Royal succession

For the past 15 years, Barry DuVal (’81) has been a leading advocate for business in the commonwealth. Now, as he prepares to step down as president and CEO of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, DuVal is happy to pass the baton to a fellow Duke.

Cathie J. Vick (’95), a seasoned executive and attorney with expertise in transportation, infrastructure, energy regulation, business development, branding and communications, will take the reins April 1.

“When the search committee announced that Cathie was their selection, I was delighted for a number of reasons,” DuVal said. “I think her experience speaks for itself. Her business acumen is very strong. Her integrity is very high. And obviously the connection to JMU is special. … Cathie will be an effective voice for business in Virginia.”

Vick said she is “fully committed to advancing the chamber’s mission … and enthusiastic about working with the team to build on the tremendous momentum established under Barry’s leadership.”

DuVal and Vick look back on their Madison days fondly and credit JMU for helping launch their careers.

Coming out of high school in Newport News, Virginia, DuVal planned to pursue either public service or the ministry. At JMU, he found a “great political science program, a good psychology/social science program and a strong InterVarsity [Christian fellowship] group, which was important to me,” he said.

DuVal would double major in Political Science and Psychology, encouraged by his two academic advisors, the late Dr. Eileen Nelson, and her husband, Dr. William R. “Dick” Nelson. DuVal was elected to the student senate representing Gifford Hall and, in his senior year, chaired the JMU Honor Council.

“At 21 years of age, I was overseeing alleged violations of the Honor Code,” he said. “I sat with the gavel in my hand, hearing arguments for and against an individual, and had the unusual authority granted to the council of making a decision regarding a person’s academic future. If they were found guilty, they could receive as much as expulsion or something less — probation — or they could receive suspension for a semester.”

Years later, as a member of the Newport News City Council and then mayor of the city, DuVal said the weight of leading the Honor Council at JMU was once again top of mind. “It allowed me to understand what it’s like to impact people with your decisions.”

In 1996, DuVal stepped down as mayor to become president and CEO of the Hampton Roads Partnership, a regional economic development organization. From 1998 to 2002, he served as Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade under then-Gov. Jim Gilmore. During DuVal’s term as secretary, Virginia attracted a record 1,500 economic-development projects representing nearly 157,000 new jobs and $13.7 billion in private investment.

In April 2010, DuVal joined the Virginia Chamber of Commerce as president and CEO.

Vick, a Virginia Beach native, was drawn to JMU’s campus, culture and natural surroundings. “I was focused on schools that were far enough away, but where I could go home for the weekend if I wanted to. And I wanted that mountain-life experience.” When she arrived as a freshman in the fall of 1992, “it was like I was home,” she said.

As a student, Vick felt challenged academically — “enough to continuously spark my intellectual curiosity,” she said. She majored in Political Science and, upon the advice of her advisor, Dr. Kay Knickrehm, added courses in writing and eventually a second major in Communication.

During the 1992 presidential race, Vick recalls engaging in ongoing classroom debate — “in a respectful way,” she added. “The professor also challenged us to think through the issues of the day and really contrast Clinton and Bush. All of us were so eager to hear what others were thinking. … I just remember being so excited to go to that class.”

Vick was also a member of Zeta Tau Alpha sorority and active in community service, including tutoring at local high schools and raising money for the Susan G. Komen breast cancer walk.

JMU provided Vick with not only the foundational knowledge, but also the skill sets necessary for law school, including writing, research, persuasion and negotiation. “I remember a conflict-resolution class that, to this day, I use skills that the professor taught us,” she said.

After law school, Vick worked as a state prosecutor in Virginia Beach for five years before being tapped as a part-time legislative aide to former state Sen. Ken Stolle in Richmond. “I fell in love with it,” she said. “It really opened up my world to policy.”

Her work in that arena led to positions as legislative counsel for The Vectre Corporation, a boutique lobbying firm; director of governmental relations for Virginia Natural Gas; deputy director for energy policy for the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy; chief public affairs officer for The Port of Virginia; and vice president of government and corporate relations for Transurban, one of the world’s leading toll-road operators.

“I did that for almost a year before Barry announced that he was going to retire,” she said. “I figured this opportunity might not come again. So I threw my name in the hat.” In January, following a national search, the chamber’s board of directors chose Vick as incoming president and CEO. DuVal will serve in an advisory role for the remainder of 2025.

DuVal counts among his signature accomplishments growing the chamber’s membership from less than 1,000 in 2010 to more than 30,000 today as well as producing Blueprint Virginia, the commonwealth’s first comprehensive, business-led initiative to provide direction and long-term, economic-development planning for Virginia. The plan was presented to governors-elect at the chamber’s annual Economic Summit in 2013, 2017 and 2023.

Also during DuVal’s tenure, Virginia has been ranked as the top state for business six times. He believes some of  the contributing factors are location, infrastructure, workforce, intellectual capacity and abundant energy sources. “There are other states that have these things,” he said, “but in Virginia we have one more: pro-business elected officials on both sides of the aisle. … That mindset keeps regulations at a minimum and promotes entrepreneurship.”

For the past six years, Virginia Business magazine has listed DuVal among its 50 Most Influential Virginians.

Vick’s goals for the chamber going forward are threefold. “First, I want to optimize our core,” she said. “There are things that we do really well. For our members, for our investors, continuity is really important.”

Second, Vick plans to draw on her communications background to help amplify the chamber’s voice. One of her ideas is to take each new edition of Blueprint Virginia on the road, and share it with local and regional chambers at roundtable events around the state.

Her third goal is to enhance member services, such as the WiseChoice Healthcare Alliance, a statewide consortium of businesses and organizations in partnership with Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield. The alliance, launched in 2022, is designed to expand access to health care coverage for small businesses, which account for more than 90% of employers in the state.

Asked what they would like to see from JMU’s incoming president, DuVal and Vick emphasized partnerships between the university and the business community, and growing Virginia’s talent pipeline.

“I would love to see the expansion of high-wage, high-demand programs in health care, technology and engineering … as well as paid internships,” DuVal said.

Vick added JMU should be willing to collaborate with other universities and business leaders across the state “to develop pathways for students to stay in Virginia.”