To say that West Virginia is at a crossroads is an understatement.

It’s been a rough year for the state, and policymakers and business leaders are more interested than ever in the economic outlook for West Virginia, as well as possible remedies for an ailing economy.

The New River Gorge Regional Economic Summit will be held at Tamarack on Oct. 15 to provide regional stakeholders with economic forecasts and a report on regional progress. This year, the annual event is co-hosted by the West Virginia University Bureau of Business and Economic Research, housed in the WVU College of Business and Economics, and the New River Gorge Regional Development Authority.

“This event will include a focused look at the U.S. economy, along with a detailed look at our state economy,” said Dr. John Deskins, BBER director. “With the shifting landscape of the energy industry and other changes to this region, the information discussed at this event is of great importance.”

The event also presents an opportunity to discuss primary indicators of the state economy, such as employment, unemployment, population and real per capita personal income, and to discuss potential solutions. “There are a lot of questions out there about where West Virginia’s economy is heading, and people want hard data and rigorous and unbiased economic analysis. And that’s exactly what we will provide,” Deskins said.

Registration and continental breakfast will be held at 8:00 a.m., followed by the United States Economic Outlook presented by Raymond Owens, senior economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Deskins will then present the state economic outlook, followed by a presentation on NRGRDA Strategic Progress by Chadwick Wykle, NRGRDA executive director. Following a lunch break, a Business Climate Policy Workshop will be led by Kent Spellman, executive director of the West Virginia Community Development HUB at 1:00.

The New River Gorge Regional Economic Summit is the third of five events scheduled by the BBER across West Virginia. Remaining regional economic outlook events will be held in Martinsburg on Nov. 3 and in Morgantown on Nov. 16.

To register for the event, go to be.wvu.edu/bber. For further information on the WVU College of Business and Economics, follow us on Twitter at @wvucobe or visit be.wvu.edu.

-WVU-

pg/10/05/15

CONTACT: Patrick Gregg, WVU College of Business and Economics
304.293.513, Patrick.Gregg@mail.wvu.edu

Follow @WVUToday on Twitter.