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byline: Sydney Lake

Stride selects 47 recipients for new scholarship program

Herndon-based online education provider Stride Inc. (formerly K12 Inc.) announced last week it has selected 47 recipients for the first round of its $10 million investment to provide education options for underserved Black students. 

The funding was disbursed through Stride’s We Stand Together Scholarships program, which was first announced in September 2020. The first cohort will receive tuition-free full-time enrollment to Stride’s online K12 Private Academy for the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year.

“A stronger, more inclusive nation begins with economic empowerment, academic equity and career readiness for all, and we are proud to extend that opportunity to more students through this new scholarship,” Stride CEO James Rhyu said in a statement. Stride announced in late January that Nathaniel A. “Nate” Davis was retiring from his role as CEO and would be succeeded by Rhyu.

The initial group of recipients includes students from 14 states who are in kindergarten through 11th grade. Recipients will also have access to all materials and technology needed to complete their online courses. They were chosen based on academic achievement, educational and life goals and financial need, according to Stride.

“Every student, regardless of race or income, should have access to a school dedicated to helping them succeed, especially during a pandemic when education plans have been disrupted for so many,” K12 Private Academy Head of School Leslie Smith said in a statement.

 

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Washington Football Team taps NYC marketing agency for rebrand

The Ashburn-based Washington Football Team announced Monday it has tapped New York City-based marketing agency Code and Theory as its agency partner while it continues its rebranding process and selects a new permanent team name.

With a branding partner selected, the team says this “kicks off the next phase of the team’s rebranding process, and will culminate in the selection of a permanent team name, identity and brand, as well as a reimagined approach to fan engagement and game day experiences,” according to a Washington Football Team statement.

After 88 years as the Washington Redskins, the team announced it was retiring the Redskins team name and logo on July 13, 2020. The decision was made following a June 2020 statement that the team would undergo a “thorough review” of the Redskins name “in light of recent events around [the] country.” By the end of July 2020, the team had said it would go by the Washington Football Team until it formally adopts a new permanent name. 

The Washington Football Team chose Code and Theory after reviewing “multiple agencies that competed for the assignment,” according to a team statement. Code and Theory partnered with the team to develop its interim Washington Football Team branding and “No Name But Team” campaign.

“When we decided to retire the name we’d had since 1933, we wanted to move quickly to make a change in time for this season, but also take the time to really get our new brand and identity right,” Washington Football Team President Jason Wright said in a statement. “We worked with Code and Theory to create the ‘Washington Football Team’ identity and all of the accompanying branding in record time. It has been well-received by our community, our players and our fanbase.”

In the interim, the Washington Football Team has also solicited input for branding suggestions through its Washington Journey website, which had received tens of thousands of submissions by October 2020, Marcus Stephenson, vice president of digital marketing and programming, told Virginia Business. Code and Theory also worked with the team on the Washington Journey site, according to a Washington Football statement.

“Changing a brand is not [done] overnight,” Stephenson said. “You can’t have it done in three weeks; you can’t have it done in six months. We’ve got to be diligent.”

Founded in 2001, Code and Theory employs more than 800 people and has worked with clients including Adidas, CNN, J&J, JPMorgan Chase, Pfizer and Xerox.

 

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Three Hampton Roads revitalization projects receive $1M from state

Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday that $1 million in Port Host Communities Revitalization Fund (PHCRF) grants will go toward three projects in Hampton Roads including revitalizing the vacant 57,792-square-foot Willis Building in Norfolk, making updates to the Menchville Marina to aid the state’s oyster industry and redeveloping the 51-acre Lovett Point property in Portsmouth for industrial use.

“With these three projects, we are making important investments that will help ensure our global economy continues to flow through Hampton Roads,” Northam said in a statement. “Transforming poorly functioning and unused structures not only promotes job growth and new opportunities, it will also improve the quality of life for all those who visit, live, and work in these communities.”

The funding, which was allocated by the General Assembly for fiscal year 2021, requires a 100% match from public or private sources. Eligible properties are those that may be redeveloped for any market-driven purpose. 

Details on the projects announced Tuesday are as follows:

  • Menchville Marina, Newport News, $250,000. The project includes installation of three floating dock systems to increase mooring options and improve the functionality for the watermen. 
  • Willis Building, Norfolk, $250,000. The EDA is reviewing development proposals, which include the renovation of the building for retail and office space, potentially for the city of Norfolk’s Department of Human Services, as well as for affordable housing. 
  • Lovett Point, Portsmouth, $500,000. The city of Portsmouth will redevelop the 51-acre Lovett Point site, which includes the decommissioned BASF Chemical plant, for port-related industrial uses. The project is estimated to create between 50 and 100 permanent full-time jobs.

“The PHCRF grants will add great value to community development efforts and create jobs in Newport News, Norfolk and Portsmouth,” Secretary of Commerce and Trade Brian Ball said in a statement. “Currently, these sites are a deterrent to economic development in the surrounding port host areas and regions, and now they will be part of the attraction efforts.”

