FARMINGTON — Sheena Bunnell, UMF professor of business economics, has been selected as a gubernatorial appointee to the five-member Maine Consensus Economic Forecasting Commission.

The CEFC is an independent group of economists is charged with forecasting Maine’s economy for the benefit of the governor and the State Legislature. It meets twice a year to engage in accurate economic forecasting that will have a positive impact on the Maine state budget. Three key indicators are forecast by the Commission, including wage and salary employment, personal income and the consumer price index.

The commission also meets with the leaders of a variety of Maine business and industry groups who share economic data and industry-specific information.

Materials summarizing the current economic environment are provided to the commission by the Office of Policy Management. Special attention is paid to indicators of general economic activity as well as indicators for employment, personal income and inflation.

Bunnell has taught at UMF since 1992, where she prepares students for careers in a wide variety of business economics applications. One of Bunnell’s latest innovations is the development of the UMF Health Information Systems concentration.

She is also the director of the Maine Health Research Institute at UMF. Created by Bunnell in 1997, the MHRI partners faculty, students, physicians and policy makers to address rural health care issues. A key goal of the institute is to provide the state with analytic and strategic policy expertise.

Bunnell serves as a board member for the Franklin County Health Network and the University of Maine System Research Investment Funds advisory board.