Unlocking the Potential of Rural STARs

Justin Burch, President & CEO of Delta Compass and Washington County  
Justin Burch is the President & CEO of Delta Compass and the Washington County Economic Alliance, where he leads economic and community development initiatives across Washington County and eleven Delta counties. His previous roles include serving as the national economic development director for Rural LISC, the oldest and largest Community Development Financial Institution in the U.S., and as the Director of Programs at the Delta Regional Authority, supporting eight states under the Federal Economic Development Commission. Burch's contributions to the field have earned him numerous accolades, including induction into the Obama Leaders of the United States global network, fellowships with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and recognition as the only Southerner to receive the National Fund for Workforce Solution’s Systems Change Award. He serves on several boards, including the Delta Philanthropic Forum and the Aspen Institute for Rural, and holds degrees in political science and social science from the University of Mississippi and Mississippi College, respectively, along with credentials from prestigious institutions such as Harvard and Princeton. Residing in Greenville with his wife, Cameryn Miller Burch, an educational therapist, and their two children, Catherin Lawrence and Archer Henry, he balances a robust professional life with a commitment to his family and community. 

Courtney Haynes, Chief Engagement Officer, Opportunity@Work 
Courtney Haynes is Chief Engagement Officer at Opportunity@Work, where she advises and manages a team on strategy, program design and execution – including leveraging and expanding STARs analytics, activating business and regional networks, as well as syncing opportunities for STARs across recent legislative opportunities and emerging industries. Haynes brings close to two decades of experience leading initiatives, building coalitions, and policy formulation across organizations like the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Energy, Hope Street Group, Turing School of Software and Design and more. Her areas of expertise include economic development and workforce entry and mobility, across policy and direct service. 

Jasen Jones, Program Director of Workforce Strategies and National Partnerships, ACT 
The journey of connecting communities with hope and prosperity empowers a meaningful career for Jasen, the director of workforce strategies and national partnerships at ACT. Jones launched his career in radio broadcasting at local stations devoted to community service. This pathway opened doors for him in the community and economic development field for two local Chambers of Commerce in the Joplin, Missouri region. Jones joined the dynamic team at the Southwest Missouri Workforce Investment Board in 2003 to lead this organization through numerous transitions to modernize customer service, boost the value of the labor market, and navigate one of the nation’s most complex workforce disaster recovery projects. Backed with two-and-a-half decades in community development and several case studies and awards for the region, Jones joined the workforce team at ACT in 2017. Jones hosts ACT’s Ready for Work podcast and brings his mission to a national scale of connecting communities with hope and prosperity. 

Fred McConnel, Senior Director of Workforce, ACT 
Fred McConnel is the senior director of Workforce, overseeing ACT Work Ready Communities and the ACT Workforce Solutions teams. These teams work together to help communities and partners across the country implement, grow, and sustain their workforce efforts using ACT WorkKeys. He joined ACT in 2011 after working in the economic and workforce development field. Prior to joining ACT, McConnel was part of the Georgia Governor's Office of Workforce Development as the ACT Work Ready Community manager and then deputy director of external affairs. In this role, he provided strategic support to all counties participating in statewide workforce initiatives and coached and mentored county teams to successfully align workforce and education to meet economic development goals. McConnel holds two bachelor’s degrees in history and geography from Florida State University and a master’s in public administration from Georgia College & State University. He was born and raised in Atlanta, where he resides with his wife and two kids. He enjoys woodworking, running, and disc golf in his free time.  

Ron Starner, Executive Vice President of Conway Data Inc. 
Ron Starner serves as Executive Vice President of Conway Data Inc. and Site Selection magazine, a leading international corporate real estate publication based in Atlanta. As the official publication of the Industrial Asset Management Council (IAMC), Site Selection provides essential news, analysis, and insights on corporate real estate and economic development trends to 40,000 high-level decision-makers six times a year; it also manages SiteSelection.com, a comprehensive online portal for real estate news, along with several electronic newsletters. With nine years of experience as Executive Director of IAMC, which serves over 600 members including Fortune 500 companies like BASF, Pfizer, and Honeywell, Starner has established himself as a thought leader in the industry, having authored two books, The Ten Standards of Successful Leaders and The Light at the End of the Tunnel. His educational background includes a journalism degree from Liberty University and a master's degree in mass communication from the University of South Florida, which have supported his career in journalism and corporate communication. A resident of Polk County, Florida, for 25 years, Starner began his career in journalism at the Winter Haven News Chief and the Florida Real Estate Journal before joining Site Selection's editorial team in 2000, where his extensive experience and leadership have made significant contributions to the corporate real estate journalism landscape, positioning him as a respected figure in the field.