The 2021 spring conference for the Consortium of Undergraduate International Business Education (CUIBE) was co-hosted by Boise State’s College of Business and Economics and the University of Wyoming’s College of Business. Led by Jack Marr, clinical assistant professor at Boise State, and University of Wyoming College of Business Dean David Sprott, the theme of this year’s conference was “Rethinking Global Capitalism: A View from the Mountain West.”
The event was originally planned to be held in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, as a halfway point between the two universities. The in-person event was canceled due to COVID, so Marr and Sprott hosted a virtual, three-day conference with more than 80 participants.
The conference started with a welcome address from Mark Bannister, dean of the College of Business and Economics at Boise State, and included keynote speakers, expert academic presentations and an industry panel. Jay Larsen, founder and CEO of Idaho Technology Council, and Clint Colwell, manager and co-founder of Commons Climbing Gym, represented Idaho on the industry panel.
“I feel the success of the Mountain West-hosted event helped get CUIBE events back on track and we received a lot of positive feedback,” Marr said. “My favorite was from a University of Nebraska colleague who said even at a time when almost everyone is tired of Zoom meetings, she wanted the conference to keep going.”
An in-person CUIBE conference is planned for fall in Boca Raton, Florida, and will be hosted by Florida Atlantic University.