Eugene Cornelius is the Senior Director for the Center for Regional Economics at the Milken Institute. Under his leadership, the Center formulates strategies to improve regional competitiveness and sustainable gains in prosperity by producing ideas and policy proposals for industry expansion, infrastructure development, and job creation. Prior to his current role, Cornelius served in the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) for 20 years. He served three years as the Deputy Associate Administrator for SBA’s Office of International Trade, responsible for four program and operation divisions; and eight years as the Deputy Associate Administrator for the SBA’s Office of Field Operations, overseeing 68 district offices in all 50 states and US territories. During the Obama/Trump presidential transition, he served nine months as Deputy Administrator for the entire agency. Cornelius is a graduate of both the Economic Development Institute at the University of Oklahoma and the Acquisition (Level 3) Senior Project Manager Program at American University. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, a Master’s degree in Public Administration, and is a visiting scholar at George Washington University.