Joyce Leveston, CMM, CVP, CEO of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, was named to City & State New York’s 2025 Manhattan Power 100.
Joyce Leveston, CMM, CVP, CEO of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, was named to City & State New York’s 2025 Manhattan Power 100 for the work she has done to bring convention business back to New York City. Leveston joined the Javits Center in March as the organization’s first woman CEO.
Before moving to New York this year, she was director of convention services and event management at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center/Events DC. Her career path also includes the Miami Beach Convention Center, the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, and the San Diego Convention Center.
City & State New York’s write-up on Leveston follows:
“The convention center business has faced difficult headwinds since the COVID-19 pandemic, but Joyce Leveston has sought to make Javits Center an appealing attraction for the nation’s most prestigious conferences and trade shows. Leveston came aboard as Javits’ first woman CEO in March after stints with convention centers in Boston, Washington, D.C., Houston, San Diego and Miami Beach. She sent out an employee pulse survey to get feedback and recently led a reorganization with new positions. Javits has since hosted the Fancy Food Show, International Auto Show and IBEW Local 3’s 125th anniversary.”
Besides Leveston, individuals in event and venue management on the Manhattan Power 100 list included: James Dolan, Executive Chair and CEO, Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp.; Michael Hershman, CEO, Soloviev Group, who has submitted his bid with Mohegan for an $11-billion casino complex just south of the United Nations Headquarters; Jonathan Boulware, President and CEO, South Street Seaport Museum; Seth Pinsky, CEO, 92NY, who led a rebrand and $200-million restoration of the famed Upper East Side cultural center ahead of a series of performances for its 150th anniversary celebration, including the modernization of the Arnhold Center and Buttenwieser Hall; and a trio from Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts — Mariko Silver, President and CEO; Shanta Thake, Chief Artistic Officer and Executive Vice President; and Leah Johnson, Executive Vice President and Chief Communications, Marketing and Advocacy Officer.
According to their website, “City & State is a media organization dedicated to covering New York’s local and state politics and policy,” and “City & State’s Manhattan Power 100 highlights these and dozens of other local movers and shakers in the world of New York politics and government. The list, written and researched in partnership with journalist Aaron Short, features public officials, real estate titans, health care executives, higher education leaders, prominent advocates and activists, and influential figures from every corner of the borough.”
