Training Programs
The UAFS Center for Business and Professional Development (CBPD) offers open-enrollment courses and customized training programs designed for working professionals across every industry.
The Center for Economic Development at the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith helps individuals, employers, nonprofits, and volunteers strengthen their communities, sharpen their skills, and advance their careers through professional training and speaker series, delivered from the Bakery District in downtown Fort Smith, Arkansas, and at locations throughout the region.
The UAFS Center for Economic Development hosts upcoming events through the Jim Walcott Family Enterprise Center, the Center for Nonprofits, the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center, and the Workforce Development Center. Browse the listings below by center.
Looking for professional skills courses? Visit the Center for Business and Professional Development training catalog for a full listing of programs and registration.
| Course Title | Date | Day of the Week | Time | Fee | Register Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robotics - AM | July 7 - August 6, 2026 | Tuesdays/Thursdays | 8:00 a.m. - Noon | $1650 | REGISTER |
| Robotics - PM | July 7 - August 5, 2026 | Tuesdays/Wednesdays | 4:00 - 8:00 p.m. | $1650 | REGISTER |
| Welding - AM | July 7 - August 6, 2026 | Tuesdays/Thursdays | 8:00 a.m. - Noon | $1650 | REGISTER |
| Welding - PM | July 7 - August 5, 2026 | Tuesdays/Wednesdays | 4:00 - 8:00 p.m. | $1650 | REGISTER |
| Excel Level I | July 7 & 14, 2026 | Tuesdays | 8:00 a.m. - Noon | $199 | REGISTER |
| 7 Habits of Highly Effective People | July 9 - 30, 2026 | Thursdays | 1 - 5 p.m. | $399 | REGISTER |
| WAHRA - Addressing Incivility: Growing Community through Employee Engagement and Collaboration | July 14, 2026 | Tuesday | 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. | $35 for non members *Lunch included | Coming Soon.... |
| CNP: From Burnout to Buy-In: Volunteer Management That Works *VIRTUAL* | July 16, 2026 | Thursday | 9:00 - 10:00 a.m. | $25 per Organization | REGISTER |
| Excel Level II | July 21 & August 4, 2026 | Tuesdays | 8:00 a.m. - Noon | $199 | REGISTER |
| GRIT Workplace Leadership @ NIGHT | July 21 - 30, 2026 | Tuesdays/Thursdays | 5:00 - 9:00 p.m. | $379 | Register |
| Excel Level I | August 5 & 12, 2026 | Wednesdays | 1 - 5 p.m. | $199 | REGISTER |
| GRIT Workplace Leadership | August 5 - 26, 2026 | Wednesdays | 8:00 a.m. - Noon | $379 | REGISTER |
| Center for Nonprofits: Van Buren Lunch & Learn | August 13, 2026 | Thursday | 11:30 a.m.. - 1:00 p.m. | $FREE *Lunch Included | REGISTER |
| Excel Level II | August 19 & 26, 2026 | Wednesdays | 1 - 5 p.m. | $199 | REGISTER |
| WAHRA - Effective HR Management: A How-to for All Levels | August 11, 2026 | Tuesday | 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. | $35 for non members *LUNCH included | Coming Soon.... |
| Center for Nonprofits: How to Strategic Planning | August 20, 2026 | Thursday | 8:00 a.m. - Noon | $25 per Organization | Register |
| Center for Nonprofits: Defining & Measuring Success *VIRTUAL* |
August 28, 2026 | Friday | 9:00 - 10:00 a.m. | $25 per Organization | Register |
| Excel Level II - @ Van Buren Chamber | September 4 & 11, 2026 | Fridays | 8:00 a.m. - Noon | $199 | REGISTER |
| Center for Nonprofits: Community Forum *Virtual & In Person | September 17, 2026 | Thursday | 9:00 - 10:30 a.m. | $FREE | Register |
| Center for Nonprofits: Fundraising 101 *VIRTUAL* | September 18, 2026 | Friday | 9:00 - 10:00 a.m. | $25 per Organization | REGISTER |
