Know Your Region webinars

The Economic Development Administration (EDA) has announced its updated schedule of bi-weekly webinars in its Know Your Region series focusing on innovative economic tools and strategies.

Registration for these webinars is available through www.knowyourregion.org

The first webinar was held on January 13 - Mapping the Nation's Regional Innovation Clusters. The analytical slides from Harvard University's Dr. Christian Ketels' presentation on that date may be found here.

Upcoming webinars include:

Rural Solutions for Regional Clusters
Thursday, January 27 (2 to 3:30 pm, Eastern)

WIB-EDD Collaboration for Fostering Regional Innovation
Thursday, February 10 (2 to 3:30 pm, Eastern)

Exploring New Ideas for Rural Wealth Creation Strategies
Thursday, February 24 (2 to 3:30 pm, Eastern)

Tapping Your Region's Export Potential
Thursday, March 10 (2 to 3:30 pm, Eastern)

Incorporating Entrepreneurship into Regional innovation Strategies
Thursday, March 24 (2 to 3:30 pm, Eastern)

Global Trends in Regional Innovation
Thursday, April 7 (2:00 to 3:30 pm, Eastern)

State-Led Regional Innovation Cluster Initiatives
Thursday, April 21 (2:00 to 3:30 pm, Eastern)

Enterprise Creation initiative

The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City, Missouri, and the San Francisco-based Arthur & Carlyse Ciocca Charitable Foundation have announced a partnership designed to help more entrepreneurs start the high-growth firms needed to boost the U.S. and global economies.

The Ciocca Foundation awarded $600,000 to help Kauffman double the number of participants in the Kauffman Labs for Enterprise Creation initiative, an effort to recruit and train aspiring entrepreneurs who have the potential to launch transformative, billion-dollar companies.

"Partnering with Kauffman gives our foundation a vehicle to expand investments into a wider range of entrepreneurial activities, with a much higher probability of success and without adding expensive and inefficient infrastructure," said Ciocca Foundation director Zack Georgeson. "During this extraordinary time in philanthropy, many wealthy individuals are pledging to donate a majority of their wealth to causes dedicated to solving society's current problems. It is my hope that the Kauffman Foundation will be seen as a highly effective vehicle for 'preventing' future societal problems by helping to restore growth and employment in our economy through innovation and entrepreneurship."

“Kauffman Foundation and Arthur & Carlyse Ciocca Foundation Partner to Stimulate Economic Growth.” Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation Press Release 1/19/11.

TAA Community College and Career Training Grants

Description

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL or the Department) announces the availability of up to $500 million in grant funds to be awarded under the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training grants program (TAACCCT). These funds are available to eligible institutions of higher education to serve workers who are eligible for training under the TAA for workers program in the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. The TAACCCT provides community colleges and other eligible institutions of higher education with funds to expand and improve their ability to deliver education and career training programs that can be completed in two years or less, are suited for workers who are eligible for training under the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers program, and prepare program participants for employment in high-wage, high-skill occupations. The Department intends to fund grants ranging from $2.5 million to $5 million for individual applicants and from $2.5 million to $20 million for consortium applicants.

Link to Full Announcement

Full Announcement SGA-DFA-PY-10-03

Science and Technology Centers

The Science and Technology Centers (STC): Integrative Partnerships program supports innovative, potentially transformative, complex research and education projects that require large-scale, long-term awards. STCs conduct world-class research through partnerships among academic institutions, national laboratories, industrial organizations, and/or other public/private entities, and via international collaborations, as appropriate. They provide a means to undertake significant investigations at the interfaces of disciplines and/or fresh approaches within disciplines. STCs may involve any areas of science and engineering that NSF supports. STC investments support the NSF vision of advancing discovery, innovation and education beyond the frontiers of current knowledge, and empowering future generations in science and engineering. Centers provide a rich environment for encouraging future scientists, engineers, and educators to take risks in pursuing discoveries and new knowledge. STCs foster excellence in education by integrating education and research, and by creating bonds between learning and inquiry so that discovery and creativity fully support the learning process.NSF expects STCs to demonstrate leadership in the involvement of groups traditionally underrepresented in science and engineering at all levels (faculty, students, and postdoctoral researchers) within the Center. Centers use either proven or innovative mechanisms to address issues such as recruitment, retention and mentorship of participants from underrepresented groups. Centers must undertake activities that facilitate knowledge transfer, i.e., the exchange of scientific and technical information with the objective of disseminating and utilizing knowledge broadly in multiple sectors. Examples of knowledge transfer include technology transfer with the intention of supporting innovation, providing key information to public policy makers, or dissemination of knowledge from one field of science to another.

