Dr. Jones is the Regional Economist and Department Chair of Economics and Finance at the Cameron School of Business. Prior to joining the faculty, Dr. Jones worked with the Newton County Chamber of Commerce in Covington, GA. He has published in the Economic Development Quarterly, the Atlantic Economic Journal, and the Journal of Economics and Finance. His research is on local public finance and regional economics, with a focus on North Carolina issues and tax-base development. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Georgia.

Abigail has inspired leaders from across multiple industries. She often speaks on business transformation, personal development, organizational change and diversity. Abigail’s passion for global consulting is born out of her life and educational experiences on three continents, namely Africa, Europe, and America. Abigail attended Harvard University, where she received a B.A. and M.Ed. in Psychology.

Richard Walsh serves as director of UNCW’s Swain Center for Executive Education. He brings over 25 years of experience in leadership, transformation and executive coaching. He supports leaders from across the globe on moving from crisis to opportunity. He draws upon his experience at AT&T, GE and IBM as well as at the top-ranked Center for Creative Leadership. Educated at Northeastern, Harvard and Augsburg, he and his wife currently live in Wilmington, NC.

Lauren Sanfilippo is a Vice President and Market Strategy Analyst for the Chief Investment Office (CIO) within Bank of America. In this role, she is responsible for the analysis of global economic and thematic market trends, in support of strategic and tactical asset allocation decisions supporting Bank of America Private Bank and Merrill. She is a regular contributor on the CIO Capital Market Outlook, Investment Insights, Thematic and FOCUS publications.