| Center for Nonprofits: Get Grant Ready | September 24, 2026 (Additional dates in series) | Thursday | 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. | $30 *Lunch included | REGISTER |
| Center for Nonprofits: How to Strategic Planning | October 15, 2026 | Thursday | 8:00 a.m. - Noon | $25 per Organization | REGISTER |
| Center for Nonprofits: Van Buren Lunch & Learn | November 5, 2026 | Thursday | 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. | $FREE *Lunch Included | REGISTER |
| Center for Nonprofits: Holiday Social & Celebration | December 3, 2026 | Thursday | 9:00 - 10:30 a.m. | $FREE | REGISTER |
| Anger Management | |||||
| Becoming a Progressive Employer | |||||
| Branding - Creating and Managing Your Corporate Brand | |||||
| Building Your Self Esteem and Assertiveness Skills | |||||
| Business Ethics for the Office | |||||
| Creative Thinking and Innovation | |||||
| Critical Thinking Skills | |||||
| Exploring MS OneNote | |||||
| Financial Intelligence | |||||
| Global Business Strategies | |||||
| Goal Setting | |||||
| How to Manage Your Emotions | |||||
| Identifying and Combating Fake News | |||||
| Influence and Persuasion | |||||
| Leading Others Through Change | |||||
| Making Training Stick | |||||
| Measuring Training Results | |||||
| PowerPoint Basics | |||||
| Productive Work Habits | |||||
| Public Speaking - Presentation Survival School | |||||
| Public Speaking - Speaking Under Pressure | |||||
| Solid Business Writing | |||||
| Supervisor Communication Skills | |||||
| Why We Struggle with Tough Decisions | |||||
| Accounting Skills for New Supervisors | |||||
| Adapting Your Style | |||||
| Advanced Project Management | |||||
| Basic Business Management Book Camp | |||||
| Becoming a Team Player | |||||
| Becoming Managerial Material | |||||
| Beyond Workplace Politics | |||||
| Building Better Teams | |||||
| Challenging Negative Attitudes | |||||
| Civility in the Workplace | |||||
| Coaching and Mentoring | |||||
| Coaching Conversations | |||||
| Collaboration | |||||
| Conversational Leadership | |||||
| Creating a Positive Work Environment | |||||
| Creating Your Executive Presence | |||||
| Crisis Management | |||||
| Defining Team Roles and Responsibilities | |||||
| Diversity in the Workplace | |||||
| Employee Dispute Resolution - Mediation | |||||
| Entrepreneurship 101 | |||||
| Facilitation Skills | |||||
| From Boss to Leader | |||||
| Fundamentals of Strategic Planning | |||||
| Getting Things Done | |||||
| HR Training for Non - HR Managers | |||||
| Ideas Into Action | |||||
| Increasing Your Emotional Intelligence | |||||
| Knowledge Management | |||||
| Leadership 101 | |||||
| Leadership skills for Supervisors | |||||
| Learning to Manage | |||||
| Logistics and Supply Chain Management | |||||
| Making Your Business Better | |||||
| Managing Managers | |||||
| Managing Teams | |||||
| Meeting Management - The Art of Making Meetings Work | |||||
| Motivating Employees to be Their Best | |||||
| Motivation Training: Motivating Your Workforce | |||||
| Onboarding | |||||
| Performance Management | |||||
| Project Management Fundamentals (Basic) | |||||
| Project Management Training - Understanding Project Management | |||||
| Resolving Conflict at Work | |||||
| Self - Leadership | |||||
| Successfully Managing Change | |||||
| Succession Planning | |||||
| Team Building | |||||
| Team Building - Developing High Performance Teams | |||||
| The ABC's of Supervising Others | |||||
| Time Management | |||||
| Women and Leadership | |||||
