Description: The Council shall advise the Mayor and tlle public on ways in which to grow the District's innovation and tech-economy in an inclusive manner, increase the number of jobs and high-technology businesses in the District, and ensure opportunities for all District residents; advise the Mayor on how science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) workforce development strategies can be developed and integrated into the District's comprehensive economic development plan and support technology inclusion efforts locally and regionally; identify effective strategies to engage and support the inclusion of underrepresented groups and their performance in the District's innovation and tech-economy through STEM education, workforce development and tech-entrepreneurship; develop reports, proposals and plans for ways in which the District can grow and leverage its innovation and tech-economy efforts including, but not limited to, matching human capital development efforts with the needs of the local technology-industry; increasing technology-entrepreneurship and university-based commercialization; leveraging the District's proximity to federal research and development (R&D) laboratories and research institutions; and increasing access and availability of investment capital for technology-start ups and early stage/growth phase companies in the District; and, advise the Mayor on effective ways in which to respond 10 high technology business concerns including workforce development, access to capital, professional development and community involvement and development of the hlllovalion-technology ecosystem in the District.
Qualifications: The Council shall be appointed by the Mayor and shall consist of not less than fifteen (15) and no more than twenty-five (25) members as follows: one (1) faculty member from each university within the District of Columbia which has an active high-technology business development program; public members who are representative of the diversity of people and ideas within (the high-technology business community of the District of Columbia representing private, public, and community institutions, and who are representative of the diversity of economic, religious, racial, ethnic, gender identification, age and family status in the District of Columbia.