Link to Full Announcement

NSF Publication 11-522

Next Generation Learning Challenge

[from Philanthropy News Digest]

The Next Generation Learning Challenges has announced a new funding round that will provide up to $10 million to technologists, institutions, educators, and entrepreneurs working on promising technology tools designed to help more students master seventh- through ninth-grade math and literacy competencies.

Next Generation, which is supported in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, also announced a $1.4 million grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation to broaden funding opportunities for innovators. Launched in October 2010, the initiative is expected to announce its first grant recipients within weeks. Moving forward, Next Generation aims to award grants every six to twelve months.

EDUCAUSE, a nonprofit that works to advance higher education through the use of information technology, is leading the initiative in partnership with a network of organizations working at the intersection of education and technology. Members of the network include the Council of Chief State School Officers, the International Association of K-12 Online Learning, and the League for Innovation in the Community College.

"This initiative has the potential to help change how the next generation of students learns," said Hewlett Foundation president Paul Brest. "Technology has a great role to play in advancing 'deeper learning', an approach to improving education that helps students achieve a critical combination of the fundamental knowledge and practical skills they will need to succeed in a fiercely competitive global economy."

“Next Generation Learning Challenges Seeks Promising Technology Tools That Can Help More U.S. Students Get Ready For College.” Next Generation Learning Challenges Press Release 1/19/11

Citizenship and Integration Direct Services Grant Program Citizenship Instruction and Naturalization Application Services

The Office of Citizenship (OoC), within U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), is charged with promoting the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Naturalization is not only a benefit in itself, but also a mechanism to foster immigrant integration. Naturalization provides civic and economic opportunities for new citizens, and strengthens our communities and nation as a whole. Through preparing for naturalization, applicants will gain the tools to be vested citizens – ready to exercise their rights and meet their responsibilities as United States citizens. The purpose of this funding opportunity is to support high quality citizenship preparation programs across the nation. Goals of the grant program include: expanding the availability of citizenship instruction for LPRs in communities in need of those services; making naturalization application services accessible to low income and other underserved populations; developing, identifying, and sharing promising practices in citizenship preparation to build expertise to provide high quality services in the future; supporting innovative and creative solutions to problems faced by those seeking naturalization; and incorporating receiving communities into the citizenship process.

Erie FREE taxes

On Tuesday, January 25th, the Erie FREE Taxes 2011 Kickoff Luncheon will take place at the Ambassador Banquet and Conference Center with lunch at 12 noon and program at 12:10 p.m. Reservations are required by calling United Way at 456-2937.

Highlights:
•The Erie Community Foundation and United Way of Erie County have partnered to increase the scope and resources of the ErieFREE Taxes EITC/VITA Program. Effective September 1, 2010, United Way integrated the program into its day-to-day operations.

•The Erie Community Foundation will continue to provide core operating support, and has committed to providing a multi-year grant to United Way in support of future Erie FREE Taxes programming and services.

•United Way Erie FREE Taxes is an initiative established to help low to moderate income wage earners claim the federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), a cash refund, by providing them with free tax preparation and filing services at volunteer tax sites.

•Tuesday’s luncheon will feature a keynote address by Dr. Jim Kurre, Associate Professor of Economics at the Sam and Irene Black School of Business. He will address the Earned Income Tax Credit’s impact on our local economy.

•United Way is dedicated to making sure the money it raises goes to help local people. 99¢ of every dollar raised stays right here in Erie County, advancing the common good by creating opportunities for everyone in the areas of Education, Income and Health. The Erie Community Foundation works to improve the quality of life in our region by evaluating and addressing community issues, by promoting responsible philanthropy and by connecting donors to the critical needs of the community.

