INSIDE FLORIDA'S HIGH TECH CORRIDOR

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December 2006

USF, UF, and UCF to Establish Centers of Excellence
The Florida Board of Governors awarded grants to the University of Central Florida (UCF), the University of South Florida (USF), and the University of Florida (UF) to establish Centers of Excellence in emerging technology sectors. The Corridor’s three universities were among six recipients to share $30 million in funding.

The University of South Florida received $8 million to create the Florida Center of Excellence for Biomolecular Identification and Targeted Therapeutics. The University of Florida received $4.5 million to develop the Florida Center of Excellence for Energy Technology Incubation and $4 million to establish a Nano-Bio Sensors Center of Excellence. The University of Central Florida received $4.5 million for its Florida Photonics Center of Excellence Laser Technology Initiative.

The grants were part of the 21st Century Technology, Research, and Scholarship Enhancement Act established during the 2006 Florida Legislative Session in order to give Florida a clear position of leadership in key emerging technology areas with the unique potential for economic and societal impact in the years to come. The Act also includes the 21st Century World Class Scholars Program which will provide matching funds to state universities, in order to attract nationally-recognized faculty in the areas of the sciences, engineering, and technology and mathematics.

For more information, visit http://www.flbog.org.

FHTCC Celebrates Ten Years of High Tech Success
The Florida High Tech Corridor Council (FHTCC) celebrated its 10th anniversary with a luncheon on Dec. 4th that highlighted its efforts to attract, retain and grow high tech industry and the workforce to support it within the 23-county Corridor.

The event, attended by more than 350 educational, economic development, government and community leaders, focused on the successes achieved by FHTCC’s innovative Matching Grants Research Program and how increased funding for similar research is instrumental to the economic competitiveness of the region, state and nation.

The luncheon’s keynote speaker, The Burnham Institute for Medical Research’s President and CEO Dr. John Reed shared his vision for how Burnham’s Florida expansion has the potential to dramatically bolster the metro area, the Corridor and the state’s life sciences and medical technologies sector.

FHTCC also celebrated its milestone anniversary by awarding scholarships to Corridor community college students in order to enable them to further their pursuit of undergraduate degrees in the high tech industry. Three students were awarded full scholarships for their final two years of education at one of the Corridor universities, while 11 students received $1,000 scholarships.

SRI to Develop Major Research Center in St. Petersburg
SRI International, a Silicon Valley-based research and commercialization firm with 60 years of experience in technology development, has announced plans to locate a $10 million, 30,000-square-foot marine technology research center in St. Petersburg.

The research facility will be affiliated with the University of South Florida’s (USF) College of Marine Science and its Center for Ocean Technology and will focus on innovative research and development with an emphasis in marine sciences, maritime security, bio-medical sciences, nanotechnology, energy and the environment. Over ten years, the center is expected to generate up to $172 million to the local economy, and create more than 200 jobs.

The successful recruitment of the research center came was a result of the combined efforts of USF, the State of Florida, the City of St. Petersburg, and Pinellas County.

For more information, visit http://usfnews.usf.edu/page.cfm?link=article&aid=1500.

UF Dedicates Biotechnology Facility in Alachua’s Progress Corporate Park
The University of Florida has dedicated a new 46,000-square-foot facility that will be the home of the Center of Excellence for Regenerative Health Biotechnology’s (CERHB).

The three-building facility dedicated to research, education and manufacturing will support two primary CERHB initiatives: the expansion of clinical biopharmaceutical manufacturing capacity and implementation of training programs.

Established in 2003, CERHB stimulates and facilitates research and commercialization of technologies that will provide treatments and cures for diseases, and also creates new companies and high-wage jobs in Florida.

For more information, visit http://news.ufl.edu/2006/11/22/biologix.

UCF Professors Develop Technology for NASA that Cleans Up Contaminated Sites
Three University of Central Florida (UCF) professors, a UCF graduate student and a Kennedy Space Center (KSC) environmental engineer have developed a way to clean up water-repellent chemicals used years ago to flush rocket engines and other space industry equipment that over time have seeped into the ground and contaminated aquifers.

The UCF research team comprised of associate chemistry professor Cherie Geiger, chemistry professor Chris Clausen, civil and environmental engineering professor Debra Reinhart, and UCF chemistry graduate student Kathleen Brooks worked with environmental engineer Jacqueline Quinn from KSC to develop a solution that can be injected into the ground and degrade the chemicals by encapsulating iron particles and water within a vegetable oil coating.

For more information, visit http://news.ucf.edu/UCFnews/index?
page=article&id=0024004105bd60439010c0c76ce2f00448a&mode=news.

USF President Judy Genshaft Appointed Chair
of Tampa Bay Partnership
University of South Florida (USF) President Judy Genshaft has been named the new chair of the Tampa Bay Partnership, a seven-county economic development organization dedicated to strengthening the Tampa Bay region.

President Genshaft’s election to the position was announced during the Tampa Bay Partnership’s Annual Meeting and Community Update Luncheon held on November 17.

As chair, President Genshaft will continue to improve the Partnership’s work in key areas such as transportation, affordable housing and business development.

For more information, visit http://usfnews.usf.edu/printerview.cfm?link=article&aid=1492.

