New Carolina – South Carolina’s Council on Competitiveness has hired Beth Pierce Meredith, formerly with the S.C. Department of Commerce, to facilitate the growth and development of key industry clusters in the three-county Charleston region.

Identified in a 2005 report prepared by economic development consulting firm Angelou Economics and commissioned by the Charleston Regional Development Alliance, the clusters include the biosciences, aerospace, automotive, creative industries and advanced security. Meredith will work based out of North Charleston, South Carolina, at the offices of the BCD Council of Governments.

Three years ago, multiple business organizations and government entities formed S.C.’s Council on Competitiveness to implement a long-term economic strategy focused on industry clusters, and on raising South Carolina’s per capita income. More than 50 leaders from all over the state are on the council board, which is chaired by Ed Sellers, chairman and CEO of BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina.

Meredith worked in Columbia as a community development manager in the Community and Rural Development division for the state Department of Commerce before joining New Carolina. She is a graduate of the South Carolina Economic Developers' School, and received the South Carolina Certified Economic Developer designation in 2006.

Meredith has held leadership roles as executive director for both the South Carolina Economic Developers' Association and the Coastal Conservation Association of South Carolina. She is an Alumni Association Board Member at the College of Charleston, where she received her bachelor's degree.