University Center for Economic Development - The College of Business at UNR

10/29/2026

As part of Day 2 of the OWINN - Office of Workforce Innovation's 2026 Nevada Workforce Summit, Dr. Frederick Steinmann, Director of the University Center for Economic Development, participated in a "Is this is a Data Panel? Diagnosing the Workforce Pipeline Bottleneck" panel discussion with Andrew Woods, Director of the UNLV Center for Business and Economic Research, and David Schmidt, Chief Economist with the Detr Nevada. The panel discussion was moderated by Kate Akers, Vice President for Policy Implementation and Best Practices at Data Quality Campaign. This discussion focused on emerging workforce development trends in the state, efforts to strengthen the state's labor force pipeline, and efforts to measure improvements in labor force demand in key and emerging industry and occupation sectors.

10/28/2026

Great Basin College President Amber Donnelli and Western Nevada College President Kyle Dupas were on hand as part of the OWINN - Office of Workforce Innovation’s 2026 Nevada Workforce Summit to help further develop workforce development efforts across the state. Representatives from Nevada State University, the University of Nevada, Reno, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, College of Southern Nevada, Truckee Meadows Community College, and the Nevada System of Higher Education were also part of this two-day statewide discussion on workforce development.

Great Basin College, Truckee Meadows Community College, and Western Nevada College are major partners of the Center’s Nevada Tech Hub in building a competitive workforce as part of Nevada’s growing critical elements loop!

10/28/2026

On Tuesday, October 27, 2026, faculty and staff from the University Center for Economic Development, part of The College of Business at the University of Nevada, Reno, participated in and presented at the OWINN - Office of Workforce Innovation 2026 Nevada Workforce Summit. Anthony Hernandez, Brandon Penticoff, and Christopher Corral, Graduate Student Researchers with the University Center for Economic Development and either current graduate students or recent graduates of the UNLV Lee Business School, presented an overview of a recent "An Assessment of Nevada's Healthcare Labor Force and Associated Career Pathways and Workforce Development Efforts" and an interactive AI-powered healthcare labor force dashboard completed by the Center earlier in 2026. This study was supported by and completed for the Nevada Office of Workforce Innovation.

Other University Center for Economic Development faculty and staff that participated and contributed to this study included Finn Breuner, Ania Calvillo-Mason, Charity Ebere, Madie Fontaine, Frederick Steinmann, Nathan Strong, and Merinda Zywicz.

10/28/2026

University Center for Economic Development Strategic Planning & Economic Development Coordinator Nathan Strong, UCED Graduate Research Assistant Charity Ebere, and UCED/Nevada Tech Hub Graduate Research Assistant Aastha Pudasainee each participated in the University of Nevada, Reno's Graduate Student Poster Symposium on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. Center faculty and staff continue to share their research as part of the University's broader mission of learning, discovery, and engagement through their own research and their research and outreach efforts as part of their work with the University Center for Economic Development.

Nathan Strong's poster: Reconstructing a Chinese Mining Community

Charity Ebere's poster: From Tourism to Production

Aastha Pudasainee's poster: Does Weather Affect Wastwater Compliance? Evidence from U.S. Municipal Treatment Plants, 2001-2025

10/26/2026

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!!

If you are a resident of the state of Nevada, please take the 20 to 25 minutes to complete the following 2026 Resident Tourism, Hospitality, Arts, and Culture Survey.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2026RSSMAIN

This survey has been designed in partnership between the University Center for Economic Development and The Nevada Division of Tourism to better understand resident sentiments toward tourism, hospitality, arts, and cultural heritage activities and investments in their communities.

10/22/2026

Dr. Frederick Steinmann, Director of the University Center for Economic Development, participated in the Travel and Tourism Research Association Greater Western 2026 Annual Chapter Conference held in Reno, Nevada on October 21, 2026. As part of this opening session, "Beneath the Surface: The Economic Signals Every Tourism Leader Should Know", Dr. Steinmann focused on broad global macroeconomic trends impacting the global tourism and hospitality industry sector. Key emerging threats facing the global tourism and hospitality industry sector include ongoing geopolitical conflict and increased security risks, increased threats from climate change and extreme weather events, 'over-tourism' and local resident frustration, economic pressures and inflation, and ongoing labor and workforce shortages.

Andrew Woods, Director of the UNLV Center for Business and Economic Research, and Nathan Kelley with Visit San Diego, also participated in this opening session.

10/21/2026

Faculty and staff from the University Center for Economic Development, including Strategic Planning and Economic Development Coordinators Ania Calvillo-Mason and Cortney Bloomer, were in Winnemucca, Nevada today to attend and participate in the Nevada 95-80 Regional Development Authority 's 2026 Futures Forum. This years Futures Forum focused on strengthening cooperation between local industries, cities, and counties, reviewing existing and emerging regional infrastructure needs, addressing housing availability and development challenges, discussing various workforce development challenges and efforts, and spotlighting new initiatives and economic trends across northern Nevada-based industries.

10/16/2026

On Thursday, October 15, 2026, Dr. Frederick Steinmann, Director of the University Center for Economic Development and Principal Investigator of the Nevada Tech Hub, part of the University of Nevada, Reno, participated in a 'Nevada's Critical Minerals Economy: What Gets Built Next?' panel discussion as part of CREDA Southern Nevada Chapter's October 2026 breakfast meeting. Dr. Steinmann was joined by Tom Burns, Director of the Nevada Governor's Office of Economic Development - GOED, Paul Harshbarger of Comstock Metals, and Chad Yeftich of Ioneer Ltd.

Thank you CREDA Southern Nevada Chapter for the opportunity to share with your members how Nevada is helping build a globally competitive domestically sourced critical elements loop here in the state!

10/16/2026

On Thursday, October 15, 2026, Dr. Frederick Steinmann, Director of the University Center for Economic Development, participated in a panel discussion, "Large Loads and Data Centers", as part of the Nevada Rural Electric Association's 2026 Annual Meeting. Dr. Steinmann was joined by Tom Burns, Director of the Nevada Governor's Office of Economic Development - GOED, Brian Scoggins, Administrator of the Division of Planning for the State of Nevada's Agency for Nuclear Projects, LaDell Laub, President and CEO for Dixie Power, and moderated by Melissa Garcia, CEO and General Manager of OPD5.

10/15/2026

Dr. Frederick Steinmann, Director of the University Center for Economic Development at The College of Business at the University of Nevada, Reno, along with Andrew Woods, Director of the UNLV Center for Business and Economic Research, and Nate Kelley, Director of Research San Diego Tourism Authority, will be keynoting the 2026 Travel and Tourism Research Association Greater Western Annual Chapter Conference scheduled for October 20, 2026 through October 22, 2026 in Reno, Nevada at the Whitney Peak Hotel.

Dr. Steinmann's and Director Woods' keynote, "Beneath the Surface: The Economic Signals Every Tourism Leader Should Know", will examine where the global and national economy is heading and how emerging trends may shape travel and tourism demand.

There is still time to register for this conference online at:

Join tourism researchers, destination leaders, industry professionals, and students in Reno, Nevada, October 20-22, 2026, for the 2026 GWTTRA Annual Conference.