State of the Region Conference

About the Conference

The State of the Region Conference is the premier economic development gathering in Northwest Ohio. The conference brings elected officials, economic developers, business leaders, and other regional stakeholders together to discuss issues critical to the future vitality of our region and its people.

Ilana Preuss speaking on stage

Presentations

Follow these links to download the 2024 State of the Region presentations.

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Connected: Bridging the Digital Divide for an Inclusive Economy and Regional Resilience

When

March 11, 2024
8:00 a.m. – Noon
Doors at 7:30

Where

BGSU Lenhart Grand Ballroom
1001 E. Wooster Street
Bowling Green, OH 43403

Agenda

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7:30 – 8:00
Check-in & Networking Breakfast

8:00 – 8:30
Welcome & Opening Remarks
Opening Sponsor
Rodney K. Rogers, Ph.D. | President of Bowling Green State University
Ohio State Senator Rob McColley | Ohio Senate District 1

8:30 – 9:00
State of the Region Address
Nichole Fifer, Ph.D. | Director of the Center for Regional Development at BGSU

9:00 – 9:45
Keynote Address: Digital Inclusion
Angela Siefer | Executive Director of NDIA

9:45 – 10:00
Break

10:00 – 10:30
Regional Partnership Spotlight: Leading the Way on Digital Inclusion in Northwest Ohio
Lucas Camuso-Stall | Toledo-Lucas County Public Library, Northwest Ohio RDIA, Lucas County Digital Equity & Accelerator Program
Anna Miller | Manager of Digital Equity and Inclusion at BroadbandOhio

10:30 – 11:00
Featured Topic: The Web of Telehealth – Digital Inclusion & Telehealth
Danielle Renckly | Program Coordinator for Indiana Rural Health Association & Upper Midwest Telehealth Resource Center

11:00 – 12:00
Panel Discussion
Moderated by Peter Voderberg | Chief at Ohio Department of Development BroadbandOhio

––  featuring  ––

Adrienne Bradley | Healthcare Panelist | Director of Community Impact at ProMedica
David Zak | Rural Connectivity Panelist | Executive & Economic Development Director at Crawford Partnership
Tom Kroma | Workforce Panelist | Executive Director at LISC Toledo
Dr. Dawn Shinew | Education Panelist | Dean of the BGSU College of Education and Human Development

12:00
Conference Closing

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12:15 – 2:00
BroadbandOhio (BBOH) Regional Meeting (Optional)

Speakers & Panelists

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Senator Rob McColley | Opening Speaker

  • Position: Ohio State Senator for Ohio's 1st Senate District

State Senator Rob McColley is serving in the Ohio Senate after being appointed in December 2017. He represents the 1st Senate District, which includes Defiance, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Fulton, Paulding, Putnam, Van Wert, and Williams counties, as well as part of Logan county. He was elected by his Senate colleagues to serve as Senate Majority Floor Leader for the 135th General Assembly.

McColley graduated from Napoleon High School in 2003 and then went on to attend The Ohio State University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in Finance. He then attended the University of Toledo College of Law and graduated with a Juris Doctorate in 2010.

Prior to being appointed to the Senate, he represented the 81st Ohio House District as a State Representative where he also served in House leadership as Assistant Majority Whip.  Before being elected State Representative, he served in the Community Improvement Corporation of Henry County, where he oversaw economic development efforts for the county and worked to improve local workforce development efforts between manufacturers and schools in Henry and Williams counties.

In addition, he is a former trustee of the Ohio Fallen Heroes Memorial in Sunbury, Ohio, which honors Ohio’s men and women who have died in the war on terror. Other examples of his community involvement include formerly serving as a trustee of the Henry County Community Foundation, board member for the Henry County Board of Developmental Disabilities, a member of the OSU Alumni Club of Northwest Ohio, and a board member of the Center for Child and Family Advocacy.

Senator McColley lives in Napoleon with his wife, Denise, their daughter Anna, and their twin boys Matthew and Michael.

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Angela Siefer | Keynote Speaker

  • Position: Executive Director of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance

Angela Siefer is the Executive Director of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance. Angela has been working in the field we now call digital inclusion since 1997. From physically setting up computer labs in underserved areas and managing local digital inclusion programs to consulting for the US. Department of Commerce and testifying before Congress, Angela develops national strategies and solutions from the ground up. In 2015, Angela helped found the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, a unified voice for home broadband access, public broadband access, personal devices and local technology training and support programs. Angela serves on the Board of Directors of the Schools, Health, & Libraries Broadband Coalition. Government Technology Magazine named Angela one of their Top 25 Doers, Dreams, and Drivers of 2019.

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Danielle Renckly | Featured Speaker

  • Position: Program Coordinator for Indiana Rural Health Association & Upper Midwest Telehealth Resource Center

Danielle Renckly joined the Indiana Rural Health Association (IRHA) in 2022 as a Program Coordinator for the Upper Midwest Telehealth Resource Center (UMTRC). She also serves as the host of the UMTRC’s podcast, a Virtual View. Prior to joining IRHA, Danielle was part of the Division of Emergency Preparedness at the Indiana Department of Health. While there, she served as part IDOH’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Sociology with a focus in statistic and inequality from Ball State University.

