Nationally Recognized Economists to Be Featured at Walton College 2012 Business Forecast Luncheon

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Robert Hopkins and Kathy Deck

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas will host a panel of nationally recognized economists for its 18^th annual Business Forecast luncheon on Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012. The event, coordinated by the Walton College Center for Business and Economic Research, will be held from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the John Q. Hammons Convention Center in the World Trade Center District in Rogers, Ark.

The panelists include:

• Moderator: Robert Hopkins, vice president and senior branch executive, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Little Rock Branch

• International Forecaster: Paul Thomas, chief economist and manager of market sizing, Intel Corp.

• Domestic Forecaster: Eugene Flood, executive vice president for diversified financial services, TIAA-CREF

• State and Local Forecaster: Kathy Deck, director, Center for Business and Economic Research

“This year brings to the Walton College another fantastic panel of experts who agree to share their forecasts for the coming year,” Walton College Dean Dan Worrell said. “We believe the opportunity to hear the cutting-edge information and perspectives offered by these accomplished individuals provides tremendous value to business and civic leaders from Northwest Arkansas, the region and the state.”

"The Business Forecast luncheon is the best opportunity for the state’s leaders to get the most current economic information and highest quality outlooks for the coming year,” Deck said. “Our attendees, some of whom have come to all 17 previous events, know that the forecasters’ presentations are not to be missed. Our leaders make better decisions when they have good insights about our economy. We are so fortunate to be able to bring economic experts of this caliber to Northwest Arkansas.”

The sponsors to date for the 2012 Business Forecast luncheon include:  

• Walton Academic Partners - Center for Retailing Excellence, Greenwood Gearhart Inc., Walmart/Sam’s Club

• Walton Corporate Partners – Frost, PLLC, McKee Foods

• Walton Business Partners – AEP Southwestern Electric Power Co.; AT&T; city of Fort Smith; Embassy Suites Northwest Arkansas Hotel, Spa & Convention Center; Friday, Eldredge & Clark LLP; HoganTaylor LLP; Jodi and Dan Grubb; J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc.; Regions Bank; Simmons First National Bank; Smith Hurst PLC; and Wright, Lindsey, & Jennings LLP

Media Partners - Celebrate Arkansas Magazine
“This event is part of the outreach activities of the Walton College through the Center for Business and Economic Research,” said Worrell. “We especially want to acknowledge the strong support of our sponsors who made this event possible. Their generosity will also enable more than 60 students to attend this year’s program. Last year, despite a snowstorm, more than 850 business and community representatives attended the lunch.”

Panelists:

Robert Hopkins is vice president and senior branch executive of the Little Rock Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. In this capacity, he conducts regional economic research and gathers monetary policy input from business leaders across Arkansas, sponsors and hosts community development seminars and provides economic education. Hopkins joined the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis in 1985 following a brief stint with the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. He has held a variety of managerial positions at the Fed's offices in St. Louis and Memphis. Hopkins currently serves on the following boards: Heart of Arkansas United Way, Junior Achievement of Arkansas Inc. and EconomicsArkansas. He is a member of the Downtown Little Rock Rotary Club and is actively involved with American Legion baseball. Hopkins received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from William Jewell College and is a graduate of the Barret School of Banking.

Paul Thomas is chief economist and manager of market sizing and forecasting at Intel Corporation. Previously, he served as chief economist for Continental Airlines and senior economist at Douglas Aircraft Company. Thomas served on the faculties of Lake Forest College and Purdue University and was a National Science Foundation Fellow in Economics and a Research Fellow in Economics Studies at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. He is member of the AEA advisory committee for the U.S. Census Bureau. Thomas is a member of the NSF advisory committee for research on census data, the National Business Economics Issue Council, the Conference of Business Economists, the Harvard Industrial Economics Group, the European Council of Economists and is on the Board of Directors of the Global Interdependence Center. His research includes the regulation of scientific research, social choice and organizational theory, the airline industry, the personal computer industry, economic geography and economic growth. Thomas holds a doctorate in business economics from Washington University, a Master of Science in social science and a Bachelor of Science in biology from the California Institute of Technology.

Eugene Flood is executive vice president, diversified financial services, for TIAA-CREF and oversees the organization’s endowment, planned giving and life insurance businesses. From 2000 through 2010, he served as president and chief executive officer of Smith Breeden Associates Inc. Prior to that, he served as a portfolio manager for Morgan Stanley Asset Management. Flood has served as a finance professor at Stanford University and is currently a member of the North American Executive Board for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management. He has lectured in programs at MIT, Stanford University, the Nomura School of Advanced Management in Tokyo and the International Management Institute in Geneva. In the past, he has consulted for a number of companies and government agencies and has been a guest on CNBC's Squawk Box and Power Lunch as well as on  Bloomberg TV. He has been quoted in The New York Times, Pensions & Investments and Fortune. Flood has a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Harvard University and a doctorate in economics from MIT.

Kathy Deck is director of the Center for Business and Economic Research. Her research interests include local economic development, industry market structure and education and health care economics. By providing applied economic research as part of the outreach mission of Walton College, Deck has managed studies for a wide variety of business, non-profit and governmental organizations in the state of Arkansas. Deck also acts as a media resource for economic analysis of current events and trends. Deck earned a Bachelor of Arts in economics from the College of William and Mary and a Master of Science in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Before joining the Center for Business and Economic Research, Deck was the antitrust economist for the Arizona Attorney General.

The Walton College Center for Business and Economic Research is a public service/outreach organization whose mission is to serve its constituents with the highest quality research support; basic and applied business and economic analysis; timely, relevant business, economic and related public policy information; and other outreach activities. In addition to supporting research within the college, the center supports economic development by providing economic and demographic data and analysis to business, government and individuals. The center also actively works with the economic development community of the state to build Arkansas’ capacity to create high-wage, high-skill employment.

Business Forecast luncheon registration forms were mailed this week. For more information on sponsorships or reservations for Business Forecast 2012, contact the Center for Business and Economic Research, Sam M. Walton College of Business, Willard J. Walker Hall 538, 1 University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, 479-575-4151, fax 479-575-7687, or e-mail: cber@walton.uark.edu. To register online, visit the Business Forecast website.