St. Paul, Minn - On Tuesday, October 25, 2011, Governor Mark Dayton will convene a statewide jobs summit to address the issues facing our economy. The summit will feature two breakout sessions where attendees can choose from separate panels, each addressing a separate aspect of growing businesses and creating jobs. Each panel will last for 75 minutes, and the results of each conversation will be shared with the people of Minnesota.

Governor Dayton and his team have toured Minnesota for the past nine months listening to Minnesotans' ideas for growing our economy. By bringing together all those ideas into one event, the Governor's job summit aims to find a new approach for tapping into the spirit of innovation that has allowed 19 Fortune 500 companies to flourish in Minnesota.

Governor Dayton has heard the challenges facing Minnesotans as he has toured our state. The Governor's Jobs Summit will put the ideas of hundreds of Minnesotans into action to position Minnesota for a new era of economic prosperity.

Below is a full list of the eight morning sessions, the seven afternoon sessions and their moderators:

Morning Sessions

Capital Access for Small Business
Tom Borman - Of Counsel, Maslon Edelman Borman and Brand L.L.P.; Chair, Governor's Taskforce on Access to Capital

Energy Efficiency + Job Creation
Commissioner Mike Rothman - Minnesota Department of Commerce

Aligning Post-Secondary Education and Workforce Training with the Jobs of the Future
Inez Wildwood - Chair, Minnesota Governor's Workforce Development Council

Reducing the Cost of Government for Business Growth
Tina Smith - Chief of Staff, Minnesota Governor's Office

Technology and Innovation: a Minnesota Competitive Advantage
Margaret Anderson Kelliher - President and Chief Executive Officer, Minnesota High Tech Association

Branding Minnesota for Success
John Edman - Director, Explore Minnesota Tourism

Better Health Care at Lower Costs to Business and Employees
Commissioner Lucinda Jesson - Minnesota Department of Human Services

A New Economic Dashboard for Minnesota
Kathy Tunheim - CEO of Tunheim Partners; Senior Advisor to the Governor for Job Creation

Afternoon Sessions

The Economics of Employment Inequality
Sandy Vargas - President and Chief Executive Officer, The Minneapolis Foundation

Reforming Minnesota Taxes for Better Economic Growth
Commissioner Myron Frans - Minnesota Department of Revenue

Workforce Solutions Designed to Meet Business Needs
President Kevin Kopischke - Alexandria Technical and Community College

Exports: An Engine Fueling Business Growth
Katie Clark - Executive Director, Minnesota Trade Office

A New Economic Development Toolbox
Commissioner Mark Phillips - Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development

Creative Class: The Emerging World of Work
Kathy Tunheim - CEO of Tunheim Partners; Senior Advisor to the Governor for Job Creation

Infrastructure for the 21st Century
Lieutenant Governor Yvonne Prettner Solon

The Governor's Job Summit is culmination of the Governor's conversations with Minnesotans across the state about the best ways to grow and strengthen our economy. These conversations will provide the agenda for the summit, with a focus on workforce alignment, access to capital for small businesses and increasing our state's exports. The aim of this summit is to continue to engage Minnesotans in finding solutions to the challenges facing our state's economy and to identify a path forward towards prosperity.