In a career as a talent agent spanning more than 15 years, Rob Markus has represented clients like James Brown, Nine Inch Nails, Chris Cornell, and J Balvin, and booked sold-out shows in venues from Coachella and Lollapalooza to Madison Square Garden and the Hollywood Bowl.

However, his spring headliner at Burruss Hall as commencement speaker for the College of Architecture and Urban Studies counts as one of his favorite gigs. “It was one of the biggest honors of my life,” he said. “The School of Architecture + Design laid the foundation for pretty much everything I’ve done in my life. I found my passion in the music business, but I’m still an architect of sorts, helping build the careers of artists and growing festival brands.”

Tens of thousands of donors stepped forward to support programs throughout Virginia Tech in a year of unprecedented generosity.

A total of 36,286 individuals, corporations, and foundations gave to Virginia Tech during the fiscal year that ended June 30. The previous record for new gifts and commitments was $162.3 million in 2016-17.

Strong growth in Virginia Tech’s oldest living-learning community is a credit to the perseverance and generosity of alumni who, decades ago, recognized the tenuous position the corps was in and decided to do all they could to help.

As a special population with unique needs, veterans often struggle to connect with health care professionals, processes, and products in ways that result in adequate care.

With a grant from the National Institutes of Health, Virginia Tech faculty members are hoping to better recognize and resolve some of those unmet medical needs by changing the way designers and engineers are trained. In efforts led by faculty in the industrial design program and the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, students will soon be able to enroll in a course that combines the unique skillsets of both disciplines to identify health care needs of wounded veterans in clinical settings.

Since its dedication in 1994, the Research + Demonstration Facility (RDF) has been an integral part of academic and research programs in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies (CAUS). RDF is a living-learning laboratory, a dedicated space where CAUS students can gain practical, hands-on architecture, design, and construction experience alongside expert faculty and industry professionals.

The RDF is representative of a larger initiative designed to meld education and industry to deliver unmatched learning experiences for students—without ever leaving campus.

Meyha Swaroop, a third-year student at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, has received the Carolyn L. Kuckein Student Research Fellowship awarded by the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society to help support her research studying the outcomes of patients who undergo heart valve surgery.

Nearly 400 volunteers have signed up for Hokie Helpers to cover 591 work shifts. But another 129 shifts have yet to be filled, with the greatest need for volunteers on Wednesday afternoon, 1:30 to 5:30 p.m.; Thursday afternoon, 1:30 to 5:30 p.m.; and all shifts on Friday.

More than 20 incoming first-year Hokies were celebrated as a part of the chapter’s annual student send-off at Robious Landing Park in Midlothian, Virginia. He is also one of hundreds of incoming Hokies who will be welcomed in similar fashion by alumni chapters across the country, this summer. The Richmond Chapter is one of 40 Virginia Tech alumni chapters hosting student send-offs across the country this summer.

Whether you're coming back to campus for a game or looking for a group of Hokies to cheer with in your hometown, we've got you covered.

Join us for fun, food, drinks, and music before the Hokies take on Old Dominion. All are welcome!

Share career advice through Hokie Mentorship Connect. There are three different ways to participate.

Help your local chapter welcome the Class of 2019 to the Hokie alumni family!