After a rocky year in 2016, the Economic Development Corporation of Utah (EDCUtah) has named a new President and CEO.
Theresa Foxley will replace previous EDCUtah CEO Jeff Edwards, who retired in November. Foxley is an attorney who most recently worked at the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, a state entity which often contracts EDCUtah to help lure businesses to the state.
Her past experience working with businesses in Utah makes Foxley ideal for the position, says Salt Lake Chamber President Lane Beattie.
“She is the ideal kind of a candidate that can bring those two entities together with the respect of helping Utah grow in the areas that we need,” Beattie says.
Theresa Foxley says as president of EDCUtah, she’d like to focus on expanding certain sectors to bring jobs and economic growth to the state, including “financial services, information technology, energy, outdoor recreation, life sciences and aerospace and defense.”
Foxley takes the helm at EDCUtah after its rough 2016. A legislative audit released in October highlighted poor oversight and financial management at the nonprofit, which receives about 2 million dollars a year from taxpayer funds. It also surfaced last year that the group’s tax-exempt status had been revoked after it failed to file tax returns for several years.
“I hope that we can inspire communities and our members to give us that chance, that opportunity, to examine what we’re doing and be evolutionary in economic development,” Foxley says. “Because we’ve got a great formula.”
Foxley will start full-time in March, working on a limited basis until then while on maternity leave.
