Background

As director of the Folks Center, Amy is responsible for promoting the International Business program at the Moore School of Business. the Moore School of Business here at the University of South Carolina. The Folks Center engages companies, government agencies, international organizations and academic institutions to train future leaders who will impact strategy, innovation and leadership throughout the world.

Amy was formerly deputy director of the Business Services division at the S.C. Department of Commerce. In the role, she oversaw the agency’s outreach programs, which include export assistance, supplier outreach, industrial recycling and emergency management.

Prior to this role, Amy led the International Strategy and Trade program at Commerce, managing the agency’s six foreign offices in China, Taiwan, Korea, India, Germany and Japan, working to attract foreign investment by way of overseas missions and trade shows.

Before re-joining S.C. Commerce in 2014, Amy was senior international trade specialist with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Commercial Service. In this capacity, she assisted South Carolina firms in selling their products overseas. Amy’s first role at S.C. Commerce was as an international trade manager, leading trade missions throughout Canada, Mexico, Central and South America. This region of the world is near and dear to Amy, as she was formerly editor-in-chief of a Spanish-language trade publication for the apparel and textile industry, traveling throughout Latin America during the boom of apparel manufacturing in that region.

Amy is a founding member of the Charleston Women in International Trade Association and was elected as the first Chair of the S.C. International Trade Coalition. Amy is a graduate of the University of South Carolina, and enjoys living in downtown Columbia with her family, cooking and the great outdoors.