12 new members join Academies of Faculty Service and Leadership

The Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost has named 12 members to the 2026 class of Virginia Tech’s Academies of Faculty Service and Leadership with five new inductees into the Academy of Faculty Service and an unprecedented nine new inductees into the Academy of Faculty Leadership. 

In a first for Virginia Tech, two faculty members received appointments to both academies: Leanna Blevins, associate vice president for health sciences academic affairs and co-director of the Integrated Health Sciences and Research program at the Health Sciences and Technology campus in Roanoke, as well as Dwayne Edwards, professor and head of the Department of Biological Systems Engineering. Their leadership and dedication embody the core principles of academic citizenship and show a profound commitment to the institutional mission.

Blevins has been named in honor of her remarkable impact on the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, the Virginia Tech health sciences enterprise, and the American Council on Education’s Virginia Network for Women in Higher Education. Through innovative leadership and sustained dedication, she has helped reshape the university’s academic and research environment, advancing more collaborative, responsive, and inclusive institutional practices. Her capacity to connect administrative systems, cultivate mentoring networks, and strengthen community engagement has fostered enduring academic programs and support infrastructures that benefit hundreds of faculty members and staff as well as postdoctoral scholars, graduate students, and undergraduate students.

Edwards has been named in honor of his strategic collaboration across units and for the tangible impact he has had on student and leader development. As department head, he has doubled the number of external research expenditures and tripled the number of new awards, while also increasing graduate enrollment into biological systems engineering by 60 percent. He willingly undertook the additional responsibility of serving as interim commandant for the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets at a moment of significant organizational transition, cultivating renewed energy among both students and staff. His efforts led to substantive reforms within the leadership development curriculum, and enriched the cadet experience by expanding academic pathways for cadets and increasing faculty involvement with the corps.

Fellow honorees to the Academy of Faculty Service are:

• Anthony “Kwame” Harrison, Alumni Distinguished Professor of Sociology, was inducted for bringing curiosity and compassion to every role, creating a career of meaningful service through programs that support student belonging and faculty success.
• Sarah Karpanty, professor of fish and wildlife conservation, was inducted for promoting the global perspective and bringing stakeholders together to find sensible solutions that support ecological health and community needs.
• Danesh Tafti, the William S. Cross Professor of Mechanical Engineering, was inducted for contributing to the recruitment and retention of talented faculty, securing substantial funding toward the undergraduate experience, and investing in industry-supported opportunities that advance the experiential learning model.

Fellow honorees to the Academy of Faculty Leadership are:

• Bobbi Conner, clinical professor and service chief of emergency and critical care, was inducted for transforming the emergency medicine service by increasing capacity and enhancing the quality of patient care via hands-on student training with specialists.
• Emily Holt Foerst, assistant professor, assistant dean of student affairs and director of academic counseling and enrichment services, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, was inducted for providing mental-health and wellbeing resources to support the nearly 500 medical students, strengthening collaborations across campuses.
• Corinne Guimont, director of Virginia Tech Publishing and Press, University Libraries, was inducted for building and leading what is now the university’s first official press, helping to democratize research and extend the reach of faculty scholarship.
• Stephanie Hart, executive director of the advising and career center, College of Natural Resources and Environment, was inducted for her work toward creating the first college-wide, centralized Virginia Tech advising center, creating equitable workloads across multiple departments.
• Lisa McNair, interim co-executive director of the Institute for Creativity, Arts and Technology, professor of engineering education, was inducted for her work aligning diverse teams and bridging the gap between research and teaching by cultivating relationships across Virginia through SEAD grant initiatives.
• Michael Moehler, founding director of the David H. Kellogg Center for Philosophy, Politics and Economics, professor of philosophy, politics and economics, was inducted for successfully establishing a visionary, multidisciplinary program with an endowed lecture series, demonstrating his commitment to leadership and relationship building.
• Amanda Morris, department chair and professor of chemistry, was inducted for reshaping departmental governance to broaden faculty participation, granting full faculty voting rights in promotion and tenure decisions, and integrating the Principles of Community into faculty evaluations and departmental deliberations.

To be nominated for the Academy of Faculty Service, faculty must successfully complete an elected or appointed term of office in university governance or complete the assignment associated with a university-level project, make commendable service contributions at the university level outside of usual responsibilities and ongoing formal governance roles, and make a notable and demonstrable positive impact on the university. 

To be nominated for the Academy of Faculty Leadership, faculty must model exemplary leadership in formal or informal roles within the university in ways that significantly advance a culture of collaborative leadership; promote faculty, staff, and/or student development; advance program or curricular transformation; and make a notable and demonstrable positive impact within the university community.