As a partnership of OSU’s Division of Extension and Engagement, the College of Forestry, and OSU-Cascades, the Center is fueled by both the resources of an R1 research university and deep ties with policy makers and industry leaders across the country.
Director
Kate (she/her) serves as the Director for CORE. She brings a professional background in both the private and public sectors. Through her work in communications, urban renewal, and workforce development she created transformative and outside-the-box public-private partnerships. Kate is a champion of projects and businesses—having helped the cities of Albany, Redmond, and Corvallis to focus on the creation of family-wage jobs, downtown revitalization, community visioning, climate action work, and strengthening the business environment. Kate is a native Oregonian with a strong belief in sustainability, recycling, and historic preservation. These beliefs led her to rehabilitate six historic homes in three cities. Kate completed her master’s degree in Public Policy at OSU in 2012. She serves as Past President of the Oregon Economic Development Association. Proof of her nerdiness, she is a licensed HAM radio operator (call sign KG7QXB). In her free time, you will find Kate out hiking with her dog Fergus in Central Oregon, or slogging (slow-jogging) half marathons.
Associate Director of Learning Design
Daniel (he/him) manages the creative process from concept to completion for all of the Center’s programs and research products. He specializes in designing innovative, multimedia experiences that increase user engagement and end-product effectiveness. He is highly skilled in developing e-learning and other online assets ranging from content, media and video production to dashboards, toolkits, and online professional education courses. Daniel lives with his wife and son, and a small farm of animals, on Vashon Island, in the middle of Puget Sound, Washington.
Assistant Director of Industry Engagement
As the Assistant Director of Industry Engagement Nikki supports CORE in the pursuit of genuine connection with the outdoor industry and its many communities. Growing up in rural Washington, she is most at home on a horse in the forest with her dog. Living and working in Portland, she enjoys rivers, games, and music. Nikki is passionate about creating increased access to better jobs and contributing to making the outdoors more inclusive and welcoming.
Administrative & Operations Coordinator
Dakota Nelson (he/him) joined CORE in December 2021. Dakota is responsible for University administration and internal operations within CORE. Dakota received his bachelors in Economics and an MBA from the University of LA Verne, and has worked in business administration in both the private and public sectors. He started at OSU in 2019 and joined the CORE team at the end of 2021. He lives in Albany with his wife and daughter.
Christina DeArment (she/her) joined CORE in 2024. She is responsible for CORE’s marketing and communications. Christina received her B.S. in Marketing with minors in Community Service Studies and Spanish from DePaul University. She has experience in B2B marketing strategy development, project management and creative problem solving. She enjoys camping, hiking, white water rafting and skiing around Oregon with her husband and labradoodle.
The Center for the Outdoor Recreation Economy is dedicated to advancing research and curriculum development, technical skills training and leadership programming for the U.S. outdoor industry.
We'd love to hear from you. Contact us at outdooreconomy@oregonstate.edu.