The University of South Carolina Salkehatchie celebrated the accomplishments of the Leadership Salkehatchie class of 2024 and alumni of the program at a reception held at the Walterboro Wildlife Center on June 27.
“I look forward to seeing the impact that the class of 2024 will have in their local communities and the Salkehatchie region and how they will continue to grow in their personal leadership journeys,” said Shelby Broomfield, director of the USC Salkehatchie Leadership Institute.
Leadership Salkehatchie is an economic development leadership program offered by USC Salkehatchie in partnership with SouthernCarolina Alliance. The program provides participants an opportunity to enhance their leadership skills while becoming aware of and involved with community dynamics and issues facing the Salkehatchie region.
For Broomfield, one of the highlights of the evening was meeting alumni from the 20+ years that the program spans.
Attorney Mary Ann Blake (2022) shared that the program inspired her to seek political office. Nico Aguilar, a member of the inaugural cohort (1999), says the program provided him the opportunity to not only network with very impressive people, but it also gave him the tools to be a leader.
“One of the important lessons that I learned was that to lead people, you need to help them to become future leaders. As a manager, all you’re doing is just giving them instructions. As a leader, you provide others the opportunity to become future leaders,” Aguilar said.
Cliff Warren (2020) served as the evening’s keynote speaker and shared Leadership Salkehatchie’s transformative effects not only on him personally, but also for the region’s communities.
“As a retired school administrator, I am very aware of this program’s impact. The emphasis the program places on community dynamics encourages participants not to just observe from the sidelines, but to roll up our sleeves and to contribute,” Warren said. “Whether it is advocating for improvement, supporting small businesses, or volunteering in our communities, we learned that true leadership requires not only vision but also action.”
This year, 19 participants completed Leadership Salkehatchie. They are: Jennifer Bryant, Gehl Foods Southeast (Colleton); Shanda Crawford, Dreams Imagination & Gift Development Program (Barnwell); Tricia Gordon, Barnwell County First Steps (Barnwell); Victoria Gunnells, SRP Federal Credit Union (Barnwell); Nancy Gutierrez, City of Hardeeville (Jasper); Jodi Kearse, Allendale County E911 (Allendale & Hampton); Enterick Lee, Southern Palmetto Regional Chamber of Commerce (Barnwell); Stewart McAdoo, Colleton County Chamber of Commerce (Colleton); Alisha Moore, Bamberg County (Bamberg); Tammy Rimes, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (Barnwell); Victoria Rizer, Enterprise Bank of SC (Colleton & Bamberg); Keelie Robinson, SC Lowcountry Tourism Commission (Colleton, Jasper, Beaufort & Hampton); Lish Sabb, Allendale County Rescue Squad (Allendale); Monique Smalls, Barnwell County Consolidated School District (Barnwell); Meagan Stoner, HCA Healthcare (Colleton); Karen Terry, Hampton County Regional Medical Center (Hampton); Josh Urwick, SouthernCarolina Alliance (Barnwell); Melanie Wooten, Hampton County Regional Medical Center (Hampton); and Meredith Wright, Barnwell County (Barnwell).
John Fleming, COO of SouthernCarolina Alliance, said that all of the alumni are now ambassadors for economic development in our region.
“When somebody from a company comes to the region, they walk around, and they notice how the people react to their own community. Think about that. You’re all ambassadors,” he said.
One common theme from the class of 2024 was that even though the sessions have been completed, their journeys are just beginning.
“I’ve made friends I’ll be able to rely on to ask questions and to bounce ideas off. We can actually work with each other to figure out how to make our communities flourish,” Stewart McAdoo (2024) said.
Tammy Rimes (2024) said that the class has been a wonderful opportunity.
“The program allows us to interact with the other team members from around the region to look at common issues that we have and to discuss possible solutions,” she said.
Leadership Salkehatchie includes workshops designed to empower participants with the economic development knowledge and the skills needed to cultivate progress within our region. The program highlights the strengths of the Salkehatchie region and explores the obstacles facing small-town America.
Nominations for the class of 2025 will open on Aug. 1. For more information, contact Shelby Broomfield at sbroomfield@sc.edu or 803-812-7354.
