Message from the Dean

It has been an honor to work alongside such talented and dedicated students, faculty, staff, alumni, and partners who exemplify the spirit of innovation and service that defines Hokie engineers. 

As the fall semester winds down, we’re celebrating a strong start to the academic year — one filled with energy, purpose, and standout achievements from the College of Engineering.

We welcomed a new class of just over 3,600 undergraduate and graduate students to Blacksburg and across our campuses. They join a community defined by curiosity, collaboration, and service — ready to learn through bridge experiences like internships and co-ops, study abroad opportunities, competition teams, interdisciplinary capstone projects, undergraduate research, and much more. Those bridge experiences move students from classroom to career, and from ideas to impact.

Across our departments and schools, faculty are securing new research awards that push discovery forward in areas such as artificial intelligence, autonomy and robotics, health and biomechanics, resilient infrastructure, cybersecurity, and advanced manufacturing, while incorporating new curricula that produce workforce-ready students.

Our faculty growth reflects those ambitions. This fall, 15 new tenured and tenure-track colleagues joined the college, bringing expertise that strengthens teaching, accelerates research, and expands opportunities for students. We also named a new cohort of College of Engineering Dean’s Fellows to catalyze large-scale, interdisciplinary centers aligned with our strategic plan.

In October, we welcomed more than 200 engineering alumni back for Homecoming Weekend and showcased the progress of Mitchell Hall at our Hard Hat Happy Hour event. It was wonderful to celebrate with Norris and Wendy Mitchell and see the impact of their $35 million gift come to life in front of us. We will share the continued progress of this innovative building as it nears completion and can’t wait to see the cutting-edge research and hands-on learning that takes place once the doors are open.

This issue of our magazine highlights the people behind the advances that are making a difference in the commonwealth and beyond. Check out the feature video highlighting a team of biomedical students who created a prosthetic foot perfect for helping a little girl swim; look through the imagery that showcases our Formula SAE team; dive into a story about engineering student athletes; and learn more about aerospace engineering research featuring everyone’s favorite – drones! 

Our students, faculty, staff, alumni, and partners turn bold ideas into outcomes that matter, and their work embodies Ut Prosim (That I May Serve) not as a motto, but as a daily practice.

Thank you for your continued engagement as mentors, employers, donors, and advocates. Together, we’re building what’s next for Virginia Tech Engineering with confidence, clarity, and creativity, and I look forward to supporting that work in a new capacity.

In the spirit of Ut Prosim, 

Julie M. Ross
Paul and Dorothea Torgersen Dean of Engineering