05. Oregon State University — Prosperity Roadmap Alignment Memo
05. Oregon State University — Prosperity Roadmap Alignment Memo
Office of the President Oregon State University 600 Kerr Administration Building Corvallis, Oregon 97331 P 541-737-4133 F 541-737-3033 oregonstate.edu TO: Office of Governor Tina Kotek, Business Oregon, Oregon Prosperity Council FROM: President Jayathi Murthy, Oregon State University DATE: January 30, 2026 RE: Oregon Prosperity Roadmap & Economic Development Strategy Framework; OSU Alignment, Gaps, and Strategic Contributions Oregon is at a critical economic inflection point. Population growth has slowed and the workforce is aging, private-sector and traded-sector growth continues to lag national trends. These dynamics heighten the urgency for a coordinated, statewide strategy that strengthens productivity, innovation, and workforce readiness while ensuring growth. The Prosperity Roadmap and the Oregon Economic Development Strategy Framework provide an important opportunity for aligning statewide assets around these challenges and accelerating durable, inclusive economic growth. Oregon State University (OSU) appreciates the opportunity to provide input on the draft Oregon Economic Development Strategy Framework. As Oregon’s land-grant university, OSU recognizes the importance of economic competitiveness, resilience, and shared prosperity as core to the state’s future and to our institutional mission. These priorities are embedded in OSU’s Prosperity Widely Shared strategic plan and guide our research, education, Extension, and economic engagement efforts statewide. In FY2024, OSU generated $3.5 billion in statewide economic impact and supported 22,141 jobs, underscoring the university’s role as a pillar of Oregon’s economy. OSU operates programs in all 36 Oregon counties through the OSU Statewides, ensuring and equitable access to education, innovation, and economic opportunity. OSU’s value to the Prosperity Roadmap and the Oregon Economic Development Strategy Framework can be summarized in three integrated capabilities: talent development, translation of research into companies and jobs, and statewide delivery through our Extension and regional presence. Together with the state and in partnership with Oregon’s universities, community colleges, and other partners, OSU is committed to leveraging these capabilities to advance workforce readiness, innovation, and regional prosperity across Oregon. OSU aligns closely with the vision and goals articulated in the Governor’s Prosperity Roadmap and Business Oregon’s Economic Development Strategy Framework and views them as an important framework for advancing Oregon’s long-term economic competitiveness, resilience, and shared prosperity. As the plan moves toward
implementation, OSU offers the following perspective on how the university can support and strengthen execution across key strategy areas. Workforce and Talent Development Workforce is a central pillar of the Prosperity Roadmap and a foundational strength of OSU. The university produces graduates aligned with priority sectors statewide and contributes directly to workforce outcomes reflected in national competitiveness benchmarks, including CNBC’s Top States for Business Workforce Rank. OSU can further support implementation by aligning degree production, credentials, applied learning, and upskilling with sector and regional workforce needs, in coordination with the Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC), employers, and state agencies. This includes expanding work- integrated learning and employer partnerships that improve talent readiness and retention. OSU Ecampus, ranked sixth nationally, further expands this capacity by delivering flexible, high-quality online education statewide, supporting credentialing, reskilling, and upskilling for working adults and incumbent workers aligned with industry and regional needs. OSU is the first U.S. university to offer both M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in AI and is the #3 producer of engineering-based computer science bachelor’s degrees nationally—directly aligned with Oregon’s priority sectors. OSU’s economic impact data underscores this role as a workforce engine. The university has more than 238,000 alumni, with 134,592 living and working in Oregon, generating an estimated $258.5 billion in lifetime economic impact and supporting approximately 1.4 million jobs statewide. In addition, OSU plays a connective role in Oregon’s higher education and workforce ecosystem, working closely with community colleges, regional partners, and state agencies to strengthen pathways from education to employment. Company Attraction, Growth, Retention, and Innovation OSU plays an important role in supporting company attraction, growth and retention through long-term research partnerships, applied R&D, access to specialized facilities, and deep technical expertise. These relationships often anchor companies in Oregon and enable continuous innovation. OSU’s national and global industry partners also represent prime targets for business attraction and expansion, leveraging existing research and talent relationships to reduce relocation risk and accelerating integration into the state’s economy. OSU spinouts anchor jobs in Oregon, including Inpria (acquired for $514M), Agility Robotics (over $550M raised), and NuScale Power (valued at $2B+). Since 2013, OSU has generated nearly 200 startups that have attracted close to $2 billion in capital investment, demonstrating the university’s ability to translate research into scalable companies. These firms have the potential to grow and remain in Oregon when supported by the right mix of capital, infrastructure, and long-term ecosystem support. The State of Oregon supports several programs that provide long-term, sustainable funding mechanisms that support partnerships between public universities and the state, support innovation and economic development and bolster key state sectors. These tools should be recognized as part of Oregon’s economic development system, not as isolated university initiatives. Some examples include: • University Innovation Research Fund (UIRF) provides a state match for competitive federal research awards that focus on economic development and/or innovation. 2