 

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Texas education, training content developer will relocate HQ to Richmond

Education and training content developer Vytal Studios will invest $6.8 million to move its corporate headquarters from Austin, Texas, to Richmond, creating 155 jobs, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday.

The company will renovate the facility at 1802 Semmes Ave. to include studio space for filming content and office space for development and post-production functions.

“With one of the largest skilled tech workforces in the nation, Virginia continues to attract creative, forward-thinking businesses like Vytal Studios,” Northam said in a statement. “Central Virginia’s strong education system, talent pipeline and quality of life have helped make our commonwealth an epicenter of entrepreneurial activity and technology growth.” 

Vytal Studios was founded in 2018 and develops custom employee and online training products, including assessments to gauge aptitude, attitude and interest of employees or potential employees for jobs. The company plans to work with Virginia Commonwealth University to develop an “extended reality cluster” in Richmond through nonprofit One Vytal Difference. Further details have yet to be disclosed.

“Virginia, specifically Richmond, has everything an emerging creative technology company wants,” Vytal Studios CEO Jim Smith said in a statement. “Access to talent and higher education institutions, a vibrant entrepreneurial culture, local and state governments that get it, and just a super cool vibe that reminds me of Austin 10 years ago. I feel we can be a ‘Vytal’ member of the community and drive growth that draws the extended reality industry as a whole to a home in Virginia.”

Virginia competed with Florida and North Carolina for the project. The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with the city of Richmond and the Greater Richmond Partnership to secure the project for Virginia. Northam approved a $500,000 Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund grant to help the city of Richmond with the project and Vytal Studios is eligible to receive Virginia Enterprise Zone Program benefits. VEDP’s Virginia Jobs Investment Program will provide employee training activities.   

“Our tech talent was a major driver in Vytal Studios’ decision to relocate from Austin to the city of Richmond and continue its fast-growing momentum,” Secretary of Commerce and Trade Brian Ball said in a statement. “Virginia’s higher education system is committed to providing the training and opportunities to build the workforce of the future to attract and retain high-caliber companies, and we look forward to a strong partnership with Vytal.”

 

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SAIC wins $830M Army contract

The U.S. Army awarded Reston-based Fortune 500 defense contractor Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC) an $830 million contract to provide engineering services for the branch’s Combat Capabilities Development Command, Aviation & Missile Center (DEVCOM AvMC), the company announced Tuesday.

Under the potential five-and-a-half-year contract, SAIC will provide hardware in-the-loop (HWIL) aviation systems engineering services for DEVCOM AvMC’s Software, Simulation, Systems Engineering and Integration (S3I) Directorate. 

“We are honored to have been chosen as the primary provider for the Aviation Systems HWIL Engineering contract and look forward to our continued support of the S3I Directorate, the DEVCOM AvMC and the American soldier,” Bob Genter, president of SAIC’s Defense & Civilian Sector, said in a statement.

Under the contract, SAIC will focus on life cycle support for manned and unmanned systems, subsystems, components, infrastructure and support equipment. 

“SAIC is privileged to support cutting-edge engineering efforts at S3I and DEVCOM AvMC, along with our teammates,” Gabe Camarillo, SAIC senior vice president of the Army Business Unit, said in a statement. “We look forward to extending our support to Army aviation modernization in the Huntsville, Alabama, area in the years to come.”

SAIC will continue to provide systems engineering and integration services to all armed services branches and their associated offices/program managers, Department of Defense components, combatant commanders, science and technology programs and other services. Work will be performed under the General Services Administration’s One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services (OASIS) professional services contract.

SAIC employs more than 25,000 people and has pro forma annual revenues of $7.1 billion.

 

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Appian names chief marketing officer

Tysons-based cloud computing company Appian Corp. announced last week it has hired Denise Vu Broady as its chief marketing officer. 

With more than 24 years of technology experience, Broady most recently served as the global chief operating officer for SAP. In her new role, she will oversee Appian’s global marketing and communications efforts.

“Denise Broady brings to Appian a new level of sophistication and capability in software marketing,” Appian CEO Matt Calkins said in a statement. “She has high energy and high standards, a great sense of people and a strong vision for where we need to go.”

Broady has also previously served as the CMO and COO at WorkForce Software and held leadership positions with TopTier (which was acquired by SAP) and Clarkston Group. She earned her bachelor’s degree at Virginia Tech.

Appian was founded in 1999 and employs approximately 1,200 people. It offers code digitization programs that allows companies to write their own software by “drawing” rather than writing code.

 

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MicroStrategy stock jumps 29% after Tesla bitcoin purchase

Following Tesla’s announcement that it had purchased $1.5 billion in bitcoin, Tysons-based business software company MicroStrategy Inc. — which has converted hundreds of millions in holdings to bitcoin now worth more than $3 billion — saw its stock price jump by 29% on Monday.

