Looking back: Things we learned and did in 2024
Virginia Tech marks the end of the 2024 calendar year with many achievements and milestones. Here are 24 highlights, in random order, that stood out this year.
- College of Natural Resources and Environment students and faculty traveled to every continent in 2024.
- The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences welcomed Mario Ferruzzi as its new dean.
- The Division of Facilities achieved its highest Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) rating yet.
- Virginia Tech celebrated the opening of Hitt Hall, a cutting-edge facility that has expanded the Myers-Lawson School of Construction while providing critical dining and academic spaces in the North Academic District.
- The Witcher came to campus. Known as video game royalty, actor and voice-over talent Doug Cockle ’93 took time during his return visit to campus to talk about his time at Virginia Tech, his transition into acting, and his technique in voicing the magically enhanced monster-hunter-with-supernatural-abilities Geralt of Rivia.
- The National D-Day Memorial Foundation added layers of immersion to the June 6, 2024 D-Day remembrance - the 80th anniversary - with the help of Virginia Tech’s Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology.
- Two geosciences professors were honored in April as newly elected members of the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C., where they signed the academy’s prestigious Registry of Membership.
- The Beat Goes On - a community choir that includes individuals with dementia and their caregivers - made its public debut in April.
- 2024 marked the 10th anniversary of the Itraab Arabic Music Ensemble. Founded in 2014 as a project of Moss Arts Center, the ensemble brings together students, faculty, and community and explores traditional and contemporary repertoire from the Middle East, North and East Africa, and Gulf regions.
- The university launched the first living-learning community outside Blacksburg at the Steger Center for International Scholarship in Riva San Vitale, Switzerland.
- Two Virginia Tech alumni, Kaitlin Reese and James Morrison, played instrumental roles in orchestrating the festivities at Team USA House, a central gathering place for U.S. fans, athletes, and athletes’ families during the 2024 Paris Summer Games.
- Sophia Economou, Zheng “Phil” Xiang, John Rossmeisl, and Markus Breitschmid were named the inaugural recipients of the Jacob A. Lutz III Award for Eminent Scholars during Virginia Tech’s annual research awards ceremony, Celebrating Scholarly Excellence, on Nov. 6.
- In an inspiring display of community spirit and generosity, more than 18,900 Hokies raised more than $13 million for this year’s Giving Day. The event broke records and crushed 2023 totals.
- Organized by cadets, the Platoon Tactical Challenge tests critical leadership and decision-making skills during stressful and physically demanding scenarios.
- Wearing bright pink to fit the Barbie theme, 42 fourth-year students at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine attained a 100-percent match rate in March, exceeding the national match rate.
- Christopher Hourigan, a globally recognized physician-scientist who studies and treats blood cancer, joined Virginia Tech to lead cancer research in Washington, D.C.
- Virginia Tech was selected to lead a $11.6 million research study for industrial decarbonization in the Roanoke Valley.
- Lest one think otherwise, Cassell Guard isn’t a collection of undisciplined, maroon and orange-clad hellraisers. On the contrary, this student-run organization, which has been in existence since 2007, features a 17-member executive board that meets regularly and creates detailed marketing and social media plans.
- Master's degree students at the Innovation Campus took part in such challenging hackathons as Bitcamp and HooHacks.
- Multiple departments within the Public Safety Division coordinate efforts to address safety concerns during game days.
- Poetry, creative writing, and rich stories interlaced at Voices from the Urban Indigenous Campfire, a specially curated celebration of Indigenous Peoples Day, featuring three Indigenous creatives.
- Virginia Tech researchers received an $18 million grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation to establish a new Virginia Tech center, COMPASS, bringing together computer science, infectious disease, engineering, and the arts together to predict and prevent global pandemics.
- After a whirlwind 12 months that included one of his athletes winning a gold medal at the Olympics, Virginia Tech alumnus Ben Thomas started his tenure as the director of the Hokies’ track and field programs.
- This past fall, University Libraries’ Newman Library levelled up its offerings with an exciting new addition: the Gaming Studio. Located on the fourth floor at the beginning of the semester, this innovative space promises to be a hub for digital and analog gaming enthusiasts alike. The space opened on Sept. 12.
And one to grow on ...