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UID:tenant-1057-event-63867@chamberhive.com
DTSTAMP:20260917T082122Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260917T082122Z
DTSTART:20240829T153000Z
DTEND:20240829T170000Z
SUMMARY:August Chamber Luncheon - 2024
LOCATION:Worthington Hills Country Club 920 Clubview Blvd. S. Columbus OH 4
 3235
DESCRIPTION:The August Chamber Luncheon will feature Monica Tellez-Fowler\,
  President/CEO of the Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA)\, along with K
 elsey Ellingsen\, Director of Local Government Affairs. This lunch we will
  also include a presentation on LinkUS. With the massive growth within our
  region\, Columbus is the largest city in the country without an extensive
  train or bus system and this topic brings to light great impacts for the 
 future of our workforce\, economic development and accessibility. The Lunc
 heon will also include updates on Worthington Works and the Chamber's DEI&
 B initiative\, among other Chamber happenings. What is LinkUS? A plan to i
 ncrease COTA service and transportation options across central Ohio. LinkU
 S would include hundreds of miles of improved sidewalks\, bikelanes\, trai
 ls\, along with construction of COTA Bus Rapid Transit lines and so much m
 ore. Early bird pricing ends Monday\, July 29. Registration closes Wednesd
 ay\, August 21. No refunds after August 22. MEET MONICA: Monica Tellez-Fow
 ler is the President/CEO of the Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA)\, th
 e regional mobility organization providing service to Columbus and the Cen
 tral Ohio region. Since joining COTA in March 2023\, she has served as Chi
 ef Operating Officer before she was promoted to Deputy CEO in May 2023. In
  May 2024\, she became COTA’s new President/CEO\, after a unanimous vote
  by the Board of Trustees. During her time at COTA\, Monica has successful
 ly negotiated an industry-leading labor contract with Transport Workers Un
 ion 208\, implemented and overseen the organization’s transformative Pai
 d Family Leave Policy\, and led improvements to transit service following 
 a national workforce shortage. She also leads COTA in the LinkUS Mobility 
 Initiative\, which is the region’s mobility plan to bring rapid transit 
 solutions and transportation options to accommodate major population growt
 h in Central Ohio. Prior to COTA\, she served as the Deputy CEO/Treasurer 
 of Clark County Public Transit Benefit Area Authority (C-TRAN) in Vancouve
 r\, Washington. While at C-TRAN\, Tellez-Fowler was responsible for more t
 han $100 million in annual operations and capital budgets and represented 
 the authority on a $3.5 billion Interstate 5 bridge replacement megaprojec
 t across the Columbia River on the Washington-Oregon border. While at C-TR
 AN\, the organization earned Outstanding Transportation System of the Year
  twice\, first in 2019 and again in 2022. Before joining C-TRAN\, Tellez-F
 owler was the Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Trinity Metro 
 in Fort Worth\, Texas\, where she oversaw the New Starts Federal Transit A
 dministration grant application process for TEXRail\, a $1 billion\, 27-mi
 le commuter rail between downtown Fort Worth and the Dallas/Fort Worth Int
 ernational Airport. Tellez-Fowler earned a Masters of Business Administrat
 ion from Texas A&M University and a bachelor’s of Business Administratio
 n from Tarleton State University\, graduating as a distinguished scholar. 
 She lives in Gahanna. MEET KELSEY: Kelsey Ellingsen is the Director of Loc
 al Government Affairs at the Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA)\, an or
 ganization serving a region of more than 1.3 million people. As a dedicate
 d member of the Central Ohio community experienced in the local civic and 
 public policy landscape\, Kelsey plays a critical role in driving COTA’s
  priorities forward through advocacy and partnerships with valued communit
 y stakeholders and elected officials. Kelsey has a long history of serving
  Central Ohio\, previously working as a legislative aide at Columbus City 
 Council\, serving in public policy roles for the Ohio House of Representat
 ives and the Ohio Department of Education\, as well as working on campaign
 s for the Ohio Democratic Party\, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown\, We Are Ohio
 \, and more. Kelsey earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a M
 aster of Public Administration from The Ohio State University. She is also
  a 2024 graduate of Leadership Columbus and the President-elect of The Ohi
 o State University John Glenn College of Public Affairs Alumni Association
 . 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.\n\nhttps://www.worthingtonchamber.org/events/6386
 7
URL:https://www.worthingtonchamber.org/events/63867
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