Barker urges Congress to close Innovation Deficit

Clemson University President James F. Barker and 164 other university presidents and chancellors are calling on leaders in Washington, D.C. to increase investment in research and education and close the “innovation deficit.” In an open letter to President Barack Obama and Congress, the presidents and chancellors wrote that closing the widening gap between needed and actual investments in research and education, the innovation deficit, is a national imperative. Investments in research and education lead to innovation and new technologies that power the nation’s economy, create jobs, and reduce the budget deficit while ensuring the U.S. maintains its role as global leader, they said. Economists agree that more than half of U.S. economic growth since World War II is a consequence of technological innovation, much of which results from federally funded scientific research conducted at U.S. universities. The open letter, including a list of all of its signers, as well as additional information can be found at www.innovationdeficit.org.