People – May 2019

NORTHERN VIRGINIA
Usha Chaudhary has joined Mitre Corp. as senior vice president for corporate operations and chief transformation officer. Chaudhary was president of McLean-based Kettler. Mitre’s principal offices are in McLean and Bedford, Mass. (Washington Business Journal)

Mo Gauthier has stepped down as CEO of Alexandria-based government contractor VSE Corp. John Cuomo, vice president of Boeing Distribution Services Inc., took over in April. (Washington Business Journal)

McLean-based Freddie Mac announced that CEO Donald H. Layton will retire July 1. David M. Brickman, the corporation’s president, has been named his successor. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Tony Moraco will retire as CEO of Reston-based Science Applications International Corp. on July 31. Nazzic Keene, the company’s chief operating officer, will succeed him. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Bob Ritchie has been named head of the software practice at Science Applications International Corp. Ritchie succeeds Kevin Ikeda, who retired in March. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Miah Stutts has been named chief financial officer of the HCA Virginia Health System’s Northern Virginia market. She will oversee operations at Reston Hospital Center, StoneSprings Hospital Center and Dominion Hospital. Stutts was CFO for HCA’s Medical City Denton in Texas. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

EASTERN VIRGINIA
Vicki Cimino was named executive director and CEO of the Williamsburg Tourism Council after a five-month search. The council is part of the Greater Williamsburg Chamber and Tourism Alliance. Cimino was director of the New Hampshire Division of Travel and Tourism Development. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Thomas Hotchkiss has been named executive vice president and chief credit officer for Old Point National Bank in Hampton. He was chief credit officer for a financial institution in Maryland. (News release)

SHENANDOAH VALLEY
Dave Pastors, the director of Blue Ridge Court Services (BRCS) for 23 years, retired in March. Megan Roane succeeded him. Roane previously served as a probation officer and a court services technician at BRCS before becoming assistant director in 2015. (News release)

Brian Whitson has been promoted to executive chef of Region’s 117, a farm-to-table restaurant at Trilogy at Lake Frederick. He replaces Scott Bilstad. Whitson, who has lived in Winchester since 1998, joined the Region’s team in July 2016. (The Winchester Star)

SOUTHERN VIRGINIA
Greg V. Gordon has joined the board of directors of Kenbridge-based Benchmark Bankshares Inc., the parent company of Benchmark Community Bank. Gordon is president of Aarons Creek Farms Inc., a greenhouse operation in Buffalo Junction. He also is general manager of Gordon Brothers Farms LLC. (The Farmville Herald)

Clarksville Branch Manager Todd Jones of Benchmark Community Bank has been promoted to vice president/business banker serving the South Hill and Clarksville branches. Jones joined Benchmark in 2009. (News release)

ROANOKE/NEW RIVER VALLEY
Lauded Virginia Tech water researcher Marc Edwards cannot silence critics with a federal defamation lawsuit — in part because the criticism of Edwards was so overblown, a judge ruled in March. U.S. District Court Judge Michael Urbanski dismissed the engineering professor’s lawsuit against three critics of his years of work in Flint, Mich., where Edwards and a team of students in 2015 helped expose lead contamination in the city’s water supply. (The Roanoke Times)

Radford University announced that President Brian Hemphill has signed a five-year extension with the school that runs through 2026.  The new deal increases Hemphill’s base salary by 20% to $420,000 and his deferred compensation by 75% to $175,000. Additionally, his vehicle allowance increased 25% to $1,000 a month. He receives the stipend because he uses his vehicle for business purposes, according to the contract.  The university’s board of visitors approved the new contract at its December meeting despite Hemphill still having two years left on his original contract. (The Roanoke Times)

SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA
Mike Brown has been named interim police chief in Cedar Bluff. He succeeds Shawn Short, who’s now with the Richlands Police Department. (SWVAToday.com)

United Way of Southwest Virginia announced the 2019 Impact Awards winners in March. The awards aim to recognize organizations and individuals who are part of the fight for the health, education and financial stability of people in Southwest Virginia. The following individuals were honored: Cathy Bolling, Women of Distinction Award; Rachel Haines, Volunteer of the Year Award; and Dr. Thomas B. Haller, Pulaski County United Way Founder Recognition. (News release)

Anne Crutchfield has been promoted to director of athletics at Emory & Henry College in Washington County. She just completed her fifth year as the head women’s basketball coach, while serving the past two seasons as the interim director of athletics. Crutchfield returned to her alma mater in 2014 after spending the previous eight years as the head girls’ basketball coach at Franklin County High School. Jaclyn Dickens will replace Crutchfield as the head women’s basketball coach. Dickens completed her fourth year on the women’s basketball staff and her first year as the associate head coach. A 1999 graduate of the college, Dickens returned to E&H with nearly 15 years of coaching experience at the college and high school level including eight years as the head women’s basketball coach at Virginia Intermont College. (News release)

Capt. Candice Heins of North Carolina took command of the 760th Engineer Company of the Army Reserves in Marion in March. Heins succeeds Capt. David L. Brandl, who had been commander of the 760th Engineer Company since March 2017. (SWVAToday.com)

CENTRAL VIRGINIA
Jeff Gallagher, CEO of Richmond-based Virginia Bio, will step down from his position later this year. Virginia Bio is the statewide trade association for the life science industry. Gallagher had led the organization for seven years. He will continue to serve the association on certain special projects. The group’s board of directors will conduct a national search for a new CEO. (News release)

Frank Grosch has been named executive director of the Building Goodness Foundation, a Charlottesville-based nonprofit that connects volunteers from the design and construction industries with vulnerable communities. Grosch was president of Artcraft Development, a real estate development firm in Richmond. (The Daily Progress)