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(NOTE: The Virginia Tech President's Report web pages were designed to be viewed
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<A HREF="making.diff/makingdiff.html">Making a World of Difference</A><BR>
<A HREF="stat.highlights/factsfigures94-95.html">Statistical Highlights</A><BR>
<A HREF="year9495.html">The Year in Review</A>
<OL> <B>Table of Contents</B>
<p>
<a HREF="#message">Message from the President</a><BR>
<a HREF="#provost">Provost's Office</a><BR> <a HREF="#pubserv">Public Service</a><BR>
<a HREF="#intn">International Programs</a><BR>
<a HREF="#intnr&d">International Research and Development</a><BR>
<a HREF="#conted">Continuing Education</a> <BR>
<a HREF="#resgrad">Research and Graduate Studies</a><BR>
<a HREF="#coopext">Cooperative Extension</a> <BR>
<P> <OL> Colleges: <BR>
<a HREF="#ag">Agriculture and Life Sciences</a><BR>
<a HREF="#arch">Architecture and Urban Studies</a><BR>
<a HREF="#a&s">Arts and Sciences</a><BR>
<a HREF="#bus">Business</a><BR>
<a HREF="#edu">Education</a><BR>
<a HREF="#eng">Engineering</a><BR>
<a HREF="#for">Forestry and Wildlife Resources</a><BR>
<a HREF="#hum">Human Resources</a> <BR>
<a HREF="#vet">Veterinary Medicine</a>
<P>
</OL>
<a HREF="#stuaff">Student Affairs</a><BR>
<a HREF="#enroll">Enrollment Services</a><BR>
<a HREF="#found">Virginia Tech Foundation</a><BR>
<a HREF="#crc">Corporate Research Center</a> <P> </OL>
<HR> <center ><H2><a NAME="message"</a>Message from the President</H2> </center>
<P>
<B>Making a World of Difference</B>
<P>
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As another year's worth of sunrises and sunsets have passed over the limestone
pylons of the War Memorial, our students have continued to cross the Drillfield,
rushing to class in pursuit of their dreams, their destinations in life.
<P>
Like our students, our university is pursuing its chosen destination -- to become
the model land-grant university of the 21st century. Our vision, vitality, and
future are inexorably tied to the land-grant missions of instruction, research,
and public service -- and to our motto, "That I May Serve."
<P>
To become this model institution would be an intimidating task even in the best
of times. These are not the best of times; funding has not
kept pace with the demands currently being placed on higher education.
<P>
A complex world demands complex and multidimensional solutions, and that is
particularly true for large, advanced institutions such as Virginia Tech. To get
to our destination will require hard work, a flair for innovation, tough but
correct choices, and various integrated strategies.
<P>
<B>Restructuring</B>
<P>
Virginia Tech has submitted to the state what many consider to be a model plan
for restructuring, and restructuring has become a way of life for Virginia Tech
since the first round of state budget reductions in 1990. Subsequently, we have
made much progress in improving productivity and enhancing undergraduate
education.
<P>
For example:
<P>
--In the fall of 1995, the university served almost 1,000 more Virginia students
than it did in 1990. And this happened even though we received $21.8 million less
in general-fund appropriations for instruction.
<P>
--Many efforts have been made to enhance undergraduate education by reallocating
resources to computing, telecommunications, and instructional technology
initiatives. For example, the Faculty Development Initiative has placed
state-of-the-art technology and training into the hands of faculty members so
that they can more effectively do their work of teaching, advising, and
scholarship.
<P>
--On the economic development front, Virginia Tech has reached some major
milestones in the past year. The opening of the Hotel Roanoke and Conference
Center was a pioneering partnership between the university, local governments,
the private sector, and the state. It created 300 private-sector jobs in Roanoke.
In addition, another building was dedicated at the Virginia Tech Corporate
Research Center, which now houses 40 companies and 700 employees.
<P>
--Most departments (both academic and administrative) have redesigned business
processes, and they have restructured and streamlined operations. For example, to
date, three pairs of academic departments have consolidated into single
departments, four divisions in the College of Education have been reorganized
into two departments, and nine units in the College of Arts and Sciences have
combined into a single administrative unit.
<P>
--Virginia Cooperative Extension will be smaller, more specialized, more tightly
focused, and more highly trained, according to a restructuring plan developed by
Virginia Tech. The five-point plan calls for a more streamlined administration;
greater investment in and use of information technology; a focus on Extension's
original mission, including agriculture at the local level; increasing outside
revenue; and strengthening Extension's relationship with local governments.
<P>
<B>Administrative efficiency</B>
<P>
Underpinning our restructuring efforts is a long-standing commitment to
administrative efficiency. In a recent analysis, it was discovered that Virginia
Tech spends a smaller percentage of its budget on administration and a higher
percentage on instruction than any of its peers in the southeastern United
States. In fact, during the past several years, the university has continued to
streamline the administration by eliminating a number of middle- and senior-level
administrative positions, providing more than $1 million in salary and fringe
benefit savings.
<P>
In addition:
<P>
--Virginia Tech has moved rapidly in its efforts to create a paperless
environment for administrative processes. This will allow students to register
and pay bills much more easily and permit departments to enter directly all
personnel, payroll, purchasing, accounting, and student-information transactions.
For example, by 1995-96, the Direct Lending Program will be operational. It
consolidates a number of student loan programs and streamlines payment and refund
procedures. <P> --Five major capital projects were completed on time and within
budget during the past fiscal year. They were the Fralin Biotechnology Center,
the renovation of Major Williams Hall, a library storage facility, Phase IV of
the veterinary college, and a new airport terminal.
