[ contributors | fall 2017 ]
Kensie Hamilton
Fauber
Kensie Hamilton
Fauber is the editor
in chief and one
of three partners
at Executive Ink,
LLC, the publishing
company for West Virginia Executive and its
sister publications. A native of Charleston,
WV, she holds bachelor’s degrees in corporate
communications and journalism from
Elon University. She is a 2015 graduate
of Leadership West Virginia and the FBI
Citizens Academy, the current chair of the
West Virginia Chamber of Commerce’s
small business committee and a member of
the 2016-17 class of Leadership Mon. This
fall, she graduated from the Goldman Sachs
10,000 Small Businesses program. She may
be reached at [email protected].
Jean Hardiman
Jean Hardiman came
from northern Ohio
to West Virginia in
1998, not expecting
stay, but when the
time came, she chose
to remain close to the
friendly people and beautiful surroundings
she’d grown to love. Hardiman spent 17
years full-time with The Herald-Dispatch
in Huntington and now works in Marshall
University’s communications office. She
also freelances for publications, businesses
and organizations throughout the region.
Hardiman lives in Huntington with her
husband and daughters and finds true joy in
writing about the dynamic people and amazing
things happening in her adopted home state.
Jennifer Jett
Prezkop
Jennifer Jett Prezkop,
the managing editor
at Executive Ink,
LLC, has had a
passion for putting
words to paper since
elementary school. A graduate of Herbert
Hoover High School, she studied at West
Virginia University and received her Regents
Bachelor of Arts degree from West Virginia
State University. In her spare time, she
freelances as a manuscript editor and enjoys
creative writing, reading young adult fiction
and boating on Lake Erie with her husband,
Doug. A lifelong Mountaineer, she resides
in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband
and their two cats, Jovie and Miles. She
may be reached at [email protected].
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WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE
Jessica Kennedy
Jessica Kennedy serves
as the chief creative
officer for CentralApp,
a West Virginia-
based tech startup
that specializes in
Salesforce application
development. She is a native West Virginian
with more than a decade of experience in
creative development, public relations and
marketing focusing on the areas of education,
community development and social issues.
Maggie Matsko
Maggie Matsko is the
communications and
development specialist
for the Ursuline Sisters
of Mount Saint Joseph.
She is a graduate
of West Virginia
University, where she received her bachelor’s
and master’s degrees in journalism. A freelance
writer for West Virginia Executive magazine
and its sister publications, she enjoys crafting
stories about her former home among the hills.
Matsko currently resides in Owensboro, KY.
Jamie Null
Jamie Null is the
executive director for
the Mercer County
Convention & Visitors
Bureau. An award-
winning journalist
with the Bluefield
Daily Telegraph, she spent seven years in the
business before becoming part of the tourism
industry in 2014. A graduate of both Bluefield
State College and Concord University, she
graduated with bachelor’s degrees in print
journalism and English literature. A native
of Mercer County, she enjoys running, being
with kids, traveling and promoting her
hometown and wild, wonderful West Virginia.
Ginna Royce
Ginna Royce is
the founder of
BlaineTurner
Advertising in
Morgantown, WV,
where she fills the
creative director
shoes alongside her husband, Delbert, who
is the CFO. The pair has traveled to all
seven continents, checking off Antarctica in
2015. They’re planning a seventh trip to sub-
Sahara Africa this winter. She is a graduate
of West Virginia University, where she
received her bachelor’s degree in journalism.
Samantha Smith
Samantha Smith is the
director of marketing
and communications
for the West Virginia
Department of
Commerce. A native
of Elkins, WV, and
graduate of Davis & Elkins College, she spent
most of her career in the newspaper industry
serving as sales director at The Inter-Mountain,
Charleston Newspapers and the West Virginia
Press Association. Smith lives in Charleston,
WV, with her husband and children.
Katlin Swisher
Katlin Swisher is
the interim director
of communications
and marketing for
the Eberly College
of Arts and Sciences
at West Virginia
University (WVU). Originally from
Hurricane, WV, she graduated summa cum
laude, as a university honors scholar and as a
WVU Foundation outstanding senior with
a bachelor’s degree in journalism in 2012,
and she earned her master’s degree in higher
education administration in 2014. She is
currently pursuing a doctor of education in
higher education administration at WVU.
Tracy Toler
Tracy Toler scaled
Seneca Rocks at the
age of 5 and has been
reaching new heights
ever since. Through
his business, Tracy A.
Toler Photography,
he has served as creative director and feature
photographer for many of the region’s largest
magazines. Known as Mr. McGyver, he can
fix anything with a bobby pin, rubber band
or Swiss Army knife, which comes in handy
at home with his two daughters. Toler may
be reached at [email protected].
JoEllen Zacks
JoEllen Zacks is a
Charleston-based
lawyer, writer and
education advocate.
A former senior
director of strategic
communication at
the American Bar Association in Chicago
and senior vice president of the Charleston
Area Alliance, she helps put ideas and
organizations on the map through smart
messaging, policy and management strategies.