After several weeks of consideration in which a pool of nearly 30 applications was whittled down to a select few, the Clinton-Sampson Chamber of Commerce has announced its new executive director — and she’s a hometown girl.

Clinton native Janna Bass was hired for the position and will start next month, Chamber of Commerce officials announcement Wednesday.

Bass is a 2010 graduate of North Carolina State University, where she earned a degree in business management, with a concentration in marketing. Her past job experience includes event planning and marketing. She said she was looking forward to working to see Clinton and Sampson County prosper behind a strong Chamber of Commerce.

“I am excited and honored to have this opportunity to work with the Clinton-Sampson Chamber of Commerce,” stated Bass. “I look forward to creating personal relationships with the Chamber membership and Sampson County citizens as a whole. I am proud to call Sampson County home and I look forward to seeing the county continue to grow and prosper. I am honored to be able to be a part of the excitement and change.”

The Chamber received 29 applications for the executive director’s position. A committee of eight board members reviewed the resumes and chose six applicants for formal interviews. After a round of interviews, Bass was selected for the position.

“The Chamber Board and I are excited to have Janna join the Chamber as executive director,” said Gary Mac Herring, president of the Chamber. “We feel that Janna will be a great fit for our Chamber as well as our entire county. Janna’s past job experience of event planning and marketing, combined with her organizational and creative skills, will benefit the Chamber and its members tremendously. We are very excited and fortunate to have Janna on board.”

Bass is married to local farmer Tyler Bass. They reside just outside of Clinton near the Taylors Bridge area.

Due to her current job obligations, she will not start the Chamber position full time until March 5. However, in the coming weeks she will spend some time in the county meeting local Chamber members, leaders and citizens. She will also be present at the Chamber’s annual banquet Feb. 28, Chamber officials said.

In the coming weeks, the Chamber will also host a meet and greet reception to give the membership and the community opportunity to meet Bass. The details of the reception will be announced in the near future.

Herring has credited the Chamber’s 360 members, as well as Chamber staff, with their diligence during the transition. He also shared his gratitude toward the search committee, whose dedication paid off with the hiring of Bass.

“The Executive Search Committee put in some long hours going through resumes and performing interviews,” the Chamber president said. “I would like to thank them for their hard work and commitment to this process.”

Chris Berendt can be reached at 910-592-8137 ext. 121 or via email at sicrime@heartlandpublications.com.