One Southern Indiana Hires CEO

August 03, 2012

News Release

NEW ALBANY, Ind. – Wendy Dant Chesser has been selected as the next President & CEO of One Southern Indiana (1si) following a search that fielded an impressive and diverse pool of candidates, Pamela Bennett Martin, Chair of the Board of Directors, announced today. One Southern Indiana is the chamber of commerce and economic development entity serving Clark and Floyd counties.

Dant Chesser will begin transitioning into her new role starting Sept. 1 and will be on board full time with the organization by Nov. 1, allowing her the opportunity to wrap up several projects with her current organization. The hiring of Dant Chesser ends the national search started in the spring by a six-member selection committee of 1si board members and community leaders.

"Wendy is the ideal person to lead 1si into the future." Bennett Martin noted. "Wendy's leadership, diverse experiences and passion for developing community and regional relationships will be invaluable to our organization. It will enable 1si to continue to play a leading role on regional, national and global levels in regards to economic development, and to be a strong voice for our member businesses and advocate for community development. We are very excited to have her on board."

EXECUTIVE BACKGROUND

A native of Jeffersonville, Indiana and an Indiana University Southeast graduate, Dant Chesser most recently served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Cornerstone Alliance in Benton Harbor, Michigan. Cornerstone Alliance is a nonprofit, investor-driven, economic development organization dedicated to tax and job base creation in the communities that comprise Northern Berrien County in Southwest Michigan. While at Cornerstone Alliance, Dant Chesser oversaw a $3.3 million annual budget and led a staff of 15.

Prior to that, Dant Chesser served as the Deputy Executive Director at the Indiana Department of Commerce. She also served there as the Regional Operations Manager and Deputy Director for Energy Policy.

"I look forward to working with the Chamber membership, economic development investors and many community and regional stakeholders that have clearly worked hard to make Southern Indiana and our entire region such a livable and dynamic community. I intend to be a strong advocate for the business community and will identify strategic partnerships, effective initiatives, and points of advocacy that ensure our success," said Dant Chesser.

About One Southern Indiana:

One Southern Indiana is a business advancement organization dedicated to supporting entrepreneurship, existing business growth, and attracting new enterprises to the Southern Indiana/Greater Louisville region. Representing more than 1,200 businesses, One Southern Indiana provides its clients with business intelligence, advocacy, and connections for solutions in support of regional business innovation. Since its creation in July 2006, One Southern Indiana’s economic development efforts have resulted in commitments for approximately 8,267 net new jobs in Clark and Floyd Counties. A total of 89 attraction and expansion projects are investing more than $546 million in new initial capital and over $287 million in new annual payroll to Southern Indiana. To learn more, please visit www.1si.org.

Source: One Southern Indiana