<P>
<B>The Campaign for Virginia Tech</B>
<P>
To continue to provide for and build upon the excellence that is Virginia Tech,
we have also embarked upon an important campaign so that Virginia's statewide
university can serve future generations. The Campaign for Virginia Tech, which
has the theme "Making a World of Difference," will raise $250 million to enhance
the permanent endowment of the university and provide scholarship support to
promising students.
<P>
The campaign is about making good on a pledge to current undergraduate students
to control the cost of education and the level of tuition increases; to ensure,
with few exceptions, that undergraduate lectures will be taught by regular
faculty members; to guarantee that the most distinguished professors will teach
undergraduate courses; and to provide all incoming students with thoughtful
academic advice.
<P>
Today, Virginia Tech has more than 100,000 living alumni whose contributions and
achievements encompass virtually every field of human endeavor. A few examples
are included in this report.
<P>
The campaign is also for and about such people -- people who do make a world of
difference. It is a campaign for all of us who feel proud whenever we see or hear
the words "Ut Prosim" -- "That I May Serve." It is a campaign for each of us for
whom Virginia Tech has made a world of difference.
<P>
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<BR> In the fall of 1995, Virginia Tech served almost 1,000
more Virginia students than it did in 1990, despite budget reductions.
<P>
(Click on the photograph to see a larger version.)
<HR>
<P>
<BR><center><H2><a NAME="provost"></a>Provost's Office</H2></center>
<P> Among the big news in the Provost's Office in 1994-95 was the appointment in
February of Peggy S. Meszaros as senior vice president and provost. She came to
Virginia Tech in 1993 as dean of the College of Human Resources from a similar
position at the University of Kentucky. Taking on her new role in the midst of a
difficult legislative session -- quickly followed by budget reduction and
reallocation decisions -- has meant immediate immersion in critical decisions
facing the institution. If you would like to meet Meszaros and her staff, check
out the "Provost's Page" on the World Wide Web, at <A
HREF="http://ate.cc.vt.edu/PROVOST/provost.html" target="_top">http://ate.cc.vt.edu/PROVOST/provost.html </A>.
<P>
Restructuring academic programs and units remains a top, on-going priority for
the provost and her staff. Monitoring progress of commitments made as part of the
Phase II process, developing further restructuring initiatives for the coming
year, and finding ways to measure the effects of our efforts are at the top of
the agenda.
<P>
Two major recent initiatives in support of faculty development are now well under
way. The Center for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching has quickly proved to be
an important resource to faculty members seeking support for curriculum
development and revision efforts, and for other activities for improving teaching
and learning. The Faculty Development Institute, coordinated and supported by
Information Systems and the Provost's Office, is bringing the latest in computer
workstations and software to all faculty members on a four-year schedule. More
than 700 faculty members have already attended workshops to learn about available
software and to discover ways to incorporate educational technology in their
courses and in their professional lives.
<P>
The Women's Center, created by the Office of the Provost in 1994, moved into
renovated quarters in the Price House in summer 1995. The Women's Center
complements existing women's academic and research programs and provides a wide
array of noncredit educational programming for faculty, staff, and students;
counseling and support for victims of sexual assault and harassment; information
and referral; and coordination of Women's History Month, celebrated every March.
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a NAME="pubserv"></a>Public Service
Programs</H2></center>
<P>
Public Service Programs (PSP) continued to make significant strides in economic
development throughout the commonwealth in 1994-95.
<P>
The department led the university in fulfilling Gov. George Allen's incentive
package to keep Volvo GM Heavy Truck Corp. in Dublin. Two colleges at the
university and the Performance Center will conduct specialized education courses
for the salaried employees.
<P>
PSP also supported Virginia's $9.1-billion tourism industry and the governor's
initiatives in tourism through its educational and technical assistance programs.
Under a $50,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, PSP worked with
faculty members and students to develop touch-screen, interactive kiosk
technology for the Jefferson National Forest Visitors' Center.
<P>
Faculty members and students from four colleges were also involved in a $100,000
project funded by the Virginia Division of Tourism to develop an Internet site
for marketing and promoting Virginia tourism. The visitors' center project and
Division of Tourism project were showcased at the White House Conference on
Travel and Tourism.
<P>
In other economic development initiatives, PSP played a vital role in the
visioning efforts of The New Century Council in western Virginia. The council,
which is made up of over 1,000 volunteers who have been working together to plan
a positive economic future for the area, is considered a model of how citizen
involvement can lead to opportunity and focused planning. PSP helped obtain the
grant that supported the council's work.
<P>
Working with state agencies and seven colleges, PSP offered 21 educational
programs. With the Virginia Department of Economic Development, it conducted its
Virginia Institute for Economic Development, followed by two Advanced Institutes
for economic developers on technology application. All institutes were filled to
capacity.
<P>
Two members of the PSP faculty wrote the textbook How to Start and Manage a
Business in Virginia, which was used at colleges, universities, and Small
Business Development Centers throughout Virginia.
<P>
The Virginia Procurement Pipeline computer program was distributed to over 300
procurement offices in the commonwealth. The database links buyers with sellers
of Virginia products and services.
<P>
In global marketing, various PSP staff members served on Allen's Opportunity
Virginia strategic planning committee for international trade; served as program
chair for the Virginia Chamber of Commerce's Virginia Conference on World Trade;
worked with the governor's staff in researching trade opportunities in Central
Europe; and served as primary consultants to Congressman Rick Boucher for an
export promotion program that attracted over 150 participants. <P> <HR>
<BR><center><H2><a NAME="intn"></a>University Office of International
Programs</H2></center>
<P>
In a reorganization of University Outreach and International Programs in January
1995, the university separated the two major focus areas, with one area being
established as the University Office of International Programs (UOIP) under the
direction of Vice Provost Patrick R. Liverpool.
