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Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: December 20, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) 1 rose by 0.64% during November of 2017. The increase in the LEI-N, which is designed to predict economic activity six months into the future, suggests that Nebraska economic growth will continue through the second quarter of 2018. The increase in the indicator was due to an increase in building permits for single-family homes. There also were positive business expectations during the month. In particular, respondents to the November Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase sales and employment in the coming months. In terms of negative components, there was a rise …

Nebraska Unwrapped: Innovation Studio Provides 'Makers' Tools Of Their Dreams, Deann Gayman

Nebraska Innovation Studio

Nebraska Unwrapped: Innovation Studio provides 'makers' tools of their dreams, December 12, 2017.

It has been another successful year for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. In the spirit of the holiday season, we’re unwrapping the impact of the state’s flagship institution and taking a closer look at some highlights. Today, "Nebraska Unwrapped" is focusing on innovation. Other topics in the series include student experience, outreach, and research.

Nebraska Innovation Studio makes sought-after tools and work space available to University of Nebraska-Lincoln students and members of the public. For a small monthly fee, ranging from $15 to $55 (https://innovationstudio.unl.edu/fee-breakdown) , …

Nebraska Business And Consumer Confidence Index: December 1, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

Consumer and business confidence surged in Nebraska during November. The Consumer Confidence Index – Nebraska (CCI-N) rose to 106.2 in November from 95.1 in October. The November value is well above the neutral level of 100.0. Likewise, the Business Confidence Index – Nebraska (BCI-N) rose from 102.7 in October to 114.1 in November, which is also well above the neutral value of 100.0. When asked about the most important issue facing their business, customer demand was mentioned by 32 percent of respondents. Nearly as many businesses mentioned workforce issues. In particular, the availability and quality of labor was mentioned as …

Education Leadership Perspectives: Positve Ways, Iwasan D. Kejawa Ed.D

Department of Educational Administration: Faculty Publications

Are outdated traditional education, information technological infrastructure, problematic issues in providing quality leadership education in many of our instittutions today? With this into considerations, are these issues vital in order to stabilize the political and economic embroidery of our institutions or organizations, and its psychological and sociological awareness? What are really to be taught in our institutions to educate the present and the future leaders in the society? It is found that education may be the training of the mind to perform desire functions or to perpetuate the modality of obtaining an end or result. Actually, the accessibility of leadership …

Voice Of A “Seasoned” Ob Professor, Fred Luthans

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

I will be making some highly personalized comments on the Aguinis et al. article* concerning rigor vs. relevance, renaming/rebranding I-O psychology, and I-O psychology vs. business school OB. Before commenting, however, I feel compelled to briefly frame my remarks from the perspective of my 50-year academic career. For example, I think it is important to note that I go back to the early 1960s at the University of Iowa, College of Business. I was studying for my Ph.D. in the just emerging field of management and organizations (nothing was offered called organizational behavior or strategic management). However, and very unusual …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: November 22, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) 1 fell by 0.24% during October of 2017. The decrease in the LEI-N, which is designed to predict economic activity six months into the future, suggests that economic growth will slow in Nebraska during the second quarter of 2018. The fall in the indicator was due to an decline in building permits for single-family homes and manufacturing hours-worked. There also was an increase in the value of the U.S. dollar in October. The increase in the value of the dollar is challenging for Nebraska exporters. In terms of positive components, there was a …

Individual And Community Well-Being In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: 2017 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L. J. Mcelravy, T. L. Meyer

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

Conclusion

By many different measures, rural Nebraskans are positive about their community. Many rural Nebraskans rate their community favorably on its social dimensions: as friendly, trusting and supportive. Most rural Nebraskans say it would be difficult to leave their community and have a positive attachment to their community. And, most rural Nebraskans disagree that their community is powerless to control its future.

