On Tuesday, August 9, 2016, the Columbia County Chamber welcomed 28 students into the Youth Leadership Class of 2017.  Youth Leadership Columbia County is a program of the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce where participants have the opportunity to learn more about our community, its history, existing industry, the impact of Fort Gordon and Cyber Command, and, most importantly, gain leadership skills.  It is through this program that the Chamber works to develop upcoming leaders who will one day contribute to our future workforce.

The Youth Leadership program is provided not only through the support of the Chamber membership, but also through the support of the title sponsor; State Bank & Trust, formerly known as First Bank, who has been the title sponsor of the Youth Leadership program for 18 years.

Members of the Youth Leadership Class of 2017 include: Brynna Allen, Reece Baker, Jace Combs, Victoria Everett, Jonathan Forde, Hinson Fowler, Matt Frey, Ella Hansen, Alex Hawes, Brooklyn Hilley, Lilly Howard, Hannah Jones, Sam Knight, Kelly Lloveras, Adolfo Martinez, John McCraith, Abbi Page, Sarah Pennebaker, Shelby Plooster, Ellie Polhill, Madison Schumm, Karynne Smith, Jamie Stafford, Shreyu Umapathy, Ian Waldron, Samuel Welsh, Jay Yagnick, and Luke Yelton. 

In addition to the Youth Leadership program, the Columbia County Chamber also offers an adult Leadership program, and both programs are an important part of the Chamber’s mission to advocate for economic growth in our area.  Applications for both ten-month programs are available in March of next year with the class running from August to May.

If you have further questions regarding the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce Leadership programs, please reach out to Beth Frits, Leadership Programs Coordinator, at 706.651.0018 or [email protected].