1. Create a $1 billion endowment to support Oklahoma as the Research Capital of the Plains®.
Under the leadership of the governor, discussions are continuing about ways to:
The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education and the Oklahoma Department of Commerce have trademarked the name Research Capital of the Plains®. (2005)
House Bill 1191, the higher education capital bond, authorized $475 million for 140 capital projects in 36 communities for new and upgraded classrooms, laboratories, student services and infrastructure. (2005)
HB 1193 created the Dynamic Economy and Budget Security Fund, which promotes research and development of critical sectors of the state’s economy. The Legislature and governor authorized the deposit of approximately $93 million into the fund. (2005)
Senate Bill 628 extended tax credits that were to sunset in 2004 for the creation of research and development, data processing and computer services jobs. The bill also included a new employee (making > $35,000) tax credit for up to 50 new employees per year. (2005)
Funding for $125,000 was approved for the Oklahoma Nanotechnology Initiative to create awareness and promotion. (2005)
Additional funding was allocated for sensor research and application at Oklahoma State University through the legislative appropriations to the State Regents. (2005)
The State Regents joined the National LambdaRail (NLR), a major initiative of U.S. research universities and private sector technology companies to provide a national infrastructure for research and experimentation in networking technologies and applications. (2004)
2. Streamline the technology transfer process from universities and other research organizations.
i2E, a nonprofit Oklahoma corporation, created the Oklahoma Innovation Network (OIN) to create and apply model technology transfer policies and intellectual property management tools. (2004)
The presidents of Oklahoma’s public universities have established a committee to identify ways of increasing technology transfer, and the ad hoc EDGE technology transfer committee recommended language to include intellectual property and technology transfer as considerations in evaluating faculty performance. (2004)
3. Focus a significant portion of public university research programs on areas that will benefit Oklahoma’s economy.
The Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST) continues to offer a wide variety of services to research organizations, including funding, commercializing innovations and providing technology transfer assistance. (2004, 2005)
OCAST’s Health Research Program focuses research funding on Oklahoma’s growing life sciences sector. (2004, 2005)
i2E has begun a program with the state’s research universities and private laboratories to standardize and streamline the first steps in technology commercialization, particularly the identification of valuable intellectual property. In addition, i2E helps identify possible angel and venture funding. (2005)
4. Seek opportunities for the state’s universities and other research organizations to collaborate on producing innovations that will benefit the state.
The Center for Aircraft and Systems/Support Infrastructure (CASI) is a coordinating point for the services Oklahoma higher education provides to the aerospace industry. In recent years, CASI has performed more than 100 projects, primarily for the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center and the Federal Aviation Administration. (2005)
The Center for Emerging Technology and Entrepreneurial Studies (CETES) is a business incubator serving the development and growth of technology-based industries in southwest Oklahoma. The center is located at Cameron University in Lawton and has already welcomed two tenants. (2005)
The Center for Entrepreneurship at East Central University in Ada is the only undergraduate entrepreneurship concentration in the state of Oklahoma designed to create entrepreneurs. The program facilitates opportunities through curriculum, internship, business-plan competitions and community outreach. (2005)
The Department of Commerce and the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber partnered to hire Battelle Technology Partnership Practice to assist in the development of a strategic bioscience plan for the state. The study is designed to position the state and research institutions for greater economic development opportunities. (2005)
In February, the Oklahoma Department of Commerce partnered with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to fund the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to inventory red cedar in 10 counties with heavy red cedar infestation. The availability of the inventory maps will bring logging companies to the state to harvest the cedar and create jobs in rural areas. (2005)
NRCS has also received funding to study salt cedar trees located along the North and South Canadian Rivers and the extent they decrease the water flow in these rivers, thereby reducing water resources to the metro area. Studies show that one of these trees uses up to 200 gallons per day. The Oklahoma Department of Commerce is a partner on this project along with the City of Oklahoma City. (2005)
The Oklahoma Legislature approved a major research initiative of $750,000 over three years for OSU, the University of Oklahoma and the Noble Foundation to study crop pests. (2005)
OCAST’s Oklahoma Applied Research Support (OARS) promotes research collaborations among the state’s universities, other research organizations and businesses that produce innovations that benefit the state. (2005)
5. Implement public university policies that recognize the importance of generating commercially important products and creating new businesses.
i2E and the EPSCoR Committee are improving ways to encourage the production of commercially viable products and create new businesses. (2005)
As previously noted, the ad hoc EDGE technology transfer committee sent recommended language to each public college and university, urging the inclusion of intellectual property and technology transfer as considerations in evaluating faculty performance. (2004)