Across all years of this study, rural Nebraskans’ views about the change in their community have generally been positive. The proportion believing their community has changed for the better during the past year has usually been greater than …

Nebraska Business And Consumer Confidence Indexes: November 3, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

Nebraska’s consumer confidence remained weak during October while business confidence remained strong. The Consumer Confidence Index – Nebraska (CCI-N) stood at 95.1 in October, below the neutral value of 100.0. By contrast, the Nebraska business confidence remained strong. The Business Confidence Index – Nebraska (BCI-N) stood at 102.7 in October, below the September level of 105.2 but above the neutral value of 100.0. When asked about the most important issue facing their business, customer demand was mentioned by 31 percent of business respondents. Businesses also faced growing competition in both the labor and product markets. The availability and quality of …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: October 25, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) 1 rose by 1.86% during September of 2017. The increase in the LEI-N, which is designed to predict economic activity six months into the future, suggests solid economic growth in Nebraska during the first quarter of 2018. The rise in the indicator was due to an increase in building permits for single-family homes and growth in manufacturing hours-worked. There also was a decline in the value of the dollar in September, which is positive for Nebraska exporters. Finally, there were positive business expectations. Businesses responding to the September Survey of Nebraska Business reported …

Nic Earns International Award As Best ‘New’ Research Campus

Nebraska Innovation Campus Materials

Reflecting five years of momentum, Nebraska Innovation Campus was honored with the Emerging Research Park Award from the Association of University Research Parks on Oct. 11. The award, among several of the association’s Awards of Excellence, is presented annually to a research park that has been in operation fewer than 10 years and excels in bringing technology from the laboratory to economically viable business activities, promoting business growth, jobs and public revenue. Those considered for the award must also display participation in the university and federal lab community, positive effecting university research funding and recruitment of superior students, faculty and …

Nebraska Business And Consumer Confidence Indexes: October 6, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

Nebraska’s consumer confidence tumbled during September while business confidence held steady. The Consumer Confidence Index – Nebraska (CCI-N) fell to 93.5 in September, well below the reading of 100.9 in August and the neutral value of 100.0. Consumer confidence is now weak in Nebraska. By contrast, the Nebraska business confidence remained strong. The Business Confidence Index – Nebraska (BCI-N) stood at 105.2 in September, slightly above the August value of 104.2, and well above the neutral value of 100.0. When asked about the most important issue facing their business, customer demand was mentioned by 37 percent of business respondents. Businesses …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: September 20, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) 1 fell by 0.38% during August of 2017. The decline in the LEI-N, which is designed to predict economic activity six months into the future, suggests that the Nebraska economy will grow slowly during the first few months of 2018. The drop in the indicator was primarily due to a decline in manufacturing hours-worked during August. Building permits for single-family homes and airline passenger enplanements also dropped slightly. There were two positive components of the LEI-N. Businesses responding to the August Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase sales and employment over …

Media, Institutions And Voting: Perceptions Of Nonmetropolitan Nebraskans: 2017 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L. J. Mcelravy, Timothy L. Meyer

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

Conclusion

Rural Nebraskans most trust information received from local news sources (TV and newspapers) and public sources (PBS and public radio). They least trust information from social networking sites and Internet blogs. Most rural Nebraskans are somewhat or very confident in their ability to recognize news that is made up.

Most rural Nebraskans have confidence in their local institutions (public safety agencies in their community; public schools in their community; and voting and election systems in their county). On the other hand, over one-quarter of rural Nebraskans have very little confidence in the following national institutions: U.S. House of Representatives, …

Nebraska Business And Consumer Confidence Indexes: September 1, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

Nebraska’s consumer and business confidence fell during August. The Consumer Confidence Index – Nebraska (CCI-N) stood at 100.9 in August, below the reading of 102.5 from July. Notably, the CCI-N remained above the neutral value of 100.0 during August. The outlook of Nebraska businesses remained strong. The Business Confidence Index – Nebraska (BCI-N) stood at 104.2 in August, close to the value of 105.1 during July, and well above the neutral value of 100.0. When asked about the most important issue facing their business, customer demand was mentioned by 35 percent of business respondents. Businesses also faced growing competition in …

