Richard Ferraro named assistant vice president for student affairs

Richard J. Ferraro, former dean of students at Bucknell University, has been named assistant vice president for student affairs.

In his new position, Ferraro will provide leadership for student health and wellness services and will facilitate campus-wide initiatives that foster student learning and development in the academic, personal, and recreational environments. He will oversee several university departments, Schiffert Health Center, Cook Counseling Center, Services for Students with Disabilities, and the Department of Recreational Sports.

Ferraro brings to Virginia Tech 21 years of diverse experiences in higher education administration, student affairs, teaching, and research. Since 2000, he served as dean of students at Bucknell University, a liberal arts college of 3,400 undergraduate students and 150 graduate students. From 1995 to 2000, he was dean of students at Columbia University’s College of General Studies, served as assistant dean at the College of William and Mary from 1989 to 1995, and was assistant dean at Emory College from 1985 to 1989.

Ferraro also was a Fulbright Scholar to Italy in 1978 and won the Prix de Rome of the American Academy in 1979. He received a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University, and a master’s degree and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

Founded in 1872 as a land-grant college, Virginia Tech is the most comprehensive university in the Commonwealth of Virginia and is among the top research universities in the nation. Today, Virginia Tech’s eight colleges are dedicated to quality, innovation, and results through teaching, research, and outreach activities. At its 2,600-acre main campus located in Blacksburg and other campus centers in Northern Virginia, Southwest Virginia, Hampton Roads, Richmond, and Roanoke, Virginia Tech enrolls more than 28,000 undergraduate and graduate students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries in 180 academic degree programs.