Reynolds’ foundation supports myriad groups, including the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the National Gallery of Art and the Library of Congress.

The first self-made woman to make BusinessWeek’s list of the 50 most philanthropic living Americans, Reynolds has been included multiple times on Washingtonian magazine’s annual 100 Most Powerful Women list.

A Vanderbilt University graduate, she was chairman, president and CEO of EduCap Inc., a pioneering nonprofit education finance company that was the first to directly market private student loans to consumers. Reynolds also introduced the first asset-backed securitization structure for consumer education loans, resulting in billions of dollars in AAA bond offerings and a multibillion-dollar annual capital market.

Reynolds sits on the boards of General Dynamics Corp., Lindblad Expeditions LLC and the American Academy of Achievement. She also is co-founder and CEO of nutrition delivery company VitaKey Inc.

PERSON I ADMIRE: Dr. Robert Langer. He has created a culture of innovation that has improved the lives of
5 billion people.

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future,” by Ashlee Vance

FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM: Alabama Crimson Tide football

FAVORITE VACATION SPOTS: Hawaii and Sun Valley, Idaho

The longest-serving legislator in the state Senate, Sen. Saslaw has represented parts of Fairfax County in Virginia’s state Senate since 1980 and is currently the Democratic caucus leader as well as chair of the commerce and labor committee.

Saslaw, who was first elected to the House of Delegates in 1975, is chiefly known as a moderate Democrat. He receives mostly ‘B’ grades from the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, which presented him its Leadership in Energy Award in 2017. He initially led efforts to lure the Washington Commanders stadium to Virginia, but in June withdrew support as controversy mounted surrounding the NFL team and its co-owner, Dan Snyder.

Saslaw, a University of Maryland alumnus, has supported gun restriction measures and voted against anti-abortion measures, while also aligning himself with Dominion Energy Inc., a major donor.

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: I most recently read our budget bill, and let me tell you, it is not an easy read.

WHAT MAKES ME PASSIONATE ABOUT MY WORK: I am driven by the idea of making government work the best for its people.

A financial adviser for nearly three decades, Hamilton joined the Wise Investor Group at Baird in 2007 and serves as one of the firm’s three partners. Hamilton leads the portfolio management department and co-hosts the firm’s “The Wise Investor Show” podcast.

In 2022, Barron’s ranked Hamilton as the 16th-best financial adviser in Virginia. He ranked No. 193 on Forbes’ 2021 list of the 250 top wealth advisers. Each year for the last decade, Hamilton has earned a Top Ten Award, which recognizes the firm’s top 10% of producers.

A Haverford College alum, Hamilton previously served as vice president of investments at Baltimore-based advisory firm Ferris, Baker Watts Inc.

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “Hater,” by David Moody. Zombie/postapocalyptic fiction is a guilty pleasure.

NEW LIFE EXPERIENCE: Seeing my oldest daughter graduate and prepare to go off to college this fall. It’s exciting, uplifting and heart-wrenching all at the same time.

SOMETHING I’D NEVER DO AGAIN: Ride on a motorcycle. There are enough ways to get hurt without forcing it.

In 2001, George launched Crescent Hotels & Resorts, a hospitality company that manages more than 100 properties and 120 restaurants and bars in the United States and Canada. Crescent’s clients are executives for real estate investment trusts, private equity firms and major developers. His daughter, Caroline, is Crescent’s general counsel.

George has said that his job is to run profitable properties. “We understand that our employment depends on getting results — period,” he explained in a 2017 profile for Lodging, a publication of the American Hotel & Lodging Association.

In addition to managing properties with the Marriott, IHG, Hyatt and Hilton brands, Crescent operates a collection of more than 30 independent hotels and resorts under its Latitudes label.

With more than 40 years in the hospitality industry, George started out as a general manager for Hilton, Westin and Sheraton hotels. Later, he served as senior vice president of operations for Colorado-based Destination Hotels & Resorts, a hospitality management company, and was chief operating officer for Sunstone Hotel Properties Inc., a real estate investment trust.

George sits on the board of the American Hotel & Lodging Association.

If forced to choose his favorites out of the many condiments, seasonings and spices produced by Sauer Brands, Kelly would go with Duke’s Mayo in a squeeze bottle, Alabama White BBQ Sauce from Duke’s Southern Sauces, Kernel Season’s Garlic Parmesan and Everything Bagel Crunch from The Spice Hunter.

