Welcome to the University Economic Development Association.
Greetings from the desk of the UEDA President. I hope your 2012 is going well. I am writing today to provide an organizational update and most importantly to make sure that you are taking full advantage of your UEDA membership.
The UEDA Board met last month to refine an action-focused roadmap for the next two years. As the national conversation continues to focus on innovation, talent and economic development to support job creation, we are working hard to make sure that you have the tools and resources that you need to succeed.
Membership
The strength of UEDA as a national voice for college and university related economic development depends on its membership. In the first quarter of this year we welcomed new members to our ranks including:
- Indiana University – Kokomo
- Old Dominion University
- Altoona-Blair County Development Corporation
- University of Southern Indiana
- Association of Public and Land-grant Universities
- West Texas A&M University
- University of Mississippi (Ole Miss)
- California State University – Fullerton
- Apollidon Learning
The Marketing and Membership Committee is working to recruit new members and ensure that our services ARE meeting expectations. Based on member feedback, we are developing new subcommittees. The board is currently discussing a plan of action and we will share formal news on this subject soon.
Communication
We are now utilizing a strong member information-sharing platform in the form of the Columns (monthly) and Arches (weekly) publications. These newsletters provide key information on news and trends related to college and university related economic development. You are encouraged to share articles regarding your campus by filling out this form.
Best Practices
We offer monthly webinars that profile past Awards in Excellence winners. These webinars allow for members to present their efforts to a national audience and for a robust Q and A session during each webinar. You can find out information on these events here.
Annual Summit – People, Power, Place
The registration for the UEDA Annual Summit with the theme of “People, Power, Place is open and I encourage you to register soon to take advantage of the early-bird rate. The summit provides one of the most meaningful experiences for UEDA members as we convene to hear about best practices, to share our thoughts and to collectively showcase the power of university-related economic development. If you are interested in presenting at the Summit please contact events@universityeda.org. I encourage you to also forward the registration information to peers so that they can participate as well. Registration information can be found here.
Partnerships
A task group has developed a prioritized list of potential partner organizations. The effort has identified organizations that strategically fit with UEDA, such as the International Economic Development Council. Over the next couple of months we will be firming up these relationships and will inform you of the benefits for our members.
Leadership
All of our actions add up to demonstrate that UEDA’s members are leaders in college and university related economic development. Our experiences, actions and ideas provide a national resource for a post recession economy. Your Board is working to solidify that leadership and looks forward to working with you over the months to come.
UEDA is in a good place. I welcome your feedback on any of the activities mentioned here and also would love to hear about ideas you may have to strengthen the organization. Feel free to call email me at president@universityeda.org. I look forward to hearing from you soon.
All my best,
William Michalerya
UEDA President