Learning Labs in Libraries and Museums

As we enter the second decade of the 21st century, a workforce possessing 21st century skills becomes more clearly vital to ensuring U.S. competitiveness in a global economy. To ensure that the workers of tomorrow are learning the skills they need today, the Obama Administration is dedicated to making improvement of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education a national priority. President Obama has launched the “Educate to Innovate” campaign, a nationwide effort to bring American students to the forefront in science and math achievement. The President has acknowledged that, while federal leadership is necessary, a real change in education and the development of the skills needed for the future require the participation of many elements of society, through private sector and philanthropic support as well as public-private partnerships. To that end, on September 16, 2010, IMLS and the MacArthur Foundation announced a national partnership to create a network of up to 30 youth Learning Labs in libraries and museums across the country. Inspired by an innovative teen space at the Chicago Public Library called YOUmedia (http://youmediachicago.org/) and the innovations already taking place in science and technology centers, these labs will help young people become makers and creators of content, rather than just consumers of it. This network of Learning Labs will use best practice principles, based on research and evidence in the field of youth digital learning, to engage youth in 21st century skills and effective STEM education. The Labs will be spaces for experimentation for young people to engage with digital and traditional media to promote creativity, critical thinking, and hands-on, interest-based learning.

Link to Full Announcement

http://www.imls.gov/pdf/LabsRFP.pdf

ECF Grants

The Erie Community Foundation infused more than $1.6 million into the region on Tuesday, including dozens of grants targeting programs and special projects at local schools and nonprofit agencies. The money will be dispersed through 501 grants, most of which are donor-advised awards already established at the foundation.

More than $311,000 will be awarded to 18 nonprofit groups participating in ReTool Erie, a two-year effort aimed at bolstering projects that develop and retrain Erie County's work force. Foundation officials will announced the grants at a reception at Wayne School, 650 East Ave., at 10 a.m. In all, Tuesday's grants total $1,676,554, officials said.

Educational Improvement Tax Credits

The Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) and Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K) Tax Credit are administered by the Department of Community and Economic Development. It authorizes the award of tax credits to businesses that make contributions to Scholarship Organizations and/or Educational Improvement Organizations and/or Pre-K Scholarship Organizations contained on a list published by the Department. $60 million tax credits are available this year.

Qualifications:

Businesses* subject to the following taxes:

• Corporate Net Income Tax
• Capital Stock Franchise Tax
• Bank and Trust Company Shares Tax
• Title Insurance Companies Shares Tax
• Insurance Premiums Tax
• Mutual Thrift Institutions Tax
• Personal Income Tax of S Corporation Share holders, or partners in a general or limited partnership

*Businesses must be approved to make contributions.

Applications accepted beginning July 1, 2010
Program Guidelines

Small Business Teaming Pilot Program

Program Announcement No. GCBD-2011-01, U.S. Small Business Administration/Office of Government Contracting (GC) OPENING DATE: January 11, 2011 CLOSING DATE: February 25, 2011 The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) issues Program Announcement No. GCBD-2011-01 to invite applications from eligible organizations, as authorized by the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, Pub. L. No. 111-240, Section 1314. The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-240) was enacted by Congress to authorize the Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration to disburse up to $5,000,000 to make grants to eligible organizations “to provide assistance and guidance to teams of small business concerns seeking to compete for larger procurement contracts.” This initiative is specifically tailored to enhance SBA’s efforts to advocate for small business concerns in the federal procurement marketplace while at the same time seeking to strengthen small businesses and help them expand by increasing opportunities for them to participate in the federal procurement arena. Potential projects will be designed to assist and guide teams of small business concerns through training, counseling, and/or mentoring activities designed to enhance their ability to compete for larger procurement contracts. Such assistance and guidance must address (among other things) customer relations and outreach, team relations and outreach, and performance measurement and quality assurance. Recipients of awards made under this Announcement will be expected to help small business concerns find other firms that may be interested in teaming with them, assist small business concerns with the formation and execution of teaming arrangements, aid teams of small business concerns with identifying appropriate larger contracting opportunities, and assist teams of small business concerns with the preparation and submission of bids and offers. SBA is responsible for general management of this initiative to ensure the effective delivery of assistance to the small business community. Questions about this program announcement should be directed to the Office of Government Contracting at GCBDgrants@sba.gov.

Link to Full Announcement

www.sba.gov/teaming

Forensic science training grant

With this solicitation, NIJ seeks proposals for forensic science education projects that will: (1) increase the number of no-cost educational opportunities for public crime laboratory personnel and practitioners in forensic science disciplines and provide forensic science training to other relevant criminal justice partners and professionals involved in treating victims of sexual assault, and (2) support targeted research of formal and informal forensic science training programs employed by the forensic science community at the State and local levels. Authorizing Legislation: Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (sections 201 and 202); Homeland Security Act of 2002 (section 232).

