Board Highlight: Mike Rolband

June 15, 2023 | Board Highlights

Governor Glenn Youngkin appointed Mike Rolband as the Director of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) in January 2022.

By statute, the Director of DEQ serves as an ex-officio member of VRA’s Board of Directors. Rolband serves on the Compliance and Portfolio Risk Management Committees of the Board.

Rolband started his career in the construction and development world. He started a real estate development company in 1988, and in 1991, started companies focused on environmental permitting and mitigation banking for private and public land and infrastructure development projects.  He established the nonprofit Wetland Research Initiative in 2007 to fund applied research in wetlands creation, restoration, and enhancement activities. It and a companion effort, the Stream Restoration Initiative, are both managed through the Resource Protection Group, Inc., a 501 (c)(3) organization he founded in 2012. Rolband received his B.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering, M. Eng., and MBA from Cornell University where, after he retired for the first time, he was a Professor of Practice from 2017 to 2020.

 “Mike brings vast industry knowledge and experience to the Board Room,” said VRA Executive Director Shawn Crumlish. “And, he enjoys engaging in the work VRA does.”