Hospitality | Tourism 2024: RITA McCLENNY

A Southampton County native, McClenny has been working to bring tourism and film productions to Virginia since 1991. She ran Virginia Film Office, a division of the Virginia Tourism Corp., for two decades before becoming president of the state agency in 2012.

Tourism in Virginia generated $33.3 billion in visitor spending in 2023, with the tourism industry directly supporting more than 224,000 jobs in the state and driving $2.4 billion in state and local tax revenue. For 2023, Virginia was among the top 10 states generating the most sports tourism revenue, according to trade association Sports ETA.

To promote Virginia tourism during the 2026 commemoration of the nation’s 250th birthday, the agency recently awarded more than $200,000 in grants to support marketing, programming and events related to the Semiquincentennial.

As Virginia Film Office head, McClenny was responsible for bringing high-profile TV and movie projects like Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” to the commonwealth.

McClenny, who received her bachelor’s degree in economics from Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, serves on the board of Travel South USA, a destination marketing organization for the South.