Fredericksburg Leaders in Health & Education Make the 2025-26 Virginia 500

Virginia 500: The 2025–26 Power List is your guide to the people moving Virginia forward. It highlights leaders in business, government, and community life whose decisions shape jobs, investment, and everyday experience. You’ll find CEOs, founders, educators, hospital leaders, builders, and artists from across the Commonwealth. This isn’t a ranking; it’s a snapshot of impact, chosen through research and recommendations. Use it to see who’s who, make connections, and get a feel for where Virginia is headed next.

Our who’s who are two top leaders in healthcare and higher education, Dr. Troy Paino, President, University of Mary Washington and Dr. Christopher Newman, President and CEO, Mary Washington Healthcare.

Dr. Troy D. Paino is the 10th president of the University of Mary Washington, leading since 2016 with a student-centered focus that emphasizes civic engagement, applied learning, and adapting the liberal arts to a digital, knowledge economy. Under his tenure, UMW has strengthened retention and its academic profile, earned top national recognitions (including a 2024 top-10 ranking among public liberal arts colleges), and completed major capital projects such as the amphitheater renovation, Jepson Science Center expansion, and Seacobeck Hall renovation. A former president of Truman State University, Paino holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in American Studies (Michigan State), a J.D. (Indiana University), and a B.A. (Evangel College).  Dr. Paino was also featured among The 50 Most Influential People of 2025 by Northern Virginia Magazine.

Dr. Christopher Newman, MD, MBA, took the helm as president and CEO of Mary Washington Healthcare (MWHC) in March after serving as the system’s chief operating officer and chief medical officer since 2019. An internist by training, Dr. Newman previously served as chief medical officer for Penn State Health St. Joseph Medical Center and led operations for Penn State Health’s medical group; he earned his medical degree from Georgetown University and an MBA from the University of Virginia.  MWHC includes two hospitals, four emergency departments, and more than 80 care locations across the region—and is poised for further growth of a $40 million campus expansion, including a two-story medical clinic and a three-story conference center for graduate medical education slated for completion in 2026.

Congratulations to both!