Link to Full Announcement

Link to full solicitation announcement.

CCS holds live meeting on youth employment, education, work preparedness

The White House Council for Community Solutions has announced it will hold its initial meeting on Friday, February 4, 2011, (1 p.m.-3 p.m. EST) in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.

This meeting will be streamed live for public viewing and a link will be available on the council's Web site:http://www.serve.gov/ communitysolutions.

The purpose of this meeting is to review the Council's charge, discuss the key issues impacting youth employment, education, work preparedness and the healthy transition to adulthood, and establish committees to carry out the Council's work.

The public is invited to submit publicly available comments through the Council's Web site. To send statements to the Council, please send written statements to the Council's electronic mailbox at WhiteHouseCouncil@cns.gov. The public can also follow the Council's work by visiting its Web site: http://www.serve.gov/communitysolutions.

The contact person is Susannah Washburn, Executive Director, White House Council for Community Solutions, Corporation for National and Community Service, 10th Floor, Room 10911, 1201 New York Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20525. Phone (202) 606-6740. Fax (202) 606-3464. E-mail: swashburn@cns.gov.

Google Science Fair!

The Science Fair Goes Online

The Google Science Fair takes the traditional science fair and moves it to the Web. Participating students both build and submit their projects online - using Google Docs, Sites, and YouTube, for example - for all aspects of their research projects - from the data collection to the final presentation. Students from all over the world are encouraged to participate - from Paris, Texas to Paris, France, from Venice, Italy to Venice Beach.

To run this science fair, Google is teaming up with some of the most well-known names in science, technology, and education: CERN, LEGO, National Geographic, and Scientific American. And the judges for the event are just as prestigious, including the founder of the FIRST robotics competition Dean Kamen, the leader of National Geographic's Genographic Project Spencer Wells, Nobel prize winner Kary Mullis, and the "father of the Internet" Vint Cerf.

The prizes (oh, the prizes) include some once-in-a-lifetime opportunities: a trip to the Galapagos Islands with a National Geographic Explorer, a trip to Switzerland to visit CERN and the Large Hadron Collider, a chance to work on the development of a new LEGO robotics project.

Encouraging the Next Generation of Scientists

The Google Science Fair is an effort to help encourage students' interest in science and technology. "Google's origins are in scientific experimentation," Google's Tom Oliveri told ReadWriteWeb, noting that it was a hypothesis of two young computer science students back in 1996 that the information on the web could cataloged and searched.

To enter, you can register online and create your project as a Google Site. Registration is open through April 4, and the announcement of the semi-finalists will happen in early May. Oregon high school student Tesca has created a great sample site so you can see what an online science fair project might look like.

Grants for those serving women and girls

[From Philanthropy News Digest] The Open Meadows Foundation is a grantmaking organization that supports projects led by and benefiting women and girls, particularly those from vulnerable communities.

The foundation offers grants of up to $2,000 to projects that are designed and implemented by women and girls; reflect the diversity of the community served by the project in both its leadership and organization; promote building community power; promote gender, racial, social, economic, and/or environmental justice; and have limited financial access or have encountered obstacles in their search for funding.

The organizational budget of an applicant organization should not exceed $150,000. Small and start-up organizations are strongly encouraged to apply. Proposals from organizations not previously funded by the foundation will be given priority.

Applicants must be 501(c)(3) organizations or have an eligible fiscal sponsor. The foundation does not fund organizations or projects in which women and girls are not the primary leaders and implementers.

Visit the Open Meadows Web site for complete program guidelines and application procedures.

Contact:
Link to Complete RFP

Marcellus Environmental Fund of Western PA

The Pittsburgh-based Colcom Foundation, which focuses its national and regional philanthropic programs on environmental sustainability, natural resource preservation, land and water conservation, and efforts to establish a sustainable population, has announced the launch of the $1 million Marcellus Environmental Fund to help address the accelerating environmental impact of shale drilling in western Pennsylvania.

Nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations are invited to submit grant applications for projects designed to address the impact of shale drilling through public education, community engagement, best practices, baseline data collection, ongoing monitoring, land owner guidance, and collaborative projects.

