Kaci Foster '03

Kaci H. Foster graduated from WVU Tech in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in public service administration and in 2004 with her bachelor’s degree in history and government. She also minored in political science and economics.

While she was a student at Tech, Foster was very active on campus. She was the editor, sales manager, and business manager of the Tech Collegian newspaper for two years. She was also a member of the Student Government Association (SGA), the Student Activities Board, the Homecoming Planning Committee, the Residence Hall Association, the Homecoming Court, and the President's Food Service Committee, and played intramural softball.

While a senator in SGA, she served as the recording secretary and Chair of Communications for two years. She also served on the Elections Committee, Internet Committee, and Food Service Committee. In 2002, while still a student at WVU Tech, she worked as a journalism teacher and mentor for the Upward Bound program. In 2003, she served as a summer intern for Senator Jay Rockefeller in Charleston.

After graduating, Foster continued her education at West Virginia University, where she studied public history with an emphasis in Appalachian history. While there, she worked as a foreman in advertisement production for the Daily Athenaeum newspaper for three years. She later moved to Pittsburgh and worked at the Senator Heinz History Center and the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum.

She returned to her home state in 2010 and worked as a senior advertising executive for the Charleston Gazette-Mail newspaper, a journalist for the Montgomery Herald newspaper, an adjunct professor for the Introduction to Genealogy and Local History Research class at BridgeValley Community and Technical College, and the director of marketing for the largest optical business east of the Mississippi River. She held several of these positions simultaneously.

While at the Charleston Gazette-Mail, Foster won seven West Virginia Press Association awards for her work in advertising and was a four-time recipient of the Driver Award for driving new businesses across West Virginia to advertise, as well as salesperson of the month.

In 2019, Foster began working at the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission (HEPC) and the West Virginia Community and Technical College System Division of Student Affairs. As their Community Outreach and Engagement Specialist, she assists in coordinating community and communications outreach efforts, including advertising, marketing, digital, social media, and community outreach campaigns. She also writes, designs, and creates content for publications distributed to schools and institutions statewide.

For six years, she has served as the coordinator for the statewide College Decision Day campaign, part of a growing national effort to celebrate high school seniors for their postsecondary plans and assist them and their families in enrolling in and transitioning to college. For the past two years, Foster has served as the statewide coordinator for WV FAFSA Day and is the lead coordinator for Discover U Month, a new initiative aimed at encouraging middle schools across the state to visit community and technical colleges and universities.

Foster coordinates event table outreach and participates in college fairs and community events around the state throughout the school year. She also works with the federally funded WV GEAR UP program, which helps students in 11 counties prepare to succeed in education and training beyond high school in West Virginia.

She assists with coordinating additional outreach programs and activities, including College Application and Exploration Week, the GEAR UP Student Leadership Academy, the Student Success Summit, Champions of College Access and Success, the First-Generation College Celebration, the GEAR UP Career Academy, the Student Voice Forum, and GEAR UP U Summer Academy. Her goal is to make a difference in the lives of students across West Virginia and help them achieve their dreams.

She recently received the Chancellor’s Award of Excellence for outstanding dedication and innovation in helping West Virginia achieve national recognition for FAFSA completion.

Outside of work, Foster has always been active in her community. She has served on the Tech Golden Bear Alumni Association (TGBAA) Board of Directors since 2013 and was secretary, communications chair, and chair of activities and events facilitator from 2014 to 2020. Since 2020, she has served as their first vice president.

She also serves on the TGBAA Student Mentorship Committee, Tech’s 130th Anniversary Planning Committee, Tech’s Homecoming Planning Committee, and the Silent Auction Committee.

Foster is a first vice regent of the Kanawha Valley Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and a member of the West Virginia Archeological Society, NCAN, and WVACRAO. She has been a volunteer scholarship reviewer for The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation for the past five years and also volunteers as a judge for regional and state science and history fairs.

In the past year alone, she has served as a judge for the Bridge Day Chili Cook-Off, the Annual Pepperoni Roll Contest at GoMart Park, the State Legislative Staff Chili Cook-Off, and The Roost Halloween Costume Contest. She has also been a competitor in multiple eating contests, including the Sternwheel Regatta Hotdog Eating Contest and a three-pound burrito eating contest at Cathedral Cafe.

She served as the organizer and emcee for the Doug Skaff Jr. Memorial Ribfest Chicken Wing Eating Contest and has been named the organizer and emcee for the WV Bigfoot Festival Hotdog Eating Contest in 2026. She has also served as the special event coordinator for the Fayette County Humane Society Pet Adoption and Fundraiser, judged the Mac 'n Cheese Cook-Off to benefit the Childhood Language Center, volunteered with the Smithers Preservation Project, and participated in the Fayette County Community Foundation Focus Group.

In past years, Foster has served as vice president of the Montgomery Farmer's Market, as a member of the WV Fashion Show Planning Committee for the WV Symphony Orchestra, and as a parent representative for the YMCA Charleston Program Committee. She has helped the City of Montgomery secure grants to purchase items for children in the community and support summer activity programs.

In her free time, Foster contributes as a freelance journalist to newspapers and magazines in central and southern West Virginia. She enjoys local history research, gardening, kayaking, and being her teenage son’s biggest cheerleader.