Association for University
Business and Economic Research

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Rod Motamedi is the assistant director of the Economic and Public Policy Research group (EPPR) of the UMass Donahue Institute. At EPPR, Motamedi oversees 20 full-time staff who focus on demographics, economic and policy impact analysis, economic development and regional competitiveness, housing, and industry footprint studies. Prior to joining the Donahue Institute in 2015, Motamedi was senior economic associate at Regional Economic Models, Inc. (REMI) where, for over seven years, he led client training and support, business development, and consulting efforts.

Motamedi received his MBA from University of Massachusetts Amherst with a focus in business analytics and a bachelor’s of arts in economics also from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Rod joined the AUBER Board in 2023.

Nicole is executive director of the University of West Florida Haas Center, part of UWF’s Division of Academic Affairs. In addition, she is Vice Chair of Florida’s Great Northwest, a Trustee with the Florida Chamber Foundation, serves on the board of the Northwest Florida Manufacturers’ Council, is a member of the Rotary Club of Pensacola as well as Pensacola IMPACT 100.

Gislason has been the principal investigator on numerous UWF research projects. Her most recent federal award includes the prominent EDA University Center designation by the US Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration. Her previous work includes a public-private partnership between Florida’s manufacturing sector, the State, and the National Institute for Standards and Technology’s (NIST) Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). Gislason’s early grant success included a Department of Labor $3.9M award that enabled UWF to recruit, train and develop the IT workforce in a project known as Florida HireEd.

Nicole joined the AUBER Board in 2022. Full bio.

Monica is the director of the Bureau of Business and Economic Research (BBER) at the Labovitz School of Business and Economics at University of Minnesota Duluth. She also serves as an adjunct faculty in LSBE’s economics department, as chair of Labovitz School of Business and Economics’ Outreach Committee, and on the Duluth Workforce Development Board. She earned a Master of Science in Applied Economics from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, and a B.A. in Political Science and Statistics from the University of Minnesota Morris.

Monica’s research interests focus on regional economics, economic impact modeling, economic development and survey design. In her spare time, she enjoys running, biking, cooking, and reading.

Monica joined the AUBER Board in 2023.

Michael J. Hicks, Ph.D., is the former director of the Center for Business and Economic Research and the George and Frances Ball Distinguished Professor of Economics in the Miller College of Business at Ball State University. In August 2026, he became director of the School of Business and the Eldon R. Lindsey Professor of Economics in the College of Business and Technology at Shenandoah University in Virginia.

He previously served on the faculty of the Air Force Institute of Technology’s Graduate School of Engineering and Management and at research centers at Marshall University and the University of Tennessee. Hicks earned doctoral and master’s degrees in economics from the University of Tennessee and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Virginia Military Institute. He is a retired Army reserve infantryman having served in combat and peacekeeping operations in North Africa, Southwest Asia, Korea and Japan.

Dr. Vanessa Crossgrove Fry is an Associate Research Professor and former Director at the Idaho Policy Institute (IPI), within the School of Public Service at Boise State University, where she works alongside students, staff, and faculty in providing innovative and independent research to help public, private, and nonprofit leaders overcome challenges and navigate change. She co-teaches the Vertically Integrated Project, Housing Opportunities for All. Dr. Fry has focused both her work and education on utilizing multi-sector, evidence-based solutions to adress persistent social, environmental, and economic issues and meet the current and critical needs in communities across idaho and beyond.

Vanessa holds a BA in Biology and Fine Art from Wittenberg University in Ohio, a MBA in sustainable management from Presidio Graduate School in San Francisco where she is adjunct faculty member, and a PhD in public policy and administration from Boise State.

Fry has served on the AUBER board since October 2021.

Phil Dean is the chief economist and research director at the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah. His research focuses on the Utah and U.S. economies and public finance issues, such as state and local taxes and budgets management over the business cycle. Before joining the Institute in 2021, Dean served as executive director of the (Utah) Governor’s Office of Management and Budget. He holds master’s degrees in public administration (Brigham Young University) and economics (University of Utah).

