world history — the U.S. Constitution.

On October 13, SSTI will offer four exciting options as pre-conference activities: three day-long sessions on topics that will help you prepare for tomorrow's challenges and a tour of one of the world's foremost science parks. The sessions are:

SSTI annual conferences don't come in a box. We don't publish proceedings or post conference materials. Each year's event is designed as an intensive learning experience; it's about the question and answer, the give and take, the push and pull, the dialogue as much as the individual presentations. You have to be present to win, if learning and growing is winning. We think it is.

Need yet another reason why this conference fits your training needs? SSTI’s 8th Annual Conference is recognized by the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) as a professional development event that counts toward the recertification of Certified Economic Developers (CEcDs).

Seattle 2003 Sold Out. Register Early to Ensure a Seat in Philadelphia

We heard from some of you last year about your disappointment and disbelief that you couldn't attend our annual conference in Seattle because it was sold out. It happens with SSTI conferences because our first concern is the quality of the event for our participants.

It seems discussion on Capital Hill of the burgeoning federal deficit is loudest when the House, Senate or Administration considers the VA, HUD and Independent Agencies appropriations bill. Perhaps the bill always serves as the fall guy because alphabetically it is the last of the 13 appropriations bills Congress considers, then ignores and then hurriedly mushes together with the other unpassed funding bills several months into the new fiscal year.

In an appropriations bill where cuts are viewed as good news -- compared to the President's request for program termination, that is -- the small Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund could consider itself very lucky after Friday's full House Appropriations Committee mark-up of the VA-HUD and Independent Agencies bill.