Beckley, W.Va. (Hinton News) – Beckley resident Amy Showalter has joined the New River Gorge Regional Development Authority (NRGRDA) as a Project Manager with the WV Hive. In her role, Showalter will contribute to existing entrepreneurial services and coordinate the WV Hive’s work as part of the Community and Business Resilience Initiative (CBRI) project associated with the ACT Now Coalition Build Back Better Regional Challenge.
“We are excited to have Amy onboard. Opportunities abound throughout southern West Virginia, and Amy adds significant capabilities to our team in problem-solving, community and network engagement, partnership development, project management, social justice work, and planning,” said Judy Moore, executive director of the WV Hive and deputy director of the New River Gorge Regional Development Authority.
Showalter has diverse experience in the region and around the country. She moved to Beckley in 2014 to work at Conservation Legacy supporting regional and national AmeriCorps programming. Showalter has also worked in residential healthcare at Pleasant View, Inc. in Harrisonburg, Va.; taught hiking-based environmental education with the Appalachian Mountain Club in Gorham, N.H.; and served as an AmeriCorps member at Community Home Repair Projects of Arizona, Inc. in Tucson. Most recently, Showalter worked as a graduate research and teaching assistant while completing her dual master’s degrees in Public Administration and Urban and Regional Planning at Virginia Tech.
She grew up in Harrisonburg, Va., and is a graduate of Goshen College in Indiana.
The WV Hive is a partner of the West Virginia Community Hub on the Community and Business Resilience Initiative. CBRI will utilize $9.3 million in federal and private sector funds to provide long-term community resilience planning for 16 communities across southern West Virginia through Hub community coaching services, BAD Buildings (brownfields, abandoned and dilapidated) services through the Brownfields Assistance Centers, and small business and entrepreneurial development services for hundreds of businesses across 21 counties through the WV Hive and Advantage Valley.
