Business

Following its successful opening of a branch office in the Round Hill last year, the Bank of Clarke County is eying new markets, specifically Purcellville.

A great education system is the key to economic success in Loudoun County.   However, there is a shift in the way our country, and our region, is beginning to view education. The traditional, standardized education system is being challenged by the notion of student-centric, personalized education. Let me explain.

Fresh on the heels of the launch of its business-to-business video "Conversations about Leesburg," the town is hoping to solicit more innovative opinions about what makes the town so great.

Dulles-based Allegra Print, Signs and Design recently awarded $15,000 in print and marketing services for 2012 to 15 area nonprofit organizations.

Dulles-based NIITEK is entering into a collaboration agreement with MBDA Italia.

AV-ED Flight School Sport Pilot Center, located at Leesburg Executive Airport, will host a grand opening celebration from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 18.

A new jiu-jitsu studio in Leesburg will hold a grand opening celebration Saturday.

A prominent downtown Leesburg attorney may soon get to plead his case before the nation's highest court.

Buddy Rizer has been promoted within the Loudoun Department of Economic Development, and now will serve as its assistant director.

HCA will begin construction this summer on a new 24/7 emergency center near Arcola. The $10 million, 9,600-square-foot facility is expected to open next year, two years ahead of plans to open a full-service hospital on its StoneSpring property on the north side of Rt. 50.

It's been a month of accolades for Dr. Grace Keenan. Just a week after being named an Enterprising Woman, Keenan is featured in Northern Virginia Magazine's "Top Doctors 2012" issue. 

Joni Mamana has joined the National Conference Center as senior sales manager.

Miles Davis, a resident of Leesburg, has been named the new dean of Shenandoah University's Harry F. Byrd, Jr. School of Business in Winchester. He begins his new role July 1, and replaces Dean W. Randy Boxx.

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Volunteer Loudoun is seeking nominations for its 2012 Outstanding Volunteer Awards. The annual program honors individuals and organized groups in the county whose volunteer service has directly benefited the Loudoun community. Volunteer projects resulting in exceptional community change are also recognized.

Visit Loudoun is looking for some new faces.

Visit Loudoun is accepting nominations through Jan. 27 for its annual tourism awards.

Mayor Kristen Umstattd and other town leaders will officially welcome a new yoga studio into the town's business community as part of a ribbon-cutting ceremony planned for 5:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20.

2011 marked the end of my tenure as chairman of the Loudoun County Economic Development Commission. The EDC is a group of volunteers who are currently appointed by our Board of Supervisors to help form economic development policy for Loudoun County.  The EDC works side by side with the Department of Economic Development, whose goal is to increase the commercial tax base and to promote the rural economy in Loudoun County.

Another movie theater company is making plans to expand into Loudoun. This week, the developers of One Loudoun in Ashburn and Alamo Drafthouse Cinema announced plans to build a 34,000-square-foot facility with a spring 2013 opening date.

The Loudoun Economic Development Commission began the year welcoming new and old faces to its ranks.

As part of a company-wide action to strengthen its portfoilo, Delhaize America, the parent company of Bloom and Food Lion grocery stores, has announced it will be closing 113 stores--the Blooms in Ashburn's Farmwell Hunt Plaza and on Fort Evans Road in Leesburg among them.

Longtime Purcellville veterinary practice Hoof & Paw will be leaving its Maple Avenue location for a new, and larger space-the former Purcellville Rescue Squad building on 20th Street.

All Ages Read Together, the Loudoun-based nonprofit that provides low- to moderate-income preschool age children with free one-on-one reading and school readiness programs here and in Fairfax County, has received a $10,000 grant from Telos Corporation.

The Dulles Area Association of Realtors has donated the proceeds of its annual silent auction to a slew of local charities.