Virginia Tech will convey its highest honor on John Lawson
John Lawson, of Newport News, Virginia, is the 2017 recipient of the William H. Ruffner Medal, Virginia Tech’s highest honor.
The medal recognizes individuals who have performed notable and distinguished service to the university. It is presented at University Commencement each year. This year's event is scheduled for May 12 at 8:30 a.m. in Lane Stadium.
Lawson is president and CEO of W.M. Jordan Company, which ranks yearly on the Engineering News Record list of top 400 contractors and has a portfolio of more than 1,100 projects. He started his career at the company as a field engineer, shortly after earning his bachelor’s in geophysics from Virginia Tech in 1975.
Along with his wife, Paige, Lawson is a charter member of the President’s Circle within the Ut Prosim Society, a distinction reserved for Virginia Tech’s most generous supporters. He is a namesake of the university’s Myers-Lawson School of Construction, in recognition of his extraordinary philanthropy, and co-chaired The Campaign for Virginia Tech: Invent the Future, which concluded in 2011 after surpassing its $1 billion goal.
Lawson’s extensive service to Virginia Tech also includes serving on the Board of Visitors from 2002-2010. He was rector of the board from 2008-2010, has been a member advocate of Hokies for Higher Education, and was a 2012 recipient of Virginia Tech’s Alumni Distinguished Service Award.
Lawson’s extensive community involvements have included serving on boards for the CEO Roundtable, Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters, Christopher Newport University’s first comprehensive fundraising campaign (as chairman), Greater Peninsula NOW, the Hampton Roads Community Foundation, TowneBank, the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center, The Virginia Tech Foundation, and the Mariners’ Museum. He is a past chairman of the Fort Monroe Authority and the Virginia Peninsula Economic Development Council, and is a past president of Associated General Contractors of Virginia.
Lawson’s extensive engagement and generosity have garnered numerous awards and honors. These include the CIVIC Darden Award for Regional Leadership, the Outstanding Philanthropist Award from the Hampton Roads Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Legacy Award from Engineering News Record Magazine, induction into the Old Dominion University Entrepreneur Hall of Fame, the Distinguished Citizen Award from the Peninsula Chamber of Commerce, the Golden Paw Award from the Virginia Living Museum, induction into the Hampton Roads Business Hall of Fame, the Virginia Entrepreneur of the Year Award from Ernst & Young, and the Lenora Mathews Lifetime Achievement Award from Volunteer Hampton Roads.
Lawson’s father, Robert, was member of Virginia Tech's Class of 1949. His son, Taylor, is a member of the Class of 2018, and his sister, Liz, was a member of the class of 1980.
