NCEDA CERTIFIES SIX ECONOMIC DEVELOPERS
NCEDA Foundation Awards Four Economic Development Scholarships At Annual Conference
WILMINGTON, N.C., June 30, 2023 – The North Carolina Economic Development Association (NCEDA) certified six economic developers at its 2023 Annual Conference. An additional four economic development professionals across North Carolina were awarded professional development scholarships from the North Carolina Economic Development Association (NCEDA) Foundation. NCEDA announced the recipients at their Annual Conference in Wilmington on June 28, 2023.
NCEDA has partnered with East Carolina University for five years to design and deliver the North Carolina Certified Economic Developer Program. This important curriculum, with about 75 contact hours of instruction, including the capstone process, is a requirement for state certification. It is a rigorous program and a high honor to achieve this designation.
2023 Class of North Carolina Certified Economic Developers:
Jason Cannon, President of the Wake Forest Business & Industry Partnership
James Carter, Talent Development Program Manager with the City of Charlotte’s economic development office.
Rachael Holzman, New Opportunities Manager with the Monroe-Union County Economic Development Commission
McKinley Perkinson, Director of the Henderson-Vance County Economic Development Commission
Monique Wilkins, Economic Development Specialist with the Franklin County Economic Development Commission
Emily Martin, Director of Business Development with the Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development.
The NCEDA Foundation awarded four new Dan Stewart Basic Economic Development Course Scholarships. Dan Stewart saw economic development as a means to create a better North Carolina. His career in economic development at NC State University and CP&L led to his appointment as director of the NC Department of Conservation and Development in the early 1960s. The scholarship pays for tuition, plus reimbursement for all travel, lodging, meal, and ancillary expenses, to attend the one-week Basic Economic Development Course held annually at UNC Chapel Hill.
2023 Summer Scholarship Recipients include:
Jennifer Holcomb, Existing Industry Expansion Manager for the South Central Regional with EDPNC
Colleen Merays, Downtown and Small Business Development Coordinator for the Town of Apex
April Riddle, Existing Industry Expansion Manager for the Western Region with EDPNC
Kassie Simmons, Marketing Communications Manager for North Carolina’s Southeast
“The NCEDA Foundation is focused on providing more scholarships for practitioners in our field to expand their professional development and learning opportunities,” said Dr. Patricia Mitchell, chair of the NCEDA Foundation, which funds the annual scholarships. “Scholarships allow access to the growing list of education and training programs we encourage practitioners to pursue.”
“These scholarships help increase access and level the playing field for all our economic developers, and we encourage our members to apply as they pursue the training and credentials necessary for long-term career success in economic development,” said Mitchell.
Click here for photos of recipients.
About NCEDA Foundation
The NCEDA Foundation is a tax-exempt 501c3 organization created in 2020 to advance the economic development profession, enhance the knowledge and skills of economic developers, and strengthen the broad, statewide economic development community in North Carolina through funding professional development activities, research, and education programs, especially to underserved, distressed, and rural counties and economic developers across North Carolina. For additional information, visit www.nceda.org/nceda-foundation.
About NCEDA
Founded in 1966, NCEDA works toward a mission of being “the voice for North Carolina’s economic development community – providing professional development, networking opportunities and advocacy to secure the state’s economic future.” The organization is composed of over 850 professional economic developers at the state, regional and local levels, as well as educators, engineers, transportation experts, utility industry leaders, attorneys and other professionals. For additional information, visit www.nceda.org.
Contact: Eleanor Talley, Director of Communications
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