At Virginia Tech and within the College of Engineering, we have a history of strong foundations. These foundations lie not only in rigorous traditions of teaching and learning, a rich campus culture, and innovative research – core tenets of a Virginia Tech education – but also in our university motto of service, Ut Prosim. As Hokie engineers, we take these tenets a step further to include an impenetrable focus on solving the world’s most complex social and technical challenges, a core aspect of our discipline that has guided our work for generations.
Why are strong foundations important? Because they pave the way forward for future impact, growth, and accomplishment.
As the university and the college prepare to celebrate our 150th year, we point to these strong foundations as important factors in both recent and future successes. Because of the resiliency and dedication of our campus community, we’re enjoying the full range of fall semester activities on campus, even while we continue to monitor and mitigate the effects of a global pandemic. We’re also putting a bold vision and commitment to work as we grow the presence of the Innovation Campus – which celebrated its groundbreaking in Alexandria this September – and look forward to producing top-tier talent for the tech industry in the coming decades. These examples join countless others in demonstrating just how far we can go thanks to where we’ve been.
In this issue of the Virginia Tech Engineer, you’ll catch glimpses of the college’s future that have been enabled by this strong Hokie history within our engineering programs, labs, classrooms, and beyond.
Highlights include a preview of the newly expanded and renovated Holden Hall, student team successes fueled by our alumni, impactful research into the biomechanics of pregnancy, and the invaluable opportunity to fail in the Frith Lab. You’ll also hear more about our efforts to celebrate 100 years of women at Virginia Tech and within the college, fueled by women engineers and Hokie alumnae who are emerging as leaders, mentors, and champions of the next generation.
As we embrace the future of engineering at Virginia Tech, we’re thankful for the support of many who have forged the path before us. Here’s to the next 150 years of what we can accomplish together.
Julia M. Ross
Paul and Dorothea Torgersen Dean of Engineering
If you want to have an impact on our students and faculty like those featured in this magazine, go here to support the College of Engineering. For more information, call (540) 231-3628.
