TIC's Sara Chester named vice chair of the North Carolina Rural Center

Sara Chester, co-executive director of The Industrial Commons (TIC), was recently elected vice chair of the North Carolina Rural Center, an organization whose mission is to develop, promote, and implement sound economic strategies to improve the quality of life for rural North Carolinians. 

Chester was originally nominated for and joined the Rural Center board in November 2020 and was voted in as vice chair at the organization’s annual meeting on Dec. 7. 

The Industrial Commons, located at 647 Hopewell Road in Morganton, was formed in 2015 in response to a need in Western North Carolina for an industry-focused organization to provide resources and support to firms and networks in a way that improves livelihoods and roots wealth in communities.

 According to TIC, the organization finds and grows interconnected enterprises that solve industrial problems for businesses and workers and manufactures hope for the people of Western North Carolina.

After graduating from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chester  returned to her hometown of Morganton. She worked for eight years at Burke Development, Inc., Burke County’s economic development agency.

There she earned an IEDC award for Innovative Economic Development. Sara was honored to serve as a 2022-2023 Aspen Job Quality Fellow. She serves on the Burke County Planning Board. Sara and her husband Josh are raising, as she describes them, “two kind and wild kids, Maggie and Lincoln.”

Established in 1987, the Rural Center has seen a great deal of growth during recent years. According to Chester, the organization was key in the early development of The Industrial Commons. 

“They have been a longtime partner of The Industrial Commons, providing us with one of our very first grants to launch what became the Carolina Textile District through their Innovation Grants,” Chester explained. “Over the years, they have featured TIC at their annual Rural Summit and TIC has sponsored this event as well.

"It is an honor to serve the North Carolina Rural Center in this capacity and represent western North Carolina," said Chester. "I have always been passionate about and proud of the work the Rural Center does to advocate for rural North Carolinians, particularly their work to create more economic opportunity for everyone in NC. I look forward to contributing to the continued growth of the organization and walking alongside my fellow Board members as we aid in carrying out the Center's mission of improving the quality of life for rural North Carolinians.”

Chester said the center is an advocate for the state’s rural areas. “As far as I know, they are the only organization focused, from a statewide perspective, on supporting and promoting rural communities,” she said.

“Their advocacy work with the General Assembly, including their support for Medicaid expansion, has been notable and they have vastly expanded their small business capital programs to provide lending to entrepreneurs across North Carolina,” she added.

Sandra Queen is the education and business reporter for The Paper. She may be reached at 828-445-8595 or via email at sandra@thepaper.media.