Deborah Flippo is the Executive Director of GO Virginia Region 8. Over the course of her career in economic development, she has served as the director of marketing for Joyce Engineering, Inc., the marketing manager for Engineering Concepts, Inc., and the economic development program manager for Draper Aden Associates. She also served on the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Board and as president of the Virginia Economic Developer's Association. She received her bachelor’s degree in marketing from Virginia Commonwealth University.

1. What was your first job and what did it teach you?

My first job was waiting tables at the Shoney's in Charlottesville, Virginia when I was 16 years old. From this job, I learned a lot about multi-tasking and how much I love being around a lot of people.

2. What projects are you currently working on in GOVA Region 8?

We just had a $884,500 project approved at the state board level for Region 8. The project, called the Shenandoah Valley Center for Advanced Learning, will increase the pool of qualified candidates in the transportation and logistics and light manufacturing industry clusters by adding new career education and technical programs for industrial maintenance and aviation technology. This project will address critical needs to upgrade equipment to modern standards and technologies and will train apprenticeship students in precision machining, welding, and auto and diesel technology.

3. What made you interested in economic development?

Most of the people involved in economic development do it for the right reasons – to be a part of growing an economy. We’re doing something important for our community, when we're helping companies create jobs and invest in our area. For most of my career, I worked in the engineering industry and helped local and regional governments develop land and sites to sell. In my semi-retirement, I love riding by the sites we worked on and seeing new buildings and lots of cars in the parking lots. It's a very fulfilling profession.

4. What is one of your proudest accomplishments over the course of your career?

I felt like I had reached my career goals when I had the opportunity to serve on the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) board and serve as president of the Virginia Economic Developers Association (VEDA). I am proud of my roles in developing the Virginia Business Ready Sites program at VEDP as well as the GO Virginia program after it passed through the General Assembly in 2016. Also, my teams were part of the development of the Botetourt Center at Greenfield and the Wood Haven project, and I enjoy seeing those sites as I go by on I-81.

5. What have you learned from being a part of CECE’s Advisory Board?

Through serving on the advisory board, I’ve learned how extensive the reach of the center is and how many projects it is involved in across the commonwealth. It has been an honor to serve on the board and watch the meetings evolve.

6. Are there any projects that you would like to collaborate with CECE on in the future?

Scott Tate and I have talked about possible opportunities for our two GO Virginia regions to collaborate. I'd like to see that conversation get started and blossom into something. I don't know what it's going to look like at the end, but that's part of the fun of the job.

7. What is a favorite book that you would recommend?

I'm a big reader. I read the Bible every day, so that's my favorite book. In the last year, I read Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver, which takes place in Southwest Virginia and focuses on the opioid crisis. It's fiction but is the truest fiction I've ever read. That is the book I tell everybody they have to read.

8. What is your favorite place to travel?

My husband and I have been to the Caribbean 20 times in the past 25 years. We spent two weeks there this past June celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary in the British Virgin Islands. But anywhere I haven't been is my favorite next place to go.