Chris Lomaka, one of Virginia Tech's quadruplets, balances his college experience with academics and athletics

25 Aug 2014

Just two years ago, Chris Lomaka of Henrico, Virginia, came to Virginia Tech’s campus with a very full van, ready to start his first year of college.

But the van wasn’t just packed with stuff for his residence hall. It was also loaded down with items for three of his other siblings – the first set of quadruplets to enroll at Virginia Tech.

Now entering their junior year, the Lomaka’s – Greg is a statistics and economics major in the College of Science; Steve, an accounting and information systems major in the Pamplin College of Business; Chris, a building construction and real estate major in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies; and Kate, a human nutrition, foods, and exercise major in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences – are creating their own unique paths at the university, while still enjoying that their siblings aren’t far away.

“We all have our own friends, but we text each other all of the time. We go to church together every Sunday,” said Chris Lomaka. The brothers get together regularly to play basketball.

See the Lomaka quadruplets during 2012 move-in their first year:

Athletics has been one way Lomaka has found his own outlet at the university.

“My biggest passion has been with sports – I’m a huge sports nerd. I played football through high school and I’ve always wanted to stay involved with sports.”

While he was not able to play at the collegiate level, Lomaka has taken on several responsibilities that keep him in the game. He serves as the undergraduate representative to the university athletics committee and works as a student intern with the strength and conditioning program for Virginia Tech student-athletes.

Last year, Lomaka lead the Student Government Association’s Hokie Effect program for football. The program creates and sells t-shirts that fans are encouraged to wear to two home football games. He will direct the program again this year.

While keeping his ties to athletics, Lomaka strikes a balance with his academic workload. Last year, he added a second major in real estate in addition to his first major of building construction.

“It all comes down to time management which is something I am still working on, but I try to stay ahead of things and not procrastinate," he said.

Lomaka said it is important for students to know it’s okay to ask for help.

“Professors, seniors, advisers, whoever – people will go out of their way to help you. If you don’t know something or have trouble finding something on campus or figuring out what classes to take, there are a lot of people on campus who will go out of their way to help you figure it out.”

Though Lomaka says it can be tough to find time to stay ahead in the classroom while also getting involved in extracurricular activities, he said it’s worth it.

“I don’t know anywhere else beside college where you can dabble in and try so many different things – get involved in things you love. It’s important to have a good balance of fun and academics.”

This summer, Lomaka decided to take a few courses to stay on track for the academic side of his college experience. He hopes the classes will keep him on schedule to graduate with his brothers and sister.

“I have motivation for myself to finish in four years, but wanting to graduate with my siblings just adds a little bit more spark under my feet,” Lomaka said.