Nicole serves as the Executive Director of ArtsNow, an organization that helps build and strengthen a thriving Summit County arts and culture scene to add economic vitality and social vibrancy to our region. In this role, she collaborates with local leaders and organizations to advocate for the arts and culture sector, connects local talent to resources, and leads a team that promotes the diverse catalog of arts and culture offerings across multiple platforms to Summit County residents.

Website: https://artsnow.org/

Facebook: @SummitArtsNow

Steve Millard is President & CEO of the Greater Akron Chamber and in that role is responsible for leading the Greater Akron Area’s Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce serving Medina, Portage and Summit Counties.  Steve’s work is focused on the chamber’s efforts to drive jobs and investment in the Greater Akron region, improve the region’s competitiveness and to advocate for the needs of the business community in the region with its elected and appointed officials.

Prior to joining the Greater Akron Chamber, Steve has served as Executive Vice President of the Greater Cleveland Partnership; President and Executive Director of COSE (the Council of Smaller Enterprises); as a supply chain management consultant with Accenture (at that time Andersen Consulting) and as a supply chain specialist with GE Healthcare (at that time GE Medical Systems). 

Steve is a certified chamber executive, serves on several not for profit and for profit boards and is a frequent adviser to businesses and a regular facilitator for strategic planning and leadership team retreats.

Steve has a BS in Transportation and Distribution Management and a BS in Finance from Syracuse University and his MBA from Case Western Reserve University.  

Website: https://www.greaterakronchamber.org/

Jessica is the Private Sector Initiatives Program Manager with Americans for the Arts. Prior to this position, she acted as the Membership and Resources Manager for the Nonprofit Association of Oregon (NAO), providing oversight of NAO’s statewide membership program while curating and reinventing its online platform of nonprofit management best practice resources. Prior to NAO, Jessica spent nearly five years working with Portland’s local business committee for the arts, Business for Culture & the Arts (BCA), delivering programs that engaged employees from BCA’s 200+ business members, managing all marketing and communications strategies, and retaining and cultivating corporate and community partnerships. Jessica has also served in development roles at Metropolitan Youth Symphony and Literary Arts; and has freelanced as an independent web designer and developer.