Molly Blankenship, vice president of talent initiatives for the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, has been officially named executive director of Chattanooga 2.0.
Blankenship has served as interim executive director since March, but it was announced Tuesday that her position will be permanent.
Molly BlankenshipChattanooga 2.0, formed in 2015, was formerly led by Jared Bigham. The education coalition of Chattanooga was launched by the Chamber of Commerce, the Benwood Foundation, Hamilton County Schools and the Public Education Foundation.
Bigham left his post in March to join the Tennessee Chamber of Commerce and Industry as senior adviser for workforce and rural initiatives.
The announcement also solidifies the chamber's growing influence on Chattanooga 2.0, as Blankenship will continue to serve on a "limited, part-time basis" as vice president of talent initiatives. The chamber will create a new senior-level position to take on talent division duties, but that position will continue under Blankenship's leadership, according to a news release.
"Chattanooga 2.0 is a vital strategic partner with Hamilton County Schools in helping the district work toward goals set by our community," said Bryan Johnson, superintendent of Hamilton County Schools, in a statement. "We are thrilled with the result of this search process, and we look forward to working closely with Molly and the Chattanooga 2.0 team to ensure all Hamilton County children have what they need to be successful in our classrooms and future-ready to take advantage of opportunities that life brings after graduation."
Chattanooga 2.0 has championed efforts around student access to post-secondary opportunities and workforce development as one of the early partners of Hamilton County's Future Ready Institutes, early childhood initiatives such as Camp K and the launch of the Chattanooga Basics and other efforts to convene action teams for specific areas.
The executive director position was open from April 15 to May 5 and the Chattanooga 2.0 Executive Committee asked Blankenship to submit her name for consideration, according to the release. Blankenship immediately recused herself from any further involvement with the search process and participated in both video and in-person interviews. After careful consideration of several finalists, the search committee chose Blankenship.
"Collectively our search committee felt that Molly is the best candidate to lead our coalition into the next chapter of systemic change," said Yancy Freeman, vice chancellor of enrollment and student affairs at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, in a statement. "I know Molly will work hard to continue convening community partners until talent pipelines are created for every Hamilton County resident, so that all can achieve their highest potential in education and career."
Christy Gillenwater, president and CEO of the chamber, said in a statement that the organization will continue to focus on workforce and talent development alongside Blankenship's leadership and Chattanooga 2.0.
"Velocity2040 survey results confirmed our community's desire for more work to be done around education," Gillenwater said. "I am confident under Molly's continued leadership, the Chamber's work in talent development will continue to be a strong contributor to the overarching work of Chattanooga 2.0."
Contact Meghan Mangrum at mmangrum@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592. Follow her on Twitter @memangrum.