ABOUT

BOARD OF
DIRECTORS

ABOUT

BOARD OF
DIRECTORS

Panoramic view of Richmond. Richmond, Virginia, USA.

Richmond skyline

The Richmond EDA is a political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is led by a seven-member Board of Directors appointed by the Richmond City Council.

Nupa Agarwal Esq.

Operations Committee Chair
Audit and Finance Committee

Background

Nupa earned a degree in sociology from Randolph-Macon College, where she also minored in political science and latin studies. She then earned a juris doctorate from the Mississippi College School of Law. While attending law school, Nupa also received a master of science in sociology from Mississippi College, specializing in cultural anthropology. She is also a certified senior professional resource manager and a realtor. Nupa has spent more than 15 years practicing bankruptcy and real estate law and possesses nearly a decade of real estate sales experience. Today, she is the owner and Lead Attorney at Agarwal Law Firm and the Referral Realtor for Virginia Capital Realty. Nupa also serves on the Board for MCV Foundation, VMFA Foundation, and VPM. She is also the cohost of a podcast she created called “Mind on Money.”

Expertise

Nupa brings a deep level of understanding to grassroots issues she has gained while serving her bankruptcy clients and understands our responsibility to the underserved. She loves that the EDA Board is action oriented, efficient, and deeply invested in the future of our City.

Excited About: Influx of new talent

Favorite Thing: River culture

Jéron Crooks

TREASURER

Audit and Finance Committee Chair

Background

Jéron attended Virginia Commonwealth University, where he earned his B.S. in accounting. He began his career serving on the financial reporting team that prepared the Virginia Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. Next, he served on the internal audit team for a locally headquartered publicly traded company with domestic and international operations. Since 2016, he has worked with Kearney & Company, consulting for the federal government in various capacities, including audit remediation, audit readiness, business process improvement, overseeing implementations of robotic process automation tools, and financial reporting. Clients include the National Credit Union Association, the Department of Homeland Security, and the United States Coast Guard.

Expertise

As a CPA from our region, Jéron has a passion for giving back and uplifting our community. Being a small business owner of a residential rental real estate company, he understands the freedom of being your own boss. Because of this, he constantly seeks opportunities to educate others on entrepreneurship and encourage economic development. As a member of our Board, he loves his role in driving change and participating in decisions that lead to growth and prosperity for our community.

Excited About: Small business growth

Favorite Thing: Food scene

Evan Feinman

Operations Committee
Nominations Committee
Development Committee

Background

Evan received his bachelor's degree from the University of Virginia, spent two years on an energy and transportation policy fellowship, and earned his law degree from Washington and Lee University School of Law. He has spent his career in public service, serving in the private sector, on campaigns, and within the state and federal governments. Evan served at The Commonwealth Institute, a budget and fiscal policy think tank, and was Policy Director for Terry McAuliffe's successful 2013 campaign for Virginia Governor. He then served as Deputy Secretary of Natural Resources for the Commonwealth before taking over the Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission, an economic development agency focused on Southern and Southwest Virginia. In the Northam Administration, Evan was reappointed to that role, and his portfolio expanded to include the creation of the Virginia Broadband Office. That work was successful, and Virginia will be the first large state in the nation to achieve universal broadband access. Today, Evan continues his efforts to bridge the digital divide as the Director of Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment with the United States Commerce Department. He oversees the $42.5 billion program to ensure all Americans can access reliable, affordable high-speed Internet connections.

Expertise

Evan has a deep background in organizational management and change, public policy, public administration, economic development, infrastructure deployment, workforce development, business attraction, and legislative and regulatory advocacy. He enjoys Richmond’s evolution as a city of culture and a destination for big investments and playing a part in that growth.

