MTC Background
The Massachusetts Technology Collaborative was founded in 1982 as the Massachusetts Technology Park Corporation. It was established by the legislature to advance the growth of the technology sector of the state’s economy. In 1988 the Massachusetts Microelectronics Center was built on the Westborough campus in response to the serious labor shortage constraining the computer and defense electronics industry. A 74,000-square-foot integrated circuit fabrication facility, the center was used to provide workforce training to more than 10,000 Massachusetts students and is now leased by Kopin Corporation.
In 1994 MTPC changed its name and mission to the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative becoming a strategic agent and a facilitator of innovative and collaborative ventures. In 1995 MTC published the first in a series of reports on the structure and performance of technology-based industries in Massachusetts; the distinctive role of research universities and academic health centers in the State’s economic vitality; and projected impacts of likely R&D reductions on these institutions and the economy. These reports include: Technology Development in Massachusetts (1995); Planning For Change/Preparing For Growth (1996); and Preliminary Analysis of the Impact of the FY '97 Federal R&D Budget (1997).
With MTC’s technical and financial support, the Mass Networks Education Partnership was incorporated in 1996 to promote the use of information and communications technology as a tool for education reform. In that same year MTC provided staff support for the newly formed Massachusetts Medical Device Industry Council.
In October 1997, the first annual Index of the Massachusetts Innovation Economy was published.
Berkshire Connect and Cape Cod Connect, high speed Internet access projects, are established in 1998.
The I-495 Technology Corridor Initiative was established in 1998 as a joint project of MTC and the Metropolitan Area Planning Commission to promote business competitiveness, fiscal stability and environmental protection in the face of rapid growth for the communities of the I-495 region.
The Renewable Energy Trust began receiving funds in March 1998 to promote the use of cleaner sources of electricity and the expansion of the Commonwealth's renewable energy industry.
In May 1999, the University of Massachusetts located its Center for Professional Education at the Westborough campus, offering MBA-level courses in business management, information technology, computer science and manufacturing.
On April 20, 2000 the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts gives a green light to the Renewable Energy Trust. This decision upholds the constitutionality of the energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives established by Massachusetts electric industry restructuring legislation.
On March 15, 2001, MTC announces plans to use $100 million from the Renewable Energy Trust. Major initiatives include: 1) Renewable Energy -- $47 million in grants, loans and other support to promote green power, green buildings, and premium power; and 2) Waste-to-Energy -- a one-time $53 million grant program to help Massachusetts cities and towns reduce their costs for pollution control equipment at waste-to-energy plants.
Massachusetts Technology Collaborative appointed Mitchell Adams as it new Executive Director in the Fall of 2001.
In August 2008, the state has provided $15 million in initial funding and established the Massachusetts eHealth Institute (MeHI) within the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. The goal is to implement EHR in all provider settings as part of an interoperable health information exchange by the end of 2014.
Governor Patrick and the Legislature created the Massachusetts Broadband Institute, a division of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, when signing the Broadband Act into law in August 2008. The Act gives the MBI the authority to invest up to $40 million of state bond funds in necessary and long-lived infrastructure assets, such as conduits, fiber-optic cable and wireless towers.
On June 28, 2011 Secretary of Housing and Economic Development and Chairman of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MTC) Board of Directors Greg Bialecki namaed Pamela Goldberg, a senior executive with 25 years of experience in the worlds of start-up ventures, academia, finance and strategic planning, to the position of MTC executive director.
Read the latest annual report for current activities.