In June 2015, Brent Christensen joined the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce as its president and CEO, where he leads the organization that includes Greensboro’s lead economic development organization as well as Launch Greensboro and Action Greensboro. Before arriving in Greensboro, Christensen served for three years as the executive director of the Mississippi Development Authority (MDA), the state’s lead economic and community development agency. In this capacity, Christensen oversaw the agency’s services, ranging from traditional business recruitment, retention and expansion assistance to developing unique state assets, such as the creative economy, and implementing programs that support community development, small business growth, tourism, disaster recovery and other federal programs vital to Mississippi. Prior to joining MDA, Christensen was the President and CEO of the Gainesville Area Chamber of Commerce in Gainesville, Fla. There, he directed the operation of the chamber, the Council for Economic Outreach, which is the chamber’s economic development arm, and the Gainesville Technology Enterprise Center, the community’s high-tech business incubator. During his tenure,the chamber was awarded its five-star accreditation by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, placing it among the top one percent of chambers of commerce nationwide. Christensen holds an MBA from the University of South Florida and a bachelor’s degree in Economics and Public Policy Studies from Duke University.