Virginia Tech Board of Visitors names 2011-12 student representatives
The Virginia Tech Board of Visitors has named undergraduate and graduate student representatives who will serve as liaisons between the student body and the board starting July 1.
The two student representatives are appointed to one-year terms. They will serve as ex-officio members on the Commission of Student Affairs and sit on a committee of the governing board. These non-voting members are required to maintain contact with university faculty, administrators, and Virginia Tech students.
Undergraduate Student Representative
Matthew Banfield, of Williamsburg, Va., is a junior majoring in theatre arts and cinema in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences.
Banfield started early in his role as a leader when he moved in to the residential leadership community on campus for his freshman year in fall 2008. He was ring dance chairman for the Class of 2012, where he was responsible for planning and executing the annual Ring Dance and banquet. While in his first year as chairman, Banfield secured the position of associate justice in the Student Government Association. In this position, he served as a liaison between the judicial and executive branches.
Banfield is both an active leader and an active volunteer in the community. Since spring 2010, he has worked close with alumni, staffing reunions and giving tours of the alumni center as part of Student Alumni Associates. He has also been giving tours for prospective students with the Hokie Ambassadors since fall 2010. While he is not at school, Banfield works as a camp medic during summer breaks at the Jamestown 4-H Educational center in Williamsburg, Va.
Graduate Student Representative
Michelle McLeese, of Blacksburg, Va., is a doctoral student in sociology in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences.
She earned her master’s degree in sociology in 2005 and her bachelor’s degrees in sociology and psychology in 2004, all from Virginia Tech.
McLeese won the Leland B. Tate Award for outstanding scholarship, leadership, and service in sociology in spring 2006. She was inducted into the Alpha Epsilon Lambda graduate honors society in spring 2009. In fall 2009, McLeese was inducted into the Order of the Gavel, an elite honors society at Virginia Tech consisting of 25 members. She is also a past recipient of Virginia Tech Graduate Woman of the Year.
In addition, McLeese is the president of the Graduate Student Assembly. She was a graduate teaching instructor for Introductory Sociology and Social Justice and Diversity courses.
Matthew Banfield (left) and Michelle McLeese
Matthew Banfield (left) and Michelle McLeese
