A Message from Amy Sebring

While this winter’s weather has created a flurry of snow, ice, and wind, I’ve been knee deep in another flurry of activity: Virginia’s General Assembly. The legislative session formally kicked off on January 14 and is scheduled to adjourn on March 14. Over those 60 days, legislators will consider almost 3,000 pieces of legislation – from the biennial state budget to a myriad of issues with direct or indirect impact on our university and community. It’s been a busy few months so far, but President Sands and I have been working with our Government & Community Relations team to make the rounds in Richmond advocating for the needs of Virginia Tech. While state resources may be constrained, we have received positive feedback and a strong recognition of the impact of Virginia Tech on the commonwealth. 

Speaking of impact, you may have seen the recent announcement of Virginia Tech’s economic impact on the local region, the commonwealth, and the nation. Numerous individuals across University Operations and beyond worked with an outside firm, Tripp Umbach, to provide and interpret financial, human resources, and student and alumni data that allowed Tripp Umbach to compute our impact on the local region and beyond. A few highlights from the report: Virginia Tech has a $6.4 billion annual impact on the U.S. economy, supporting nearly 50,000 jobs - $3.4 billion of that is felt by Virginians; with much of this amount impacting Blacksburg and the New River Valley.  

One of the primary reasons I was drawn to a career in higher education is the exponential impact we have on the world around us. I hope you also feel pride in knowing that your work is felt many times over and makes a real difference to others. I invite you to learn more about Virginia Tech’s economic impact by visiting the new economic impact website and reading the report. 

And about that snow…many thanks to our teams in Facilities, Public Safety, Auxiliary and Business Services, Students Affairs and others both here in Blacksburg and at our distributed sites across the commonwealth for your tireless efforts to clear the roads, salt the sidewalks, and keep the campus safe and warm through what seems like an endless series of snowstorms this winter. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for warmer days soon!