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At Work BUSINESS DIGEST | PEOPLE IN THE NEWS Business Digest

Furman lauded for sustainability For the third time in a row, Furman University earned a Sustainable Tracking, Assessment and Rating System Gold rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education for the third consecutive year. The gold rate places Furman among the top three baccalaureate schools in the United States, the university said. The STARS Program is a self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to measure their sustainability performance. The association grades schools in 18 categories, including curriculum, research, campus and community engagement and operations. More than 1,000 institutions have registered to use the STARS reporting tool.

New center to assist with contracts The University of South Carolina’s Office of Economic Engagement, in partnership with the S.C. Department of Commerce, announced the opening of the Procurement Technical Assistance Center of South Carolina. The center will provide South Carolina businesses with resources and services required to obtain contracts and subcontracts with the U.S. Department of Defense, as well as with federal, state and local governments. The Procurement Technical Assistance Center will provide each of the state’s 46 counties with the following assistance: identifying marketing opportunities for clients’ products/services; advising and assisting clients in preparation and submission of applications, certifications and registrations for doing business with federal, state and local governments; advising and assisting clients with the preparation and submission of bids/proposals and postaward functions; bid matching service; and pursuing subcontracting opportunities. For more information, visit www. ptacsc.org.

Prisma expands hemophilia center Prisma Health has expanded its Hemophilia Treatment Center to include an office in Greenville as well as Columbia. Prisma Health said it has South Carolina’s only federally supported comprehensive hemophilia treatment center, serving a growing number of both children and adults across the state. Hemophilia is a bleeding disorder in which blood does not clot properly. The center has close partnerships with and access to resources from educational and advocacy community organizations, such as the Bleeding Disorders Association of South Carolina. Funds support minority accelerator Three chamber organizations from across South Carolina jointly announced that Bank of America provided a $500,000 grant to launch a statewide Minority Business Accelerator program. This program will be led by the Charleston, Columbia and Greenville chambers and is set to start in January 2022. The Minority Business Accelerator supports and scales high-potential minority-owned firms by providing targeted training, access to business coaches and access to large corporations. Participants leave the program with a threeyear strategic plan to guide development. Participants must have at least one other full-time employee and must also be headquartered in South Carolina. Recruitment for program participants will begin this fall.

Kopis announces partnership Greenville software company Kopis said it has partnered with an Internet of Things (IoT) design engineering firm called Connected Development on a new platform that aims to help customers with size-, power- and cost-constrained IoT applications accelerate time to market. The platform’s combination of pre-tested hardware and software building blocks will allow customers to rapidly prototype unique applications, while transitioning to volume manufacturing, the companies said in a news release.

Countybank exhibit on display The Museum in Greenwood opened a permanent exhibit featuring Countybank. The exhibit displays many historical items from the bank’s almost 90-year history, including old photographs of the bank’s branches, a Brandt Automatic Cashier, a Mosler safe and a “cannonball safe.” The County Bank was founded in 1933 by a group of Greenwood businessmen to ensure there was a bank that would be the county’s bank in the aftermath of local bank closures and restructuring during the Great Depression. The Museum houses roughly 50,000 artifacts and features rotating and traveling exhibits.

Rent Ready expands to Greenville Charlotte-based Rent Ready said it is expanding into Greenville. The company provides a technology platform to manage business-to-business services for multifamily apartments. The company currently serves the Atlanta, Charlotte and Raleigh markets.

Prisma Health opens clinic in Greer Prisma Health Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Center opened a location at the Pris-

Search dog and handler attain national certification

Staff Report

gsanews@scbiznews.com

Handler Mitch Henderson of the South Carolina Search & Rescue Dog Association, a non-profit, all-volunteer professional search and rescue team dedicated to finding missing people with search dogs, has attained a first national certification from the North American Police Work Dog Association in cadaver detection with K9 Penny.

The national association specializes in the development, improvement, training and certification of police work dogs and assists in certifying working dog teams.

Henderson and Penny passed the three-day cadaver detection certification test, which included searches for human remains in 12 scenarios in six areas, including rubble (simulating a collapsed building), vehicles, water, open wilderness, building and buried, according to a news release. Cadaver detection tests also require NAPWDA police obedience certification, which includes off-leash heeling, voice and hand signal commands, and emergency down.

Henderson, an explosive detection handler with K2 Solutions, is also a volunteer with Wellford Police Department, and was a residual operator at Spartanburg Water for 23 years. He has eight years of K9 SAR experience.

Henderson is a certified rescue diver with 25 years of experience in fire fighting as a former volunteer with the Boiling Springs Fire Department. SCSARDA team members take additional coursework in lost person behavior, managing the land search operation, and other advanced searchand-rescue courses as well as courses in hazardous material, blood borne pathogens, crime scene preservation, incidemt command and first aid.

