Meet the Board

McCrory Construction, Chief Financial Officer

Katie Bogan is the Chief Financial Officer for McCrory Construction.

A graduate of the University of South Carolina, Katie spent 15 years working with PwC in assurance and advisory practices roles. As part of the PwC advisory practice, Katie focused on building nearshore service delivery capabilities in technology, management, and risk services.

Katie is a CPA and a member of AICPA. Katie and her husband, Matt, live in downtown Columbia, SC with their three children.

AFL, Executive Vice President and General Counsel

Grant, a member of America Fujikura Ltd’s Board of Directors, oversees all legal matters including corporate governance, intellectual property, litigation and compliance, government affairs, human resources, and international trade for AFL. Additionally, Grant manages the strategic, legal, and compliance activities of several Fujikura group companies, including Fujikura Automotive America (FAA) and Fujikura America Incorporated (FAI).

Grant is a graduate of Clemson University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a minor in Economics, and a J.D. from Washington and Lee University’s School of Law. Grant is active in several civic and philanthropic organizations across the state, including Clemson University’s MBA Program Executive Board, and the State Board for Technical and Comprehensive Education.

Grant is a member of the South Carolina and Virginia State Bars, the Association of Corporate Counsel and the Defense Research Institute’s Corporate Counsel Committee. Grant, a graduate of the Leadership South Carolina program, has also served on Clemson University’s Board of Visitors, Clemson University’s Foundation Board, and is the past president of Clemson’s Alumni Association.

South Carolina Power Team, Vice President of Global Business

As the Vice President of Global Business for South Carolina Power Team, Warren oversees the Global Business team and its efforts to attract investment and jobs into the region.

Warren is a seasoned economic developer, who came to the South Carolina Power Team from the South Carolina Department of Commerce (SCDOC). During his time at Commerce, Warren rose quickly into the role of Senior Project Manager, where he focused on new industry recruitment and growing existing business. Warren was responsible for over 45 projects statewide, resulting in commitments of more than 5,700 new jobs and nearly $1 billion in new investment.

Warren is a graduate of Clemson University and a proud member of the South Carolina Economic Developers’ Association (SCEDA). Warren has served on the Board of Directors for the Committee of 100, and is a graduate of Leadership South Carolina and The Advanced Economic Development Leadership Program. Warren also serves on the Board of the South Carolina Technical College System and is a Deacon at Eastminster Presbyterian Church.

United Way of the Midlands, President and CEO

Sara Fawcett has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of United Way of the Midlands (UWM) since June of 2017. During her tenure, UWM has raised over $40 million to invest in the United Way’s mission of creating generational change through education, healthcare, and economic stability.

Sara began her career at Wachovia Bank (now Wells Fargo), where she spent 14 years serving on merger and acquisition integration teams, redesigning performance-based incentive compensation plans, and managing college recruitment. Before joining the team at United Way, Sara worked for EDENS, one of the largest privately held commercial real estate development companies in the United States, as Vice President of Human Resources.

Sara holds a bachelor's degree in economics from the College of William and Mary. She serves on the Boards of Directors of Transitions, Central Carolina Community Foundation and the United Way Association of South Carolina. Sara was recognized as a 2019 Woman of Influence, a 2021 Icon by the Columbia Regional Business Report and received the 2023 Richard Allen award from Allen University. Sara is the mother of three children, Maddie, Ben and Jon Jon.

Cyberwoven, Founder and CEO

Ben Rex works both corporately and philanthropically to develop sustainable, impact-driven ventures that empower individual achievement and build strong communities. A graduate of the University of South Carolina Honors College.

Ben is committed to the social and economic advancement of the American South. To this end, he serves on the Boards of Columbia College, the Columbia Museum of Art, and the United Way of the Midlands. He also serves on the partnership board of the University of South Carolina Honors College and is immediate past Chair of South Arts.

Ben is a Liberty Fellow and a Fellow of the Aspen Global Leadership Network. A native of Greenville, SC, Ben lives in Columbia, SC with his wife, Sidney, and their two children, Fritz and Alice.

Wyche, P.A., Member and Attorney

An attorney with Wyche, P.A., Matthew’s practice focuses primarily on complex civil litigation, having participated in some of the state’s largest and more complicated forms of litigation in the past 20 years. Matthew also represents a class of all foster care children in South Carolina for systemic reforms and is lead counsel in the state constitutional challenge to the South Carolina Heritage Act. Matthew’s experience includes jury trials, bench trials, agency hearings and contested cases, preliminary and permanent injunctions, class action certifications, mediations, arbitrations, and appeals.

Matthew currently volunteers with the Palmetto Innocence Project and serves on the Board of Trustees for South Carolina State University and South Carolina Future Minds. He has also led two of the state’s largest organizations of lawyers: the South Carolina Association for Justice and the South Carolina Chapter of the Federal Bar Association.

Matthew received his A.B. in Economics at Duke University and his J.D. from the University of South Carolina’s School of Law, where he not only teaches but regularly mentors the state’s young up-and-coming lawyers.

MDC, President

John is the President of MDC, an organization dedicated to advancing equity and economic opportunity in the American South. Prior to his time at MDC, John served as Vice President of the Aspen Global Leadership Network at the Aspen Institute, deputy general counsel for the White House Office of Management and Budget, general counsel for the U.S. Agency for International Development, and as a Prisma Health executive who led collaborative, evidence-based efforts to promote health innovation, access, and equity.

John is a faculty member in political science and Associate Director of the Richard Riley Institute at Furman University, and a former assistant professor and director of diversity initiatives at the Charleston School of Law.

John received his AB in government from Harvard College and a JD and LLM in international and comparative law from Duke University School of Law. He is a Senior Lecturer at Duke Law School and is a member of the Liberty Fellowship.

Women in Engineering ProActive Network (WEPAN), Executive Director

Prior to joining WEPAN, Ershela served as the Interim President and Senior Vice President for Virtual and Outreach Programs at the SC Governor’s School for Science and Mathematics (SCGSSM), becoming the first Black person and woman to lead SCGSSM. Before joining the SCGSSM team, Ershela served as the Dean of Engineering and Technology at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (NCSSM).

Prior to her time in academia, Ershela worked at Nortel Networks as a software design engineer and technical architect and the Duke-UNC Brain Imaging and Analysis Center as the Assistant Director.

Ershela serves on the Board of Trustees for Clemson General Engineering Advisory Board, Florence-Darlington Technical College, Columbia College, and the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) Healthcare Innovation Special Interest Group. She is a proud member of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES), and NSBE.

Ershela holds a BSE in Biomedical Engineering from Duke University, a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from UNC Chapel Hill, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Biomechanics in the Department of Surgery at Duke University.

Reveille Executive Coaching & Consulting Services, LLC, Founder and CEO

Carolyn has served in several clinical leadership roles throughout her years in nursing. The former Chief Nurse Executive for Prisma Health, Swinton is also an esteemed affiliate faculty member for the University of South Carolina’s College of Nursing, a Clinical Associate Professor at Clemson University’s School of Nursing, and an ANCC Board-Certified Nurse Executive.

Carolyn is also a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, the Riley Institute’s Diversity Leaders Initiative, and the Amy V. Cockcroft Nursing Leadership programs.

Carolyn is a native of Beaufort, South Carolina, and is married with one daughter. She enjoys traveling, reading, and music. description