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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EDUCATION
Brett Saddler
Claymont Renaissance Development Corporation
As a public-private organization, the Claymont Renaissance Development Corporation is invested in reviving the community that used to be dominated by the steel industry. In coordination with the state, New Castle County
and other government entities, Brett Saddler has been focused on strategies that will make Claymont an ideal place to work and live. In recent years, Saddler has helped lead the way for
a riverwalk project and worked on
a master plan incorporating major redevelopment concepts. On the horizon, a new cold-storage facility and train station will help kickstart massive economic development in the area.
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Fred Sears II
Council on Development Finance
There likely is little in Delaware that Fred Sears hasn’t had some kind of impact on over a decades-long career. He served as CEO of the Delaware Community Foundation and the regional president of Commerce Bank, was an elected Wilmington city councilman, and served as a director of the Port of Wilmington. Currently, Sears chairs the Delaware Council
on Development Finance, the state’s job investment board, where he leads discussions on businesses seeking taxpayer-backed loans for expansion or relocation in the First State through one of several grant funds.
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Tony Allen
Delaware State University
Tony Allen is the president of the nation’s most diverse contemporary HBCU, Delaware State University, where he has overseen dramatic enrollment growth, the acquisition
of the former Wesley College, and the addition or expansion of numerous programs. Prior to joining Delaware State, Allen had a successful career
in communications in the financial services sector, including executive roles at MBNA and Bank of America. He started his career as speechwriter for then-Sen. Joe Biden and in 2020 was named CEO for President
Biden’s Inauguration. In 2021, he was appointed to the President’s Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities as chair.
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Dennis Assanis
University of Delaware
Dennis Assanis was selected as the 28th president of the state’s flagship university in 2016, coming from Stony Brook University in New York. Since then, Assanis has led a campaign
of enrollment growth, especially among minority students, and capital investment, including building new residence halls, labs and athletic centers while upgrading the school’s football stadium. Development of
the STAR Campus has also steadily increased with the addition of the Chemours Discovery Lab, UD’s College of Health Sciences STAR Tower and the FinTech Center among other projects. He’s already received a contract extension through 2026.
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44 DELAWARE 222 | DelawareBusinessTimes.com
