Iowa and Nevada seek more university brainpower, R&D boost with plans and funding to lure top faculty

Gov. Tom Vilsack on Thursday outlined an initiative to spend $50 million to attract leading scientists to Iowa and spark new research and product development.

Vilsack told participants at a Des Moines conference on economic development that he would seek to:

• Invest $50 million to endow chairs at Iowa’s universities to retain and attract leading scientists and faculty as well as provide grants to businesses, entrepreneurs and others to develop new products.

The money would come from a plan to refinance state debt that would result in at least $100 million in savings.

Vilsack said he didn’t know how many chairs would be endowed, but a consultant last year said seven chairs would cost $21 million.

By DONNELLE ELLER
REGISTER BUSINESS WRITER

Full Story: http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051118/BUSINESS04/511180345/1029/BUSINESS

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Chancellor reaches for the stars
Rogers proposes plan to lure top faculty to Nevada

By Christina Littlefield
Las Vegas Sun

University system Chancellor Jim Rogers is pulling a page from the state of Georgia’s playbook in proposing his Nevada Stars Program.

The program, which will rely on private donors and industry to help recruit world-class faculty to Nevada’s research institutions, looks to copy what Georgia has done with the Georgia Research Alliance.

The Georgia nonprofit organization unites state lawmakers, businesses and private and public universities to invest money in attracting top scholars in science and technology to the state — scholars who often bring with them their own research grants and federal dollars. The research is then applied to the commercial sector, helping to incubate new technology businesses and create new high-paying jobs.

Full Story: http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/sun/2005/nov/19/519689793.html?Georgia%20Research%20Alliance