Jessica Linder, a graduate student in the Department of Politics and Government, has been named executive director of the Galesburg Area Chamber of Commerce.

A senior manager in the Hilton Corp., Linder began her new position August 10. Building on her training in hospitality leadership from DePaul University in Chicago, she expects to graduate with a master’s in political science at Illinois State later this year.

Linder told WGIL that “I’m really excited to start working with our convention and visitors bureau and with the director over there and really figure out how we’re supporting the businesses that are in tourism and make sure they have what they need to grow and start to see that kind of thrive.”

She noted in the Register-Mail that her diverse educational pursuits helped her to see a common thread: “As I went through school, I started to discover more of that intersection of hospitality and business and development and really saw the full potential of it, how it really is a way to serve people, to help people to grow communities.”