LEXINGTON, Va. Aug. 20, 2025 — Carly Fiorina, businesswoman and politician, will address the Corps of Cadets and faculty at the academic convocation at Virginia Military Institute on Wednesday, Sept. 3, at 10:30 a.m. in Cameron Hall on Main Street. The event is free and open to the public. Any groups planning to attend should notify VMI by Sept. 1 via email at forquerla@vmi.edu.   

Fiorina began her career as a secretary for a nine-person real estate firm. After climbing the corporate ladder at AT&T and Lucent Technologies, Hewlett-Packard recruited her to serve as chair and CEO, becoming the first woman to lead a Fortune 50 company. She has advised the Department of Defense, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Department of State, and the Department of Homeland Security. She founded Carly Fiorina Enterprises to bring her expertise to the private sector, and the Unlocking Potential Foundation to those in the social sector. She is founder and chair of Pathway to Promise, an organization that works with justice-involved youth.  

The author of three best-selling books on leadership, as well as a weekly LinkedIn newsletter with over 500,000 subscribers, Fiorina is a frequent speaker to teams and executives of many industries worldwide. In 2015, Fiorina launched a U.S. presidential campaign. 

In addition to being the national honorary chair of The Virginia 250 Commission, Fiorina serves as the founding visionary and executive chair of The Williamsburg Institute, chair of the Board of Trustees of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, and member of the Board of Visitors for James Madison University.  

Col. David R. Gray, executive director of the Center for Leadership and Ethics (CLE) at VMI shared the CLE’s annual theme this academic year is “American Values” in recognition of the country’s upcoming 250th anniversary. “As Carly Fiorina is the national honorary chair of the VA250, we feel that she will help us begin the academic year celebrating those values,” he said.   

Fiorina holds a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University; a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Maryland, College Park; and a Master of Science degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  

She and her husband, Frank, live in Lorton, Virginia, where they are both active members of the community and support numerous local charitable causes. Their daughter, son-in-law, two granddaughters, and great-grandson live nearby. 

-VMI-