On the Move features and celebrates Flint & Genesee businesses’ grand openings, staff promotions, new hires, recognition, and milestones
(Featured above) Biggby Coffee, 615 S. Saginaw St. in Flint, Oct. 24
Promotions, New Hires and Recognition
Carriage Town Ministries has named Dr. Christopher Townsend as their executive director. Townsend is the first new director in 10 years and comes to the organization with a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice administration, a master’s degree in psychology, and a Doctor of Management. He was previously with the Salvation Army and the Detroit Rescue Mission.
Dr. Steven Tunnicliff, superintendent of the Genesee Intermediate School District, has been appointed to Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s Autism Council. The council oversees the state of Michigan’s Autism Spectrum Disorders State Plan. His term runs through September 2027.
Hurley Medical Center recently welcomed their newest board member, Mildred Silva-Zuccaro. Silva-Zuccaro is a native of Veracruz, Mexico and the creator of the women’s empowerment network Latinas en Flint. Silva-Zuccaro works for the University of Michigan Medicine as a subject’s research coordinator and said she looks forward to advocating for Hurley and the community in her new role.
Sandra Etherly-Johnson, executive director of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion and Community Relations for the Flint & Genesee Group, has been named one of Crain’s Detroit Business’ Notable Leaders in DEI. In her role, Etherly-Johnson serves as an ambassador and advocate for inclusive and equitable initiatives, both internally and externally. She has also served as project manager for the Flint & Genesee Business Bridge, an initiative that aims to help strengthen and support BIPOC-owned small businesses through a variety of resources.
Business News
Consumers Energy has been selected by the U.S. Department of Energy to receive $100 million to strengthen Michigan’s electric grid. This money aids the Reliability Roadmap that Consumers had laid out and will help replace power poles, equipment, and add new technology to detect and respond to outages.
The Flint & Genesee Group has hired several team members in recent months. This includes Keerat Handa, business intelligence analyst for the Group; Joe Johnson, finance and contract specialist for the Group; Joel Feick, business development manager for the Flint & Genesee Economic Alliance; Stefanie Norman, small business program coordinator for the Economic Alliance; Briana Scott, education and talent assistant for Flint & Genesee Education & Talent; and Brooklynn Smith, coordinator for the East Michigan APEX Accelerator.
Additionally, multiple Group employees have received promotions. This includes Karena Hamlet, now director of business services for the Economic Alliance; Courtney Irish, director of sales for Explore Flint & Genesee; Brianna Mosier, executive director of Flint & Genesee Education & Talent; Jade St. Cin, business development manager for the Economic Alliance; and Brady Stebbins, part-time service and administrative coordinator for Explore Flint & Genesee.
Hurley Medical Center has received the Surgical Quality Partner designation from the American College of Surgeons.
Hurley Medical Center recently elected several new officers to its Board of Managers. This includes Board Chair Philip Shaltz, who has been a board member since 2008; Vice Chair Corinne Edwards, who was appointed to the board in 2020; Board Treasurer Charlotte Edwards, a board member since 2002; and Board Secretary Christopher Flores, who has been a member of the Board of Managers since 1990 and secretary since 2020.
Earlier this year, Katie Kool-Wray launched Impact100 Genesee County. The new nonprofit brings women of diverse backgrounds together to positively change the area by donating $1,000 or more annually to a collected fund to be dispersed later. Impact100 is part of a larger collective with over 60 chapters around the globe. Local donations will be pooled together and distributed to local nonprofits in education, arts and culture, environment, family, and the health and wellness sectors, with the goal of donating $100,000 annually to a Genesee County nonprofit.
Kettering University was recently among the top three during the Future of Energy for Mobility Challenge and received the Audience Award there. This global competition focused on the reduction of energy consumption in mobility and clean energy integration. Kettering competed against 200 global applicants with their “Solar Micromobility” project and won over $65,000 during the competition. The prize money will be used to develop a prototype Li-on battery pack.
Mannor Law Group recently received the Commitment to Caring Award at the Dementia Focused Practice Conference in Tempe, Arizona. This award recognizes attorneys that stive to serve their clients with kindness and care and offer them peace of mind.
Mott Community College is launching a new mentoring program thanks to a $250,000 grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. Mentoring and Leadership Make a Difference is a two-year pilot program that will give leaders of color the opportunity to mentor youth of color. The goal is to promote higher educational opportunities for young people.
Mott Community College has received $2 million from the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Development to support the creation of a program to help people with an associate degree in complete their bachelor of science degree in nursing (BSN). The funding will help increase skills and training in the healthcare field in Michigan. As part of the grant requirement, there must be a four-year college or university, or Michigan-based not-for-profit in place as a partner who offers BSNs. Mott’s partner will be Eastern Michigan University, who they have worked with in the past on nursing degrees.
Two area businesses received the 2023 Elevate Grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Indianapolis. Elevate was developed to strengthen our communities and encourage Indiana and Michigan small businesses to further develop their relationship with an FHLBank Indianapolis member financial institution. This includes Prestige Promotions, LLC, which works with FHLBank Indianapolis member Metro Community Development, Inc., and Comma Bookstore & Social Hub, which works with ELGA Credit Union.
RACER Trust and Ashley Capital have completed the sale of the second phase of the former General Motors Buick City property. Phase 1 of the site’s redevelopment, now known as the Flint Commerce Center, is underway with the first building scheduled to be completed at the end of the first quarter in 2024.
The newly acquired Phase 2 will expand the area for the multi-tenant industrial park that Ashley Capital has planned for the property. When completed, the Flint Commerce Center is expected to result in approximately 2,500 permanent full-time jobs.
The University of Michigan-Flint has received a commitment from the Michigan legislature for $30 million for the creation of an innovation and technology complex. This complex will be constructed north of the William S. White Building and will feature state-of-the-art instructional labs and collaborative and research areas. The complex will support existing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) education as well as degrees in A.I. (Artificial Intelligence), smart manufacturing, human-centered design, and computer engineering, to name a few.
Additionally, the university has received multiple recognitions in recent months. This includes being ranked No. 12 among the state’s best online colleges by Intelligent.com. They were also named a 2023 “Best for Vets” college by the Military Times. The university hosts a Student Veterans Resource Center, offers the Valiant Veterans Scholarship, and has a Peer Advisors for Veteran Education program to connect incoming veterans with student veterans to ease their transition.
Five organizations in Flint & Genesee have been awarded a Top Workplaces 2023 honor by the Detroit Free Press. This includes ELGA Credit Union, Flint & Genesee Group, Goyette Mechanical Co., Inc., Rolls Mechanical, and Sorensen Gross Construction Services. The Top Employers list is based solely on employee feedback gathered through a third-party survey administered by Energage LLC.