“Human remains detection dogs are very important tools for us as they help round out our K9 SAR abilities in the field when we hunt for missing persons,” Marion Tisdale, an officer with SCSARDA and area search dog handler, said in the release. “They also can provide much-needed closure for families in the event of the death of a loved one who is missing. We are very fortunate to have a handler on our team as experienced as Mitch, who has achieved certifications now in trailing, cadaver detection, and explosives detection with three different dogs. Our team takes a lot of pride in developing highly skilled K9 SAR handlers and Mitch is certainly a strong representative of our philosophy.”

Mitch Henderson and K9 Penny earned national certification in search and rescue after three days of testing and assessment. (Photo/Provided)

ma Health Greer campus. The center will provide care to individuals struggling with major wounds, ulcers or infections and help fast track recovery with the latest technology and treatments, according to a news release. Some of the wounds commonly treated include diabetic wounds, pressure ulcers, burns, radiation burns, injuries and non-healing surgical wounds.

Pintail adds property management

Greenville-based commercial real estate firm Pintail announced it is expanding services to include property management. Pintail Property Services will provide Upstate property owners with commercial property management services, including emergency support, property inspections and maintenance, contractor selection and management, construction and project supervision, financial reporting, tenant relationship management and other services. The new venture will be led by Brian Sparks, a member of the Institute of Real Estate Management and a certified property manager.

REAL ESTATE

Armenti

Lyles

Coldwell Banker Commercial Caine added Jennifer Armenti as a property manager in its Greenville office. Armenti joins Caine with experience in property management and accounting.

Kisha Lyles of Avison Young earned the Certified Commercial Investment Member designation from the CCIM Institute. Lyles is a senior associate in the firm’s Greenville and Charleston offices.

Huff Creek Properties, the timber and recreational land division of NAI Earle Furman, hired Knox Duncan to its brokerage team in Greenville. Knox will graduate from Clemson University in 2022 with a degree in business management.

Coldwell Banker Caine added David Montague to its Greenville office. He recently moved to the Upstate from West Palm Beach, Fla.

Coldwell Banker Caine added Cary Swofford to its residential sales team. She has a background in human resources.

Coldwell Banker Caine added Mike Shelton to its Greenville office. He has worked in the automotive service industry for more than 30 years.

Coldwell Banker Caine hired Lori Nix as a property management staff accountant at its Greenville office. Nix has more than 25 years of accounting experience in the banking, government and real estate industries.

Alex Campbell of NAI Earle Furman and Tammy Dixon of NAI Piedmont Triad earned the Certified Commercial Investment Member designation, NAI announced.

Duncan

Montague

Swofford

Shelton Nix

Dixon, Campbell

TECHNOLOGY

Engenius hired Randall Stewart as customer success manager. Prior to joining Engenius, Stewart was a customer service manager at

Stewart Precision Genetics, director of athletic communications at Newberry College and athletic media relations director at Brevard College. Tina Zwolinski, CEO of Skillsgapp, has been appointed to the Academic Advisory Council of the Skilled Trades Alliance, a national nonprofit of public and private organizations dedicated to addressing the skilled trade deficit in the United States. Solutions ITW hired David Smith as development and operations manager. He most recently worked as director of information technology at Palmetto Goodwill in Charleston.

Zwolinski

Smith

ACCOUNTING

Stokes & Co. CPAs named Tara Kennedy its firm administrator. Kennedy joined Stokes in 2020.

LaBerge, known on the Clemson campus as a longtime leader in bioengineering, is credited for building the program’s national reputation. (Photo/Provided)

Clemson’s LaBerge receives Charles Townes honor for lifetime achievement

Staff Report

gsanews@scbiznews.com

Martine LaBerge of Clemson University received InnoVision’s Charles Townes Individual Lifetime Achievement Award in a virtual ceremony on Nov. 9.

LaBerge joined Clemson University in 1990 and has served as chair of the bioengineering department for more than 19 years. Colleagues credit her with building the department into a powerhouse of translational research and education that creates leaders and innovators crucial to South Carolina’s life sciences industry.

The Charles Townes award honors individuals who have exhibited a sustained commitment to the advancement of technology and the community through their technology-oriented and innovative contributions.

“It’s an individual award, but in reality it should be a team award because no one is ever alone on that stage, especially for this prestigious award,” LaBerge said in a news release. “I’m very honored because I’m following the best and the brightest in South Carolina.”

The award’s namesake, the late Charles Townes, was a graduate of Greenville High School and Furman University and is the only person other than the Dalai Lama and Mother Teresa to win both a Nobel Prize and a Templeton Prize, the news release said.