<P>
The three units within UOIP are the Office of International Research and
Development, International Exchange Programs, and International Education and
Outreach Programs. Responsibilities for international students and scholars are
jointly shared by the Graduate School and the Division of Student Affairs.
<P>
UOIP established and filled a new position -- director of international exchange
programs -- to enhance overseas opportunities across the colleges. Applications
for the fall 1995 semester at the Center for European Studies and Architecture in
Riva San Vitale, Switzerland, were nearly double the number of fall 1994
enrollments. As a result, UOIP worked with the Pamplin College of Business to
establish a fall semester European study program at the site for business majors
and turned the spring semester universitywide program over to the College of Arts
and Sciences.
<P>
To promote other study-abroad programs, UOIP worked with the departments of
marketing and communication studies to develop student internships and to
establish a study-abroad resource center.
<P>
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<BR>The international flavor that Virginia Tech helps bring to the Blacksburg area is evident
during the annual International Street Fair, when downtown comes alive with global sights,
sounds, and tastes.<P>
(Click on the photograph to see a larger version.)
<HR>
<P>
<BR><center><H2><a NAME="intnr&d"></a>Office of International Research &
Development</H2></center>
<P>
The Office of International Research and Development (OIRD) is responsible for
international collaborative research, education, and technical assistance
programs. Under S.K. De Datta, OIRD continued to grow even as donor funding
dwindled. By June 30, 1995, OIRD was managing $19 million in contracts and
grants, primarily from the U.S. Agency for International Development, but also
from the World Bank and the U.S. Information Agency. Project sites included Asia,
Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, Eastern Europe, Russia, and newly
independent countries. Project dollars allowed OIRD to add 2.25 faculty
positions, three staff positions, and seven graduate student assistantships. <P>
OIRD involved seven of the university's colleges in grant proposals or project
implementation. University Libraries faculty members also worked with OIRD on
implementing a project in Albania.
<P>
In other efforts, OIRD produced a booklet -- Global Focus: Environmental
Management, Policy, and Engineering -- to market Virginia Tech's capabilities in
environmental issues.
<P>
Additionally, OIRD instituted a universitywide committee to oversee a graduate
specialization certificate program jointly administered by OIRD and the Graduate
School. <P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a NAME="conted"></a>Division of Continuing
Education</H2></center>
<P>
This past year has been one of change and growth for the Division of Continuing
Education. In January, President Paul Torgersen and Provost Peggy Meszaros
announced a reorganization of continuing education and university outreach
programs. They appointed Harold Kurstedt, the H.G. Prillaman professor of
industrial and systems engineering, as special assistant to the provost. In this
role, he has oversight for all university continuing education programs and for
the Center for Organizational and Technological Advancement.
<P>
The division created two new incentive award programs to encourage faculty
members to develop continuing education programs and professional association
meetings at the Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center. It also launched the
development of an interactive multimedia presentation to foster new collaborative
partnerships between Virginia Tech and corporate, government, educational, and
professional entities.
<P>
Using the research and teaching strengths of faculty members, the division's
program development staff delivered 413 conferences, short courses, workshops,
and seminars to some 40,000 participants. In addition, the division took the lead
in developing training programs for a wide variety of corporate, government, and
professional association clients, including the Virginia Department of
Transportation, Sara Lee Knit Products, Courtaulds Performance Films, MCI, the
U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Postal Service, and the Agriculture Chemical
Society.
<P>
Continuing education faculty members launched "Best Practices in Continuing
Education," a workshop to help college faculty members develop continuing
education programs. The division also established a new pricing structure for
programs, created a 16-page quarterly newsletter, and published the booklet
University Partnerships, a step-by-step guide to program development services.
<P>
The Donaldson Brown Hotel and Conference Center completed room renovations last
fall. It also expanded its learning laboratory, a program that integrates the
Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management's academic programs with
practical experience in operating a hotel.
<P>
This past spring, the division hosted Stephen Covey, internationally recognized
management consultant and author of the books The Seven Habits of Highly
Successful People and First Things First. He gave a luncheon address to 70 senior
representatives from 52 corporations and government agencies during inaugural
events at the Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center.<BR>
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a NAME="resgrad"></a>Research and Graduate
Studies</H2></center>
<P>
Sponsored activity at Virginia Tech increased 9.4 percent, to $92.7 million for
the year that ended June 30, 1995. Research dominates the grant and contract work
received by the university, with funding from industrial sponsors up 16 percent
and federal funds up 10 percent. Research by faculty, staff, and students at the
university also provides broad benefits. For example:
<P>
--David Kingston in chemistry has received $542,615 from the National Institutes
of Health for his efforts to discover natural anti-cancer compounds.
<P>
--With $128,000 from the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy,
Virginia Tech researchers in the Virginia Center for Coal and Energy Research
have evaluated solar energy systems at six state facilities for
cost-effectiveness and reliability.
<P>
--The Software Technologies Laboratory has a $9.2 million, three-year contract
with the U.S. Department of Energy for the development of decision-support
software.
<P>
--Plant pathologist Chester Foy received $1.5 million from the U.S. Agency for
International Development to develop approaches to eliminating crop devastation
by parasitic weeds.
<P>
--With $250,000 from the American Water Works Association, researchers in civil
engineering at Virginia Tech and at the University of Kansas and researchers with
Black and Veatch, are conducting a study throughout the United States and Canada
to determine whether existing drinking water treatment processes can be modified
to meet proposed revisions to the Environmental Protection Agency's Safe Drinking
Water Act.
