Meet the Team
George Estes graduated from the Citadel in 1972 and received his Master of Public Administration from the University of South Carolina in 1974. George has extensive experience in community development, including industrial infrastructure development and the creation of a “report card” for communities to evaluate their status or preparedness for development under the South Carolina Department of Commerce. Since joining SCPRT in 2000, he has assisted many rural communities in tourism product development. George also has extensive experience in heritage-based tourism, and has worked with counties and towns statewide to identify potential tourism product and coordinate with servicing agencies and partners to assist with tourism infrastructure creation.
Amy Blinson is a graduate of Presbyterian College and holds a Master of Public Administration from the University of South Carolina. Prior to joining SCPRT, she worked with the South Carolina Department of Commerce for 15 years, where she coordinated various federal and state grant programs and initiated projects in rural communities that encouraged economic growth and development. Amy also served as the Program Director of the Rural Infrastructure Fund, the SC Program Manager for the Appalachian Regional Commission, and Economic Development Specialist for the Community Development Block Grant Program. She is a member of the SC Economic Developer’s Association and an SC Certified Economic Developer.
Ronda Pratt is a graduate of the University of South Carolina with a B.A. in Economics and a minor in Business Administration. Prior to joining SCPRT, she worked as a Transportation Planner for the South Carolina Department of Transportation’s Planning and Engineering Division, where she worked with local governments to assess transportation infrastructure needs. She has also worked as a planning coordinator in the Transportation Enhancement Program and the Scenic Byways Program. Ronda is the program coordinator for the Recreational Trails Program, providing technical and planning assistance for grant applicants.
Alesha Cushman is a Lexington High School graduate with over fifteen years of experience in accounting, procurement and grants administration. As the program coordinator for the Parks and Recreation Development grant program, she provides technical assistance for PARD grant applicants. Alesha works with local governments and the General Assembly to ensure financial accountability, proper documentation, and adherence to grant program guidelines.
Michelle McCollum is the director of the Congressionally-designated South Carolina National Heritage Corridor that runs through 17 counties of the state. She is responsible for the overall management of the organization which consists of three overarching program segments: grassroots organization and field development, marketing and visitor services, and training and interpretive services. Michelle also serves as the Vice Chairman of the Alliance of National Heritage Areas, a national membership organization comprised of national heritage areas and partners that support and practice sustainable heritage development.
Devon Harris graduated with a B.A. in Public Relations from Marshall University in 2001 and received her Master of Public Administration from the University of South Carolina in 2003. Since joining SCPRT in 2001, she has assisted many rural communities in tourism product development through the SC National Heritage Corridor grants program. Devon has also worked with numerous tourism groups to coordinate marketing programs and create public relations campaigns and press kits. Currently Devon manages the operations of two Discovery Centers, provides public relations, marketing and grants training, as well as oversees the public relations and marketing programs for the Heritage Corridor.
Whitney Ellis graduated from the University of South Carolina Spartanburg in 2001 with a degree in History. She has worked with the South Carolina National Heritage Corridor since 2004 as the Region 2 Discovery Center Supervisor and as Group Tour Manager since 2006. Whitney facilitates and organizes group tours throughout the 17 county area, assists sites with becoming group tour ready and manages the Corridor Ambassador’s Program, a day long traveling workshop for local communities leaders.
Anna Joyner graduated with an Associates Degree in Computer Technology from Aiken Technical College in 2002. Since joining SCPRT in 2004, she has assisted with the creation and development of visual identities for many rural communities to include logo design, marketing collateral and press kits. She is also the primary designer for Heritage Corridor marketing and print media campaigns. With five years previous experience in the educational field, she has successfully created and maintained an active 700 member Kids Club, hosted four summer camp programs and launched a Traveling Trunk program, which is utilized throughout the state to provide hands-on materials for educators.
Grace Jameson graduated from the University of South Carolina Aiken in 2006 with a degree in Mass Communications and a minor in Art History. She has also completed an event planning internship with the historic Wilcox hotel, and worked with several local non-profit organizations with fund-raising efforts. Grace promotes heritage-based tourism in nine counties in the SCNHC and implements visitor service programming and retail sales within the Discovery Centers.
Rhonda Williams is a Brookland Cayce High School graduate and has twenty five years of experience in business and office administration, with twenty two of those years in state government. Prior to joining SCPRT in 2000, Rhonda served as the Executive Assistant to the Chief of Law Enforcement at SC Department of Natural Resources and as an Administrative Assistant in the Governor’s Office. Currently, as the Administrative Coordinator for the Tourism and Recreation Development office at SCPRT, she provides management and administrative support, and develops, maintains and reviews budget expenditures and procurement activities. In addition, Rhonda serves as a coordinator for both mobile and land line telecommunications for the agency.