Sunlight on the majestic mountains
reveals the beauty of this place --where we came to learn, to grow.
We found our friends.
We found our home.
I chose Virginia Tech mostly for its community.
When I came here, I really got the sense of what being a Hokie was.
During class change time I saw that everyone really enjoyed being here and
I remember someone told me they had never met someone that had a bad thing to
say about Virginia Tech and I really wanted to be surrounded in that kind of
atmosphere and environment.
Classroom is one extremely important factor but you get so
much more on that campus than classroom education.
Being a Hokie is a way of life.
Standing up.
Stepping in.
Serving in the ways most meaningful to you, solving problems to help others,
leading as Hokies do.
Ut Prosim, that I may serve.
You can serve in many different ways and you can tell it when people do it because
they want to versus doing it because they have to and Hokies want to serve.
I think it's challenged me to be a better person and to help others.
Being here and getting a degree isn't just for myself but using that degree to help
others in whatever career that I choose to be in.
Just take a few minutes to look around.
There's a lot of change that's occurring and
a lot of challenges that we have in our country, in our companies.
And with the type of challenges that we have today,
we need the Hokies to help solve those problems.
They're built on good character.
They have the willingness to get results and the willingness to serve others.
That unique mix of characteristics put Hokies in a great position
to help solve the challenges going forward.
If companies want to be successful,
if leaders in communities want to be successful,
if our elected officials want to be successful,
they'll have Hokies on their teams and they'll have Hokies leading those efforts.
Carbon, we started in Research Triangle Park.
We moved to Silicon Valley.
Being in Silicon Valley must be what it was like to
be in Florence during the Renaissance.
I think there's an analogy here for
Tech to have a presence in northern Virginia and the D.C. area.
That's where a lot of things are going to happen, where global dialogue happens,
where global decisions are made.
It allows Virginia Tech to be center stage.
I came here to Roanoke and Virginia Tech eight years ago and the way we look
at the questions about how to improve health and the quality of life for
people is influenced by this interdisciplinary framework.
We are working actively with colleagues and patients across the United States and
in many other countries and this work is possible only because of the support and
engagement of faculty, students, alums,
and communities.
We boldly step in to confront the problems that intimidate others
with a confidence rooted in our common experiences and Hokie resolve.
LET'S GO, HOKIES!
This is our time.
As we launch Virginia Tech toward its highest aspirations, as we invest in our
faculty and students, each of us can make a truly, Boundless Impact.