UVa-Wise to present technology symposium Oct. 23

The University of Virginia’s College at Wise will host a new technology symposium to help Southwest Virginia businesses learn ways to implement new innovations for today’s technology-based economy.

The symposium, “Envisioning a New Technology-based Economic Future for Southwest Virginia,” is set for Thursday, Oct. 23 at the C. Bascom Slemp Student Center at UVa-Wise. Pre-registration is required and the cost is $25. Visit www.uvawise.edu/symposium to register.

The program begins with registration and a reception at 8:30 a.m.

Jim Green, chief executive officer of Composite Software in San Mateo, Calif., will deliver the first of three morning presentations at 9 a.m. Green, a pioneer in e-commerce technology, will speak on the topic of “Building Good Ideas into Products.”

Keith Fowlkes, vice chancellor for information technology at UVa-Wise, will speak at 9:45 a.m. to compare Southwest Virginia’s budding technological emergence to the early days of California’s Silicon Valley.

Tom Deaderick, chief executive officer with the Duffield-based onepartner, a company that handles electronic medical records for various health care agencies, will address meeting business needs in the region. His address will begin at 10:30 a.m.

Other sessions slated throughout the day will address various issues related to software, web presence, systems security practices and entrepreneurial startup issues.

A panel discussion on careers with regional technology employers is set for 3:30 p.m. The session is open to students from UVa-Wise and Mountain Empire Community College. The public also is invited to attend.

For more information, contact the Office of College Relations at 276-328-0130.

Posted October 6, 2008