Virginia Tech Meteorology Club steals thunder at national conference
The student-led club, known regionally as the Blue Ridge chapter of the American Meteorological Society, received the national Local Chapter of the Year award at the annual conference.
A dozen Virginia Tech students and members of the student-run Meteorology Club attended the American Meteorological Society’s annual conference held in mid-January in New Orleans, and after five days of weather-related discussions, this group was on cloud nine.
Once again, the club was showered with compliments as its members won two national awards and continued bringing the university’s meteorology program into the national spotlight.
The Meteorology Club, comprised of approximately 70 students and known regionally as the Blue Ridge chapter of the American Meteorological Society, received the national Local Chapter of the Year award at the conference for its “unwavering pursuit in the professional development of members and a dedication to communities in Virginia through service, education, and awareness for meteorology and climatology.”
“I think it [the award] just speaks volumes about the motivation of the students at Virginia Tech in the meteorology major,” said David Carroll ’84, an instructor and the sponsor for the Meteorology Club since its inception in 2011. “We’re lucky because most of the students are motivated to be in this major. They love weather, and the more weather they can get their hands on, the more they like it, and also our alumni who play a role. We have professional meteorologists outside of the student body who play a role in the meetings and the goings on the club as well.”
Edward Shaw III ’24, a meteorologist at Roanoke’s WSLS television station, served as the club president as a senior, and during the 2023-24 academic year, he and club officers Mark Skaggs ’24, Riley Alden '24, and seniors Morgan Williams and Keegan Miller focused on weather, climate, and science communications, along with establishing an alumni professionals board and getting the organization more involved in the community.
“When we won, it was kind of a full circle moment,” Shaw said. “It felt like the culmination of all our hard work from a year when everything just came together.
“While the award is nice and whatnot, it wasn’t our primary goal of what we wanted to do with the chapter. The work’s not over yet, and we can still do more for not only our students, but also for Virginia Tech as a whole, for Southwest Virginia, and the commonwealth to advance our field of meteorology, especially in a climate that is a bit turbulent at times.”
For the second consecutive year, the club won the Local Chapter Poster award, creating a poster that focused on the club’s themes of community service, education outreach, chapter activities, and alumni relations.
Reaching more students has been a point of emphasis for Molly Busbice, a junior from Holly Springs, North Carolina, and current Meteorology Club president.
“Our program is relatively new as far as meteorology programs go, but we have managed to really step up and bring the spirit of Ut Prosim and community into our spaces as meteorologists, and I think that’s unique,” Busbice said. “We can always provide an outlet for people who just want to know a little bit more, or the kids in the community who would like to get involved in a meteorology program because they don’t know anyone else who has this interest the way that we do.
“Many meteorologists, they have this strong niche. We’re a very strong niche and being able to bring in younger students and older meteorologists who’ve been around and know the field, I think that’s what we’ve really contributed now.”
Approximately 12 students attended the conference, and almost all did so with assistance from units within the university. The College of Natural Resources and Environment, the Department of Geography – the home of Virginia Tech’s meteorology major – and the Undergraduate Student Senate offered financial support that offset travel and hotel costs.
The funds are an example of Virginia Tech Advantage, a universitywide initiative designed to provide Virginia students with transformational learning experiences by eliminating financial barriers. Study abroad, internships, and academic-related conferences are part of those learning experiences.
According to Busbice, who eventually wants to become a warning coordinator manager with the National Weather Service, more than 7,000 people attended the American Meteorological Society’s conference, and the advantages for the students who attended were two-fold.
“There are professional opportunities available there, and I also just wanted to see, at a national level, what is going on in the meteorology world," Busbice said. "In meteorology things are always changing quickly, the conference was a great way to see how those changes are being identified, researched and discussed. I don't think I could have gotten that anywhere else.”
Shaw agreed.
“I’ve made so many connections between these two conferences,” he said, referring to last year’s conference in Baltimore in which he attended and this year’s. “I’ve met people whom I never really thought I’d meet. I’ve met people who have been great people to network with and discuss other meteorology ideas. I think it’s been very beneficial for my own professional development and networking abilities since we’re such a small field.”
Approximately 160 students at Virginia Tech have declared meteorology as a major, though the Meteorology Club welcomes students from all majors with an interest in weather. Busbice and Shaw said they expect growth both within the major and within the Meteorology Club.
Most tend to think of meteorology as forecasting the weather, but the field crosses into disciplines such as engineering, science, geography, math, and physics. Career options include climatologists, emergency management specialists, geospatial analysts, risk assessment coordinators, and more, and the Meteorology Club has a big spring planned to help Virginia Tech students pursue those paths.
“The nature of meteorology is changing a bit, because it's being integrated into various aspects of society more and more. We are seeing lots of high impact events on society – just this year we have had the California wildfires, Hurricane Helene, severe weather outbreaks, and crippling winter storms. We’re seeing these big impacts to society, and the resulting economic impacts to the country. Meteorologists play an important part in the preparation and mitigation of these events," Carroll said.
“So many of our meteorology majors are actually working, not as day-to-day forecasters, but in emergency preparedness and emergency services now. Preparing for these big natural disasters is a big part of not just meteorology, but a lot of different environmental sciences, and that integrates with planning as well for towns and cities and coastlines. So there are a lot of opportunities for meteorology students today.”