• University Development Venture Fund, which seeds capital supporting company formation and early growth. • The Oregon Metals Initiative, which supports Oregon’s metals sector by leveraging state dollars and our public research universities to partner with local metals companies to conduct research into metals, metals manufacturing, and metals product design. • State Programs, which consist of line-item appropriations in the Higher Education Coordinating Commission’s budget for programs that address economic development, natural resource stewardship, and other issues identified as high priorities for the state. These State Programs facilitate the integration of the universities’ multiple missions of instruction, research, and service, and include programs like the Tallwood Design Center (collaboration between OSU and UO), the Fermentation Lab (OSU) and Engineering Technical Sustaining Fund (supporting programs at all seven public universities) Sector-Based Strategies OSU is well positioned to support the state’s sector-based strategies by serving as a neutral convener and analytical partner, as evidenced by the university’s recent efforts leading multi-institution, public-private coalitions such as FAST (NSF Region Innovation Engine) and the CorMic EDA Tech Hub, which accelerates microfluidics-based manufacturing and startups. The university is prepared to help identify priority sectors, align research and workforce pipelines, and convene industry, state agencies, local governments, and communities around shared goals. The university is committed to help align research, workforce development, and industry needs within priority sectors such as semiconductors, mass timber, food & beverage, AI & robotics, clean tech, healthcare and other emerging clusters, strengthening coordination across regions and institutions. Evaluation of Emerging Industries and Policy Choices OSU is prepared to deploy its applied research and analytical capacity to support evaluation of emerging industries and policy decisions. This includes providing evidence-based analysis of opportunities, risks, and tradeoffs associated with new industries or regulatory frameworks, such as clean tech, critical minerals mining or other emerging sectors. Leveraging this expertise can inform strategic investments and reduce implementation risk. Company Retention Through Predictable Ecosystems and Regulatory Certainty Company retention is influenced by workforce availability, regulatory clarity, and ecosystem stability. Regulatory certainty is a critical factor in both attraction and retention. OSU is prepared to bring faculty expertise in water resources, land use, public policy and ecosystem development to support the state in designing regulatory frameworks that are rigorous, predictable, and informed by applied research. Leveraging OSU’s analytical capacity can support better policy design, faster implementation, and reduced risk for companies making long-term investment decisions in Oregon. 3
Infrastructure and Place-Based Development As an anchor institution, OSU is prepared to support infrastructure and real estate development that enables economic growth. This includes innovation districts, research facilities, and industry-adjacent spaces that support company growth, talent attraction, and regional development. Coordination between state, local, and institutional partners can maximize the economic impact of these investments. Rural Prosperity Through the OSU Statewides The OSU Statewide Public Service Programs — OSU Extension Service, Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station, and the Oregon Forest Research Laboratory — provide transformational research and education to support Oregon's vital agriculture and forest products industries. The institution’s research forests and fourteen agricultural experiment and research station locations ensure Oregon's commodities thrive, supporting our state and local economies. OSU Extension Service is a statewide asset that advances economic prosperity in rural communities by supporting small businesses, producers, workforce skills, and community capacity. Extension provides a direct pathway for translating research into practice and stands ready to play an expanded role in implementing statewide economic strategies in rural and resource-dependent regions. OSU Extension programs reach approximately 90,000 youth annually through 4-H, supported by more than 8,000 volunteers and over 600 employees, providing a direct and scalable pathway to implement statewide economic strategies in rural and resource- dependent regions. Closing OSU is committed to supporting the successful implementation of the Oregon Economic Development Strategy and stands ready to serve as a strategic partner. Leveraging OSU’s capabilities across workforce development, sector strategy, innovation, regulatory analysis, infrastructure, and rural prosperity can strengthen execution and improve long-term outcomes for Oregon. OSU is prepared to work with the state to define clear, measurable commitments aligned with shared goals, including workforce-aligned work-based learning, employer-engaged upskilling, applied industry research and pilots, and startup creation and scale-up support that directly contribute to job creation and private-sector investment across Oregon. We appreciate the opportunity to contribute and look forward to continued collaboration as the plan advances. 4
Parent: Appendix E: Submissions & Feedback · PDF: pp. 123-126