Economic Development 2024: JAY A. LANGSTON

In the last two years, the four-employee Shenandoah Valley Partnership was involved with more than $300 million in economic development deals representing nearly 500 new jobs in the region. It’s helped create almost 3,000 jobs in the past five years.

Langston has led the regional economic development organization since 2018, after serving in multiple roles at the Virginia Economic Development Partnership for 13 years.

In March, Modine Manufacturing, which makes cooling equipment for data centers, announced it would invest $18.1 million to expand its existing Rockbridge County operation, creating an estimated 211 jobs. Shenandoah Valley Partnership worked with VEDP and Rockbridge County to secure the project.

In 2023, SVP raised more than $1.7 million in its first capital campaign, funding a five-year business and workforce attraction and retention plan.

Langston holds a bachelor’s degree from Georgia Tech, as well as master’s and doctorate degrees from Virginia Commonwealth University.

HOW I CHOSE MY CAREER: A happenstance occurrence of seeing an ad for a job in the newspaper about a state job working with business and going for it. Forty years later, it has been fulfilling helping to create thousands of great jobs.