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Lucas Camuso-Stall | Featured Speaker

  • Position: Director of Government Relations & Advocacy at the Toledo Lucas County Public Library

Lucas Camuso-Stall is the current Director of Government Relations and Advocacy for the nationally recognized Toledo Lucas County Public Library.

Previously, he worked for United Way of Greater Toledo, which serves three counties in Northwest Ohio, as its Senior Director of Outreach and Advocacy. His past professional experience entails roles in public relations and campaign communications.

Camuso-Stall received his Bachelor of Science in journalism from Bowling Green State University, with an emphasis in public relations and a minor in political science.

Currently, Camuso-Stall is a professional member of the Ohio Library Council, Urban Library Council, and National Digital Inclusion Alliance. He is an active volunteer, assisting with various LGBTQ+ community fundraising and advocacy efforts. He also serves on the board of Keep Toledo Lucas County Beautiful, Equality Toledo Community Action, and the Ohio Debate Commission.

Camuso-Stall is passionate about civic engagement and advocating for community resources that individuals and families deserve.

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Anna Miller | Featured Speaker

  • Position: Manager of Digital Equity and Inclusion at BroadbandOhio

Anna Miller serves as manager of digital equity and inclusion at BroadbandOhio, a division of the Ohio Department of Development, where she works to create a more digitally inclusive Ohio by fostering collaborative partnerships and empowering underserved communities. Prior to this role, Anna worked to support school-based health care partnerships between schools and physical and behavioral health care providers to bridge gaps in access to care for students across Ohio and New York. She is passionate about public health and carries this into her current role, seeing digital inclusion as a key driver of access to other social determinants of health.

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Peter Voderberg | Panel Moderator

  • Position: Chief of Ohio Department of Development BroadbandOhio

Peter currently serves as the Chief of BroadbandOhio, an office within the Department of Development dedicated to bringing high-speed internet service to every resident in Ohio.  Created by Governor Mike DeWine, it serves as the access point for industry and the public for coordinating the state’s broadband efforts.

Peter has experience in all three branches of government.  He has worked for two Governors, the Third District Court of Appeals, and the Ohio Legislature. 

He earned his J.D. from the University of Dayton School of Law in 2012 and has a bachelor’s degree in English from The Ohio State University.

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Adrienne Bradley | Panelist

  • Position: Director of Community Impact at ProMedica

Currently, Adrienne serves as Director, Community Impact for ProMedica where she oversees ProMedica’s community-based social determinants of health strategy and community investments. In this role, she works across business units and service areas and with system community leadership, to understand & evaluate community need, develop population health strategies across service area, and evaluate impact and link clinical and community outcomes. A strong advocate for community change, her leadership direction focuses on systematic change and growth accomplished through innovative approaches and long-term community solutions. She finds purpose in designing, facilitating, and executing interventions to bring multi-stakeholder groups together to work towards a shared purpose. Adrienne specializes in community building, process design and organizational development.

Adrienne earned her B.A. in Communications from the University of Toledo and her Executive Master’s degree in Organizational Development from Bowling Green State University.

Adrienne currently resides in Toledo, Ohio with her partner Ray and their sons, Sebastian and Preston.

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David Zak | Panelist

  • Position: Executive & Economic Development Director at Crawford Partnership

In May 2022, David Zak assumed the role of the President & CEO at the Crawford Partnership, a 501c3 public-private partnership dedicated to driving economic, community, and workforce development in Crawford County, Ohio. He has been working in economic development for 28 years and leading organizations for 21 years. Previously, he served in leadership roles in Seneca, Clark, and Fairfield Counties, as well as at the Ohio Department of Development. He is a current instructor at the Ohio Economic Development Institute and has also served as a board vice president and Northwest Ohio Director for the Ohio Economic Development Association. Organizations he has led have consistently placed among the best nationally and won awards for innovation and excellence. During his career, he has helped support the creation of 18,000 jobs and $1.7 billion in investment. He is married, a father of four girls, a trail running enthusiast, and an aspiring wine scholar.

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Tom Kroma | Panelist

  • Position: Executive Director at LISCToledo

Tom has extensive experience over the past two plus decades in housing and development across government, healthcare, for profit business and nonprofit organizations. Most recently at NeighborWorks - Toledo Region, as Director of Real Estate, Tom managed a program to acquire and renovate single family homes which were sold for homeownership, among other initiatives to help stabilize neighborhoods. 

Previously, he spent three years at Mercy Health, where he worked with neighborhood and government leaders to identify development opportunities that would improve community stabilization around St. Vincent Hospital. From 2014 to 2016, and from 1994 to 2010, Tom held various positions with the City of Toledo in the Departments of Neighborhoods, Economic and Community Development, Public Utilities, and on the Mayor’s Executive Team. Tom has participated on various Boards and Organizations over the years and resides in Point Place, Toledo.

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Dr. Dawn Shinew

  • Position: Dean of the BGSU College of Education & Human Development

Dr. Dawn Shinew is the Dean of the College of Education and Human Development. A two-time alumna of BGSU, Dr. Shinew returned to the institution in 2012 as Director of the School of Teaching and Learning. She served in that capacity for three years before stepping into her role as Dean. Prior to coming to BGSU, Dr. Shinew spent almost 15 years at Washington State University as a faculty member and department chair. Dr. Shinew earned her Ph.D. from Ohio State University.

Updated: 03/25/2024 12:45PM