TBTF Celebrates Excellence at Annual Gala
More than 400 people gathered at the Marriot Waterside Hotel to fete Tampa’s finest at the 3rd Annual Tampa Bay Technology Forum’s Industry Achievement Awards Gala, which the Florida High Tech Corridor Council was proud to serve as the title sponsor.

The event has been held for the past three years to recognize the achievements of individuals and organizations in the field of technology within the Tampa Bay region.

Kurt Long, founder of security software and solutions provider EpicTide, and Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia (an online, peer authored and produced encyclopedia), received two of the night’s top honors. Long received the Entrepreneurial Leader of the Year Award, while Wales was honored with the Visionary Achievement Award.

For more information, visit http://tbtf.org.

First FIEA Class to Graduate on December 11
Twelve Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy (FIEA) at the University of Central Florida (UCF) students will receive their master’s degrees in video game development on Dec. 11, during a graduation ceremony at the UCF Arena.

FIEA, a graduate video game design school formed to meet the workforce needs of the rapidly growing video game industry, prepares enrolled students to become video-game producers, artists, and programmers.

For more information, visit http://news.ucf.edu/UCFnews/index?
page=article&id=0024004105bd60439010c0c76ce2f004098&mode=news.

Accolades

Joanie Schirm
Congratulations to Geotechnical Environmental Consultants Inc. President Joanie Schirm, a Florida High Tech Corridor Council member, for being honored with the Junior Achievement of Central Florida’s Spirit of Achievement Award.

Vertical IT Solutions
Congratulations to Central Florida provider of outsourced information technology services and consulting expertise, Vertical IT Solutions for celebrating four years of outstanding service to small and medium sized businesses.

Manatee Community College
Congratulations to Manatee Community College on their upcoming 50th anniversary. The college, which counts as president Florida High Tech Corridor Council member Dr. Sarah H. Pappas, was established in 1957.

Ryan Tseng and Alexis Nogueras
Congratulations to student entrepreneurs Ryan Tseng and Alexis Nogueras for receiving top honors at the Inaugural Florida Collegiate Business Plan Competition held in October.

Tseng a recent graduate of the University of Florida was the winner of the investment intensive track. Tseng’s company, PowerPad, features a patent pending, wireless power transmission system designed to power virtually all consumer electronic devices.

Nogueras, a recent graduate from Florida International University was the winner of the limited investment track. Noguera’s company G-Force Tools features a line of ergonomic garden tools.

Lockheed Martin
Congratulations to Lockheed Martin for being awarded a 20-year contract by Singapore Defense Science and Technology Agency to support the Republic of Singapore Air Force Basic Wings Course. Lockheed Martin’s Simulation, Training & Support Facility in Orlando will play a lead role in providing a systems integration approach ranging from courseware to cockpits.

Did You Know?
Funded by a National Institutes of Health grant, University of Florida researchers are working to develop a gene therapy to combat alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, a common hereditary disorder that causes lung and liver disease and affects 100,000 Americans.

To date, clinical trials performed on patients that are unable to produce alpha-1 antitrypsin have caused no harmful side effects and have proven to be effective.

For more information, visit http://news.ufl.edu/2006/11/21/alpha-2.

Calendar of Events
The following events are taking place across the Corridor’s 23-county region or in the surrounding area:

The Golden Anniversary Gala – Celebrating 50 Years of Academic Excellence
Presented by: Manatee Community College
Saturday, Jan. 27, 2007
The Ritz-Carlton Sarasota, 1111 Ritz-Carlton Drive, Sarasota
For more information, visit http://www.mccfoundation.net/site/default.html.

Excellence in Entrepreneurship Certificate Course
Presented by: University of Central Florida’s (UCF) Technology Incubator and
UCF College of Business Administration
Sessions held every Tuesday from
Feb. 6 through Feb. 27, 2007, 6 to 9 p.m.
Disney/SBA National Entrepreneur Center
315 East Robinson Street, Orlando
For more information, visit http://www.incubator.ucf.edu/events/2006Events/9-14_EECC.html

Florida Venture Capital Conference
Presented by: Florida Venture Capital Conference
Tuesday, Feb. 6 through Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2007
Boca Raton Resort & Club, 501 East Camino Real, Boca Raton
For more information, visit http://www.floridaventureforum.com.

The 6th annual Partnering for Compliance Conference: U.S. Export/Import Controls, Compliance and
Enforcement Regulations
To be held at the University of Central Florida in
February 2007
For more information, e-mail or call Ailish Nic Phaidin at ailish@accesslinkinternational.com or (321) 952-2978.

Inside Florida’s High Tech Corridor is published by the Florida High Tech Corridor Council, Inc. (FHTCC) and its economic development partners. The FHTCC is an initiative of the University of Central Florida (http://www.ucf.edu), the University of South Florida (http://www.usf.edu) and the University of Florida (http://www.ufl.edu). For more information visit our Web site at (http://www.floridahightech.com), or contact one of the region’s economic development partners listed at http://www.floridahightech.com/linkslibrary/economic_dev_org.htm.

Florida High Tech Corridor Link Library
For a comprehensive list of FHTCC University Partners; Community Colleges; Economic Development Organizations; Technology Groups & Programs; Workforce Boards & Organizations; Technology Incubators & Venture Capital Organizations; and, Industry Organizations visit the Florida High Tech Corridor link library at http://www.floridahightech.com/linkslibrary.