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Born and raised in Welch, WV, Jina was instilled with an entrepreneurial spirit at a young age. After starting her own business at 16 years old, Jina was the first student to receive the McKelvey Foundation Entrepreneurial Scholarship during their junior year of high school.
After graduating from Concord University in 2009 with a B.S. in Recreation and Tourism Management with an emphasis in Event Planning & Promotions, Jina returned home to assist her family in expanding the only non-profit food pantry in McDowell County. While there, Jina served as Trust Systems Administrator for 7 years at MCNB Bank and Trust Company.
In 2016, Jina followed the urge to leave the finance industry to fulfill her gut and help her community develop to its fullest potential. Working as Chief Business Officer with Coalfield Development, Jina worked closely with WV leaders and entrepreneurs to strengthen the substantiality of social enterprises across Appalachia. While there, Jina’s work in capital access and small business development organically crossed paths with NRGRDA and their great work being done in Southern WV.
In February 2019, Jina officially joined the NRGRDA as Director of Business Development. Combining her previous community development skills with her background in finance and social enterprise will allow her to provide the New River Gorge region with resources and expertise needed to grow the thriving economy of Southern WV. In December 2020, Jina assumed the role of Executive Director and continues to focus on implementing the organization’s strategic vision to grow the organization’s capacity and work across the New River Gorge region.
Christopher Vaught is an entrepreneur and the founder of six innovative West Virginia companies.
Vaught has been streamlining business operations in the clinical and administrative healthcare spaces for over two decades. As a trusted partner in a highly-regulated and fast-paced industry, Vaught has built a reputation for his ability to
improve processes and ensure regulatory compliance by responsibly deploying technology in new and innovative ways.
A proud product of Raleigh County, Vaught returned to his hometown after graduating from West Virginia University in 1995. He is a member of the WVU School of Pharmacy Centennial Hall of Fame.
In 2008, Vaught left his position as a hospital CEO and leveraged his clinical and administrative healthcare experiences to form Vaught, Inc., a consulting and business incubation firm. Since its inception, Vaught, Inc. has launched four successful subsidiary companies (NightWatch, MedMatrix Solutions, V23, and Indigo Health) and has been recognized on Inc. magazine’s 500|5000 roster of fastest-growing private companies. He is also the co-founder of Pistachio, a technology company that develops solutions for the highly-regulated healthcare and banking industries.
Vaught continues to work with clients across the healthcare industry to develop sustainable business models and dramatically improve services to their constituents. He is a recognized thought leader in building innovative solutions for hospitals, hospices, community health coalitions, medical practices, and school systems.
In addition to his business responsibilities, Vaught serves and has served on the board of directors for numerous community organizations supporting entrepreneurship, education, and wellness efforts. Some of these groups include Beckley Area Foundation, Beckley-Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce, The Bullpen Club, Beckley First Baptist, Academy of Careers and Technology Advisory Board, YMCA of Southern West Virginia, Region 1 Workforce Development Board, Active SWV, and Beckley Health Right.
Alongside his wife, Debra, Vaught founded The Vaught Fund for Social Entrepreneurship, which seeks to support and encourage social impact businesses and promote innovation in non-profit organizations.
Anne Barth is the Executive Director of TechConnect West Virginia, a nonprofit organization focused on driving innovation, cultivating entrepreneurship and creating greater economic diversity. With a coalition representing higher education, private industry and the public sector, TechConnect leads innovation-based economic development in the state. Under her leadership, Barth has helped to advance programs and initiatives that foster startups, commercialization and entrepreneurship, while also co-founding the West Virginia Women & Technology Conference.
She is a member of the Board of Directors of the West Virginia Economic Development Authority, the West Virginia Science & Research Council, the WV Manufacturing Extension Partnership Advisory Committee, the West Virginia Bioscience Association, the NASA West Virginia Space Grant Consortium and Advantage Valley. Barth holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a Master’s in Corporate and Organizational Communications from West Virginia University.
Chris Fussell is a former Navy SEAL Officer and President of McChrystal Group, a premier leadership and management consulting firm founded by General Stan McChrystal. Since leaving the military in 2012, Fussell has focused on bringing his Special Operations experience and expertise in cross-functional collaboration, knowledge sharing, and decision making with large corporations facing similar challenges.
