Scott T. Hamilton

Scott T. Hamilton became the third president of the Golden LEAF Foundation in November 2019. In this role, Scott is responsible for working with the Golden LEAF Board of Directors to develop and implement the foundation’s grantmaking priorities and strategies, overseeing the work of the staff and consultants that manage the foundation’s investments, and managing the day to day operations of the organization.

Scott previously served as executive director of the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) located in Washington, D.C., a Federal-State partnership with the mission to innovate, partner and invest to build community capacity and strengthen economic growth in Appalachia. During his tenure, he led a staff of more than 55 to invest nearly $675 million to support education and workforce training, highway construction, water and sewer system construction, leadership development, small business start-ups and expansions, energy and health. Prior to joining the ARC in 2014, Scott served in leadership roles with various county and regional economic development organizations in North Carolina, including most recently as president and CEO of AdvantageWest, a nonprofit regional economic development partnership serving the 23 westernmost counties of North Carolina.

Scott is a current member and past president of the North Carolina Economic Developers Association and has held leadership positions with numerous boards and organizations across North Carolina, including the North Carolina Economic Development Board. He served for 11 years as a gubernatorial appointee to the North Carolina Commission on Workforce Development.

A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Scott received additional training and certification in economic development from the University of North Carolina School of Government and the Georgia Institute of Technology. He is also a graduate of the Economic Development Institute at the University of Oklahoma and the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center’s Rural Economic Development Institute.