innovate arkansas

Arkansas is trailing in converting to the “New Economy,” according to a study by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation.
Arkansas fell to 47th in the list of states ranked by the transition to global-, knowledge- and innovation-based economies. States at the top of the list, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Maryland, have a high percentage of “knowledge jobs,” while states at the bottom, West Virginia, Mississippi, South Dakota and Arkansas, rely on natural resources and manufacturing.
Arkansas ranked 49th in innovation capacity, hurt by the number of patents generated, scientists and engineers in the population.
The high point for Arkansas was “economic dynamism,” where the state ranked 22nd. This was due to the number of firms with annual revenues that have grown 20 percent or more for four straight years and the number of entrepreneurs starting new businesses.