Fussell was commissioned as a Naval Officer in 1997, and spent the next 15 years on US Navy SEAL Teams, leading SEAL elements in combat zones around the globe. From war torn Kosovo, to counterterrorism operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, to highly specialized efforts in the troubled areas of the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa, Fussell experienced the modern evolution of the US military’s Special Operations community from a siloed bureaucracy struggling to keep up in a turbulent environment into an agile and effective network for counter-terrorism.
In his career as a Navy SEAL, Fussell served first on SEAL Teams Two and Eight, then in the Naval Special Warfare Development Group. During his time on the SEAL teams, he conducted and planned hundreds of operations against high value targets all around the world. He was then selected to serve as Aide-de-Camp to then-Lieutenant General Stanley McChrystal during General McChrystal’s final year commanding the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), where they served a year together in Iraq. As McChrystal’s right-hand man, Fussell was an integral part of team that made the Special Operations community’s transformation into a successful, agile network possible. He was at the center of the communication and leadership systems that involved thousands of participants sharing information and experiences in real-time, across the world.
After returning from Iraq, Fussell wanted to explore the academic angle underpinning this shift he had witnessed in warfare in order to understand the theory behind what he and his colleagues had done in practice in Iraq. He went on to study Irregular Warfare from the Naval Postgraduate School, earning a Master’s Degree and receiving the Pat Tillman Award for highest peer-rated Special Operations Officer in the program. His thesis work expanded upon his JSOC experience with fusion cells, focusing on the interagency collaboration and intelligence sharing processes that drove effective, cross-silo collaboration during the peak of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2012, Fussell left the Naval Special Warfare Development Group in order to join the McChrystal Group. Fussell is also co-author of the New York Times bestseller, Team of Teams: New Rules of Engagement in a Complex World, with General McChrystal, and the lead author of the Wall Street Journal bestseller, One Mission: How Leaders Build a Team of Teams.
Fussell serves as a Senior Fellow for National Security at New America, a board member of the Naval Postgraduate School Foundation, a Fellow and teacher at Yale’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, and is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Chris lives in Fayette County, West Virginia, with his wife and two children.
Dr. Jo Harris is President Emeritus of BridgeValley Community and Technical College, having retired in July 2016 after 41 years of service. Beginning her career in higher education in 1975, Jo served as a faculty member and subsequently chair of the Office Administration/Business Education Department at West Virginia University Institute of Technology (WVU Tech). She was appointed Provost of the Community and Technical College at WVU Tech in 1999 and was selected as its first President in 2004 after leading the community college component in achieving independent accreditation. In 2009, the college name was changed to Bridgemont Community and Technical College. A legislative code change in 2013 required Bridgemont and Kanawha Valley Community and Technical Colleges to consolidate; Dr. Harris led the successful accreditation process to form the multi-campus college now known as BridgeValley Community and Technical College and served as its first president until her retirement.
Educational attainments include a bachelor’s degree in Business Education from Concord College, a master’s degree from Marshall University, and a doctoral degree in Educational Administration from West Virginia University. She has conducted research, written state and federal grants, made presentations at national and state conferences, and published articles in the areas of post-tenure review, Americans with Disabilities Act, management skills, business education, and workforce development. Dr. Harris has served on numerous civic, economic, and education boards and received many awards throughout her career. She is active in the Montgomery United Methodist Church, having served as pianist for several years.
Jo currently resides in Glen Ferris with her husband, Carl, retired Prosecuting Attorney for Fayette County. They are the parents of two children, Vanessa Harris of Glen Ferris and Valerie Harris Raupp of Charleston and the proud grandparents of Jenna and Brendan Raupp.
Mike Jarrell is the CEO of White Oak Group, LLC, a Beckley, WV based holding company with investments across a broad range of businesses including real estate, hardwood lumber manufacturing, and technology.
Prior to pursuing his own business opportunities, Mike was employed in various capacities at Quintana Petroleum Corporation and Utah International, Inc., a subsidiary of The General Electric Company. His tenure at GE included various positions of increasing responsibility as part of GE’s fast tract management development program including engineering, project development, operations management, marketing and business development.
Mike is a graduate of WVU’s College of Engineering, studied economics at Colorado School of Mines and is a Registered Professional Engineer. He is a commercial and type rated pilot in fixed wing and helicopter aircraft. He enjoys mountain biking, skiing and spending quality time with friends and family.
