Government embraces college innovation with new R&D and commercialization funds

Budget 2013

The Budget's emphasis on jobs and skills placed Canada's colleges and polytechnics front and centre with several new or expanded programs that move these institutions closer to the centre of federal innovation policy. From a new vouchers program and an expansion of NSERC's College and Community Innovation Program (CCIP) to tying procurement to apprentice training, the initiatives represent a major victory for a segment of the post-secondary sector that's been advocating greater recognition and participation for at least the past decade.

"It's a case of recognizing all of the evidence brought to bear that these initiatives will improve the innovation gap. These are long-standing issues," says Polytechnics Canada CEO Nobina Robinson. "The three pillars of polytechnics education have been recognized. Never before have we seen this. We are now part of the solution. We're delighted but there's much more work to do to ensure the programs realize their intent."

"We need to evolve our thinking about education and training and R&D —both basic and applied —by moving to a place where applied research is as equally essential as basic research," says Dr Robert Luke, assistant VP research and innovation at George Brown College in Toronto. "This is a Budget that is looking for the private sector to step up for R&D and skills training. Colleges help industry and help students gain crucial innovation skills."

Both Polytechnics Canada and the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC) met repeatedly with government officials in the run-up to the Budget as well as making pre-Budget submissions advocating most of the initiatives accepted by government. The measures account for the R&D and innovation components of a much larger package of new and re-profiled programs designed to boost skills development and match those skills with the needs of industry.

NSERC's CCIP expanded

Perhaps the most significant initiative in the short-term is the expansion of the CCIP. Launched in 2004 and made permanent in 2007, the CCIP currently allocates $38 million annually, but demand is exceeding supply meaning projects must wait until previously funded projects run their course.

The Budget provides CCIP with an additional $12 million, expanding the program to $50 million annually. The funding comes from $15 million the Budget awarded to the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, which replaces the amount the agency will lose in FY13-14 to the government's deficit elimination measures.

"This is the most significant Budget measure. The top-up allows new projects and new firms to come on stream. There are other college voices that want much more than $12 million but now is not the time," says Robinson. "Previously colleges were silent when the lion's share of funding went to universities. The government has told NSERC that it wants purpose-driven programs closer to the market."

IRAP voucher pilot

A new initiative stemming from a recommendation in the Jenkins Panel report (of which Robinson was a member) is a pilot vouchers or credit note program to be delivered by the National Research Council's Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP). At $20 million over three years, the pilot is modest in size but there are expectations it will be expanded if it proves effective in boosting industry collaboration with post-secondary institutions.

In addition to having its budget doubled last year, this is the second consecutive Budget in which IRAP has been tapped to administer a new program. In 2012, the government announced a concierge service for innovation support, government-wide and beyond (R$, April 17/12).

Robinson says that IRAP needs to demonstrate that it learned from its experience of operating the Digital Technology Adoption Pilot Program and apply those lessons to the voucher program.

"Nobody knew what DTAPP was for. They need to work hard to make sure the credit note program is clearly recognized and navigate companies in the right direction and to the appropriate providers," she says. "With the Alberta voucher program, it was government's job to assess the appropriate providers."

Another Budget initiative that plays to the strengths of polytchnics and colleges is the decision to open up NSERC's Industrial Undergraduate Student Research Awards program to colleges and polytechnics that offer degree-granting programs. There are 148 degree programs offered at Canadian colleges and IUSRA provides students with $4500 per student, augmented by $1500 from participating companies. Awards worth $5.1 million were made in FY12-13, up from $3.9 million in FY11-12.

"It's never been about the money. It's about fairness and equitable treatment," says Robinson. "IUSRA now treats all degrees the same and in previous years, there has been unspent IUSRA money."

Despite the flurry of initiatives that benefit colleges, the Budget represents a series of incremental improvements rather than a breakthrough. The government still has not undertaken serious program consolidation, as per the Jenkins report and not enough programs are outcomes-based.

"We still don't have a national innovation strategy so it's no breakthrough. The government is working through the existing suite of programs, expanding the envelope or trying things on a pilot basis," says Robinson. "We still need to re-tool the tool kit and it can't be fixed in one or two budgets or a report."

"The Budget's not a breakthrough for colleges but it's extremely helpful," says Luke. "It's an incremental Budget and an austerity Budget, but what spending there is, is good for colleges and polytechnics. I see this as very positive as we needed to evolve the thinking about innovation."

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