UALR Economic Development Course Sees Record Enrollment
by March 31, 2014 8:43 am 119 views
A one-week course on economic development is attracting record attention at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.
The annual “Mid-South Basic Economic Development Course” has drawn 45 participants – more than 2008’s record enrollment of 35 – from Arkansas, surrounding states, and Washington, D.C.
Hosted by the Institute for Economic Advancement (IEA) at UALR, the annual course is an intensive introduction to the fundamentals of economic development. It is geared toward elected officials, government agency staff, utility and transportation personnel, and practicing economic developers.
The four-day accredited course begins Monday, March 31, and runs through Thursday, April 3. It is held each year at the Donald W. Reynolds Center for Business and Economic Development building at UALR.
Steve Clark, president and CEO of the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce, said that the course was extremely beneficial. “My takeaways were new skills, new resources and new relationships that directly helped me do my job,” he said.
This year, the course includes a bus tour of economic and business highlights in Little Rock.
The tour will include downtown development such as the Clinton Presidential Center and Heifer International; manufacturing and transportation at the Little Rock Port Authority, including a tour of Welspun Corp., one of the biggest large diameter pipe companies in the world; retail development at Shackleford Crossing and new retail development planned at the Gateway Town Center and BassPro Shop.
IEA is a part of the UALR College of Business and assists in data, research and training.