Kent Spellman joined the One Foundation team in 2018 after a diverse career as a private sector entrepreneur and as a social entrepreneur. He has been a building contractor, a designer, a newspaper publisher and editor, and an economic and community development professional. He also helped create the 72-mile North
Bend Rail-Trail as a volunteer in the late 80s and early 90s.
In 2008, Kent became the founding executive director of the WV Community Development Hub, which he led until his retirement in 2016. When Kent applied for the position at the Hub at the age of 56, it was the first job application he had ever submitted.
Throughout his career, Kent has thought of himself as a builder, whether building rail-trails, designing and building homes and commercial spaces, or building communities and community-based economies. He is delighted to join the One Foundation team and to be working with the Foundation’s remarkable partner organizations.
Kent lives with his wife, Betsy, in Clarksburg WV.
Jen is an integrated marketing communications professional with two decades of experience promoting the work and successes of nonprofits and higher education institutions through innovative solutions. She has extensive experience in event management, public relations, comprehensive marketing strategies and community engagement. She excels as a connector and collaborator.
Jen is a first-generation college graduate and a constant advocate for college attainment. After working in community relations, educational access and higher education for a decade, Jen returned to her alma mater in 2013 to oversee a federal grant-funded student support services program that provides educational and financial support to students who are first-generation, low-income or have accessibility needs.
In 2014, she became the Director of University Relations at West Virginia University Institute of Technology (WVU Tech). She was promoted in 2022 to Executive Director of University Relations. This role enables her to follow her passion for helping students achieve their educational goals while sharing the stories of the students, faculty and staff at her alma mater.
Jen attributes her success to those who pushed and supported her throughout her life and career. She values her network and support system and relies on them for insight and perspective in her daily life and in her work. Jen is an advocate for the benefits of mentorship and is involved with a variety of mentorship programs at WVU Tech and the WVU system.
Jen has served on numerous boards in the region, including The Charleston Ballet and the March of Dimes of West Virginia. She currently serves on the board of directors for the Beckley Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce, Active Southern West Virginia and the WV HIVE – a program of the New River Gorge Regional Development Authority.
Jen was featured in The State Journal’s Generation Next: 40 under 40 in 2016 and was selected as a Wonder Woman by WV Focus Magazine in 2015. Jen is an alumna of Leadership WV (2012). She holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from WVU Tech (2001) and a master’s degree in integrated marketing communications from WVU (2009). She previously taught courses in integrated marketing communications, public relations and event management for the WVU Reed College of Media. LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jenwoodwv
Thomas (Tom) grew up in Monroe County with dreams of doing something to make an impact on the world. Out of high school he enlisted in the United States Air Force where he served with distinction during operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm as a secure communications technician. During his military service he played an instrumental role in developing a security communications system that was implemented throughout the Department of Defense.
Thomas’ first job after leaving the military was working for an alarm company which, with the encouragement and support of his wife, Donna, led to the founding of Safe and Sound Security Systems, Inc. in 1996. Thomas has been providing safety and security to individuals, families, and businesses for over 25 years and when asked to join the WV Hive Board responded that he would be honored to help entrepreneurs avoid some of the pitfalls he has encountered during his time in business.
Thomas has an Associate Degree in organizational leadership from Mountain State University and is very active in his community. He serves as vice president of the City of Hinton Planning Commission, vice president of the Summers County Planning Commission, president of the City of Hinton Civil Service Commission, and a voting member of the Summers County Local Emergency Planning Commission.
Katie Loudin is an innovator in the nonprofit sector in West Virginia. Katie is currently the Director of Strategic Development at the West Virginia Community Development Hub where she has served on the Executive Leadership Team since May 2021. Katie enjoys developing resources and people to serve rural and historically underinvested communities across Appalachia in her role at The Hub.
Prior to joining The Hub, Katie built a career of developing young leaders and growing nonprofit organizations. Katie was the Director of Community Engagement at West Virginia Wesleyan College from 2010 until 2020, when she joined the One Foundation as the WV Program Director and eventually, as the Executive Director. Katie became familiar with the WV Hive’s work through that role and became committed to supporting the mission of the organization.
