Beth Kolnok has returned to 5Points Creative as director of account services. In this role, she will oversee the account services team while nurturing client relationships and using strategies to grow and transform accounts.
A Roanoke native, Kolnok earned a bachelor’s degree in communications with a focus in public relations while attending Virginia Tech. She has more than 25 years of strategic marketing and communication experience from various industries such as healthcare, technology, retail and manufacturing.
5Points Creative is a creative agency specializing in marketing, advertising, digital, branding and communications for organizations. It works with clients in Virginia, Florida, Tennessee, Maryland and North and South Carolina.
Virginia Tech has announced the following:
Van Coble, the first assistant provost for academic space in the Office of Academic Resource Management, has been conferred the title of assistant provost emeritus for academic space.
Coble, a member of the Tech community for more than 19 years, contributed to the development of major university projects including the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science I and II, and the Center for the Arts.
He leveraged $1 million in annual funding allocations to support more than 30 classroom improvement projects annually, totaling a project value of $2.5 million to $3 million. He supported many colleges and departments to create solutions to renovation projects including the 100 McBryde Hall renovation, the renovation of War Memorial Hall, and the relocation of Randolph Hall occupants for the construction of Mitchell Hall.
Coble previously served as a senior project manager in the design and construction unit of the Division of Facilities. He is a licensed architect with experience in private and public sectors.
Dana Robertson is the new director of the School of Education.
Robertson, associate professor of reading and literacy at the university since 2021, is a former literacy specialist and coach whose research includes professional learning and coaching and working with teachers and children to advance evidence-based and equitable instructional practices.
He is president of the International Literacy Association, an organization that aims to connect research and practice to improve the quality of literacy instruction worldwide.
Robertson earned a bachelor’s degree in music performance from Berklee College of Music, a master’s degree in education from the University of Massachusetts, and a doctorate in education from Boston University.
Among his career honors, Robertson was named an emerging scholar with the Reading Hall of Fame. He also received several awards from the University of Wyoming, including the Ellbogen Meritorious Classroom Teaching Award, the Marvin Millgate Engaged Faculty Award and the Mary Garland Early Career Fellowship.
Zhen Yan, professor with the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC and director of its Center for Exercise Medicine Research, has been named an associate editor of a new Nature Portfolio Journal focused on exercise medicine.
Yan is a leading researcher in the field of exercise and metabolism. His background in medicine and surgical training influenced his focus on exercise as a preventive intervention.
He earned his bachelor’s in medicine from the Medical Worker’s College of Jiangsu Province in China, his master’s degree in kinesiology from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and his doctorate in physiology and cell biology from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Yan did his postdoctoral training at UT Southwestern Medical Center. He also holds an appointment as a professor in the Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
Yan played a key role in winning a bid for Virginia Tech’s Fralin Biomedical Research Institute to host the 20th International Biochemistry of Exercise Conference in Roanoke from June 1-5, 2026. The theme of the conference is “Exercise and Healthspan.”
Coble
Kolnok
Robertson
Yan
To submit an item to Names and Changes, email the item and color photo to names@roanoke.com.
Get the latest local business news delivered FREE to your inbox weekly.
Smith Mountain Lake’s Penn Hall Manor, built in the 40s, was recently restored by Craig and Angela Wilson as a wedding and vacation resort. It…
A Roanoke County school bus backed into Brittany Hayes’ parked sedan in the Old Southwest neighborhood. The April 17 accident caused thousands…
People are opening their first bank accounts, accessing affordable groceries and learning to improve themselves at the new Melrose Plaza commu…
Linda Kay Simmons, 71, of Moneta, put $15,000 into a Bitcoin machine in Roanoke Monday, after a scammer posing as law enforcement threatened h…
The restaurant announced in a social media post Thursday that it was closed permanently, “effective immediately.”
Coble
Kolnok
Robertson
Yan
Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Account processing issue – the email address may already exist
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Invalid password or account does not exist
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Secure transaction. Secure transaction. Cancel anytime.
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
A receipt was sent to your email.