Full House for First Women In Business of 2024

It was a packed house at the Chamber's first Women In Business luncheon of 2024 learning to go "Beyond the Classroom." Guests heard from a panel of experts on the crucial role of business in student success.  “We need to embrace our students to become decision makers,” says Kimberly Wilder of Davis, Chapman, & Wilder.

Ashley Whitaker, Director of Development for the CSRA Junior Achievement of Georgia expressed “academics are not the only thing that matters, real life skills play a large part in complimenting education for our students growth." JA of Georgia, Columbia County School District, and Richmond County School System have partnered to build the JA Discovery Center of the CSRA. The facility is housed in a 30,000-square-foot space within Columbia County Schools’ Support Complex. This JA Discovery Center expands access to programming to 15,000 area middle school students, giving them the opportunity to experience their futures via JA Finance Park and JA BizTown.

Dr. Malinda Cobb, Associate Superintendent of Academic Services for Richmond County School System, discussed the different generations of students and how "our students are different, they connect differently then we did when we were in school." It's always important to think outside the box but now "they think without the box," says Teresa Cobb, Education Program Manager at Georgia Power.