Meet Our Team
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Steve has been President of North Carolina’s Southeast since 2009. Since 1994, he has led economic development strategies at the local, state, and regional levels, including as Executive Director of the Columbus County Economic Development Commission, Sr. Developer and Regional Manager for the NC Dept. of Commerce southeast region, and as Marketing Manager for North Carolina’s Southeast. He has been a leader in marketing, strategic planning, product development, fundraising, workforce development, and the formation of public-private partnerships.
He earned a B.A. in Political Science from Appalachian State University, and an M.P.A. from the University of North Carolina. He is a Certified Economic and Community Developer, and in 2017 served as President of the North Carolina’s Economic Development Association. He is also an Eagle Scout.
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Joe serves as the Vice President of North Carolina’s Southeast Regional Economic Development Partnership. Joe has worked for over 16 years in the economic development industry including positions at North Carolina’s Southeast, Michigan Economic Development Corporation, and Alliance Consulting Engineers, Inc. Joe was awarded the designation of Certified Economic and Community Development (CEcD) from the International Economic Development Council in 2018. He was recognized as one of North America’s Top 50 Economic Developers by Consultant Connect in 2020 for outstanding leadership and innovation in the profession.
He is a leader in global marketing, lead generation, product development, client and project management, strategic planning, global site selector and industrial broker engagement, and fostering partnerships with strategic allies.
M.A., Education Leadership: UNC-Wilmington
B.A., Psychology: UNC-Chapel Hill
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Megan Berquist joined NC's Southeast in February 2019 as the Director of Marketing and Project Management. Her focus areas include marketing, project management, business recruitment, market research, and social media.
Before joining NCSE, Megan served as the Existing Industry Director for the Anson Economic Development Partnership and the Membership & Marketing Director for the Anson County Chamber. In 2018, she was recognized as Young Professional of the Year in Anson County for her leadership, results, and dedication to economic development.
Megan holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. She resides in Sanford, North Carolina, with her husband, Alan, who recently retired from the U.S. Army after 22 years of service. They live with their two dogs, a Weimaraner named George, and a Rhodesian Ridgeback named Henry. Megan is passionate about outdoor activities like hiking and kayaking and actively participates in her community, including her church.
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Patti Miller is the Finance & Office Manager for North Carolina’s Southeast. She joined the North Carolina’s Southeast team in 2016 and manages all financial planning and oversight for the organization. She also interacts and assists public and private investors that support North Carolina’s Southeast.
A key part of her responsibilities is developing and generating graphics design of materials for external and internal marketing and communications. She received a B.S. in Computer Science and Finance from the University of Kentucky. Her credentials have equipped her to hold a wide variety of positions from computer systems analyst/ programmer to community college computer instructor to office manager and financial secretary.
Patti grew up in the Bluegrass of Kentucky. She spent 16 years living in South Carolina and for the past nine years she has resided in North Carolina. She enjoys travel and the outdoors.
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Kassie Simmons joined NC's Southeast as the Marketing Communciations Manager in June 2023. She handles the partership's social media pages and other communications.
Before joining the team, she worked in broadcast news for four years. She has an extensive background in photography, videography and graphic design. In 2022, she received the TV News Multimedia Journalist of the Year award from the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas for breaking news, investigative work and feature story coverage.
Kassie attended Virginia Tech where she majored in multimedia journalism, receiving her bachelor's degree in 2019. She moved to southeastern North Carolina in 2021 and currently lives in Brunswick County with her dog, Benji, and cat, Cookie.