Aim Hire
2023

Glenda serves as the president and chief executive officer of the Appalachian Partnership, Inc., a private non-profit organization dedicated to building economic prosperity through synergistic economic development strategies across Ohio’s 32 Appalachian counties. She also serves as the chief executive officer for the company’s two subsidiaries, the Appalachian Growth Capital, a CDFI dedicated to providing loan capital and technical assistance to the Region’s businesses, and Ohio Southeast, a regional JobsOhio partner dedicated to advancing economic development. Glenda is committed to building the private-sector business economy and mobilizing an effective voice to address and improve the issues affecting our Appalachian region, and improve the prosperity of the citizens in the region through employment opportunities. Prior to joining the API, Glenda served in several senior-level public and private positions. On the talent front, she served as the Governor’s Executive Director of the Workforce Policy Board, and managed $40M in workforce training programs for the Ohio Department of Development. Glenda led the economic development and governmental affairs teams for Nisource/Columbia Gas, and IBM Corporation. She also led the Clark County Community Improvement Corporation. In the various capacities, Glenda focused on economic development and notably the capital requirements and assistance that businesses require to stabilize and grow. Glenda has managed public and private funding and programs in aggregate that exceed $1 billion. Dr. Bumgarner holds a doctorate in management from Walden University with her research and dissertation anchored in transformational leadership, a master’s degree in public administration, and a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Capital University.

Gary Z. Lindgren has served as the President of the Cincinnati Business Committee since August 2007. The CBC is a private organization comprised of the region’s top CEO’s whose mission is to improve economic development and education. In late 2012, the CBC helped launch the Cincinnati Regional Business Committee which includes CEO’s from nearly 100 mid-size Cincinnati companies. Lindgren serves in a similar capacity for CRBC. In his role, Lindgren is responsible for organizing business leadership from CBC and CRBC to address critical issues facing the city and the region. During his tenure, the CBC has spearheaded efforts to accelerate an innovation economy in the Cincinnati region. The CBC’s Regional Innovation Task Force launched Cintrifuse – an organization charged with scaling the innovation ecosystem while increasing risk capital and the number of venture-worthy companies in the region.

Kenny McDonald serves as the third president and CEO of the Columbus Partnership, a civic organization of Columbus’ top business leaders. The Partnership was founded in 2002 to improve the economic and cultural base of Central Ohio. McDonald is responsible for leading strategies focused on diversity and equity, growth and development, and business and civic innovation, in order for the Columbus Region to achieve its vision to become the most prosperous metropolitan area in the United States. He brings more than 25 years of experience working with metropolitan economies in Savannah, Georgia;, Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Charlotte, North Carolina. He also spent seven years as a global site location advisor for Fluor Corporation. McDonald has been named one of the Top 50 economic developers by Economix and is a frequent speaker and national thought leader on regional economic development. He was also named Small Nonprofit CEO of the Year by Columbus CEO magazine.

Lisa Gray’s career has been dedicated to improving the educational outcomes of ALL of Ohio’s students. Prior to leading Ohio Excels, Gray had her own consulting practice specializing in public policy development, government relations, advocacy, strategic planning, and project management with an emphasis on public education. Her clients included the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Achieve, Inc., Philanthropy Ohio, Battelle for Kids, Ohio Business Roundtable, Teach for America, Jobs for the Future and the Office of Governor Taft, among others. Prior to starting her consulting practice, Gray was the Director of Policy and Communications at Battelle for Kids from 2001-2005. In 2000, Gray served as the Project Director of the Governor’s Commission for Student Success. The bi-partisan commission, appointed by Governor Taft, developed recommendations for improving Ohio’s K-12 public education system. Gray also served as the Deputy Executive Assistant to Columbus Mayor Greg Lashutka. Prior to joining the Mayor’s office, Gray served in a number of positions at the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce. Gray graduated from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, with a BS in Elementary Education. At the start of her career, she served as an elementary school teacher. She and her husband have four wonderful sons, all of whom have been educated in Ohio’s public schools.