| Working Smarter - Using Technology to Your Advantage | |||||
| Advanced Writing Skills | |||||
| Balancing Priorities | |||||
| Bullying in the Workplace | |||||
| Coaching for Development | |||||
| Delegating for Growth | |||||
| Effective Negotiation Skill | |||||
| Emotional Intelligence | |||||
| Ten Minute Presentations | |||||
| The Toughest Supervisor Challenges and How to Overcome Them | |||||
| Budgets and Managing Money | |||||
| Business Succession Planning | |||||
| Conflict Resolution - Dealing with Difficult People | |||||
| Creative Problem Solving | |||||
| How to Make Yourself Indispensable | |||||
| Intermediate Project Management | |||||
| Project Planning - All You Need to Know | |||||
| Research Skills | |||||
| Strategic Planning | |||||
| Taking Control of Conflict | |||||
| Building a Brand on Social Media | |||||
| Business Etiquette | |||||
| Communication for Small Business Owners | |||||
| Delegation - The Art of Delegating Effectively | |||||
| Diversity Awareness Training | |||||
| Effective Planning and Scheduling | |||||
| Giving Effective Feedback | |||||
| Honing and Delivering Your Message | |||||
| Planning for Workplace Safety | |||||
| Project Management - All You Need to Know | |||||
| Skillful Collaboration | |||||
| Talk Like a Leader | |||||
| The Multi - Generational Workplace | |||||
| Building a Consulting Business | |||||
| Business Writing that Works | |||||
| Career Planning and Development | |||||
| Communication Mystery Solved | |||||
| Communications Strategies | |||||
| Conducting Effective Performance Reviews | |||||
| Conflict Resolution - Getting Along in the Workplace | |||||
| Conquering Your Fear of Speaking in Public | |||||
| Creating Winning Proposals | |||||
| Cultural Competencies | |||||
| Employee Accountability | |||||
| ESL - A Workplace Communication Primer | |||||
| Excel Boost - Exploring 20 Formulas and Functions | |||||
| Excel Boost: More Tips n Tricks | |||||
| Excel Boost: Tables & Lookups | |||||
| Hiring for Success - Behavioral Interviewing Techniques | |||||
| Lean Process Improvement | |||||
| Managing Difficult Conversations | |||||
| Meeting Management | |||||
| Negotiating for Results | |||||
| Skills for the Administrative Assistant | |||||
| Survival Skills for the New Trainer | |||||
| The Art of Effective Communication | |||||
| The Art of Influencing Others | |||||
| What Customers Really Want | |||||
| Word Boost: Mastering Tables | |||||
| Cannabis and the Workplace | |||||
| Closing the Generation Gap in the Workplace | |||||
| Code of Conduct - Setting the Tone for your Business | |||||
| Creativity in the Workplace | |||||
| Disability Awareness | |||||
| Mental Models | |||||
| Preventing Workplace Harassment | |||||
| Safety in the Workplace | |||||
| Lean Six Sigma - White Belt | |||||
| Lean Six Sigma - Black Belt | |||||
| Continuous Improvement with Lean | |||||
| Developing Positive Relationships at Work | |||||
| Ethics in the Workplace | |||||
| Navigating Difficult Conversations | |||||
| Advanced Motor Controls | |||||
| OSHA 30 | |||||
| OSHA 10 | |||||
| PLC Fundamentals | |||||
| Industrial Motor Controls | |||||
| Mechanical Drives | |||||
| Machine Shop III | |||||
| Welding Fundamentals | |||||
| Fluid Power I | |||||
| Setup Reduction | |||||
| Fluid Power in Plant and Field | |||||
| Introduction to Robotics | |||||
| Robotics 1 | |||||
| CRM - Customer Relationship Management | |||||
| Getting Stuff Done - Personal Development Boot Camp | |||||
| How to Handle Change and Upheaval | |||||
| Mastering the Interview | |||||
| Stress Management |