Construction Begins On Newest Nebraska Innovation Campus Building

Nebraska Innovation Campus Materials

Construction on a new 80,000-square-foot, multi-tenant building at Nebraska Innovation Campus (http://www.innovate.unl.edu) is underway. Dan Duncan, NIC’s executive director, said the building continues the momentum of the long-term build-out plan for the research campus. The newest facility – NIC’s fifth – was announced Aug. 30 and is planned to open in late summer 2018 northeast of 21st Street and Transformation Drive. Overall, construction of the campus began in 2012, and within three years, 380,000 square feet of office, conference center, lab, pilot plant and greenhouse space was completed. This year the campus has added restaurant space and welcomed The Mill …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: August 23, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) 1 rose by 0.56% during July of 2017. The increase in the LEI-N, which is designed to predict economic activity six months into the future, suggests that the Nebraska economy will grow through the first month of 2018. Four components of the indicator improved during July. Business expectations were solid and manufacturing hours grew. The value of the U.S. dollar continued its recent decline, a positive sign for Nebraska’s export-oriented businesses. Further, in a positive sign for the labor market, there also was a drop in initial claims for unemployment insurance. In terms …

A Model For Innovation: Project Will Bring Makerspace To Sidney [Nebraska], Brad Barker

Nebraska Innovation Studio

A model for innovation: Project will bring makerspace to Sidney, Nebraska.

A new project led by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln will establish an Innovation Makerspace Co-Laboratory in Sidney, with the goal of building a network of makerspaces around the state in small towns and places they wouldn't normally exist.

The space will help advance an experimental model of interdisciplinary learning, educational connectedness and social innovation focused on rapid prototyping and making. A makerspace is a site that provides hands-on, creative ways to encourage students to design, experiment, build and invent as they engage in science and engineering.

The project is …

Nebraska Business And Consumer Confidence Indexes: August 4, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

Consumer and business confidence remained strong in Nebraska during July but fell from June levels. The Consumer Confidence Index – Nebraska (CCI-N) stood at 102.5 in July after a reading of 104.7 during June. Despite the decline of 2.2, the CCI-N remained above the neutral value of 100.0, indicating strong consumer confidence. The outlook of Nebraska businesses also was strong. The Business Confidence Index – Nebraska (BCI-N) fell to 105.1 in July from 109.2 in June. The BCI-N remained well above the neutral value in July, despite the 4.1 point decline, which indicates that business confidence is also strong in …

Shopping For Food In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: 2017 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L.J. Mcelravy, Timothy L. Meyer, Vanessa Wielenga

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

Conclusion

Rural Nebraskans purchase their food from a variety of stores. Almost four in ten buy most of their food from a supercenter (like Wal-Mart or Costco). Just over three in ten typically shop at a supermarket and just under three in ten buy most of their food at a small grocery store. Differences in the type of store most utilized occur by community size. Persons living in or near larger communities are more likely than persons living in or near smaller communities to purchase the majority of their food from either a supermarket or supercenter.

Persons living in or …

Strategic Responses To Taxation And Welfare Effects Of Tax Policies, Sylvia Mwamba

College of Business: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation focuses on firms’ strategic responses to taxation and the welfare implications of changes in tax structure. The dissertation is comprised of three essays. In the first essay, I use the Tax Reform Act of 1986 to investigate how firms adjust their tax strategies in response to the tax incentives induced by the reform. The results in essay one suggest that the 1986 reform created incentives for firms following a sustainable tax strategy to engage in more tax avoidance behavior. In essay two, I test for the presence of strategic cost shifting behavior by examining the distribution of taxable …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: July 26, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) 1 rose by 2.75% during June of 2017. The rapid increase in the LEI-N indicates that the Nebraska economy will grow quickly at the end of 2017. All components of the indicator rose during June. Business expectations were strong while the value of the U.S. dollar fell, a positive sign for Nebraska’s export-oriented businesses. There also was a sharp increase in building permits for single-family homes during the month.

Nebraska Business And Consumer Confidence Indexes: July 7, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

Consumer confidence rose sharply in Nebraska during June 2017 while business confidence remained very strong. The Consumer Confidence Index – Nebraska (CCI-N) stood at 100.4 in May but rose to 104.7 during June, which is well above the neutral value of 100.0. The outlook of Nebraska businesses remained very strong. The Business Confidence Index – Nebraska (BCI-N) fell to 109.2 in June, well above the neutral value and just below its May value of 110.2. Business confidence has been very strong in Nebraska throughout the first half of 2017. When asked about the most important issue facing their business, customer …

Measurement Of Commodity Price Risk: An Overview Of Brazilian Agricultural Markets, Daniel Henrique Dario Capitani, Fabio Mattos

