Oklahoma Marks Progress, Looks to Future – The satisfying flavor of success in tech-based economic development is whetting Oklahoma’s appetite for more. Lots more.

The past two weeks in the Sooner State have seen the release of the third annual impact report from the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST), Gov. Brad Henry’s appointment of a science and technology advisor, and the culminating $1 billion action plan of the governor’s Economic Development Generating Excellence (EDGE) task force.

Interest in advancing Oklahoma’s competitive position and economic livelihood through science and technology-based economic development may be at an all-time high. For example, the six-month process of developing the EDGE recommendations drew involvement from more than 2,500 people in the state. Twenty-nine regional forums were held last fall to facilitate the exchange of ideas among these participants.

Meeting Challenges in the New Economy, OCAST’s third installment in an ongoing study of the Oklahoma’s progress on a number of indicators, found the state is making steady improvement for its economy through technology. OCAST Executive Director Dr. William Sibley noted that Oklahoma enjoyed increases in average annual earnings, per capita personal income and percent of the workforce employed. Most notable, perhaps, was the improvement made in 2003, following two years of deep national recession.

The analysis found Oklahoma improved from 43rd in the U.S. in per capita income in 2000 to 40th in 2002. In the same time period, Oklahoma improved from 41st to 31st in the nation in university R&D and from 30th to 28th in federal R&D. To maintain momentum and to address areas of concern identified in the study, Meeting Challenges in the New Economy outlines a number of recommendations for the state:

* Increase funding for university research in nanostructure sensors, biotechnology, information technology, weather technology and aerospace;

* Adopt policies to focus on science education including recruitment at Oklahoma research universities of science and engineering students;

* Develop training programs for chief executive officers, chief operating officers and chief financial officers;

* Improve the effectiveness of university technology transfer offices;

* Adopt statewide policies to grow technology intensive jobs;

* Build Centers of Excellence around specific technologies including weather, information technology, biotechnology and sensors;

* Increase state tax credits/exemptions for R&D, including equipment, to at least the federal level of 20 percent;

* Recruit major R&D companies in focused areas, such as biotechnology;

* Work with Oklahoma defense facilities to provide more small business contracts and Small Business Innovation Research awards; and,

* Develop a plan to communicate to Oklahoma businesses the opportunities available through government research programs.

Those recommendations dovetail nicely with the first priority of the EDGE action plan: transform Oklahoma into the research capital of the Great Plains. EDGE calls for creation of a $1 billion endowment to support research and the transfer of innovation and technology to the private sector. When fully funded – the report does not address how that might occur – the endowment would be expected to generate $35 million to $40 million annually for investment toward:

* Matching grants to compete successfully for federally funded "centers of excellence;"

* Creating centers of innovation in key technology sectors for the state’s economy (e.g., agricultural processing, energy or sensors);

* Building and furbishing state-of-the-art public and private research facilities;

* Investing capital for technology commercialization;

* Implementing and maintaining information and communication technology system across the entire state;

* Providing start-up capital to attract outstanding researchers to the state’s public and private research institutions and laboratories; and,

* Marketing Oklahoma nationally and internationally.

The action plan also recommends increasing funding for OCAST "to continue the immediate returns to private industry and the transfer of technology to the private sector" and the Endowed Chairs program at the State Regents for Higher Education. In addition, the plan offers several revisions to the state’s tax code to encourage job and wealth creation.

Other EDGE priority strategies include dramatically updating Oklahoma’s public education system and reversing the state’s health trends.

Noting the importance Oklahoma residents have placed on growing their economy and to help advance his EDGE action plan, Gov. Henry this week appointed Dr. Joseph Alexander, the president of Oklahoma State University’s Education, Research and Economic Development Foundation, to serve as his first cabinet secretary for science and technology. While the position requires state Senate confirmation, Dr. Alexander will serve in a voluntary capacity.

The EDGE report is available at: http://www.okhighered.org/eco-devo/edge-reports/action-plan.pdf

More information about OCAST is available at: http://www.ocast.state.ok.us

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