Meet Our Staff

Nicole Christian

President & CEO

nchristian@charlestonareaalliance.org

Nicole is a 26-year veteran of the chamber of commerce and economic development industry. She joined the Alliance as president and CEO in 2021. Her career has afforded her the opportunity to work in a variety of communities and acquire the experience and knowledge beneficial to this role. Nicole believes the Charleston region has big potential, and she’s here to help achieve that potential.

Vita Alkire

Office Manager

valkire@charlestonareaalliance.org

Vita has administrative oversight for the Charleston Area Alliance and handles all aspects of personnel and facility management.

Paula Sims

Executive Assistant

psims@charlestonareaalliance.org

Paula works directly with the President/CEO. She brings a tremendous amount of experience to the Alliance after working 30+ years in the chemical industry and higher education. In addition to working with the President/CEO, Paula assists the staff with various requests, schedules meetings and manages logistics for several Alliance events.

Susie Salisbury

Vice President & Community Development

ssalisbury@charlestonareaalliance.org

Susie leads the Community Development Division for the Alliance and has over 40 years of community development experience. She assists with community planning, project and grant development, leadership development and is very active with many area nonprofits. She holds an MBA and is a certified Economic Development Finance Professional.

Debbie James

Chief Financial Officer

djames@charlestonareaalliance.org

Debbie brings 30+ years of accounting and financial management experience to the Alliance. She is responsible for all aspects of finance for the organization including budgeting, strategy development and implementation, and employee benefits as well as risk management and regulatory compliance.

Victoria Russo

New Markets Consultant

vrusso@charlestonareaalliance.org

Victoria supports existing industries in the Kanawha Valley by connecting businesses to resources and potential customers. She helps companies find non-traditional workforce pools and supports a collaborative effort to improve business-to-business transactions within the region.  

Maria “Ria” Terrell

Administrative Assistant

mterrell@charlestonareaalliance.org

Ria provides administrative support to ensure the efficient operation of the Alliance office. She brings over 15 years of experience from the medical and community development industry.

Drew Dunlap

Andrew “Drew” Dunlap

Director of Economic Development

adunlap@charlestonareaalliance.org

Drew leads the Alliance’s economic development efforts and activities. He is responsible for business recruitment and retention efforts, workforce and entrepreneurial development, and coordination with government and related entities on economic projects. Drew also serves as the Alliance Incubator liaison. Drew has nearly two decades of experience working in the economic development field.

Maria Belcher

Part-time Community Development Project Coordinator

mbelcher@charlestonareaalliance.org

Maria works directly with our VP of Community Development to plan and implement a variety of programs in our community.