A year’s worth of innovation and impact was honored during Virginia Tech’s second annual Research Excellence Awards on Oct. 3.
“You were all invited here today because you had exceptional years in your research, scholarship, and creative activities,” said Dan Sui, senior vice president and chief research and innovation officer, during his remarks. “We had a record year in 2023 with proposals and awards. Our faculty are increasingly pursuing larger and more significant awards, and with these exciting projects, you are creating broader impacts, improving people’s quality of life, and indeed making the world a better place for all.”
More than 70 faculty members were recognized during the event, including 20 who have earned either highly prestigious or prestigious awards. Others honored have earned maximum awards ranging from $3 million to $9 million, pursued proposals ranging from $8 million to $85 million, or have excelled in cultivating exceptionally creative work.
“We are committed to helping and supporting you to achieve those goals, and from time to time, we also pause to recognize and celebrate your milestones and accomplishments,” Sui said.
Other invited attendees included researchers who had won top-50 proposals or top 50-awards as well as other many award winners and deans and department heads.
The celebration came on the heels of the recent 2024 Times Higher Education World University Rankings, which illuminated research quality and industry impact as key components of Virginia Tech’s standing. Virginia Tech also tied for 17th among public Carnegie Class-Very High Research land-grant universities, which is one of the university’s key performance indicators in its pursuit of becoming a top 100 global university.
“The work you’re doing is being recognized beyond the university and indeed beyond the nation and it makes a difference,” said Cyril Clarke, executive vice president and provost. “It makes a difference because those accomplishments are built on impactful scholarship across the disciplinary domain.”
