MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia Economic Development Council is bringing the Annual Fall Conference to the Morgantown Marriott Waterfront Place Monday and Tuesday.
The conference is presented and sponsored by the WVU John Chambers College of Economics and Business and WV Forward.
Participants will be greeted with a presentation by WVU president Gordon Gee, Morgantown Mayor Bill Kawecki and Monongalia COunty commissioner Tom Bloom.
There will also be presentations from Marshal University, WVU professor Dr. John Deskins, a legislative update and information about the emerging cannabis market.
West Virginia Economic Development Council president Robbie Morris says they’ll take tours of WVU athletic facilities and areas of economic development areas around the city of Morgantown.
Morris said,”Morgantown is obviously a very bright spot in West Virginia and our economy with so many different developments.”
Morris a major focus of the conference is to explore ways to diversify the state economy.
Morris said,”We’ve seen a lot of growth in the auto industry, we’ve a lot of growth in aerospace, we’re seeing growth in chemicals, but there’s other things especially technology-related we want to go after.”
There are two different site selection consultants scheduled to make presentations about economic diversification.
Morris said,”What those industry sectors are looking for when it comes to building footprints or land requirements, broadband, utilities, all the information that we can get to attract those businesses to the state.”
The two-day event will also offer ways to improve employee recruiting, understanding the current workforce and taking adavantage of new data sources.