Edward B. Grimball

Appointed by the Governor

Edward Grimball was appointed Chair of the Board of Economic Advisors in March 2017. He spent much of his professional life in the financial services industry previously serving as Chief Financial Officer of a Nasdaq multi-state, diversified Bank Holding Company headquartered in New Orleans. Concurrently, he was Chief Executive Officer of a publicly traded company engaged in oil and gas exploration and real estate management in southern Louisiana. Prior to this, he was Controller and Corporate Secretary of an interstate bank based in Atlanta, Board member of a captive insurance company located in Bermuda, and senior manager and consultant with a “Big 8” accounting firm in its Columbia and Washington, DC offices. Most recently in the state of Maine, he served as consulting CFO of a listed diversified bank holding company and as CFO and Board member of a start-up company that developed and markets worldwide a hand held water purification device using ultraviolet light and solar energy.

Mr. Grimball is a graduate of The Citadel, received an MBA from the University of Virginia, is a CPA licensed in the State of South Carolina, and served overseas as a Captain in the United States Army.

C. Curtis Hutto

Appointed by the Chairman of House Ways & Means Committee

C. Curtis Hutto was appointed to the South Carolina Board of Economic Advisors on March 1st, 2022.  He is the Chief Financial Officer for and a shareholder of Thompson Construction Group, Inc., a diversified construction services firm based in Sumter, SC.  He is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in South Carolina.  Additionally, he serves on the Executive Committee as Treasurer of the South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance.

Mr. Hutto received a Bachelor of Science degree in 2002 and a Master of Accountancy degree in 2003 from the University of South Carolina.  He maintains his residency in Sumter, SC with his wife and son.

G. Michael Mikota, Ph.D.

Appointed by the Chairman of Senate Finance Committee

Dr. Michael Mikota was appointed to the Board of Economic Advisors in November of 2022. Dr. Mikota has served as President of Spartanburg Community College (SCC) since 2020, where he has led one of the most significant institutional transformations among public community colleges in recent years. Under his leadership, SCC has grown to serve more than 10,000 students annually, achieving a 70 percent increase in enrollment, launching the state’s first tuition-free institutional scholarship model for all students, and strengthening its role as a workforce-driven engine for regional economic development. 

A nationally recognized higher education leader, Dr. Mikota is known for disciplined fiscal stewardship and strategic growth, doubling the college’s operational funding, securing more than $150 million in public and private investment, and advancing innovative initiatives through the Spark Center and enterprise campuses that have supported thousands of jobs across the region. 

Prior to leading SCC, Dr. Mikota held executive leadership roles as President of Central Carolina Technical College and Executive Director of the Santee-Lynches Regional Council of Governments, complemented by federal service as a Senior Analyst with the U.S. Government Accountability Office. 

Dr. Mikota holds a Ph.D. in Policy Studies from Clemson University, an MBA from Gardner-Webb University, and a bachelor’s degree with honors from Wofford College. He lives in Spartanburg, South Carolina, with his wife and their three children.