Keynote Speakers

Opening Keynote: Nancy Howell Agee – Carilion Clinic
Nancy Howell Agee is President and Chief Executive Officer of Carilion Clinic, a $2.4B not-for-profit integrated health system headquartered in Roanoke, Virginia. Before becoming CEO in 2011, Ms. Agee served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer and co-led Carilion’s reorganization from a collection of hospitals to a fully integrated, physician-led clinic. The reorganization resulted in a partnership with Virginia Tech to create an allopathic medical school and research institute. Ms. Agee is a nationally recognized health care leader and past Chair of the American Hospital Association. Modern Healthcare named her one of 2021’s Women Leaders Luminaries that recognizes executives whose careers have been defined by reshaping the industry. She was first named to Modern Healthcare’s biennial list of Top 25 Women Leaders in 2017 and is perennially among its 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare. She is a former member of The Joint Commission’s Board of Commissioners and past Chair of the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association and the Virginia Center for Health Innovation. Ms. Agee was named Virginia Business Person of the year in 2017 and placed on the 2020 Power List by Virginia Business, and has been on the list of most influential persons in Virginia for the past ten years. Ms. Agee has received many awards over her career including the Total Action for Progress (TAP) 2021 Cabell Brand Hope Award, 2020 University of Virginia Maxine Platzer Lynn Women’s Center Distinguished Alumna Award, Emory School of Nursing’s Nurses Alumni Association Distinguished Nursing Achievement Award, Multiple Sclerosis Silver Hope Award, the Carilion Paladin Award for Quality, and the National Center for Healthcare Leadership’s Gail L. Warden Leadership Excellence Award. Ms. Agee holds degrees with Honors from the University of Virginia and Emory University and attended the Kellogg School of Business, Northwestern University. In 2015, she received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Roanoke College and the Jefferson College of Health Sciences.

Closing Keynote: Nneka Chiazor – Cox Communications
Nneka Chiazor is a bridge builder. Born in Newfoundland, growing up between Montreal and Lagos, Nneka’s international upbringing revealed the criticality of bridging divides. It inspired her migration to the United States to pursue the American Dream. She joined Cox Communications in 2017 as Vice President of Public and Government Affairs for Virginia and North Carolina region and leads a team entrusted with enhancing company revenues through public-private partnerships, robust employee engagement, digital equity programs, and community goodwill. Before joining Cox, she worked in several technical and corporate roles in the telecommunications industry, including at Verizon, where she worked on several innovations such as FiOS and smart cities. As a community builder, Nneka engages many nonprofits and professional organizations across the globe. She serves on several boards and as an appointed commissioner on the Virginia Beach Development Authority. She received the 2022 Humanitarian Award from the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities for her commitment to building bridges of understanding across the commonwealth. An alum of Harvard Business School, Nneka is passionate about empowering people—she lives to see people win. She enjoys volunteering to support female entrepreneurs achieve their dreams, and spending time with her family, especially on the beach. Ask her about surviving a wild goose attack!

Hokie Highlight Presenters

Pamela Gilchrist – Virginia Tech Innovation Campus
Pamela Gilchrist is the new director of K-12 programs at the Virginia Tech Innovation Campus where she partners across the broader university and organizations to provide pathways in STEM and to higher learning. Gilchrist is an advocate for equity and has served as a leader in multiple organizations, including past chair of both the North Carolina Science Leadership Association and the North Carolina Science Fair Foundation.

Reyna Gilbert-Lowry – Virginia Tech Athletics
Reyna Gilbert-Lowry serves as Senior Associate Athletic Director of Student-Athlete Development and Senior Woman Administrator at Virginia Tech. She joined the Hokies in 2008 and is currently responsible for oversight of the daily operations of the Lombardi Student-Athlete Development Center and works to support student-athletes and coaches across the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Reyna also chairs the Virginia Tech Athletics Diversity and Inclusion Council and is a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference Committee for Racial and Social Justice.

Anna LoMascolo – Virginia Tech Women’s Center
Anna LoMascolo serves as the co-director for the Women’s Center at Virginia Tech, where she has served in four different roles over the past 18 years. In her current role, Anna manages all aspects of the education and outreach programming for the Women’s Center including program design, implementation, supervision, and assessment of the center’s efforts aimed at advocacy and educating the university community about gender, women’s issues, diversity, equity and social justice.