Mitch is a political scientist with a background in public policy. Since 2007, Dr. Herian has worked both in academic and private settings to provide policy analysis and program evaluation support to government agencies and non-profits. Currently, he serves as Project Director at the Bureau of Business Research at University of Nebraska—Lincoln, where he helps conduct sponsored research and assists with oversight of the Bureau Scholars program.

Herian received his doctoral degree from UNL in 2008 and worked for the University of Nebraska Public Policy Center from 2008 to 2012. From 2012 to 2017, Dr. Herian worked for private industry conducting research for various federal agencies while maintaining a research and teaching affiliation with UNL. In 2017, he began his work with the Bureau.

Jenny is an associate professor in the Toulan School of Urban Studies & Planning at Portland State University, where she also serves as director of the Center for Urban Studies (CUS) and assistant director of the Northwest Economic Research Center (NERC). She holds a PhD in Agricultural & Resource Economics from UC Berkeley.

Dr. Liu’s research centers on the intersection of sustainability, economic development, and public policy. She examines how sustainable urban interventions, transportation investments and policies, and urban planning decisions—such as active transportation infrastructure, green spaces, and clean energy initiatives—impact economies and communities. Another key area of her teaching and research involves state and local public finance, exploring topics such as property tax systems, public budgeting, and fiscal impacts of urban policies. Since 2020, she has also served on the Oregon Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors. Her full profile can be accessed here.

Ben has served as assistant director of the Center for Business Analytics and Economic Research at Georgia Southern University since January 2018. In addition to this role, he served as project manager for Georgia Southern’s EDA University Center, a research project/grant funded by the U.S. Economic Development Administration, and was a member of Georgia Southern’s Business Innovation Group. The CBAER conducts applied research related to community and business development across the state of Georgia and beyond, helping communities and business leaders mitigate risks, recognize opportunities and develop strategic plans that help discover trends, statistics and facts that matter to their community and business.

McKay earned a master’s in business administration (2014) from Georgia Southern; a master’s of public administration (2006); bachelor of arts in political science (2002); and a bachelor of science degree (2002) from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. McKay previously served on the AUBER board from 2017-2019.

Dr. Amir B. Ferreira Neto (Net-o) serves as Director of the Regional Economic Research Institute (RERI) and Associate Professor of Economics at Florida Gulf Coast University’s Lutgert College of Business. An award-winning scholar, he received the 2023 Early Career Award from the Mid-Continent Regional Science Association.

Dr. Neto is a prolific researcher with over 30 peer-reviewed publications in leading journals, and serves as Co-Editor of the Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy and on the editorial board of Reaching Regions. As Principal Investigator, he helped secure a $22.8 million Department of Commerce grant. His work bridges the gap between rigorous economic analysis and real-world application, helping business and community leaders make informed decisions in an evolving economic landscape.

Sarah earned her master’s and doctoral degrees in economics from Louisiana State University. Her research covers a range of microeconomic topics from wine to sports to identifying and measuring discrimination in American court proceedings. All of these topics are reliant on the idea of using data to answer challenging and interesting questions. Dr. Quintanar has taught quantitative and qualitative courses in economics and data analytics for over 10 years.

Prior to joining UNT, she worked as a financial consultant in the corporate world. She is also passionate about her work with practical application of data and economics to assist business and government leaders regarding policy impact in economic development.

Derek Sheehan is an economist with the Bureau of Business and Economic Research at the University of Montana. His research interests include applied econometrics, natural resource economics, health economics, real estate, and spatial statistics. He holds a master’s degree in economics from the University of Montana and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Virginia Tech. Before attending UM, Sheehan served as an agroforestry specialist in Peace Corps Senegal.

Marc is currently the principal economist at Breakthrough, a transportation, logistics, supply chain and storage company in
Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin. Prior to his new role in the public sector, Marc formerly served as executive director of the Center for Business & Economic Analysis, and professor of economics and data analysis at St. Norbert College, where his research focused on monetary and financial economics with an emphasis on the behavior of financial institutions. Marc holds a BA from Augustana College (Illinois), in addition to a MBA and PhD in Applied Economics from Western Michigan.