<P>
--With $10,000 from the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, David Kibler
and G.V. Loganathan in civil engineering -- working in partnership with the
National Weather Service forecast office in Blacksburg -- are developing a
real-time flood forecasting model for the headwater areas of the Roanoke River,
which would provide advance warning of flash flooding. <P> Sponsored research
also paid for $3.5 million in new equipment last year, which is used by the
entire university community. Research programs also improve curriculum
development, and sponsored activity supports extension. Sponsors also provided
over $4 million in support of graduate students. <P> In addition to the $92.7
million in sponsored funding received by university faculty members, the Waste
Policy Institute (WPI), a not-for-profit corporation affiliated with Virginia
Tech, was awarded a six-year, $49-million contract by the Air Force Center for
Environmental Excellence at Brooks Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. Having
experts at a nationally recognized research university who can serve as
consultants was a factor in WPI receiving the grant. WPI is moving its
headquarters to Blacksburg.
<P>
<B>The Graduate School</B> passed a number of milestones in 1994-95.
--For the first time, a graduate student has been named to the Virginia Tech
Board of Visitors. Dan Waddill, a doctoral student in civil engineering from
Winston-Salem, N.C., was named to the board.
<P>
--The first electronic dissertation was submitted in the spring.
<P>
--With support from the extended-campus office, master's programs in science and
technology studies and in public administration (with a natural resources
concentration) were initiated at the Northern Virginia Graduate Center. An
intact master's in public administration program was also established at the
Roanoke Valley Graduate Center.
<P>
--Virginia Tech's College of Education and the Graduate School are offering
Public Broadcasting System (PBS) Mathline viewers at Virginia's five PBS sites
the opportunity to earn graduate credit for participation in a year-long, on-line
project for middle-school math teachers.
<P>
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<BR>
The War Memorial Hall, which houses athletic facilities for students, becomes a canvas
for the shadows of fall. Various projects have been proposed to provide
better athletic facilities for the student population.<P>
(Click on the photograph to see a larger version.)
<HR>
<P><BR><center><H2><a NAME="coopext"></a>Cooperative
Extension</H2></center>
<P>
Virginia Cooperative Extension is dedicated to bringing the university's research
to the citizens of the state. This year, that help was as broad as adding a World
Wide Web information site about insect pests, and as specific as using the same
computer system to coordinate donations of hay for dairy herds in Madison County
after floods there destroyed crops.
<P>
Extension research helped state farmers be more competitive. This year: wheat
management information increased annual farm income by about $14 million;
recommendations on light and temperature control in the aquaculture industry will
allow it to grow beyond the $2.5 million it is already producing; and research
showed that dietary selenium supplements for yearling beef bulls could increase
production by $1.2 million. Another project showed that feeding a genetically
engineered enzyme to swine and poultry makes their waste less hazardous.
<P>
Extension used its technology to set up projects for dairy producers that could
save an estimated $7,000 per herd per year. The same technology helps peanut
growers reduce fungicide use, saving $3 million. These successes were added to
Extension's already comprehensive computer information system, which includes a
portable classroom to help farmers learn how to access up-to-the-minute
information and to use computers for greater productivity and profitability.
<P>
Extension specialists and agents also provided continuing educational support to
cotton growers; these farmers planted more than 100,000 acres in 1995, up from
almost no production in 1991.
<P>
About 6,000 families in economically depressed counties in Southwest and
Southside Virginia received education on running home-based businesses. Another
group of more than 7,000 residents received training that helped some of them
gain accreditation as family care providers, a step that could lead to new jobs.
<P>
About 15,700 4-H members learned much and increased their skills by taking part
in judging contests, clinics, and bowls. Extension agents also worked with
community-based financial experts to offer the High School Financial Planning
Program to about 4,120 youths in 81 schools.
<P>
Extension said farewell to one of its distinguished leaders. William Allen, who
was an Extension entomology specialist before he took over as director of
Extension, retired after 31 years. C. Clark Jones, who has been with Extension
for the past 18 years, agreed to serve as interim director. <P> <HR>
<BR><center><H2><a NAME="ag"></a>College of Agriculture and Life
Sciences</H2></center>
<P>
Preparing students for careers in agriculture, conducting research to improve the
productivity of the agriculture industry, and disseminating practical information
based on research form the foundation of the College of Agriculture and Life
Sciences (CALS).
<P>
In 1994-95, CALS renewed its commitment to the industry by initiating a review of
how it can most effectively serve Virginia's agriculture in the future. This
initiative will focus the activities of the college, the Virginia Agricultural
Experiment Station, and Virginia Cooperative Extension in supporting an industry
that accounts for one-sixth of Virginia's jobs and economic activity.
<P>
Undergraduate enrollment in CALS programs continued its steady climb with 1,235
students enrolled at the end of 1994, an increase of 103 students over 1993. The
steady climb in the number of students -- another 10 percent increase was
anticipated for 1995 -- can be attributed to modern and challenging academic
offerings and an outstanding faculty.
<P>
For instance, Tom Sitz, associate professor of biochemistry, received the
university's outstanding academic advisor award. Mike Denbow, animal and poultry
sciences professor, received the 1995 CALS teaching excellence award.
<P>
The college's commitment to its students is exemplified by its strong
participation in the new Biological Sciences Program. Faculty members from
several colleges are working cooperatively to develop a three-semester core
curriculum so students entering biological sciences will be exposed to topics and
teachers on the cutting edge of science from across the university.
<P>
Virginia Tech's reputation for excellence is being spread worldwide by S.K. De
Datta, director of the Office of International Research and Development (OIRD), a
program managing 15 projects on four continents. Virginia Tech's share of the $50
million in grants and contracts managed by OIRD amounts to nearly $19 million.
<P>
In 1994, Extension and the Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station were combined
into a single division involving four colleges. While both organizations retain
their identities, the grouping makes it easier for specialists and agents to
transfer information from researchers to farmers and other users. It also allows
researchers to receive feedback from the field, which results in better service
to Virginia's agricultural industry.