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

This study explores different procedures to estimate price risk in commodity markets. Focusing on Brazilian agricultural markets, the paper proposes to assess both dispersion and downside risk measures using five different approaches (volatility, coefficient of variation, lower partial moments, value at risk and conditional value at risk). Results suggest that some commodities have large price variability but small downside risk, while other commodities show small price variability and large downside risk. Thus, there is no single answer to the question of which commodity exhibits more price risk, but rather distinct answers depending on how risk is perceived by different individuals. …

Perceptions Of Agriculture And The Economy In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: 2017 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L.J. Mcelravy, Timothy L. Meyer

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

Conclusion

Most rural Nebraskans view their economic well-being as being dependent on agriculture. Over three-fourths feel their economic well-being is at least somewhat tied to agriculture. Economic dependence on agriculture has changed very little over the past seven years. The proportions reported in 2017 are almost identical to those from 2010.

Similarly, most rural Nebraskans believe the economic well-being of their community is very much dependent on agriculture. Overall, over nine in ten rural Nebraskans feel their community’s economic well-being is at least somewhat tied to agriculture.

Most rural Nebraskans say their job/income security is about the same as it …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: June 21, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) 1 fell by 0.51% during May of 2017. This is the second consecutive monthly decline in the LEI-N. The declines followed three months of rapid increase from January through March of 2017. Taken together, the LEI-N values imply a moderation in economic growth in Nebraska in late 2017 after strong growth midyear. Among the components of the indicator, business expectations were strong during May while the value of the U.S. dollar fell, which is a positive sign for Nebraska’s export-oriented businesses. However, manufacturing hours, building permits and airline passen

Nebraska Business And Consumer Confidence Indexes: June 2, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

Consumer confidence fell in Nebraska during May 2017 while business confidence remained very strong. The Consumer Confidence Index – Nebraska (CCI-N) fell to roughly neutral during May. The CCI-N stood at 102.5 in April but fell to 100.4 during May, which is only slightly above the neutral value of 100.0. The outlook of Nebraska businesses remained very strong. The Business Confidence Index – Nebraska (BCI-N) rose to 110.2 in May, above its April value of 109.1 and well above the neutral value. Business confidence has been very strong in Nebraska during the first five months of 2017. When asked about …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: May 24, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) 1 fell by 0.88% during April of 2017. The decline followed three months of rapid increase in January through March, implying a moderation in the outlook for the Nebraska economy in late 2017. Among the components of the indicator, business expectations were strong during April while the value of the U.S. dollar fell, which is a positive sign for Nebraska’s export-oriented businesses. However, manufacturing hours, building permits and airline passenger counts all declined during April, while initial claims for unemployment insurance rose.

Nebraska Business And Consumer Confidence Indexes: May 5, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

Consumer confidence improved in Nebraska during April 2017 while business confidence remained very strong. The Consumer Confidence Index – Nebraska (CCI-N) rose to 102.5 during April, 2.0 points higher than in March. The index value, which is above the neutral value of 100, indicates that consumer confidence was strong in Nebraska. The outlook of Nebraska businesses is even stronger. The Business Confidence Index – Nebraska (BCI-N) rose to 109.1 in April, well above the neutral value. The business confidence index rose by 0.9% from March. Business confidence has been very strong in Nebraska during the first four months of 2017. …

Information Use And Quality Service Of The Nigerian Police, Olajumoke R. Olawoyin,, Ezinwanyi Madukoma Dr., Ugwunwa Chinyere Esse

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Information use of police force occurs when information acquired by the police to satisfy an information need based on task assigned to them is actually put to use. Information is therefore useful and valuable if after receiving it, it changes things, decisions, behaviour or one’s character and solves the problem for which the information is sought.

Survey research design was adopted for the study. The study population comprised 2,305 police officers in Alimosho Local Government Police Division. Stratified random sampling method was used to select 227 police officers. Questionnaire was the instrument used for data collection. Data collected was analyzed …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: April 21, 2017, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) 1 rose by 1.00% during March of 2017. This increase followed rapid increases in both January and February. Taken together, the three increases suggest that economic growth will be strong in Nebraska during the second half of 2017. Among the components of the indicator, business expectations were strong during March. The value of the U.S. dollar also fell during March, which is a positive sign for Nebraska’s export-oriented businesses, particularly in agriculture and manufacturing. In addition, manufacturing hours increased during March.