Blair Durham President / Co-Founder of Black BRAND Blair Durham is Co-Founder and President of Black BRAND, a 501c3 organization founded in 2016, whose acronym encompasses business, research and analytics, networking, and the development of black commerce. Beginning in Hampton Roads and now also operating in the Dan River Region, Black BRAND serves as a regional black chamber of commerce organizing programming to support emerging and existing black business owners. Blair is a Hampton Roads native, a graduate of Virginia Tech, the host of Black Wall Street Today, and a proud board member of The Virginia Zoological Park and Volunteer Hampton Roads. Most proudly, Blair resides in Portsmouth with her husband and three children.
Crystal Cobbs Owner at Cobbs Consulting
Crystal Cobbs Owner at Cobbs Consulting Crystal started Cobbs Consulting to give businesses and organizations the critical infrastructure, resources, and relationships they need to establish, stabilize, and grow. Her role as President of Black BRAND Dan River Region is an extension of that work. She will be sharing what participants can gain from the SWaM STRONG program.
Nancy Grden Associate Vice President at ODU Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Nancy Grden Associate Vice President at ODU Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship Nancy L. Grden is Associate Vice President, ODU Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (IIE), leading ODU’s organization for the campus and community-at-large seeking economic development, entrepreneurship, or innovation resources and partnerships. IIE also oversees programs and services for entrepreneurs, including the Strome Entrepreneurial Center, Women’s Business Center, Veterans Business Outreach Center, TempO regional/rural center, Business Development Center, and Open Seas Technology Innovation Hub. Ms. Grden is currently leading two major economic development initiatives to advance the maritime innovation ecosystem in the Hampton Roads Region and at ODU. She is serving as the inaugural Executive Director for the new Hampton Roads Maritime Collaborative for Growth & Innovation (HRMC), and as co-convener for the ODU Maritime Initiative Leadership Group, which developed a strategy for ODU to be globally recognized as a maritime institution. An executive, entrepreneur, and change agent, Ms. Grden founded/co-founded companies such as Medicaid/Medicare services company Amerigroup (acquired by Anthem), biotech company Genomind, behavioral health care company Lifescape, and fractional CEO services company Avenir. She has served in C-suite strategic planning, development, and marketing roles with predecessor banks to Bank of America, as well as major health care companies, including ValueOptions, now part of Anthem. She also has public sector and government relations experience with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and National Conference of State Legislatures. She is currently the inaugural Chair of 757 Collab for the Region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, and is immediate past Chair of 757 Angels. She serves on the Executive Committees and Boards for organizations such as 757 Accelerate, StartWheel, Women in Venture, Norfolk Innovation Corridor, The Norfolk Forum, and Entrepreneurship & Business Academy for the Virginia Beach Public School System. She is a Board member for Envision Lead Grow (ELG), a not-for-profit aiming to break the cycle of poverty through entrepreneurship with girls from underserved communities nationally and internationally, where she received the first “Trailblazer Award” in 2018. She was recognized by Inside Business for its 2021 “Women in Business Award” and by Virginia Business as “100 to Meet in 2021.” Ms. Grden holds an MBA from the University of South Carolina, Master of Regional Planning from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a B.A. in Economics from Bucknell University.
Matthew Fine President at Runnymede Corporation Matthew Fine has been an active member of The Runnymede Corporation Board of Directors since 1990. He is a graduate of The University of Richmond (BS 1986) and The University of Georgia (MFA 1990). His personal business activities include developing and managing five storage facilities in Hampton Roads that he sold in 2019. He is a founding Director of Towne Bank Norfolk. He has also served on numerous boards including The Hope House Foundation, Norfolk State University Foundation, Ohef Sholom Temple, Tidewater Jewish Federation and Foundation and The Elizabeth River Project. Matthew has a national reputation for his Cast Glass and Granite sculpture that can be seen in numerous private and public collections. He also has collaborated with his brother Jeffrey producing two feature films including Art Show Bingo that he co-wrote and directed.
Chandra Hurst VP, Economic Equity Small Business Loan Officer at Virginia Community Capital, Inc.
