Blog Posts - InnovationNew Jersey

New for 2020: Employers Must Establish Commuter Benefit Plans

12/26/2019

From New Jersey Business
Employers that have not already established a pre-tax commuter benefit plan should do so as soon as possible, say attorneys at Connell Foley. That’s because early next year, employers with 20 or more employees are going to have to offer pre-tax commuter benefits to all employees working in New Jersey under the New Jersey Transit Benefits Law. Please read more here.

NJDOL offers NJ businesses free safety, health consultations

12/26/2019

From NJBIZ
Did you know, the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development has a free evaluation on potential safety or health hazards available to privately-owned Garden State businesses? NJDOL’s Occupational Safety and Health On-Site Consultation Program are provided by the Division of Public Safety and Occupational Safety and Health. Employers are able to set the parameters for the review, with visits able to encompass a look at physical dangers, air quality, noise and more. Please read more here.

Centenary introduces new degree in medical laboratory science

12/23/2019

From ROI-NJ
Centenary University announced on Tuesday it has introduced a new Bachelor of Science degree in medical laboratory science — the only one of its kind in northwestern New Jersey. The program was developed in response to the demand for these types of trained professionals in hospitals, forensic labs and medical research facilities. Please read more here.

N.J. commission offering $500K in grants for small firms pursuing federal funds

12/23/2019

From ROI-NJ
Here’s a New Year’s resolution for Garden State small businesses looking for funding: Apply for the New Jersey Commission on Science, Innovation and Technology’s grant programs. The grants, through the New Jersey Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer Support Program, have deadlines for application in January, according to the CSIT. The program provides technical and financial support to companies pursuing SBIR and STTR funding. Please read more here.

Health care community says sharing info is critical to speeding up innovation

12/23/2019

From ROI-NJ
Translational science, which translates innovation into practice and scale for large populations, also requires a strong role from government, Joel Cantor said. “So that the money flows in the right way and the regulations are in place to facilitate, uptick and disseminate innovation,” Cantor, professor of public policy and founding director of the Center for State Health Policy at Rutgers University, said. “So that all the work we collectively do to invent good stuff and get it into practice does not simply hit a wall.” Please read more here.

Foundation for Health Advancement Announces #STEM Grant Programs

12/23/2019

Princeton, NJ - The Foundation for Health Advancement is seeking support for its two programs promoting important health research and inspiring students to pursue STEM majors and careers.

Innovation ENJINE Challenge Winners Announced

12/22/2019

From New Jersey Business
Gov. Phil Murphy announced five winning teams of the Innovation ENJINE Challenge, an open innovation competition launched this spring to elicit state employees’ unique perspectives and ideas to make government more effective and efficient. To participate in the challenge, State employees submitted brief ideas for new policies and practices that would result in direct cost savings, more streamlined processes, or better services for the people of New Jersey. Over 2,000 participants joined in via an online platform. The twenty top-voted ideas and five additional selections advanced to a final round in which teams crafted implementation plan proposals for one of the winning round one ideas. Please read more here.

NJ’s First Chief Innovation Officer: Public Entrepreneurship and Policy Engineering

12/22/2019

Trenton, NJ - According to Beth Simone Noveck, New Jersey’s First Chief Innovation Officer, "Science and technology have progressed exponentially, making it possible for humans to live longer, healthier, more creative lives. The explosion of Internet and mobile phone technologies have increased trade, literacy, and mobility.11 At the same time, life expectancy for the poor has not increased and is declining.9"

American Cancer Society Investing Billions in Research: NJ scientists making inroads thanks to ACR funding

12/22/2019

Washington DC - Cancer is one of the nation’s leading public health concerns. One in 3 people will be diagnosed with cancer during their lifetime. More than 1,600 people die from cancer each day in the United States. What does it take to outsmart cancer? Research. The American Cancer Society (ACS) has invested more than $4.9 billion in cancer research since 1946, all to find more – and better – treatments, uncover factors that may cause cancer, and improve cancer patients’ quality of life.

State Benefits From Scientists With Rutgers’ Eagleton Science and Politics Fellowship

12/22/2019

New Brunswick, NJ - According to Megan Schumann, "When Shin-Yi Lin gave birth to her eldest child in a New Jersey hospital eight years ago, she experienced difficulties New Jersey’s mothers can face in getting appropriate maternity care – a doctor who made a racist comment during her labor, a rush toward a Cesarean birth, and uneven breastfeeding support. She used her skills as a researcher to learn how to be a better advocate for herself during her two later pregnancies."

NJIT to start programs in cell and gene therapy

12/22/2019

Newark, NJ - According to David Hutter of NJBIZ, "The New Jersey Institute of Technology will collaborate with the New Jersey Innovation Institute, an NJIT corporation, to offer a professional science master’s degree program and professional graduate certificate in the rapidly expanding field of cell and gene therapy. Students be able to begin taking the 30-credit master’s degree in spring 2020 as part of NJIT’s Department of Chemistry and Environmental Science’s pharmaceutical chemistry master’s program."

Useful Stats: GDP by County and Industry Contribution

12/22/2019

Columbus, OH - According to Colin Edwards of SST, "This edition of Useful Stats examines the Bureau of Economic Analysis’ first full release of county-level gross domestic product (GDP) data. Specifically, this analysis considers total county GDP in 2018 and the contributions to each county’s GDP by industry."

8 things to know from the FY 2020 budget

12/22/2019

Columbus, OH - According to Jason Rittenberg of SSTI, "Congress is expected to pass the FY 2020 budget this week, and as anticipated, the bills include billions in new appropriations. Innovation policy priorities, such as Regional Innovation Strategies, Manufacturing Extension Partnership, and NSF, did well in the final budget. Here are the top things to know about innovation initiatives in the final budget."

Judith Sheft Chosen as Executive Director of Commission on Science, Innovation and Technology

12/22/2019

Trenton, NJ - The New Jersey Commission on Science, Innovation and Technology (CSIT) has named Judith A. Sheft as its executive director. Sheft, who has an extensive background in fostering opportunities for early-stage New Jersey companies and for the next generation of New Jersey entrepreneurs, will officially take the helm of the CSIT beginning Jan. 13, 2020.

NJEDA Begins Accepting Micro Business Loan Program Applications

12/22/2019

Trenton, NJ - The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) is now accepting applications for its Micro Business Loan Program. Designed to provide financing to early-stage and micro businesses in New Jersey, the pilot program makes financing of up to $50,000 available to for-profit New Jersey businesses, who can use the financing for working capital or to purchase equipment.