Jones, Beane take new roles with Innovation Campus
Two Virginia Tech leaders have taken new roles with the university’s Innovation Campus now taking shape in Alexandria.
Robin Jones has been named assistant vice president for Innovation Campus student services. She formerly was assistant provost for planning and resource management at Virginia Tech, and she held leadership positions within the Division of Student Affairs.
In her new role, Jones will continue her previous work to collaborate with campus partners to expand and manage services available to Virginia Tech students who are enrolled in the university’s graduate programs in the greater Washington, D.C., metro area. She will focus primarily on supporting students who fall within the framework of the state’s Tech Talent Investment Program. These students include Virginia Tech and other partner university accelerated master’s students, corporate cohorts, military and veterans, and Virginia residents enrolled full and part time.
The Tech Talent Investment Program is a centerpiece of Virginia’s proposal to draw Amazon’s second headquarters to Arlington. Through this program, Virginia is investing in computer science and related academic programs with a goal of increasing the availability of talented professionals to fill technology jobs in the commonwealth.
Last year, Jones led the launch of the Greater Washington, D.C., Area Hokie One Stop, a virtual suite of services for Virginia Tech graduate students in Northern Virginia. The website is an online version of a future in-person location in Northern Virginia that will feature the same variety of services. Hokie One Stop eventually will be based at the Innovation Campus once it opens in 2024.
Dannette Gomez Beane has been named assistant vice provost for enrollment management for strategic initiatives. Previously, Beane served as director of operations in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions at Virginia Tech.
She will focus on graduate enrollment and degree goals for the Tech Talent Investment Program, which includes the Innovation Campus. Beane’s track record in helping Virginia Tech set and meet enrollment targets puts her in a position to help achieve the program’s goals.
The Innovation Campus offers graduate degree programs in computer science and computer engineering, with a primary mission of fueling the Tech Talent Investment Program. The campus’ new master of engineering in computer science program launched last fall.
Both Jones and Beane bring valuable experience that is key to the success of the Innovation Campus now and going forward, said Ken Smith, chief operating officer for the campus.
“Robin and Dannette’s established connection to a broad network of colleagues across the many Virginia Tech offices that serve students has allowed them to hit the ground running and their collaborative work is already benefiting applicants, current students, and the faculty that serve them,” Smith said.
By Jenny Kincaid Boone