Chandra Hurst VP, Economic Equity Small Business Loan Officer at Virginia Community Capital, Inc. Chandra Hurst, Vice President, and Economic Equity Small Business Loan Officer Chandra Hurst is Vice President and Economic Equity Small Business Loan Officer with Virginia Community Capital based in Richmond, VA. In her current role, Chandra is responsible for providing Black Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) small businesses access to capital and low-cost financing solutions including term loans, owner-occupied real estate loans and refinances, working capital lines of credit, SBA loans, and debt consolidation loans. Prior to joining VCC, Chandra served as Vice President and Central/Eastern Virginia Community Relations Consultant at Wells Fargo Bank, where she was responsible for Community Relations initiatives, ensuring Wells Fargo met its Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) requirements as well as managing relationships with key government, community, non-profit, and business stakeholders. Chandra began her banking career with Jefferson National Bank, now Wells Fargo, in 1992 and has held various roles to include Branch Manager, Licensed Personal Banker, Licensed Business Specialist, Business Development Officer, and aforementioned Community Relations Consultant. Chandra earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from Fisk University and pursued post-graduate studies in Forensic Science from Virginia Commonwealth University. Chanda is actively involved in the Richmond community and serves on the boards of Homeward; Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Virginia Local Advisory Committee (as Governance Committee Chair); and Richmond American Heart Association (member of Advocacy and Community Impact Committees and 2021 recipient of the American Heart Association Health Equity Award. Chandra is President of Henrico County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Chandra also serves as a member of the Financial Empowerment Center (FEC) Funding Advisory Group for the City of Richmond Treasurer’s Office, and External Affairs Committee for Better Housing Coalition. Chandra is a past member of the National Kidney Foundation Walk and Honors Committees Class and former facilitator for City of Richmond Minority Development Money Smart Program.
Jeff Johnson Director of Tech Center Research Park
Jeff Johnson Director of Tech Center Research Park Jeff Johnson joined the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center, a subsidiary of the Virginia Tech Foundation, in January 2014 as Director of Tech Center Research Park located in Newport News, Virginia. Jeff is responsible for establishing and leading the research and innovation portion of the 100-acre, $450 million mixed used Tech Center based on the internationally acclaimed Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center in Blacksburg, Virginia. Jeff identifies, vets, recruits, and supports technology-based companies that are focused on commercialization discovery and growing business that matter. He has also worked with hundreds of federal lab principle investigators and inventors to accelerate lab to market and commercialize innovation. Jeff has a strong record in executive leadership with extensive experience in competitive analysis and positioning, strategic marketing and branding, business organizational development, manufacturing management, strategic planning, and predictive analytics. Jeff has worked with several national and international brands. Jeff has over 20 years of corporate experience and has held director and senior-level executive leadership positions with profit and loss responsibilities at global industry leading companies in automotive tires and building material finishes. Jeff advises early-stage entrepreneurs and innovative high-growth firms. In 2009, he founded his own consulting company, Averitas, to help small and medium-sized businesses profitably grow. Prior to that, he was Founding CEO and Executive Director of an innovative healthcare-based workforce training program for adults, and an arts-based education program for high school students. As a certified Six Sigma Champion Trainer, Jeff also holds an Executive M.B.A. from Tulane University and a B.A. in Chemistry from Virginia Tech.
Jennifer Yarbrough Non Profit Expert / Grant Guru Jennifer Yarbrough has spent over 30 years working in the areas of grant writing, major fundraising, strategic planning, program development, and organizational assessment for some of the largest nonprofit organizations in the country. Jennifer has trained thousands of nonprofit executives, board members, and fundraising staff both naturally and internally and has raised over $400 million in funding throughout her career. She has developed introductory and advanced training to support a brand new nonprofit starting with a sustainability plan to follow. Her work as a trainer and coach has afforded her many platforms to speak at conferences, on the radio and organizational retreats. Jennifer is affectionately referred to as “The Grant Guru” and “The Nonprofit Guru”. A graduate of Tuskegee University, Jennifer received a Bachelor of Science in Political Science. She began her career writing her first grant proposal as a class assignment in college. The grant was awarded $250,000 from HUD for Drug & Alcohol elimination in the public housing community of Kingsport, TN. From there she has grown to hold every single job in a nonprofit and expertly shows leaders how program, finance and fund development must work together for organizational sustainability. Currently, Jennifer is the Pastor of Good Ground Christian Assembly and works full time as a consultant, master coach, trainer, and public speaker. She likes to say that Paul built tents to support him in ministry and she builds nonprofits. She provides coaching to board members, nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and entrepreneurs.