Sarah Lyon-Hill named economic development specialist in Office of Economic Development
Sarah Lyon-Hill has been named economic development specialist in in Virginia Tech's Office of Economic Development, where she was formerly a graduate assistant.
In her new role, Lyon-Hill will work to link university expertise and resources with the commonwealth's business sector. Drawing from her community development experience, as well as her doctoral research involving collaborative governance, she will create partnerships with citizens, community organizations, and business leaders.
Lyon-Hill's background lies in international and community development. As a Peace Corps volunteer in Niger, she worked with organizations to coordinate community projects including a women’s micro-financing project.
Lyon-Hill recently led a team of faculty in a feasibility study for a possible viticulture and ecology center in Loudoun County. She is currently working with Orange County and the Montpelier Foundation to explore agritourism opportunities at James Madison's historic home.
Originally from Toledo, Ohio, Lyon-Hill earned a bachelor’s degree from Beloit College. She received her master's degree in urban and regional planning from Virginia Tech in 2012 and is now in her third year as a doctoral student in the School of Public and International Affairs. While working on her master's degree, she was part of a student team that carried out a trails study for the Virginia Creeper Trail and the New River Trail.
Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech takes a hands-on, engaging approach to education, preparing scholars to be leaders in their fields and communities. As the commonwealth’s most comprehensive university and its leading research institution, Virginia Tech offers 240 undergraduate and graduate degree programs to more than 31,000 students and manages a research portfolio of $513 million. The university fulfills its land-grant mission of transforming knowledge to practice through technological leadership and by fueling economic growth and job creation locally, regionally, and across Virginia.
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