OCAST cancels next Applied Research and Student Intern competitions

The state’s budget crisis and financial shortfall are causing the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology to cancel two competitions for 2010. The cancelled offerings are for the Oklahoma Applied Research Support and R&D (Research and Development) Intern Partnerships.

“We regret any time we have to eliminate such an important awards offering and we pledge to return the competition as soon as financial conditions improve,” said Michael Carolina, executive director of OCAST. “We have held one recent successful competition for applied research and there is demand for another. Unfortunately, with budget cuts, we do not have enough money to hold an effective competition – one that meets our standard commitment of initial year funding plus two subsequent years of funding.

The decision was authorized by the OCAST governing board.

OCAST was on target to conduct the two competitions for a total of $1.9 million. That amount typically would fund ten projects for up to three years and up to six internships for two years. The last applied research competition was approved in November. The state’s technology-based economic development agency historically holds two applied research competitions each year.