Tioga County Chamber leader announces retirement

Gwen Kania, president and CEO of the Tioga County Chamber of Commerce, announced she will be retiring this spring after 12 years at the organization. (Photo credit: Tioga County Chamber of Commerce)

OWEGO, N.Y. — Gwen Kania, president and CEO of the Tioga County Chamber of Commerce, announced she will be retiring this spring after 12 years at the organization.

Kania says she will step down at the end of May.

“Working for the Tioga Chamber has been the most rewarding job. The people, businesses and the community are wonderful; however, it’s time to move on to other things,” Kania said in a statement.

Kania started with the Tioga Chamber in 2008 as director of operations. In 2014, when Martha Sauerbrey left her role as president, Kania was promoted to the post.

“Under Gwen’s leadership, many new programs such as the Annual Job Fair, the Chamber OJT [on-the-job training] program, and Restaurant Week were added. She also saw the Chamber through our Centennial year,” Roseann Cole, chair of the Tioga Chamber board of directors and owner of Upstate Safety Services, said in the statement.

The Tioga Chamber’s board of directors says it hopes to fill the president and CEO position quickly enough to allow for maximum training time. It has posted the job on indeed.com and its own website job board. The salary is listed at $48,000 per year. The job also has additional compensation in the form of bonuses.

Contact Rombel at arombel@cnybj.com

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