Katie graduated from West Virginia Wesleyan College with a B.A. in Sociology and Applied Music in 2007 and taught English on a Fulbright Teaching Assistantship in Thailand after graduating from Wesleyan. Katie then earned a Master of Public Affairs degree from Indiana University in Nonprofit Management and Policy Analysis before returning to her “home among the hills” as a young professional.
Katie lives in Buckhannon with her husband Adam and their two sons, Thomas and Elliot. Katie is an active community member, serving in Create Buckhannon and on the board of the Buckhannon Community Theatre. She served on the Upshur County school board from 2017 until 2022 and was just re-appointed to the board of the Upshur County Public Library. When she isn’t working or volunteering, she enjoys shuttling her children to their many activities, signing her family up for new adventures, singing, performing, cooking, and reading.
A proud West Virginian and son of a steelworker family, Ted Kula was raised in Weirton. He graduated with honors from Bethany College in 1994 with a Bachelor’s in Computer Science, and WVU in 1996 with a Master’s in Computer Science. Mr. Kula began working for a major government contractor in 1996, eventually overseeing million-dollar contracts and requiring extensive travel in the United States and Europe. That work took him to southern WV, where he met his wife Cheryl. Together they have two wonderful daughters, Lieschen and Lillian.
Ted started TK Associates, his first small business, in 2009. Since he was working full-time as a certified Project Manager, it provided him an opportunity to dip in his toe to entrepreneurship with minimal risk. What he didn’t know was how much it would teach him about the ins and outs of running a business. Then, in 2019 Ted started CyberAware Technologies, a training and consulting company that provides highly specialized training by trained subject matter experts. Ted is the CEO of the rapidly-growing company based in southern WV.
Mr. Kula believes deeply in service to his community. In 2009 Ted was appointed Summers County Planning Official to oversee county Wireless Telecommunications activities. Through his county work, he grew to know many of the county staff, who came to share his experiences and talents. In January 2021, Ted was appointed to a 2-year vacancy as a Summers County Commissioner, and was then elected to a full 6-year term as commissioner. Ted is driven by action and problem-solving, and when folks ask him why he ran for public office, he’s quick to share what’s on the concession stand sign at the Bellepoint ballfield: “Before you complain, have you volunteered?” His commission focus areas include broadband development, grant funding, and economic development.
Ted joined the Hinton Area Foundation Board of Directors in 2008, and has held positions as President, Vice President, and is currently Chairman of the Finance Committee. He is also a member of Hinton Rotary, Summers County Public Library Board of Directors, and is a long-time supporter of the Summers County Humane Society (or “ACWP” – Animal Control and Welfare Project).
Jen is an integrated marketing communications professional with two decades of experience promoting the work and successes of nonprofits and higher education institutions through innovative solutions. She has extensive experience in event management, public relations, comprehensive marketing strategies and community engagement. She excels as a connector and collaborator.
Jen is a first-generation college graduate and a constant advocate for college attainment. After working in community relations, educational access and higher education for a decade, Jen returned to her alma mater in 2013 to oversee a federal grant-funded student support services program that provides educational and financial support to students who are first-generation, low-income or have accessibility needs.
In 2014, she became the Director of University Relations at West Virginia University Institute of Technology (WVU Tech). She was promoted in 2022 to Executive Director of University Relations. This role enables her to follow her passion for helping students achieve their educational goals while sharing the stories of the students, faculty and staff at her alma mater.
Jen attributes her success to those who pushed and supported her throughout her life and career. She values her network and support system and relies on them for insight and perspective in her daily life and in her work. Jen is an advocate for the benefits of mentorship and is involved with a variety of mentorship programs at WVU Tech and the WVU system.
Jen has served on numerous boards in the region, including The Charleston Ballet and the March of Dimes of West Virginia. She currently serves on the board of directors for the Beckley Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce, Active Southern West Virginia and the WV HIVE – a program of the New River Gorge Regional Development Authority.
Jen was featured in The State Journal’s Generation Next: 40 under 40 in 2016 and was selected as a Wonder Woman by WV Focus Magazine in 2015. Jen is an alumna of Leadership WV (2012). She holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from WVU Tech (2001) and a master’s degree in integrated marketing communications from WVU (2009). She previously taught courses in integrated marketing communications, public relations and event management for the WVU Reed College of Media. LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jenwoodwv
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