Grant applications will be accepted until January 14, 2011 for grants to be awarded in February 2011, and until March 14, 2011 for grants to be awarded in May 2011.

Visit the Colcom Foundation for complete program guidelines and application requirements.

Contact:
Link to Complete RFP

Breaking the Talent Code Call for Proposals

The theme for this year's conference is Breaking the Talent Code. Helping individuals find their talent and guiding them through a career pathway will better their lives, advance our workforce, and improve the American economy. Call for Proposals TALENT (noun) intellectual ability, natural or acquired; skill in accomplishing; a special gift, particularly in business, art, or the like Talent is in high demand for 21-st century jobs. The future of our economy depends on a talented, skilled workforce. A recent Presidential Memorandum states, “The high-wage jobs of the 21st century will require more knowledge and skills than the jobs of the past. We therefore must develop innovative strategies to train more Americans with the skills that businesses and the economy will need to ensure American competitiveness.” By implementing a national skills credentialing system, we can effectively identify and measure the skills required for workplace success in economically important industries. Navigating individuals through a career pathway—clearly showing training and certification options—will help address the mismatch between skills in demand and our current skill supply. Identifying and developing talent is critical to workplace success in an ever-changing economy. Some individuals are good at working with numbers, designing websites and building things; others are good at working with kids, healing people, listening and understanding. Everyone has talent. Help us break the code to unleash the collective power of talent to move our nation forward. Breaking the Talent Code. Helping individuals find their talent and guiding them through a career pathway will better their lives, advance our workforce and improve the American economy. Together, we—ACT, educators, employers, workforce development personnel, economic developers, state officials, industry leaders—can create a better model to develop American workers with the skills and talent needed to succeed in the global economy. The call for proposals is now open for Workforce 2011 and we are searching for presentations focused on our theme—Breaking the Talent Code. Please complete the proposal form to be considered for presenting at Workforce 2011. Deadline to submit is February 7, 2011.

Understanding and Engaging Industry Partnerships

More than 400 companies represent 11 industry clusters in Industry Partnerships (IPs) in Northwestern PA. IPs help employers retain and recruit employees by identifying training needs, developing new career pathways and aligning educational curricula to industry demands.

As partners in strengthening Erie's workforce, nonprofits must connect with the resources of IPs to inform programming and create cross-sector partnerships that encourage success for clients and the community at large. At the request of our grantees and workshop participants, ReTool Erie will offer Understanding and Engaging Industry Partnerships, a free, half-day training on January 27, 2011.

Strategy Solutions, Inc. will facilitate this session to provide background on the IPs and strategies for engagement. The session will provide specific information and skill building techniques to help participants understand the workforce development needs of each industry cluster and the knowledge, skills and abilities required by those occupations.

Understanding and Engaging Industry Partnerships

January 27, 2011

9AM - Noon

Bethany Outreach Center

254 East 10th Street, Erie

Click here to register!

Strengthening Erie's Workforce trainings are free and open to all interested organizations. Space is limited.

For additional information please contact Amanda Brown Sissem at 814-454-0843 or asissem@eriecommunityfoundation.org.

Museum professionals training

Museum professionals need high levels of knowledge and expertise as they help create public value for the communities they serve. The purpose of the 21st Century Museum Professionals Grants program is to increase the capacity of museums by improving the knowledge and skills of museum professionals in multiple institutions. These grants are intended to reach broad groups of museum professionals throughout a city, county, state, region, or the nation. Grants fund a wide range of activities, including the development and implementation of classes, seminars, and workshops; resources to support leadership development; collection, assessment, development, and/or dissemination of information that leads to better museum operations; activities that strengthen the use of contemporary technology tools to deliver programs and services; support for the enhancement of pre-professional training programs; and organizational support for the development of internship and fellowship programs. IMLS also welcomes proposals that promote the skills necessary to develop 21st Century communities, citizens, and workers and that encourage broad community access and participation.

Link to Full Announcement

http://www.imls.gov/applicants/grants/21centuryMuseums.shtm

Living Cities Initiatve continues (from Philanthropy News Digest)

Living Cities, a consortium of twenty-two large foundations and financial institutions, has announced that it will host a three-day boot camp in partnership with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Harvard Kennedy School for metropolitan regions that have received millions in federal planning dollars to transform their regional economies.