<P>
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Many of the university's restructuring efforts during recent years have been directed
at enhancing the undergraduate education experience. For example, funding has been
reallocated for computing, telecommunications, and instructional technology initiatives.<P>
(Click on the photograph to see a larger version.)
<BR>
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a
NAME="arch"></a>College of Architecture and Urban Studies</H2></center>
<P>
The College of Architecture and Urban Studies continued to enhance its program
offerings to students, provide outreach, and conduct research to improve the
field of architecture and public policy making. The college made substantial
progress on several initiatives established under the Phase II plan
(restructuring). A Washington Semester was held this past summer, which offered
interdisciplinary study for students in Urban Affairs and Planning (UAP) and in
the Center for Public Administration and Policy (CPAP), as well as for other
university students interested in careers in the public, nonprofit, or private
sectors. The Roanoke Studio, located in the Virginia Transportation Museum,
continued to afford opportunities for students in all the college's programs to
work on community-related projects. The Community Design Assistance Center, a
public-service outreach center begun in 1988, has become a well-recognized force
that aids in design and planning activities for small communities in Southwest
Virginia. The Washington/Alexandria Center in Northern Virginia has sponsored a
public alumni lecture series, hosted several national competitions, and developed
joint activities and exhibitions with the Smithsonian Institution. The center
also formed a professional small business incubator for architecture and design
that houses 11 firms.
<P>
At the college's Research and Demonstration Facility, building construction and
architecture faculty members and students analyzed "smart building" systems and
indoor air quality to create comfortable, healthy living environments. During
fiscal year 1995, CPAP helped improve policy making and public service within
various jurisdictions, including Fairfax County, the Virginia Department of
Social Services, and the Town of Blacksburg.
<P>
Faculty members and students are conducting research that will have a major
influence on the commonwealth and beyond. With a grant from the Virginia
Department of Criminal Justice Services, an architecture professor completed a
software program that will promote crime prevention through environmental design.
Through funding from the National Forest Service, a landscape architecture
professor developed an interactive electronic information kiosk for forest
service recreation sites from Virginia to Texas. A UAP professor -- working
through a demonstration project in Rondonia, Brazil -- is developing an
alternative to the "slash and burn" farming greatly responsible for the depletion
of the ozone layer and the destruction of many species of plants and animals in
the Amazon.
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a NAME="a&s"></a>College of Arts and
Sciences</H2></center>
<P>
Embracing disciplines that deal with just about everything around the globe, the
College of Arts and Sciences has made its mark worldwide during the past year.
Its influence begins with the professors, the courses, and the students.
<P>
For example:
<P>
--There were a record number of students majoring in biology in 1994-95. These
future scientists may change the world in the same way their professors do when
they develop grains to feed people in arid countries or help keep waterways
clean.
<P>
--Rapidly increasing enrollments in Black Studies -- from 100 in 1991-92 to 540
in 1994-1995 -- mean more students will understand each other's cultures.
<P>
--The music department presented a record number of performances that garnered
record attendance, making a cultural difference to the community even as it
graduated its largest class in 15 years -- half of them with honors.
<P>
--Clinical psychology's program received a positive review from the American
Psychological Association. In addition, its nine doctoral students were chosen
for internships by their top-pick medical facilities within 20 minutes after the
selection process began -- proof of their potential for making a difference in
the future.
<P>
--Faculty members won awards for early career development, teaching, public
service, research, writing, and scholarship. This was an acknowledgment of their
diversity; their outstanding use of research, scholarship, and experience to make
classes better; and their position as role models for the volunteers of tomorrow.
<P>
--Proof of the college's teaching effectiveness can also be found in the
accomplishments of the students. They won awards in fields ranging from graphic
arts to computer programming, from physics to theatre arts.
<P>
--In a field that is already rapidly changing the world, the computer science
department - with National Science Foundation grant assistance - put courses on
the World Wide Web and took initial steps for a virtual school within the
Blacksburg Electronic Village, keeping Tech in the forefront of the electronic
revolution. Several other departments have made computer-assisted multimedia
components a part of their courses.
<P>
All this - and much more - has been accomplished during a year of restructuring
and budget reductions.
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a NAME="bus"></a>Pamplin College of
Business</H2></center>
<P>
The Pamplin College of Business worked hard in 1994-95 to increase admissions,
reform its curriculum, and help fledgling technology companies, among other
goals.
<P>
To increase the acceptance of admission offers made to freshmen and to transfer
students from the Virginia Community College System, the college increased the
number of scholarships to both groups -- to 25 percent of the freshman class and
to one student from each community college campus. The criteria are academic
excellence, extracurricular leadership, and community service.
<P>
To enhance study-abroad opportunities, the college organized six faculty-led
summer programs to Europe, Japan, and China. Some 80 students participated in the
program. Each one was assisted with a $1,000 scholarship from the college, which
is committed to providing pre-graduation international experience for its
students.
<P>
The college implemented significant undergraduate curriculum reform to meet
revised standards of the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business.
Five writing-intensive courses were developed, and a new global business
concentration and a business minor were added. Three new M.B.A. concentrations
were also created -- in financial risk management, management information
systems, and management and leadership.
<P>
The college was successful in faculty retention and recruitment, appointing eight
professors to endowed positions, and hiring six entry-level faculty members.
<P>
Pamplin also participated with two other university departments, the state's
Center for Innovative Technology, and the towns of Blacksburg and Christiansburg
to establish the Business/Technology Center, which will provide an expanded level
of business assistance services to fledgling technology-based companies in
Southwest Virginia.
<P>
The college's outreach services, offered through its Management and Professional
Development Programs, received an enthusiastic response. Pamplin faculty members
conducted seminars and workshops for such organizations as APCO, AT&T, Sara Lee,
Courtaulds, and VDOT. In partnership with the AT&T School of Business, the
college launched a professional certification program in process quality
management for AT&T employees.
