Tressa Gardner is the Associate VP of the SiMT and Gould Business Incubator and Interim Director of the Lake City FDTC campus at the Continuum. She connects business, industry, inventors and entrepreneurs with the advanced technological resources of the SiMT to increase innovation. She also manages the day-to-day activities of the Incubator, which currently houses 35 small businesses and startups.
Ms. Gardner received a BS in Economics from Francis Marion University and a Master of Arts in Economics from Clemson University. She worked on numerous National Science Foundation grants for FDTC from 2003-2013 before joining the SiMT as Director of Business Development in 2013, and was named Associate VP in 2016. She assumed responsibility for the Gould Business Incubator in September 2020 and has served as Interim Director for the Lake City campus since April 2022. Prior to joining the college, she worked in manufacturing, training and management, as well as sales.
