NANCY HOWELL AGEE

NANCY HOWELL AGEE

President and CEO, Carilion Clinic, Roanoke

Nancy Howell Agee calls herself “a bit of a unicorn” because, as a woman and a nurse, the odds of her ever heading a health care system were poor. When asked about obstacles she faced along the way to becoming CEO and president of Carilion Clinic health system, she quips, “Do we have all day?”

But Agee had a restless mind, a drive to be a decision maker and the mindset of “try — what’s the worst that can happen?” The result? For more than a decade, she has led the $2.4 billion, seven-hospital system, which serves more than 1 million patients in the Roanoke and New River valleys.

Before becoming the leader of Carilion in 2011, Agee was its chief operating officer, a role she used to help transform the clinic into a patient-centered, physician-led organization. She also co-led the forging of a partnership with Virginia Tech to create a medical school that has graduated more than 400 doctors since it opened in 2010. A graduate of the University of Virginia’s nursing school, Agee was a hands-on health care worker for decades before entering administration.

“I’m passionate about health care, and I’m passionate about education,” she says. Since assuming Carilion’s top job, Agee has kept the system operating in the black, even amid the difficult days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Her administrative ability has been recognized with a slew of honors, including being named 2017 Virginia Business Person of the Year. In January, her expertise was recognized once again when she was named to Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s medical advisory team.