By Monday at 4 p.m., the Nasdaq reported that MicroStrategy’s stock price had risen to $1,041. Both MicroStrategy founder and CEO Michael Saylor and Tesla founder Elon Musk have been advocates of public corporations using cryptocurrency for treasury holdings. 

According to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Tesla purchased the cryptocurrency for “more flexibility to further diversify and maximize returns on our cash.”

MicroStrategy first started its bitcoin conversions in summer 2020 and by December 2020 held more than 70,000 bitcoin, worth more than $1.1 billion at the time. Those 70,000 bitcoin are worth more than $3 billion as of Feb. 8.

“We believe the proactive management of our balance sheet, combined with the improved revenue and profitability performance of the company, have been significant factors in the recent appreciation in our stock price,” Saylor said in a December 2020 statement.

In August 2020, MicroStrategy announced that it had converted $250 million from its cash holdings into more than 21,000 bitcoins, making it one of the first public companies to use cryptocurrency for cash holdings. Saylor said MicroStrategy would keep its bitcoin holdings in its corporate treasury reserve — which he said would be the principal holding in its treasury reserve strategy. The company in September 2020 then announced it had purchased $425 million worth of bitcoin.

By December 2020, MicroStrategy closed a convertible debt offering by raising $650 million, which it said it plans to use to increase its bitcoin holdings.

 

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Calif.-based contractor buys Herndon spacecraft developer

San Diego-based energy and defense contractor General Atomics announced last week it has acquired Herndon-based spacecraft and space system developer Tiger Innovations Inc. 

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed, but Tiger Innovations will become part of General Atomics’ electromagnetic systems (GA-EMS) group. 

Founded in 1997, Tiger Innovations develops specialty software, hardware and computer architecture design and implementation for spacecraft and satellite systems. General Atomics researches, designs and manufactures electromagnetic and electric power generation systems.

“Acquiring Tiger Innovations strengthens our space systems capabilities,” GA-EMS President Scott Forney said in a statement. “With this acquisition, we expand our footprint in Northern Virginia and now have a robust coast-to-coast space systems development infrastructure, increasing our ability to deliver comprehensive solutions of any scale on-orbit and on time.”

 

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Altria donates $3M to Better Housing Coalition

The Richmond-based nonprofit Better Housing Coalition (BHC) announced Monday it has received the largest corporate gift in its 33-year history — a $3 million gift from Henrico County-based Fortune 500 tobacco product manufacturer Altria Group Inc.

BHC plans to use the donation to develop more affordable housing in the greater Richmond region. It will also leverage the investment by raising a capital pool of at least $10 million to provide gap financing for affordable housing and to underwrite BHC support services and other organizational functions.

“Housing alone does not solve systemic racism, but it offers a foundation for families to experience security, stability and hope for a brighter future,” BHC President and CEO Greta J. Harris said in a statement. “This is a significant undertaking and we are most grateful for Altria’s investment in our work and commitment to transforming our region.”

Altria’s gift will support underwriting of the development and preservation of at least 1,000 affordable housing units, which BHC predicts will serve at least 2,000 low-to-moderate income residents.

“Safe, secure and affordable housing is foundational in creating a pathway to economic mobility for families in the Richmond region,” Jennifer Hunter, Altria senior vice president of corporate citizenship, said in a statement. “Investing in Better Housing Coalition and its community partners reflects Altria’s commitment to help address racial and economic inequities leading to a more inclusive and equitable community.”

Founded in 1988, BHC builds and manages affordable housing communities and provides other health, wellness and career development services. Its portfolio includes 17 multifamily rental complexes with 1,600 units under management and more than 200 single-family homes built and sold to first-time homeowners.

 

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Carilion Clinic to form diversity, equity, inclusion office

Roanoke-based Carilion Clinic announced Monday it will establish an Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and has named Nathaniel L. Bishop, the former Jefferson College of Health Sciences president, to lead it.

The office will work with community leaders to address equity and social justice as it relates to health care in the Roanoke region and Carilion Clinic. Bishop, the system’s first chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer and senior vice president, will work to expand Carilion’s community and public health efforts. 

“NL’s cultural competence and his approach to honoring each individual’s unique abilities and contributions make him the perfect person to take on this dynamic new role,” Carilion President and CEO Nancy Howell Agee said in a statement. “He’ll bring the same courage, commitment and compassion to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that he has brought time and time again over the years.”

Bishop served as president of Carilion’s Jefferson College of Health Sciences from 2010 through 2019, when it integrated with Radford University. He then served as senior vice president of administration at Carilion and senior associate dean for diversity, inclusion and student vitality at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine.

He started his career in law enforcement, serving as the first Black member of the Christiansburg Police Department. He also previously worked as a detective, a licensed long-term care administrator, executive director of Burrell Nursing Center and as vice president and administrator of Carilion Roanoke Community Hospital.

 

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