<P>
The college was also successful in its fund-raising efforts, which resulted in 18
percent of its alumni giving to the college, an all-time high. Of the $30 million
goal for the current Campaign for Virginia Tech, the college has already received
$17 million in bequests and gifts, which is designated for scholarships,
professorships, and program support. <P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a
NAME="edu"></a>College of Education</H2></center>
<P>
The College of Education's restructuring during the 1994-95 academic year
represents one of the most dramatic and comprehensive components of Virginia
Tech's Phase II initiative. In November 1994 -- three months earlier than
originally scheduled -- the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors approved a plan
submitted by the college to restructure the College of Education. The plan,
praised by the BOV for its responsiveness and innovation, will not only cut
expenses by 20 percent by 1997, it will also redirect resources to create a
college that is better situated to make meaningful contributions to solving
problems in public schools.
<P>
Activities related to the development and implementation of the plan consumed
much of the time and energy of the college's faculty, staff, and administration
during the 1994-95 academic year. Among the goals accomplished:
<P>
--Objectives have been met in the closing or transfer of five programs.
<P>
--Four academic divisions were consolidated into two units, an interim structure
that will give way in 1997 to a program-based structure, eliminating an entire
administrative level.
<P>
--Targets for full-time, tenure-track faculty position reductions have been met
without involuntary termination.
<P>
--A 20 percent reduction in classified staff was achieved without involuntary
termination.
<P>
--A student organization was formed to involve undergraduate and graduate
students in the restructuring process.
<P>
-- Two new Special Program Initiatives are under way. The first brings together
public-school practitioners with faculty members from throughout Virginia Tech to
improve the preparation of science, math, and technology teachers. The second is
a practitioner-oriented doctoral program for school teachers and administrators
interested in working as a team to improve public education.
<P>
"Our primary goal is to help our public schools get better," says College of
Education Interim Dean Wayne Worner. "We are committed to working directly with
public-school practitioners and our colleagues in higher education to assist
schools in improvement initiatives. Internally, our challenge is to create an
environment in which we stimulate change rather than block it, and make
cooperation between units more advantageous than competition."
<P>
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<BR> A student investigates magnetic fields in a Virginia Tech electrical
engineering laboratory. Research is an important aspect of the learning process
at the university, and sponsored research was up 9.4 percent, to $92.7 million
for the 1994-95 fiscal year.<P>
(Click on the photograph to see a larger version.)
<HR>
<P><BR><center><H2><a NAME="eng"></a>College of Engineering</H2></center>
<P>
In 1994-95, the College of Engineering continued to be rated one of the premier
institutions in the nation.
<P>
Money magazine rated the college as one of the top-10 best-value science and
technology schools in the United States. A survey by U.S. News & World Report
ranked the college's graduate program 18th by practicing engineers and 25th by
engineering school deans. Seven of the college's 10 graduate programs were ranked
among the top 25.
<P>
The college spent $40 million on research in 1994, placing it among the top 10
percent of all accredited colleges of engineering in terms of research
expenditures.
<P>
Because teaching is the college's principal mission, the college is a leader in
the Southeastern University and College Coalition for Engineering Education
(SUCCEED), for which the National Science Foundation recently approved full
funding of $3 million per year. As a further demonstration of the college's
commitment to teaching excellence, tenured faculty members instructed more than
92 percent of all course sections during 1994.
<P>
The college also has become a leader in worldwide engineering education issues as
a founding member of the Global Engineering Exchange, which is developing
cost-effective procedures for the international exchange of engineering students.
In addition, the college has developed a "green engineering" program to train
every undergraduate in environmentally conscious manufacturing practices.
<P>
Faculty members from mechanical engineering and the Virginia-Maryland Regional
College of Veterinary Medicine designed a pollution-free medical waste disposal
system that is operating at Salem's Lewis-Gale Hospital. Civil engineering
Professor Clifford Randall received Maryland's Governor's Salute to Excellence
for his 20 years of work to reduce Chesapeake Bay pollution.
<P>
Aerospace and ocean engineering students won the American Institute of
Aeronautics and Astronautics-Lockheed Team Aircraft Design Competition for the
fifth year in a row. Car Factory students won first place with their solar car in
the Florida SunDay Challenge and first place with their amphibious vehicle in the
1994 East Competition in Canada.
<P>
Yilu Liu of electrical engineering received one of only 15 1994 Presidential
Faculty Fellow Awards for engineering research; Pat Koelling in industrial and
systems engineering obtained a $9.2 million U.S. Department of Energy grant to
develop decision-support software; and mechanical engineering Professor Chris
Fuller received $2.5 million from the Office of Naval Research to construct
devices that will control noise on naval vessels.
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a NAME="for"></a>College of Forestry and Wildlife
Resources</H2></center>
<P>
The College of Forestry and Wildlife Resources continued to produce well-trained
graduates and contribute extensively to usable research during the past fiscal
year. These accomplishments continued despite ongoing budget constraints.
<P>
Enrollment during the fall semester of 1994 was up to 720 undergraduate students
and 140 graduate students -- a two-and-a half-fold increase from 1988. Extramural
funding stayed near $5 million. The college continued to build on the strength of
existing research programs and to develop innovative programs across many of its
disciplines. The output of publications, presentations at meetings, and program
delivery was high.
<P>
Continuing education efforts increased, Cooperative Extension programs remained
extremely active statewide, and the college initiated two extended-educational
programs. One program -- at the Northern Virginia Graduate Center -- provides a
natural-resources option under the master of public administration program
through the Center for Public Administration and Policy. The second is a master
of forestry program at locations away from Blacksburg.
