-: For me, what defines the Virginia Tech experience.
I am gonna begin with when I came to Virginia Tech in 1995.
And I was coming from, my experiences had been predominately
with faith-based institutions.
Smaller institutions, institutions located in urban areas.
Coming to Virginia Tech was a completely new experience.
Didn't even know some of the things that were majors were
something you would major in like wood science you know.
Or the prevalence of the agricultural culture.
It's very different to me.
The size was also daunting as well.
But you know you learn it, you adapt it and I have come
to really enjoy being at research one university where it
feels like there are tremendous resources, that there
is so many exciting things that are going on.
That feels, and, and that I feel then that the work that
I'm doing is also important because it's a part
of work that's really changing the world.
They talk about higher education as the knowledge
industry and I feel that at Virginia Tech.
That I am at a place where new ideas are being created.
And I don't know that I would necessarily feel that way
at other institutions.
They would have other attributes that I may like but
that's what the Virginia Tech experience is for me.