About Deborah Pontzer

Deborah Pontzer is the President of Grow Rural PA, a community-based nonprofit dedicated to growing economies and improving lives in rural Pennsylvania.

Deborah began her career working as a forensic accountant for one of the big six accounting firms before moving on to management positions in higher education, first as the Executive Director of the Community Education Council of Elk and Cameron Counties and then as Director of Outreach and Business Services at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford, serving on the President’s Cabinet. Through her leadership, she increased educational opportunities for traditional and non-traditional students and provided much-needed access to business services in an eight-county region in northwest/north central Pennsylvania.

Deborah recently retired after 16 years as a workforce and economic development specialist for U.S. Representatives John E. Peterson and Glenn “GT” Thompson. The 15th Congressional District is one of the largest and most rural Districts east of the Mississippi River and includes many energy communities. Deborah worked on rural economic and community development projects matching constituents’ needs to federal resources.

Since 2003, she has served as a director of CNB Bank/CCNE Fin Corp., a $5.5B commercial/community bank headquartered in Clearfield, PA with divisions in four states and with a long tradition of serving rural communities. Deborah began serving as a director when the bank had assets of $723M and served only Pennsylvania. She has served on various committees during her tenure including, Audit, Corporate Governance, and is currently the chair of the Asset and Liability committee.

Deborah is a happy transplant to Appalachia and takes pride in being an active member in her community from serving on economic development and healthcare boards to building and expanding regional rails-to-trails and supporting the PA Wilds work to grow outdoor recreation and visitation.

Deborah graduated from Mount Holyoke College with a degree in Latin American Studies and then earned her MBA at Thunderbird School of Global Management, a division of Arizona State University. Deborah and her husband enjoy traveling, biking, hiking, and finding good restaurants. Deborah has lived in six states and has traveled extensively in the U.S. and abroad but now believes that she lives in the most beautiful place of all.