Registration deadline nears for Mid-Year Economic Forum

GREELEY — Monday is the deadline for general-admission tickets for BizWest’s Northern Colorado Mid-Year Economic Forum, which will convene top business leaders, government officials, academicians and entrepreneurs to highlight innovations and changing economic dynamics in Northern Colorado.

The Aug. 4 forum on the University of Northern Colorado campus will include in-depth conversations about the regional economy, including high-growth industries and the impact of higher education.

The event, to be held from 8 a.m. to 12:10 p.m. at UNC’s Campus Commons, 1051 22nd St., will include in-depth conversations about the regional economy and high-growth industries. Top business leaders, government officials, academicians and entrepreneurs will convene at the forum to highlight innovations and changing economic dynamics in Northern Colorado.

Phyllis Resnick, executive director and lead economist at the Colorado Futures Center, and Matt Rupprecht, managing director of PMCF, will be keynote speakers.

Resnick will explore the state economic outlook informed by recent forecasts from the Colorado Future Center’s ColoradoCast model, what it means for the Northern Colorado economy, and what other Center models of disproportionately impacted communities and social factors affecting student success mean for future state and regional competitiveness.

Rupprecht will examine current M&A and capital market trends, how activity in the first half of the year has compared to expectations, and what transaction, financing, and investor dynamics may signal for the remainder of 2026. Drawing on both national and Rocky Mountain region perspectives, he will discuss the factors shaping business valuations, deal activity, and growth opportunities across the region.

Kamel Haddad, who will become UNC’s interim president Sunday, will lead a panel discussion on higher education. Haddad, who has been dean of UNC’s College of Natural and Health Sciences, will fill a vacancy left by Andy Feinstein, who announced at the end of February that he will step down effective Saturday after eight years at the university’s helm.

Joining that panel will be: Ann Hutchison, president and CEO of the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce; Larry Pakowski, vice president for student affairs at Aims Community College; Cass Moseley, vice president for research at Colorado State University; Front Range Community College president Colleen Simpson; and Ann Stevens, provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Another panel will tackle ways to fuel entrepreneurship in targeted industries. Panelists will include: Rose Nash, founder and CEO of Biota Labs; Tanya Ramond, director of business development at the Colorado Quantum Incubator; Ken Reardon, associate dean for research at CSU; Justin Siebert, chief operating officer at Berthoud-based Ursa Major Technologies Inc.; and Rich Werner, president and CEO of Upstate Colorado Economic Development.

The forum will feature interactive exhibits, panel discussions and speakers from higher education, government, business and entrepreneurship, offering diverse perspectives on the future of Northern Colorado’s economy.

Event sponsorships, vendor booths and tickets are available.

Admission is $101.35 until next Monday, Aug. 3, then $111.85 the morning of the event if seats are still available. More information is online here.

Host sponsor is University of Northern Colorado; supporting sponsor is Plante Moran; associate sponsors include Alchemer, the Better Business Bureau Serving Northern Colorado and First Interstate Bank.

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