Board approves university budget, discusses incremental enrollment growth, on-campus housing
The Virginia Tech Board of Visitors approved a $2.5 billion university budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year that runs July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026, at its quarterly meeting this week. The Education and General portion of the budget, which includes the University Division and Virginia Cooperative Extension, totals $1.2 billion for the upcoming fiscal year.
Next year’s budget will include an average 3 percent salary increase for teaching and research faculty, administrative and professional faculty, and university staff based on merit, and a 3 percent compensation program for classified staff, as required by state law.
Given the many significant contributions provided by graduate assistants in support of the university’s mission, the board approved the 2025-26 graduate assistant compensation plan that will increase their pay scale by 3 percent and will raise the minimum stipend to $2,800 per month. In addition, graduate assistants will continue to receive tuition remission; the university will increase its academic year stipend supplement to $565 – a $107 increase – to help mitigate university assigned costs; and the university will continue to pay 88 percent of the annual premium cost of the basic health insurance plan.
The board also approved a resolution to rename the university’s performing arts center on Alumni Mall to the Center for the Arts at Virginia Tech. The center was named in honor of renowned artist Patricia Buckley Moss shortly before it opened in 2013 in recognition of a $10 million, multiyear pledge toward construction of the facility. The university and the Moss family have developed a revised agreement that replaces the naming rights with a new tribute to the artist to honor her legacy and passion for the arts and education.
At Monday’s Academic, Research, and Student Affairs Committee meeting, Provost and Executive Vice President Cyril Clarke, and Juan Espinoza, vice president for enrollment management, outlined Virginia Tech’s plan for small, incremental growth of the undergraduate student population over the next four years. The university projects a fall 2025 enrollment of 31,661 and seeks to grow between 1 percent and 1.5 percent per year through 2029.
To provide context for how on-campus housing is integral to enrollment growth, board members toured five residence halls on Monday, gaining first-hand insight into the critical role on-campus housing plays in student success and the university’s mission.
Continuing the conversation, Amy Sebring, executive vice president and chief operating officer, led a joint session Tuesday of the Finance and Resource Management Committee and the Building and Grounds Committee focused on the maintenance, renovation, and construction of student housing. She presented key planning assumptions to ensure that on-campus housing can accommodate future enrollment while meeting the needs of specific student populations, including first-year students, the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets, and fraternity and sorority life. The housing strategy, still under development, includes a long-term renovation plan for facilities with deferred maintenance as well as the construction of new housing to enhance flexibility and support strategic growth.
The Academic, Research, and Student Affairs Committee also heard updates on the creation and launch of the university’s new Institute for Advanced Computing in Alexandria and the university’s Expand Appalachia CORE-CM, a project led by Richard Bishop, professor of practice in the Department of Mining and Minerals Engineering, that will be funded through a $7.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy.
The board received a report from Sharon Pitt, vice president for information technology and chief information officer, on the university’s information technology strategic plan. The plan was developed with faculty, student, and staff engagement and accelerates Virginia Tech’s information technology modernization efforts. The plan establishes goals and strategies to enable teaching, research, outreach, and operations with the support of technology. It is a living plan that provides the basis for regular assessment and adjustment of priorities. Additional information is available online.
The board also approved faculty promotion, tenure, and continued appointments for 2025. The complete list is published on the Virginia Tech News website.
In his report to the board, Virginia Tech President Tim Sands praised Clarke for his leadership and profound impact on the university during his eight years in that role. Clarke announced in May that he plans to step down from his position and return to the faculty at the end of this calendar year. Sands also highlighted Virginia Tech earning the No. 73 spot on the National Academy of Inventors’ 2024 Top 100 Worldwide Universities List and ranking No. 45 on the 2024 Top 100 U.S. Universities List.
The board approved the appointment of four faculty members to endowed chairs or fellowships, and eight individuals were honored with emerita or emeritus status. Stories on each recipient will be published on the Virginia Tech News website.
Rector Ed Baine, Sands, and other board members thanked current board members Anna James and Letitia A. Long for their many contributions to the university as they conclude their current four-year terms on June 30. Each served two consecutive four-year terms. Don Horsley, who completed his second, one-year term on the board in his role as president of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, also was thanked for his service.
Undergraduate student representative Leslie Orellana and graduate and professional student representative William Poland, who will conclude their one-year terms on June 30, were also recognized for their service.
Thomas Feely, a senior majoring in construction engineering and management in the Myers-Lawson School of Construction, and Katherine “Katie” Drinkwater, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Engineering Education, will serve as undergraduate and graduate/professional student representatives for the 2025-26 academic year.
Board members also acknowledged the contributions of faculty representative Rachel Miles, research impact librarian in University Libraries; administrative and professional faculty representative Janice Austin, assistant dean and director of admissions and academic progress in the Graduate School; and staff representative LaTawnya Burleson, executive assistant to the vice president for information technology, all of whom will also conclude their one-year terms on June 30.
Effective July 1, Justin Lemkul, associate professor in biochemistry, will become the board’s faculty representative and Marlena Lester, director of advising for the College of Engineering, will become the administrative and professional faculty representative.
The board announced its rector and vice rector for the 2025-26 academic year. Effective July 1, John Rocovich will serve as rector and Sandy Davis will serve as vice rector. President Sands thanked outgoing Rector Ed Baine and Vice Rector David Calhoun for their service in those roles.
The next scheduled meeting of the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors will be held Aug. 18-20 in Blacksburg. More information on the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors may be found online.
