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.
Jeri Adkins
Vice President & Administration
jadkins@charlestonareaalliance.org
Jeri has administrative oversight for the Charleston Area Alliance. Her 20+ years of experience with the Alliance serves her well in connecting with members and providing valuable resources to the community.
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.
Johanna Miesner
Communications & Events Coordinator
jmiesner@charlestonareaalliance.org
Johanna handles the Alliance communications and messaging strategy, as well as managing event coordination and social media. She serves as the liaison for the Charleston Roots Initiative and Generation Charleston.
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.
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.
Joanna Romeo
Director of Membership & Investor Development
jromeo@charlestonareaalliance.org
Joanna works directly with our community to help grow the organization through membership development and implementation of programs that deliver value to members. She is responsible for securing financial contributions that support economic and community development activities and programming.