100 People to Meet in 2025: Public Faces

From the state’s top librarian to the head of sales for Hubs peanuts, these people are highly visible representatives of their communities and industries.

Jessica Bell Brown

Executive director, Institute for Contemporary Art at VCU, Richmond

The former curator and head of contemporary art at the Baltimore Museum of Art, Jessica Bell Brown was named executive director of the ICA in August. She also served as curator of Vice President Kamala Harris’ official residence in Washington, D.C.

Brown had gone on record as saying that she wouldn’t leave the Baltimore Museum unless there was an opportunity that she couldn’t walk away from. But when the ICA expressed interest, she headed south to lead what she called “this incredible artist- and idea-centered institution and team.”

In addition to guiding the curatorial and programmatic vision for the ICA, a non-collecting institution with changing exhibitions, Brown’s goals are to increase the emphasis on cross-disciplinary studies and foster an environment for gifted artists and scholars worldwide to explore new terrain in artistic expression.

Dennis Clark

Librarian of Virginia, Richmond

Dennis Clark discovered he wanted to be a librarian while working in the music library as an undergraduate at Alabama’s Samford University. In January, he became Virginia’s top librarian, which involves archiving the commonwealth’s current events and documents for future generations and making sure the 130 million items in its collection are accessible for current Virginians. “One of my roles is going to be kind of chief evangelist of Virginia, which is a terrific place to be,” he says.

Clark worked his way up to his post through jobs at Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Virginia, as well as chief of research engagement and general collections at the Library of Congress. Outside of work, he sings with the Richmond Symphony Chorus.

David Leitch

Member, United States Golf Association Executive Committee, Earlysville

After a 40-year career in law that included serving as deputy counsel and deputy assistant to President George W. Bush, David Leitch retired as global general counsel and vice chair at Bank of America in 2022. He and his wife bought a 120-acre farm in Earlysville, outside Charlottesville, where they met while attending the University of Virginia, from which Leitch graduated in 1985 with a law degree.

In February, Leitch was named to the U.S. Golf Association’s executive committee, the body that governs men’s and women’s professional golf in the United States and Mexico and hosts 14 national championships. 

Leitch plays golf “one or two times” a week in Charlottes-ville now, and says he brings to the USGA his corporate governance experience, which also includes a decade with Ford Motor.

Erik Nielson

Professor, University of Richmond, Richmond

The co-author of “Rap on Trial: Race, Lyrics, and Guilt in America,” Erik Nielson estimates he’s served as an expert or consultant in more than 100 trials and that he’s appeared in court as an expert witness for about 15 cases across the country, both state and federal — mostly in cases where rap lyrics or videos are introduced as evidence.   

Nielson, who splits his time between Richmond and New York, was also a consulting producer on the documentary “As We Speak: Rap Music on Trial,” which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January. 

In February 2025, the professor will hold a three-day training program with Howard University’s law school for hip-hop experts interested in serving as expert witnesses in “rap on trial” cases.

Michael Phillips

Founding editor, The Richmonder, Richmond

When The Richmonder, a new nonprofit news outlet, launched in September, it had a twofold purpose: spotlight the best of the city and keep a watchful eye on those in power.

After moving to Richmond, Michael Phillips fell in love with the city, recognizing both its abundant opportunities and many challenges. When he was laid off by the Richmond Times-Dispatch after 17 years, he saw a real need for focused local news coverage so people could get the information they needed.

Phillips formed a 501(c)(3), and fundraising continues, even as a core team of three reporters and 12 freelancers covers everything from City Council and School Board meetings to culture. “We’re always looking for new donors because we’re excited about what this can grow into,” Phillips says.

Joe Sumner

Executive director, New College Institute, Martinsville

Joe Sumner joined the state-supported New College Institute, which offers college degrees and workforce training, during a tumultuous period. Programming had dwindled, and NCI, where Sumner started in February 2023, was failing to live up to its promises to help boost the local economy.

An Army combat veteran, Sumner most recently served as associate vice president for economic development at Wiregrass Georgia Technical College. After leaving the Army, Sumner started working in robotics, which lead to a career in the economic development side of workforce training.

Under Sumner, NCI is leaning in on workforce skills, with offerings in fiber broadband certification, wind energy training and more. He hopes to make some programs mobile so NCI instructors can offer training in other parts of Virginia.

Marshall Rabil

Director of sales and marketing, Hubbard Peanut Co., Sedley

Marshall Rabil has long been a part of the family business that produces Hubs peanuts, a longtime favorite holiday gift to friends, families and business customers. As the grandson of founders Dot and HJ Hubbard, Rabil remembers riding on the conveyor belt at Hubbard in the early ’80s as a child. Now, he’s in charge of sales and marketing at the snack company.

Since 2016, Rabil has developed strategic marketing partnerships with PGA Tour events, increased wholesale partnerships to develop regional grocery partners throughout the U.S., and hired more full-time employees.

In 2023, Rabil served as president of the Franklin-Southampton Area Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of the American Peanut Council communications committee. Rabil also volunteers as a basketball and soccer coach at the YMCA and spends time with his wife, Bonnie, and two kids, May and Noah.

Caron Trumbo

Vice president of operations, Virginia Biotechnology Association, Richmond

Growing up in Botetourt County, Caron Trumbo wanted to be a geneticist. After graduating from Texas A&M University in 2008, she worked as a researcher at Randolph-Macon College, but it was during a stint in Palo Alto, California, where she moved when her husband attended graduate school, when she fell in love with the “energy” of startups.

After another return to Virginia — this time knowing she no longer wanted to be at the bench — she connected with Virginia Bio, where she has worked nearly nine years, moving up to lead operations, or, as she calls her role, “chief dot connector.” Trumbo works to grow the state’s burgeoning biotech industry, including linking scientists and startups with resources as well as advocating for it before the Virginia General Assembly. 

Check out the rest of our 100 People to Meet in 2025.