Colleagues said LaBerge has devoted her career to advancing bioengineering technology and building communities of scholars, entrepreneurs and industry leaders to foster innovation. She has helped Clemson establish strategic partnerships with the likes of Arthrex, Prisma Health and the Medical University of South Carolina.

LaBerge played a central role in establishing the Clemson University Biomedical Engineering Innovation Campus, the release said. Her support was also instrumental in establishing two separate Centers of Biomedical Excellence at Clemson, both funded with multi-million-dollar grants from the National Institutes of Health.

Steve Johnson, a previous recipient of the Charles Townes award and member of the bioengineering department’s advisory board, said in the release that when LaBerge joined Clemson as an assistant professor more than 30 years ago, she set out to make Clemson a leading bioengineering school.

“Since then, she has pursued that vision with determination, passion and a commitment to excel — to stand above what other schools would accept as just good enough,” he said in the release. “Since becoming chair of the department nearly 20 years ago, she has brought in the best talent, created the most innovative programs and attracted the brightest students from across the country and the world.”

ADVERTISING, MARKETING & PR

Crawford hired

Nicole Tankelewicz

as public relations senior account executive. Tankelewicz has six years of public relations experience and most recently served as communications manager with The Fresh Market.

Fuel announced that President and COO Meredith Kinsey has been appointed to the Upstate American

People in the News

Heart Association board of directors for a three-year term. As a board member, she will contribute to the association’s efforts to increase community awareness and engagement, raise funds, and drive awareness to support initiatives to fight against heart disease and stroke in the Upstate.

VantagePoint Marketing hired Sydney Farthing as social media coordinator. She most recently worked with VisitClemson. Infinity Marketing hired Brandyn Graham as media coordinator and Sarah Johnson as integrated marketing lead. Graham most recently worked as marketing coordinator at Code Differently. Johnson previously worked as a senior account manager at RingoFire.

Mary Placito joined Story as an account manager. She previously worked at the Community Journals as a marketing representative.

Farthing

Placito

BANKING & FINANCE

Lima One Capital hired Annmarie Higgins as chief human resources officer and Taylor Owens as chief marketing officer. Higgins previously worked as head of human resources for Samsung Electronics Home Appliances America. Owens comes to Lima One from Hawke Media, where he was group director of client strategy.

Countybank announced that Rufus

Thornwell “Wells”

Dunlap V, vice president and commercial relationship manager, will move from Greenwood to Countybank’s Greenville market.

Dunlap HEALTH CARE

Interim HealthCare promoted Kiersten Colovin to vice president of operations. Colovin has been in the health care industry for 12 years and most recently served as the vice president of hospice. TacMed Solutions hired Mark R. Owens as senior vice president of sales to lead its Simulation Solutions Group. Owens has 23 years of experience in the medical device and health care simulation industry.

Colovin

NONPROFITS

Davis

Allen

Rebuild Upstate hired Rose Davis as development specialist. Davis served nearly five years as the resource development manager at Pickens County Habitat for Humanity.

Gov. Henry McMaster presented Laura Allen of Spartanburg with the Order of the Palmetto, the state’s highest civilian honor. Allen has served on numerous boards across South Carolina and is known for her dedication to childhood cancer and building the multi-state Children’s Cancer Partners organization.

STATE GOVERNMENT

The Commission for the Department of Disabilities and Special Needs announced the selection of Michelle Gough Fry as state director of the Department of Disabilities and Special Fry Needs. She has served as general counsel to the Indiana State Board of Education, the Indiana Charter School Board and the Indiana Department of Education. In 2014, she was appointed by then-Gov. Mike Pence to serve on the Indiana Civil Rights Commission.

TECHNOLOGY

Martin

Lucas Systems Inc. promoted Treeshay Martin to menu maintenance supervisor to oversee data management and menu maintenance services.

HUMAN RESOURCES

Kay

Talitha Kay, assistant human resources manager at the Greenwood Genetic Center, has been named the 2021 HR Rising Star by the S.C. Chamber of Commerce. The award recognizes an individual with fewer than 10 years of professional experience in human resources. Kay is a 2014 graduate of Lander University.

LAW

Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd announced that William McKinney of its Greenville office has been appointed chair of the North Carolina Catawba Compact Certifica-

McKinney tion Commission by N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper. McKinney focuses his practice in the areas of state and local government, economic development and business litigation. Rogers Townsend hired Nick Farr as a member in the firm’s Greenville office. Farr handles civil litigation with a focus on insurance coverage, tort and personal injury.

Farr

NONPROFITS

Harvest Hope Food Bank hired Chad Scott as director of development and agency relations. Scott has worked with The Boys and Girls Clubs of AmerScott ica, PBS Television in Charlotte and Haiti based non-profits Free the Kids and Grace Children’s Hospital.

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