Kelly has had a while to get acquainted with Sauer’s expansive product line, which includes brands like Tasty Shakes, Gold Medal and BAMA. He’s led the Richmond-based food products business since 2019, when Falfurrias Capital Partners, a North Carolina-based private equity firm, purchased the former C.F. Sauer Co., a family business founded in Richmond in 1887. In September 2021, Kelly announced Sauer Brands’ acquisition of Texas-based Mateo’s Gourmet Salsa.

A food and beverage industry veteran, Kelly describes himself as a “driving force that transforms businesses into top performers.” He worked for 12 years at Coca-Cola Co. and bottler Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. before sliding into vice president roles at Borden Dairy and Miller Brewing Co. Later, Kelly moved to the craft beer arena, first as head of Pyramid Breweries and then as president and CEO of then-Vermont-based Magic Hat Brewing Co.

An early January snowstorm snarled traffic and stranded hundreds of travelers — including U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine — for 36 hours along a 48-mile stretch of Interstate 95 in Northern Virginia, leading to criticism over the state’s response. Brich, who was appointed in 2018, admitted communications could have been better and told The Washington Post improvements were made as a result. 

An Old Dominion University and University of Virginia graduate, Brich oversees the country’s third largest highway agency and is responsible for VDOT’s $7.6 billion budget, about 7,600 employees and more than 58,000 miles of roads and other infrastructure. He’s also responsible for the agency’s $3.8 billion Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel expansion. On track for completion in late 2025, it’s the largest project in VDOT history.

WHAT MAKES ME PASSIONATE ABOUT MY JOB: Knowing that we are improving the lives of the traveling public and keeping them safe to return to their loved ones each night.

BEST ADVICE FOR OTHERS: In general: Be a mile wide and an inch deep in your knowledge base. … My caveat — I want my bridge engineers to be an inch wide and a mile deep on their knowledge base.

In July, Wilson became dean of Washington and Lee University’s School of Law, succeeding Brant Hellwig, who left last year to become faculty director of New York University’s graduate tax program. She was also named the university’s Roy L. Steinheimer Jr. Professor in Law.

A former assistant U.S. attorney and assistant Georgia state attorney general, Wilson has written multiple books and law review articles and co-authored the “Criminal Procedure, Ninth Edition” textbook. She earned her bachelor’s and law degrees from the University of Georgia, where she played on the 1986 Southeastern Conference championship women’s golf team.

She came to W&L from the University of Tennessee College of Law in Knoxville, where she was a former dean. Before that, Wilson was associate dean for academic affairs and director of diversity and inclusion at the University of Kansas School of Law.

FIRST JOB: I loaded and unloaded golf bags and picked up golf balls.

NEW LIFE EXPERIENCE: Living in a small town

PERSON I ADMIRE: I worked with Sally Yates at the U.S. attorney’s office in Atlanta. She showed tremendous courage and resolve in the face of tremendous political pressure in 2017.

Moore has spent his career at Hunton Andrews Kurth, joining the state’s second largest firm fresh out of the University of Virginia School of Law in 1974. He served as managing partner from 1991 to 2006 and was also chairman of the firm’s executive committee from 2005 to 2012.

Moore continues to practice, focusing on corporate and securities representation, venture capital transactions and real estate investment trusts. He’s a fellow of the Virginia Law Foundation and the American
Bar Foundation.

He is a past chairman of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, the Nature Conservancy of Virginia, the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges and NextUp RVA, an after-school program for middle school students in Richmond. He serves as president for the board of trustees of the Mary Morton Parsons Foundation, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Church Schools in the Diocese of Virginia and the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Business Foundation.

In February, Reuters ran an exclusive story: ManTech International Corp. co-founder Pedersen was considering selling the U.S. defense contracting firm that the octogenarian built more than 50 years earlier.

It didn’t take long for suitors to come a-calling. In May, ManTech announced that Washington, D.C.-based private equity firm The Carlyle Group had agreed to acquire the company for $4.2 billion.

Pedersen co-founded ManTech back in 1968 with a single contract from the U.S. Navy to supply modeling and simulation services. ManTech, which has expertise in cybersecurity, surveillance and reconnaissance, and supply chain management and logistics, went public in 2002. Last year, ManTech reported total revenue of $2.55 billion. The company has about 9,800 employees.

Pedersen stepped down as CEO of ManTech in 2018, the same year he was inducted into the GovCon Hall of Fame. He stayed on the company’s board until this February, retiring as chairman emeritus. Listed on Forbes’ World’s Billionaires list, Pedersen once said his only real hobby was his company.