College of Business

Cigi England graduated from Tennessee Technological University in 2006. After spending eight years in the fashion industry in Atlanta, she decided to move back to Cookeville to be closer to family and friends. With the support of her amazing friends and this wonderful community, Cigi’s Boutique was created. Cigi just celebrated seven years in business. 

Cigi and her husband Michael are involved with local organizations that work with individuals with special needs. Cigi has served on the board at Rising Above Ministries for three years. After spending time with their friends that have disabilities, they  thought it would be awesome to create a place of their very own. How wonderful it would be to work, play, and cultivate a community together!

Cigi and Michael prayed very specifically about their vision to create The Exceptional Bean & shared it with a small group of individuals in Cookeville. From there it was full steam ahead. The Exceptional Bean is set to open Spring 2022. 

In her two years at VUMC, Amy served as the local and state liaison for the VUMC adult hospital, Monroe Carrel Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital, Vanderbilt Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital, Vanderbilt Wilson County Hospital and the 150+ service locations within the Vanderbilt Medical Group network. Her work spanned from serving as the community liaison of the organization to managing VUMC’s chamber memberships as well as serving as one of the three registered lobbyists on behalf of the hospital system to the Tennessee General Assembly. She was also charged with developing and overseeing community engagement plans in relation to acquisitions and new locations within the VUMC system.

Amy also served as the first-ever Rural and Community Development Assistant Commissioner for the State of Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, serving within Governor Bill Haslam’s administration. During her appointment, TNECD launched an $8 million Rural Development Fund and passed the Rural Economic Opportunity (REO) Act of 2016 adding an additional $45 million in program funds since creation and restructured the job tax credit to be more accessible for small businesses. The fund has produced more than $500 million in programs and projects to date. She also spearheaded a statewide task force addressing rural development needs. The Governor's Rural Task Force brought together 21 local, state and federal partners to identify, design and implement more than 20 programs and initiatives that led to a $65 million infusion in Rural Tennessee. In addition to the REO Act, Amy led the passage of the Broadband Accessibility Act which included the deregulation for eligible providers and added a grant program totaling more than $30 million in infrastructure expansion. She oversaw more than $400 million in state and federally funded projects to enhance economic and community development throughout the state.  

Prior to her appointment, Amy served as the state’s ThreeStar community development director, where she worked to restructure and expand Tennessee’s economic development efforts targeting a community asset-based planning approach. This approach worked in tandem with a grant program to support local initiatives around education, workforce development, safety, health and fiscal responsibility.

Before moving to Nashville in 2010, Amy served as account executive for MMA Creative Marketing Firm developing business plans, brands, and social media efforts. She also worked in local print with the Upper Cumberland Business Journal and was the Business Profiles Host for PBS’s WCTE.

A native of Monterey, TN, Amy was raised on a tobacco, cattle and hog farm and comes from a family dedicated to public service.  She is a graduate of Tennessee Tech University where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration while working in various local government and chamber of commerce roles in her home county of Putnam. She was in the inaugural graduating class of Tennessee Certified Economic Developers through the University of Tennessee’s Center for Industrial Services. She is currently pursuing her masters in Leadership and Public Policy through Lipscomb University as the first-ever Haslam Scholar.

Amy is actively involved in the state as a member of Tennessee Rural Health Association Policy Advisors Council, The University of Tennessee’s Certified Economic Developer Advisory Board, the Tennessee Lobbying Association, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (M.A.D.D.) Executive Board, Upper Cumberland Habitat for Humanity, Leadership Tennessee, and various other non-profit committees.

Amy resides in Cookeville, Tennessee with her husband Jake and daughters Lily Kate and Sadie.

As the President and CEO of Williamson, Inc., Matt Largen leads the Williamson County Office of Economic Development, the Williamson County Chamber of Commerce and its foundation to develop leaders, advocate for a thriving business environment, and grow the Williamson County economy in a strategic way.

Matt enjoys creating partnerships to meet the economic needs of Williamson County, like developing the new Center for Innovation, in partnership with the Heritage Foundation of Williamson County, to meet and serve entrepreneurs.

Economic opportunity changes lives. Opportunity is created through business recruitment of companies like Mitsubishi Motors and business retention and expansion of existing companies like the new headquarter campus of Mars Petcare. Matt is passionate about the profession of economic development and appreciates the role it plays in helping families thrive.

Kara Babin Gee heads the Corporate Interiors team at Smith Gee Studio, a fifty-person, full-service architecture, interiors and planning firm in Nashville, Tennessee.  Her twenty-eight-year career has focused almost exclusively on office and other commercial interior projects, and has included such work as the Ascend Amphitheater in Nashville's Riverfront Park, multiple buildings at the Werthan Warehouse property in the Germantown neighborhood, and the interior fit-out of amenities and multiple tenants at the historic Cummins Station building including Gibson Guitar's new headquarters.

Ms. Gee is an active member of the Urban Land Institute, where she currently serves on the Women's Leadership Initiative. She has participated in many community projects with the Civic Design Center, the Arts Commission, and the American Institute of Architects - most notably working to help her East Nashville neighborhood with the design and economic recovery from the tornado disaster of 1998.

Angela joined TUTCO in April of 2003 and currently holds the position of HR Director for the following facilities: TUTCO, Farnam and SureHeat. She also provides HR support for China and Mexico manufacturing facilities. Angela recently took an additional role as Flex-Tek’s Group Talent and Early Career Development Representative. She currently resides in Baxter, Tennessee. Prior to joining TUTCO she was employed with John Deere for three years serving as their HR Representative. During her tenure at TUTCO, Angela has focused her attention on employee engagement and development and most recently has focused on wellness initiatives.

Amy Vetter, CPA.CITP, CGMA, is the CEO of The B3 Method Institute and Drishtiq Yoga, a keynote speaker, corporate advisor, board member, author, and host of the podcast, Breaking Beliefs. As a CPA and Yogi - who specializes in Technology Innovation – Amy provides a unique perspective. She inspires financial professionals to implement and use technology in a thoughtful way so that it does the heavy lifting, freeing them to develop collaborative, lasting relationships.

Amy’s speaking programs encompass transformative topics on digital transformation, mindfulness, leadership, employee engagement, company culture, as well as change management and innovation. She is the author of two books: Integrative Advisory Services: Expanding Your Accounting Services Beyond the Cloud, published by Wiley, and Business, Balance & Bliss: How the B3 Method Can Transform Your Career and Life.

Amy is a board member for the Ohio Society of CPAs as well as a member of multiple American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) committees. Amy has been repeatedly recognized as a “Most Powerful Women in Accounting” by the AICPA and CPA Practice Advisor, and as a “Top 100 Most Influential Person” by Accounting Today. Amy shares her accounting and business insights as a contributor to AICPA’s Journal of Accountancy, Accounting Today, and CPA Practice Advisor. Learn more at www.amyvetter.com, and subscribe to Amy’s Breaking Beliefs Podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. For daily inspiration, follow @AmyVetterCPA on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.