AUGUSTA, Ga () – Moving the needle of progress in Augusta takes one building at a time.. one business at a time.. But many forward thinking people to lead the way.

Ashley Harris is one of them.

“I started out as a high school Economics and U.S. Government teacher. Then, I transitioned into the Chamber world,” she explains.

After three years with the Columbia County chamber, she came to Accelerate Augusta.

She’s still teaching but with a different kind of student.

“At Accelerate Augusta I’m the program manager, program director, and there I’m designing programs to help small business owners, entrepreneurs and everyone who falls in between to create workshops or courses to help them better their business.”
She says the program is the brainchild of Augusta Technical College and the Downtown Development Authority.

She explains, “what we do is we’re hosting classes, cohorts, bootcamps and academies based on the feedback that small business gives us. So, if they’re in need of Quickbook training, if their in need of social media marketing training, we just had a class last night talking about generative A-I and ChatGPT and how that can affect, positively, small business owners.”

For Ashley, this is more than a job.

It’s a mission toward a greater good.

“I love the CSRA and Augusta. I have done the majority of my professional work in Columbia County. But, I’m a native of Augusta. I love the area and I love the potential and the growth that’s happening right before our eyes. Having a hand in it is also fulfilling.”

While her goal is to help move the city in a positive direction she has advice for women trying to get on the right path in business.

“They have to stand firm in what they believe. They have to be able to be confident enough to be in places that they know that they belong but not necessarily be welcomed.”