Technology Development Institute at K-State again selected as Economic Development Administration University Center
Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023
The Technology Development Institute at K-State has once again been recognized by the U.S. Economic Development Administration as a University Center, a designation it has held since 2004. | Download this photo.
MANHATTAN — The United States Economic Development Administration has selected Kansas State University's Technology Development Institute for continued participation in the nationwide University Center program.
As a designated University Center since 2004, the Technology Development Institute, or TDI, in the Carl R. Ice College of Engineering will continue to engage in a wide range of technology-based economic development activities across the region with partners to provide a positive economic impact for the state of Kansas.
"We are extremely pleased that the Economic Development Administration and the Kauffman Foundation have chosen to support our efforts to become increasingly engaged with organizations across the region to provide new levels of statewide connectivity and technology-based business development services," said Jeff Tucker, executive director of the Technology Development Institute.
The $2 million University Center initiative is a five-year project sponsored by the Economic Development Administration, or EDA, with matching funds provided by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. The continuation of this designation enables TDI to expand its business and technical assistance service offerings and introduce new initiatives intended to support community and business growth across the region.
"K-State serves rural Kansas through a number of its initiatives, including the Technology Development Institute, which receives funding from the EDA to help provide practical assistance to regional businesses and organizations," said U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran, Kansas. "In recognition of the great work already being done at the university, EDA has again chosen K-State as an EDA-designated university center to continue supporting the local economy and driving innovation and development."
As part of the new initiatives, TDI will collaborate with Network Kansas to provide technical advising assistance to its 69 E-Communities across the state and focus on other regional initiatives, such as providing technical and business development support to the manufacturing scale-up Microfactory being developed by Grow Hays.
"As technology continues to evolve and prototyping processes improve, we find our organization taking a leading role in assisting companies and entrepreneurs in the front-end development of new products and technologies," Tucker said. "We believe that having an experienced staff of business and engineering professionals can significantly reduce the cost and time required to develop new technologies."
In addition to continuing to provide business and engineering assistance to individual businesses to help drive economic impact, TDI will also provide technology-based economic development strategy planning to regional development organizations throughout Kansas. It will extend the business and technical planning resources of the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska for planning future strategic projects.
The continuation of this University Center also serves to support the goals of the K-State 105 initiative, Kansas State University's answer to the call for a comprehensive economic growth and advancement solution for Kansas. The initiative leverages the statewide K-State Research and Extension network to deliver the full breadth of the university's collective knowledge and solution-driven innovation to every Kansan, right where they live and work. Additionally, K-State 105 forges the connections and partnerships that create access to additional expertise within other state institutions and agencies, nonprofits and corporations — all part of an effort to build additional capacities and strengths in each of the 105 counties in the state.
"I am excited to be working with TDI as part of the K-State 105 program and greatly value the resources and connectedness that this EDA University Center program will provide us to help reach the goal of bringing K-State services and expertise to every part of the state," said Jessica Gnad, director of K-State 105.