Sponsored by the Ford, Surdna, and Annie E. Casey foundations, the boot camp, January 10-12, is designed to build participants' capacity to use strategy to drive economic sustainability and equity; harness capital to realize a regional vision; ground efforts in real-time data to advance desired outcomes; and ensure meaningful and inclusive long-term participation. Each participating region — Boston; Fresno, California; Apache County, Arizona; Gulfport, Mississippi; Asheville, North Carolina; Houston-Galveston, Texas; the New York-Connecticut region; Cleveland; Detroit; Puget Sound, Washington; Southeast Florida; the Twin Cities area; and Madison, Wisconsin — has received up to $5 million from HUD's Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant Program, which supports efforts to integrate planning across local boundaries and categories such as housing and transportation.

The boot camp, the third such event hosted by Living Cities, is designed to stimulate local partnerships by convening people who don't often work together. After the Neighborhood Stabilization Boot Camp held last March, for example, HUD made important improvements to its multibillion-dollar neighborhood stabilization program.

“Living Cities, HUD, Harvard to Host 'Boot Camp' to Help Regions Transform Their Economies.” Living Cities Press Release 1/07/11.

PA to receive career readiness grant

The Department of Education's Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE) has announced a new National Career Awareness project that will help up to 15 states improve adult educators' capacity to deliver career awareness instruction and counseling, key components of career pathways models. The project will use the Integrating Career Awareness into the ABE and ESOL Classroom (ICA) curriculum. Its overall goal is to increase and improve adult learners' career awareness and planning in all levels of ELL, ABE, and adult secondary education.

State teams selected to participate in the first round of the project, running January-June 2011, are from: Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Texas. Up to seven more states will be selected for a second round to run July-December 2011.

Applications for the second round will be available April 1, and will be due May 16, 2011. States will be notified by June 3, 2011.

The project will be managed through the LINCS Region 1 Resource Center.

More information is available from Sandy Goodman of the National College Transition Network at World Education, via e-mail at sgoodman@worlded.org , and by phone at 617-385-3816 or 617-482-9485.

Foundation Center Orientation

Friday, January 14, 2011

10:30 AM - 11:30 AM

This session introduces attendees to the kinds of resources and services available through the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh - Foundation Center, a Cooperating Collection of The Foundation Center in New York City. This session is recommended specifically for those who are new to grantseeking or just unfamiliar with what we offer.

Please call the Foundation Center at 412-622-6277 to register for this program. Email registrations will not be accepted.

Location:

International Poetry Room - 2nd Floor

4400 Forbes Ave
Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Contact:

Foundation Center

(412) 622-6277

America Competes Act Signed by President

On Tuesday, January 4, President Obama signed into law The America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010, which significantly advances the administration’s innovation agenda by doubles funding to our nation’s basic research agencies, boosting investment in high-risk, high-reward energy technology development, and improving science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education.

Importantly for EDA, COMPETES supports the core of our Jobs and Innovation Partnership initiative, which seeks to elevate regional innovation cluster development as a key driver of future jobs and economic growth, by calling for the Secretary of Commerce to establish a regional innovation program to encourage and support the development of regional innovation strategies, including regional innovation clusters and science and research parks.

In addition, COMPETES formally establishes the Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the Department of Commerce “to foster innovation and the commercialization of new technologies, products, processes, and services with the goal of promoting productivity and economic growth in the United States.”

Below is Commerce Secretary Gary Locke’s statement outlining how this important legislation will further strengthen the Commerce Department’s mission.

STATEMENT FROM U.S. COMMERCE SECRETARY GARY LOCKE ON THE

REAUTHORIZATION OF THE AMERICA COMPETES ACT

“Yesterday, the President signed the America COMPETES Act and renewed our nation’s focus on science, education and technology, recognizing their importance to the future of American innovation and competitiveness.

“At the U.S. Department of Commerce, this means more research and expanded programs at our National Institute of Standards and Technology and our National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to advance science and technology in the United States. It bolsters our Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship in its efforts to drive the commercialization of new innovations to foster job creation and economic growth. And it supports a Regional Innovation Program through our Economic Development Administration that will help business get off the ground and capitalize on regional strengths.

“These innovative programs and initiatives at the U.S. Department of Commerce, with the help of the America COMPETES Act, will help create jobs here at home, make our businesses more competitive abroad and strengthen the foundation of our economy.”