St. Louis Fed President to Headline Regional Summit

Business and government leaders from Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky will convene in Evansville Nov. 20-21, 2008, to study the new economic model of growth. The 2008 Regional Economic Summit will feature nationally-recognized business experts and economists who will discuss the current economic climate and realities facing a 26-county region and our nation, as well as outline the steps necessary for prosperity, wealth creation and economic vitality in the 21st Century. President of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank James Bullard will serve as the keynote speaker. Bullard will discuss his view of the current economic environment. "We're incredibly fortunate to have a featured speaker of Mr. Bullard's caliber," said Old National President & CEO Bob Jones, a member of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Board of Directors. "His knowledge and perspective pertaining to today's economy will be extremely beneficial as our region moves forward in working to realize sustainability and growth."

"Dr. Bullard joins an accomplished roster of presenters including Rich Karlgaard, publisher of Forbes magazine, as well as experts on the economy, entrepreneurship, work force engagement and numerous other topics of critical interest to business and civic leaders," said President of Regency Properties and Chairperson Jim McKinney. "This timely event will be a guiding light to our region in its efforts toward enhanced economic growth and prosperity for its citizens."

Attendees will have the opportunity during the two-day summit to participate in general and break-out sessions dealing with entrepreneurialism, regional collaboration, building stronger economic development strategies and alignment with the emerging world economy. The final summit agenda is being developed in cooperation with regional advisory councils from each state. One breakout session will involve Kentucky BioProcessing Chairman and CEO Hugh Haydon and Dr. Cheryl King, President of Kentucky Wesleyan College.

Founding sponsors for the 2008 Regional Economic Summit are Old National Bank and Regency Properties. Lead sponsors of the event are the Richland County Development Corporation (Ill.), Greater Owensboro Economic Development Corporation (Ky.), Northwest Kentucky Forward, Chamber of Commerce of Southwest Indiana and the Economic Development Coalition of Southwest Indiana.

For registration information about the 2008 Regional Economic Summit log onto http://www.regionaleconomicsummit.com/ or call 812-463-6102.