<P>
In contrast to the downsizing of budgets (which translate into faculty and staff
position losses), the value-added component of the forest-based sector continued
to increase in the commonwealth.
<P>
Numbers issued by the governor's office indicate that the forest products
industry contributes $9.8 billion to Virginia's economy just to the point of
entering the retail market, with an additional $1.7 billion of value added in
activities related to outdoor recreation -- including fisheries and wildlife --
on forest-based land.
<P>
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<BR>
This past April, President Torgersen promised incoming students that the university
would strive to hold tuition increases to the cost of living.<P>
(Click on the photograph to see a larger version.)
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a NAME="hum"></a>College of Human
Resources</H2></center>
<P>
There were many firsts and changes for the College of Human Resources over the
past year. It began with student enrollment at an all-time high of 1,296
undergraduates (1,381 in the spring semester) and 225 graduate students. In
comparison to its peers, the college ranked among the top three in the nation for
the production of theses and dissertations, and the hospitality and tourism
management faculty members were the most cited in professional journals in their
field of study.
<P>
The new year also brought the appointment of the first college ambassadors, a
corps of students trained in all aspects of the college. They represent the dean
and the college in public relations and recruitment, and serve as tour guides and
as hosts at college functions.
<P>
The American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences Accreditation Site Team
visited and the college received a 10-year re-accreditation.
<P>
The first of February was a big day. College Dean Peggy S. Meszaros became the
university's first female senior vice president and provost, and Janet M. Johnson
of human nutrition and foods became the college's interim dean.
<P>
One of the highlights of the college's year-long celebration of the International
Year of the Family (IYF) was its two-day "Building Family Friendly Environments
in Virginia" conference in Richmond. The conference enrolled over 200 people from
the family and consumer sciences professions, policy makers, business and
community leaders, college faculty members, and Extension agents. The other
highlights of the IYF included two books on faculty research and service
projects: Virginia's Families in a Changing World and Families in a Changing
World: A Research Compendium.
<P>
As part of the college's outreach efforts, Meszaros and other college
administrators visited alumni and civic leaders around the state to learn what
the college's constituencies expect. The college also launched a Wellness
Initiative. The first project provides faculty and graduate student expertise to
the City of Roanoke task force on teen pregnancy.
<P>
The college also added a part-time career counselor to its staff to work with
students and faculty to ensure that graduating students have employment skills
and that employers know about our students.
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a NAME="vet"></a>Virginia-Maryland Regional College of
Veterinary Medicine</H2></center>
<P>
The Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech
continued to develop in size, quality, and stature during the 1994-95 fiscal
year. The building program, which was begun over 15 years ago, culminated when
the college occupied its Phase IV building. Phase IV includes an infectious
diseases research unit at the Price's Fork Research Center, a significant
expansion of the Harry T. Peters Jr. Large Animal Clinic, and a major structure
that links the Phase II and Phase III buildings.
<P>
In early May, the college celebrated the completion when it dedicated the William
E. Lavery Animal Health Research Center. Joining Lavery during the ceremony were:
Beverly Sgro, Virginia secretary of education; Daniel Fallon, vice president for
academic affairs and provost of the University of Maryland at College Park; and
Virginia Tech President Paul Torgersen. Later that day, the college honored state
Del. V. Earl Dickinson (D-Louisa) for his support by inducting him into the John
N. Dalton Society.
<P>
The college also enhanced its admissions policy. Beginning in the fall of 1996,
VMRCVM will enroll up to 10 applicants per class from states other than Virginia
and Maryland. Also, a new program was developed with Virginia Tech's College of
Agriculture and Life Sciences to enable veterinary students interested in food
animal veterinary medicine to simultaneously earn a B.S. in agriculture and a
D.V.M.
<P>
The college's programs in public health continued to excel. Joan Gotthardt '95
became the second VMRCVM student to be named the nation's Outstanding Veterinary
Public Health Student by the national Conference for Public Health Veterinarians.
The college also formally established a World Health Organization Collaborating
Center for Veterinary Education in Management and Public Health.
<P>
At the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center, the Adelaide C. Riggs Chair in
Equine Medicine was endowed with a $1 million gift from Adelaide C. Riggs of
Woodbine, Md.; a $500,000 challenge gift was provided by Jean Ellen duPont
Shehan, niece of the late Marion duPont Scott, who helped found the center with a
$4 million gift 15 years ago.
<P>
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<BR>
As the first alumnus to guide the Hokies in over 40 years when he was named head coach in 1987,
Frank Beamer '69 has taken Virginia Tech football to new heights.<P>
(Click on the photograph to see a larger version.)
<HR>
<P><BR><center><H2></a><a NAME="stuaff"></a>Division of Student
Affairs</H2></center>
<P>
The Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets enhanced the leader development segment of its
program in 1994-95 by gaining university approval for a leadership minor unlike
any other in the nation, and for a companion Center for Leader Development.
<P>
The corps attracted highly qualified out-of-state students by establishing, in
conjunction with the university, the Emerging Leader Scholarship with $204,000
from university scholarship funds and $70,000 donated by Virginia Tech Corps of
Cadets Alumni Inc. (VTCCA). The VTCCA and Highty-Tighties alumni awarded another
$38,000 in scholarships to freshmen. These scholarships helped attract more
applicants, and by the end of 1994-95, it appeared that corps freshman enrollment
would increase about 80 percent from the previous year. Also, the Virginia
General Assembly approved a Unique Military Activities appropriation that will
help Tech pay for the extra expenses of running a military program.
<P>
In May, University Student Health Services received national accreditation from
the Accrediting Association for Ambulatory Health Care Inc. for meeting the
highest standards in primary medical care. Tech is one of only 50 student health
services in the country so certified.
