General

Leadership Virginia

Reynolds Community College

How do we lead Virginia?

From Leesburg to Danville, from Chesapeake to Norton, Virginia spans 42,775 square miles, about the same footprint as the island of Cuba.

Life in Richmond is as different from life in Winchester, as it is from life in Bristol, or Lynchburg, or Arlington. Yet we live within the same lines. So, the question becomes: How do we begin to understand and appreciate the challenges and strengths of our entire Commonwealth?

One Richmond-based nonprofit is literally "leading" the way. As its mission, Lead Virginia, is dedicated to bringing together leaders from Virginia's far-flung regions to talk, explore, understand, exchange insights and perspectives on how to shepherd our rapidly growing and changing home.

Lead Virginia organizes their program into "classes" that essentially run parallel to the academic year, from September to June. Each class has approximately 40 participants. During the session, meetings are held over a three day weekend in each of the five designated regions of the Commonwealth: Hampton Roads, New River Valley, Southern Virginia, Northern Virginia, and Southwest Virginia.

On Friday, June 25 Reynold hosted a panel discussion, Education and Workforce in the Richmond Region, as part of the final graduation weekend for the Lead Virginia Class of 2020. Reynolds President Paula Pando (on right in photo), a graduate of Lead Virginia's 2019 Class, served as the panel's moderator. On the panel were (from right to left after Dr. Pando) Eva Colen, Manager, Office of Children and Families and Senior Policy Advisor, Office of Mayor Levar Stoney; Dr. Tyren Frazier, Chesterfield Education Foundation; and Tamekia LeGrand, VCU Vice President for Strategy, Enrollment Management, and Student Success.

To learn more about Lead Virginia and their upcoming events, visit: leadvirginia.org.