Lobina honored by Northland Regional Chamber of Commerce for Excellence in Higher Education

Rebecca Lobina, the director of continuing professional education at Northwest Missouri State University and regional director of its Small Business Development Center (SBDC), was recognized recently by the Northland Regional Chamber of Commerce for her commitment to education in the Kansas City region.

The Chamber named Lobina as an Excellence in Higher Education honoree during its 35th Annual Excellence in Education Event. The award celebrates an outstanding instructor, professor or administrative staff member who has made a significant commitment to education at their institution.

In her dual role leading continuing professional education at Northwest and directing the SBDC for the northwest Missouri region, Lobina serves as a management and consulting professional for small businesses, offering insights related to process improvement, fiscal management, customer insights, and attaining annual goals through strategic planning and deployment. She directs the development and deployment of Northwest’s continuing professional education programming to area businesses and residents through online and in-person meetings, conferences and client-based education.

“Rebecca deserves this award for her outstanding service in her roles at Northwest and in the community over the past year,” Dr. Jay Johnson, Northwest’s associate provost for academic operations and development, wrote in his nomination of Lobina. “She continually innovates and provides avenues for the University to educate populations outside of the traditional college-aged student.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lobina has continued to counsel small businesses and assisted clients with obtaining more than $10 million in Paycheck Protection Program loans. She also worked to expand Northwest’s offerings of non-credit programs through new partnerships with vendors that provide programming needed in the region and state. Additionally, she continued her work with Northwest’s Call to Action Coalition to raise awareness of human trafficking in the region. 

Earlier this year, the University of Missouri Extension Business Development Program recognized Lobina for ranking among the top five SBDC professionals in counseling hours and presented her with its Wise One award in recognition of a person who the SBDC network turns to regularly for sound advice and thoughtful insight.

The Northwest SBDC serves a nine-county area in northwest Missouri and focuses on economic development assistance for businesses with fewer than 500 employees. It provides individual business counseling to small business owners and individuals, bringing Fortune 500 resources to business owners in the area at no charge to the business. The center also conducts conferences and workshops on relevant topics of interest to small business owners.