<P>
The University Counseling Center staff saw about 2,000 students for personal,
career, and study skills counseling in 1994-95. Center staff members also
presented over 100 outreach programs to 4,200 members of the university
community.
<P>
Residential and Dining Programs housed 8,364 students (15th largest residence
program in the United States) and had approximately 12,000 students participating
in board plans (11th largest dining program in the United States). Four fitness
rooms were constructed in the residence halls, providing one such room to each
residential quad.
<P>
In May, the Residence Hall Federation hosted the annual conference of the
National Association of College and University Residence Halls, which brought
2,334 college student delegates to the Tech campus.
<P>
University Unions and Student Activities (UUSA) is nationally known for
excellence in its student union facilities. In 1994-95, 15,648 events were
scheduled, planned, or approved campuswide. Also in 1994-95, student programming
organizations produced 162 programs attended by more than 81,000 participants.
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2> <a NAME="enroll"></a>Enrollment Services</H2></center>
<P>
In 1994-95, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions joined several other offices
to conduct a number of programs designed to ensure the enrollment of specific
groups of students: cadets, honors-eligible students, out-of-state students, and
African-American students.
<P>
Early results indicated that these efforts were highly successful; for example,
as a result of increased direct mail communication with prospective students and
parents and new scholarship initiatives, interest in enrollment from prospective
students appeared to be outpacing previous years, particularly in the categories
of cadets, honors students, and African-Americans.
<P>
Scholarships and Financial Aid awarded approximately $100 million in scholarships
and financial aid during 1994-95. This money came through state and federal
loans, scholarships, and need-based aid of various types. Loans made up
approximately $50 million of that amount, representing an increase of about $10
million from the previous year.
<P>
Despite these large numbers, unmet needs of Virginia Tech students applying for
financial aid for 1994-95 totaled approximately $30 million. Need-based financial
aid has not kept pace with the escalating cost of tuition.
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a NAME="found"></a>Virginia Tech
Foundation</H2></center>
<P>
The Virginia Tech Foundation expanded support of the university to record levels
in 1994-95, providing $33.2 million for the university and its programs. Total
foundation income reached $56.2 million, also a record. The market value of the
university's endowment increased by $24 million during the year to stand at $189
million, which made it one of the top 30 public university endowments in the
nation.
<P>
Five years of cooperative partnership efforts among the foundation, the business
community, and the City of Roanoke culminated with the opening of the Hotel
Roanoke and Conference Center on April 3, 1995. The facility has 332 guest rooms
and a state-of-the-art conference center that will support the university's
public service and continuing education programs, and also strengthen Tech's
presence in the Roanoke Valley. The foundation owns the majority interest in
Hotel Roanoke in partnership with Renew Roanoke, a community-based foundation.
Doubletree Hotels operates the facility.
<P>
Also this year, the foundation provided a portion of the funding for the Horace
G. Fralin Biotechnology Center, which was nearly complete at the end of the year,
and for a new terminal at the Virginia Tech Airport, which serves the university
and the surrounding community.
<P>
During the year, the foundation conducted an asset allocation study of its
endowment, and increased its investment in venture capital and real estate. The
venture capital investment gave companies at the Virginia Tech Corporate Research
Center better access to early-stage venture capital; it also helped with the
commercialization of university-developed and -owned technology. The foundation
also purchased the National Weather Service building, which freed foundation debt
capacity for construction of a new building in the rapidly growing research park.
<P>
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<BR>
Annual giving to the university hit a 10-year high of $41.7 million in 1994-95.<P>
(Click on the photograph to see a larger version.)
<P> <HR> <BR><center><H2><a NAME="crc"></a>Corporate Research
Center</H2></center>
<P>
The Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center (CRC), which supports the research
and technology-transfer goals of the university, continued to grow in 1995 by
welcoming 14 new tenants. Fourteen other tenants expanded during the year.
<P>
A highlight of 1994-95 was the completion of Research Building VII in April 1995.
RB VII, which is actually the eighth building at the park, is a
40,000-square-foot multi-tenant office and laboratory facility. The building is
now almost completely occupied. Overall park capacity is now 226,000 square feet,
with an occupancy rate of 99 percent.
<P>
The CRC also strengthened its tenant financial support program. The First
National Bank, Triad Investors Corp., and the New England Enterprises Fund Inc.
moved into the park to offer a number of financial services for tenants.
<P>
The CRC now has 37 tenants employing more than 780 people. The 14 new tenants who
arrived during the year are the Center for Innovative Technology, Coatings
Innovation Group Inc., Comprehensive Computer Solutions, CropTech Development
Corp., First National Bank, G3 Systems Inc., Interactive Design and Development
Inc., Kollmorgen Virtual Motion Group, MapTech Inc., New Enterprises Fund Inc.,
NRVCOM Inc., Orca Computer Inc., Perspex Imageworks Inc., and Triad Investors
Corp.
<P>
The tenants that expanded their leased space are AeroSoft Inc., BizNet
Technologies Inc., the Center for Transportation Research, Durability Inc., ENSCI
Environmental Inc., INSMED Pharmaceuticals Inc., MapTech Inc., Polymer Solutions
Inc., PPL Therapeutics Inc., SPSi Inc., TechLab Inc., Virginia Power Technologies
Inc., VTLS Inc., and the Waste Policy Institute, Inc.
<P>
Another highlight of the year was the announcement of a new 32,000-square-foot
building for the Waste Policy Institute. The building will be finished in late
summer 1996.
<HR>
<P>
<A HREF="../presarchives/index.html"><B>President's Report Archives</B></A>
<P> <hr noshade> Virginia Tech does not discriminate against employees, students,
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age, veteran status, national origin, religion, or political affiliation. Anyone
having questions concerning discrimination or accessibility should contact the
Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Office: 540-231-7500 (voice), 540-231-9460
(TTY)
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