Pennsylvania nanotech coalition gains funding

An article in the Philadelphia Business Journal (ì$1.3M raised to aid area nanotechnologyî, by J. George, 16 November 2001) reports a coalition of Philadelphia-area universities, economic development groups and businesses have raised $1.32 million to bolster efforts to turn the region into a nanotechnology hub. A portion of the money will be used to develop associate degree programs in nanotechnology at community colleges in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. A coalition led by the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University and Ben Franklin Technology Partners has received a $600,000 grant from the National Science Foundation under its "Partnerships for Innovation" program. That grant was augmented by a $300,000 matching grant from the state of Pennsylvania, $300,000 from Ben Franklin Technology Partners and $118,000 from five corporate partners. Last year, The Pennsylvania Technology Investment Authority awarded the coalition a three-year, $10.5 million grant for the creation of a Nanotechnology Institute that would link university researchers and businesses developing molecular-scale technologies.