Community Involvement

STAY RVA, Founding Board Member; Virginia Economic Development Partnership, Strategic Plan Steering Committee; Virginia Chamber of Commerce, Steering Committee, Blueprint 2025; Greater Aspirations Scholarship Program

Excited About: Vibrant culture

Favorite Thing: Quality of life

Nathan Hughes, CCIM

CHAIR

Development Committee Chair
Incentives Committee

Background

A native Richmonder, Nathan earned a B.S. in finance from VCU and has worked full time as a business broker and commercial real estate broker since 2005. He holds the Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) designation. In 2015 he founded Sperity Real Estate Ventures, where he serves as principal broker. The firm focuses on small business real estate and restaurant business sales. Sperity's clients have included Lindsey Food Group, Ruby Scoops, and Ralco. Nathan also serves in leadership roles with Virginia REALTORS® and the National Association of REALTORS®.

Expertise

Nathan has spent his career helping small business owners find space, buy and sell businesses, and get deals financed. He brings that experience, along with his background in finance and the restaurant industry, to the EDA's work. His focus is making it easier to start and grow a business in Richmond, while keeping the city ready to compete for the larger projects that come our way.

Excited About: Making Richmond the easiest city in Virginia to start and grow a small business

Favorite Thing: How often Richmond's business, development, and neighborhood communities show up for each other

Jer'Mykeal McCoy

VICE CHAIR

Nominations Committee Chair
Incentives Committee Chair

Background

Jer’Mykeal holds a B.A. in mass communication with honors from Tennessee State University and is an alumnus of Georgetown University, where he earned his master's in sports industry management. Since 2015, he has served in various sales capacities in manufacturing and technology. He also provides consultation to small businesses and nonprofits on revenue diversification. Jer’Mykeal currently is a Sourcing Specialist at VCU Health, where he manages vendor relationships and advises on supplier diversity initiatives for the health system.

Expertise

As a business and civic leader, Jer’Mykeal uses his experience to enhance the lives of his fellow Richmonders. He loves playing an essential role in building an economically diverse and equitable City.

Excited About: Building a better Richmond

Favorite Thing: Our people

Cindi Cobbs

Audit and Finance Committee
Operations Committee
Nominations Committee

Background

Cindi attended the University of Richmond before earning her BS in Finance from the University of Tennessee. She also holds a JD from William and Mary, and a Masters degree from Yale University’s School of Management.

Cindi worked for the New York City Financial Services Corporation, the financing arm of the city’s Office of Economic Development, managing the multiple tools available to attract, retain, and grow businesses and their employees to NYC. Financing packages might include tax abatements, federal grant money, loans from the state Job Development Authority, and below-market financing from the agency’s own Revolving Loan Fund.

Cindi went from the City to the private sector, working at E.F. Hutton’s Public Finance division to structure bond financing for municipal clients in the northeast. Since then, she has served a wide variety of organizations as a volunteer, most recently as a board member of the Fan Woman’s Club and the Fan Townhouse & Garden Club.

Expertise

Cindi spent her childhood in the Richmond area and her extended family is still here. When she moved back in 2011, she was amazed by how much the city had evolved and has been energized to see Richmond continue to grow and build on that momentum over the past 15 years. Cindi loved working with a wide variety of businesses in her time with NYC and looks forward to applying her experience to help our city continue to grow.

Excited About: Seeing downtown rebuild, and expanding growth, development and opportunities city-wide.

Favorite Thing: The food scene and walkable neighborhoods.

John Molster

VICE CHAIR

Audit and Finance Committee
Loan Advisory Committee
Nominations Committee

Background

John earned a B.A. in economics from Hampden-Sydney College and completed his studies at Wharton’s Aresty Institute of Executive Education at the University of Pennsylvania. His career has been an exciting journey in the ever-evolving world of financial services. John got his start on Wall Street, researching and trading bonds. Today, as a Certified Private Wealth Advisor® professional and financial advisor for Truist Investment Services, he works with families to help them protect their assets and plan for future generations. He finds it especially rewarding to work with his team and his clients to help them achieve their purpose and objectives.

Expertise

John believes that the EDA Board is a terrific group of professionals who love our City and that each member makes significant, unique contributions. He brings an understanding of the financial consequences of the decisions we face, as well as deep experience in management and leadership. John uses his expertise to encourage our volunteer Board and appreciates the opportunity to do great things for his hometown. John feels that its thriving restaurant scene, excellent universities, and young, energized workforce give Richmond plenty to look forward to.