Business Digest: PlayCore names vice presidents

photo Carol Black of PlayCore

PlayCore names vice presidents

PlayCore has promoted Carol Black to the new position of senior vice president of operations and finance for PlayCore's EverActive Brands Group.

Also, James Underwood is joining PlayCore as senior vice president of manufacturing and operations.

In addition, Tracy Maloney has been named senior vice president/general manager of PlayCore's Surfacing and Installation Services Group.

Black will be responsible for manufacturing activities, and all finance related-activities across the EverActive Brands locations. She was most recently the vice president of finance and accounting for PlayCore.

Underwood will be responsible for providing overall direction and guidance to the operational activities of PlayCore. His responsibilities will additionally include global sourcing, information technology and compliance. He most recently was with Mohawk Industries of Dalton, Ga.

Maloney will be responsible for directing the activities and initiatives of the group to ensure attainment of planned growth and profit. He most recently served as vice president and general manager of commercial business for Nautilus Inc.

VSHP program gets accreditation

Volunteer State Health Plan's clinical education program has received national accreditation by the American Nurses Credentialing Center as a provider of continuing nursing education.

"ANCC accreditation is a positive move forward in the nursing professional development and continuing education market," said Fran Martini, VSHP director of clinical programs. "It simply recognizes the excellent instruction provided to our nurses each day as we prepare them to serve our members. It's a reflection of our commitment to providing the highest quality continuing education."

Pathway Lending gets $30,000 grant

In an effort to find new ways to help small and start-up businesses in the region, Pathway Lending is working with Bank of America to unlock new loan capital for small business expansion and job creation.

Pathway Lending has received a $30,000 grant from Bank of America for use as loan loss reserves required by federal programs to access $200,000 in loan capital that is then used to make small-sized loans to local businesses.

As many as 20 businesses are expected to receive loans from this new effort. According to Clint Gwin, president at Pathway Lending, "Having access to private capital that is leveraged with public funds is critical to our ability to provide affordable financing products to businesses in Tennessee.

Delugas chosen at Chattanoogan

The Chattanoogan hotel has hired seasoned hospitality industry veteran Gwendolyn (Winn) DeLugas as the hotel's new event and wedding specialist.

She is responsible for coordinating and managing weddings and social events at the upscale hotel.

The events and hospitality industry professional has worked for almost two decades in high-profile positions for some of the top hotels in the country, including Intercontinental Hotels, Hyatt Hotels and The Peabody Orlando. She has also been a national speaker and is recognized as an authoritative commentator, panelist and spokesperson.

Dunivan, Levitt join Hutton Co.

Chattanooga-based Hutton Co. has added two people to its staff.

James Dunivan has joined Hutton as staff accountant, working with Spencer Chinery, vice president of finance.

Adam Levitt has joined the company as a development project manager, under the direction of George Alexandris, vice president of development.

Dunivan graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where he obtained a bachelor of science in accounting.

Levitt has a bachelor of arts in economics from UTC and is a graduate of McCallie School.

Transportation week observed

Local companies last week joined with Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger in marking national transportation week.

Among companies taking part were McKee Foods Corp., Covenant Transport, Access America Transport, Logistics Made Simple, Tranco Logistics, Southeastern Freight Lines, Reliance Partners, and U.S Xpress subsidiary Xpress Global Systems.

A Tri-State Regional Workforce Alliance Inc. report identified 41,031 jobs in transportation and warehousing and 11,144 jobs in transportation equipment manufacturing in the region.

Submit career news and business announcements to Mike Pare, deputy business editor, at mpare@timesfreepress.com.

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